Shoulder pads

by **mholtz** on Mon Apr 02, 2007 8:26 am

Hello Everyone,

What are the rules regarding shoulder pad dimensions? In a recent game I was told by an official that shoulder pads had to crest over the shoulder down onto the upper arm.

I read the rule book and it says:

"All players except the designated goalkeeper shall wear shoulder pads and arm pads."

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by **Sonny** on Mon Apr 02, 2007 8:29 am

I would refer this question to your conference assignor for a national rules interpretation which will come eventually to Walt Munze in NY.

by **laxative** on Mon Apr 02, 2007 10:11 am

These are my favorite pads. I don't think they are legal according to that particular referees definition, but I have worn them for over 10 seasons.

They are really comfortable, but maybe part of the reason I am sitting out the season with a torn labrum in my shoulder. :cry:

by **LaxRef** on Mon Apr 02, 2007 11:43 am

The rules do us no favor here, as they define neither shoulder pads nor arm pads. This is a common point of debate; I've tried to get it clarified in the NFHS and NCAA rulebooks, but so far have not had success.

I'll never forget my first season as a college official, in what I believe was my first college game. I did a check at the end of the first period and tapped the guys shoulder (this was back when we checked all equipment and not just the stick). Nothing there. I bring the guy out to the referee. He's wearing something over his shoulder, but the pads are on the upper chest. The player kept saying, "I'm wearing shoulder pads," and the referee kept saying, "There has to be a pad on the shoulder" and flagged him 1:00 NR. That's the definition I've used ever since.

Also at issue is the whole "Can you remove the parts attached with velcro or is that altering the shoulder pads?" debate.

by **cjwilhelmi** on Mon Apr 02, 2007 11:48 am

LaxRef wrote:
Also at issue is the whole "Can you remove the parts attached with velcro or is that altering the shoulder pads?" debate.

I had it explained to me by a ref, and honestly I cannot remember who it was so if I'm wrong lets just blame Sonny :shock:

, but if it has velcro or strings or anything removable then that part can be removed and the pad still be legal. I was told that cutting (etc.) any part is considered illegal. However, as an official how can you tell taht a pad has been cut or if it was simply velcro removed through a jersey?

by **cjwilhelmi** on Mon Apr 02, 2007 11:54 am

Laxref, here is a question for you...

Is there any firm definition in the rule book that says that elbow pads must actually cover the elbow or that they just must be worn? I was talking to a buddy the other day who wore his elbow pads high when he played in college and had a ref tell him that they must be centered over the elbow. I remember looking in the rule book a while ago for something covering this and couldn't find anything except that elbow pads must be worn. Is there any rule that states how the pad must be worn or in what placement?

by **laxfan25** on Mon Apr 02, 2007 12:12 pm

As mholtz quotes from the rulebook, the rules say nothing about the size, construction or coverage of shoulder pads, and there is no mention of elbow pads - just arm pads - and it does not specify how large they need to be or where on the arm they need to be placed.
So there is a lot of gray area there, and you may hear different refs give different interpretations of these vagaries in the rules, but that does not mean they are correct.
For myself, when I need to check other equipment besides sticks (which is rare now in the NCAA book) I just want to feel some type of pad on the shoulder. I don't know of any ref that actually looks under the shirt to see if there may have been a velcro addition at one time. (I used to use the same pad that laxative has pictured).
In a game the other day a D-man had elbow pads that were about three inches wide and wrapped around the elbow with velcro. I'd never seen pads that small, but they looked like they would be effective at absorbing blows to the elbow/funny bone).
IMM, the coach certifies his guys are all equipped - I personally don't feel a lot of stress about my personal liability out there (except for the errant shot from the far side of the crease that went whistling past my head the other day. I have a feeling my eyes got as big as saucers as I saw it heading towards me at a high rate of speed! :lol:

)

by **mholtz** on Mon Apr 02, 2007 12:50 pm

laxfan25 wrote:In a game the other day a D-man had elbow pads that were about three inches wide and wrapped around the elbow with velcro. I'd never seen pads that small, but they looked like they would be effective at absorbing blows to the elbow/funny bone).

you are probably refering to these:
http://www.laxshopper.com/equipment/men ... ArmPad.jpg

Funny thing is, that's what this kid was wearing.

by **Beta** on Mon Apr 02, 2007 1:04 pm

Mmm, summer league arm pads, or lackthereof

by **LaxRef** on Mon Apr 02, 2007 4:06 pm

cjwilhelmi wrote:
LaxRef wrote:
Also at issue is the whole "Can you remove the parts attached with velcro or is that altering the shoulder pads?" debate.

I had it explained to me by a ref, and honestly I cannot remember who it was so if I'm wrong lets just blame Sonny , but if it has velcro or strings or anything removable then that part can be removed and the pad still be legal. I was told that cutting (etc.) any part is considered illegal. However, as an official how can you tell taht a pad has been cut or if it was simply velcro removed through a jersey?

That was that official's interpretation. It is not a rule.

I agree with LF25: the coach certifies, and as long as there's a pad there when I check—and I only check under NCAA rules when there's a coach request of if it's obvious the guy is not wearing pads—I'm digging around in his sweaty jersey.

Then only time I've seen altered shoulder pads is when I flagged the kid for not having a pad on the shoulder and he took off his jersey to show me he had pads, at which point it was obvious that he'd cut the pads off.

Same with arm pads: if you have a pad on the arm, I'm not going to tell you where you need to wear it or how big it needs to be. I wish the rules committees would clarify this issue as well.

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