League ratings & team cap

No. Ratings are not set in stone. Every rating is League management's best judgment from what's known about a player, and any rating can change:

• Provisional ratings are a starting point. A new player usually starts at the minimum for the division they're joining, but management may assign a higher or lower rating based on their experience or how they play.
• Appeals. A rating can go up or down after an appeal is reviewed.
• Other circumstances. Management can adjust a rating when it clearly doesn't fit, for example a player playing well above or below it, new information about their experience, or a mistake in the database.
• Every season. All ratings are reviewed after each season, and the new ones are posted before the next season starts.

A rating on this site is the rating today. Check back before your team registers.

Ratings were decided by Ballhockey.com management alongside other trusted opinions, based on league play. Management looks at league history, points per game, the division those points came in, defensive and positional impact, and outside hockey experience. See How the ratings work for the full method.

No. A 3 is the typical league player, and most players in the league sit at or around a 3. The scale runs from 1 (new to the sport) to 7 (the very best in the league).

Goalies are rated separately from forwards and defense. A player who has played both in net and out appears once for each position, marked with a G for the goalie rating.

Yes. A player rated 5 in the men's league is rated 5 in co-ed. On any team with a cap, that rating counts toward the team's cap.

Yes, it can. Most ratings stay the same once the roster deadline passes, but they aren't fixed: a rating can still change after an appeal, when a provisional rating is replaced, or when League management finds a rating clearly doesn't fit. All ratings are also reviewed after each season, and the new ones are posted before the next season starts. See Are ratings final?

Send a review request through Appeal a rating before your team's registration deadline. League management reviews it, and you'll get an email with the decision and the reason.

Yes. Fall/Winter 2026 is the first season played under the cap system, so the caps were set on the generous side to give teams and players time to adjust.

For Spring 2027, expect tighter caps. A full season under the system shows how teams are actually built in each division, and data from nearly 4,000 games across the last 8 seasons, along with the math behind each cap (see How the ratings work), shows where each cap needs to sit. Ratings and caps will be set this way from now on, with one goal: even, competitive games in every division.

No. Your rating never stops you from moving up. Any player can play in any division above them, and have no individual ceiling at all. A higher-rated player just takes up more of the team's cap.

Only the individual ceiling. It's the highest rating a player can hold and still play in that division:

have no ceiling.

The roster won't be approved until it fits. In the Roster builder, the Get under the cap panel shows who to drop or swap, and the fit panel shows the lowest division your roster already qualifies for.

Only if needed. A team whose average rating is above its division's threshold is flagged for review and may be moved up, but it isn't moved automatically.

Co-ed rosters also need at least 4 women.

No. The Women's division has no team cap and no ceiling, so every woman can play regardless of rating. If a woman also plays on a Men's or Co-ed team, she has to meet that division's ceiling, and her rating counts toward the team's cap wherever there is one, like anyone else's.

If you're not on the list yet, that's fine. When you register, you get a provisional rating. It's usually the minimum for the division you're joining, , but League management may set it higher or lower based on your experience. You can also request to be added to the database.

Yes. A provisional rating is a starting point, not a final rating. After one season it's replaced with a full rating, which may be higher or lower. League management can also adjust it mid-season if a player is clearly playing well above or below it. If a new player registers on a team in a higher division too, their rating rises to that division's minimum on every team they're on, and it doesn't come back down that season.

No. Each player has one rating league-wide. Your full rating counts toward the cap on every team you're registered on, in any division, with no discount for playing in a higher one.

No, the cap applies to your registered roster. A spare's rating must still be at or below the ceiling of the division they're sparing in. Use the Spare checker tab to see where any player can spare.