Advancing Member focused change

Hockey Regina is targeting this metric specifically in this budget attempting to drive positive change to both the value members feel is received from their experience and relief opportunities from the cost pressures while mitigating increasing costs.

This past year, 2024-2025, was a year of transition, understanding, and rebuilding; with 7 of 12 new Board members and 2 positions turned over in the office, the Board and office took an approach to understand the current state of operating hockey in our community, listening to membership, stakeholders and partners, and assessing the current state of administration both in hockey operations and organizational governance. 

From here, great investment from the foundation up began. This began at the most fundamental level in the re-writing of the organizations Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws (subject to membership approval).  That work is now reviewing and updating the organizations regulations and policies.  Work also commenced in the fall to assess the organizations suite of technology that facilitates the website, membership registration, officials assigning, scheduling, tournaments and more.  This assessment was conducted with the objectives of integration, improved efficiency and effectiveness of process and improved member experience.  This led the organization to a partnership with TeamLinkt and a full technology transition aimed to be fully implemented for the upcoming 2025-26 season. 

Externally, ice costs make up 41% of Hockey Regina’s total operating expenses and will be increasing by 3% for the 2025-2026 season, an all-else equal impact of approximately $60,000 overall.  Also externally, Hockey Canada has made significant increases to the per participant fee assessed to all players and team officials.  The full fee will increase by $13/participant or approximately $42,000 overall and $18/player.  Finally, in an exercise to audit and affirm the organizations existing budgeting practices, review and updates were made to bring equity between female and co-ed programming in ice allocations and funded equipment.  It was also identified that there was a need to right size player fee costs across all tiers and age divisions to eliminate any one tier from being inadvertently subsidized by other tiers.  

While the external pressures on the organization and internal rightsizing creates challenges, the organization has made significant investments in governance, technology and resourcing to position itself to bring increased value to membership while growing alternate revenues in the future and instilling prudent fiscal management practices moving forward.  While Hockey Regina was able to reduce overall HRI Registration fee collection, just over half of Hockey Regina membership will experience an increase in HRI Registration fees due to a right sizing of player fees, ensuring that the costs paid for the HRI Registration fee is representative of the division and tier being played.  Ensuring this financial prudence will equate to just under half of Hockey Regina membership experiencing HRI Registration fees being held consistent or decreased from current 2024-2025 HRI Registration fees.

In that, the 2025-2026 budget has been built to advance member focused change.

Advancing Member Focused Change

Increasing Value with Development: Coaches, Players and Officials

• The prior budgets for Clinics & Coach Mentorship were a combined $141,000.  With a budget of $90,000 the organization will revamp the Clinics & Development budget to include development initiatives for coaches (including mentorship), players (including mental health and goalie development) and officials.
• To further support development, primarily player but also coach, the Board has approved new tiering which will drive increased development in more aligned skill sets per tier, consequently also increasing competition in all tiers.  New tiers will include U9D, U11D and U15C.
• As both a cost saving metric and with a development focus.  Hockey Regina will bring in house the previously contracted service of U9 and U11 pre-evaluation skates.  Saving an estimated $10,000 and providing Hockey Regina the opportunity to assess session design and execution for optimal development and support of these age groups evaluation sessions.

Easing Economic Pressures with a Membership Affordability Program

• The organization currently offers the Bingo program to membership as an opportunity to rebate fees.  This program will be rolled into a suite of affordability options, providing membership with the opportunity to access an additional $120,000 of organization expenses as fee rebates.  The program will include:
  • Bingo program
  • Timekeeping (U11-U18)
  • Tournament support
  • Evaluation support
  • Other ad-hoc support

Investing in Growth to Grow the Game

• Recognizing the barriers to entry into hockey, the Board’s approval of additional tiering will not only positively support development but will most fundamentally support growing the game and providing older access points to the game.  New tiers include U9D, U11D, and U15C.
• Through the use of restricted funds, Hockey Regina will host on and off ice try hockey days to introduce the game to new potential participants. 
• To reduce economic barriers to hockey, via the use of restricted funds, Hockey Regina has applied to partner with Bauer and the First Shift program to offer 6 weeks of on ice, full equipment programming to those new to hockey.
• While action planning is yet to be completed from the Female Hockey Growth & Development Committee, a focus will most certainly be on growing the female stream of hockey in Hockey Regina.

Resourcing and Process Design to Enhance Member Experience

• The organization has completed an organizational design assessment of structure and is reallocating the deployment of resources to increase the integration of administration in equipment, assigning, technology, and affordability programs.  These changes will support the organization to fully leverage opportunities that will be created via the ongoing technology transition, increase availability of Hockey Regina staff on site during programming and events and continue to further advance digital engagement supporting member experience and sponsorship opportunities.  This re-alignment will be completed with existing financial resources.

Investing for Future Revenue Opportunities

• With an updated organizational structure and skill sets, the organization will look to diversify and grow revenues outside of registration for future years, easing the burden of uncontrollable price increases.
• Revenue growth opportunities most immediately exist in sponsorship, league administration with associate growth, tournaments, and off-season development.
  • In spring 2025 the Board of Directors voted in support of a shift in tournament management with Hockey Regina taking ownership of Hockey Regina tournaments and acquiring the full management. This model creates financial prudence, vendor management opportunities, opens tournament support opportunities to all membership for fee rebate opportunities, continues to provide participating teams fundraising opportunities in a 10% tournament fee and 50/50 fundraising, while reinvesting overall tournament revenues equitably to all membership.
  • This model shift will also allow for the further expansion of tournaments as a new revenue source.  Most immediately Hockey Regina has applied for ice to pilot expanding both Westridge Female Challenges, as well as the U15A, U13A and U11B tournaments, with the introduction of a new U15 and U18 noncontact tournament.  This will not only create additional fee revenue but allow Hockey Regina to explore increased sponsorship as well.
• On a longer time horizon to grow revenue and support growth of the game, opportunity exists for Hockey Regina to explore expanding programming to encompass the U5 age group.  This programming avenue will take consultation with community associations currently providing programming in this space with assessment of partnership, competition or amalgamation options.

2025 Evaluations Budget

While negotiations continue with vendors, the budget for Hockey Regina Evaluations, which is self funded, as the revenues drawn from the Hockey Regina Evaluations & Administration fees exclusively fund the cost of registration administration, evaluations and team placement including ice, vendors (evaluators & on ice instructors), and related software.  This year Hockey Regina will depart from the historical model and will work with multiple contractors to provide evaluation services, including a technology partner to improve administration, member feedback and overall process.  In supporting these enhancements to the evaluation process as well as mitigating inflationary costs, Hockey Regina will overall collect the same amount of Evaluation & Administration revenue at $299,000 within the same budget from 2024 of $300,000; though this will result in a $15/player cost increase due to a forecasted decrease in registration in the 2025-2026 season.

Hockey regina 2025-2026 fees & budget

Hockey Fees by Stream, Division & Tier
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**U7 and U9 fees include Coed and Female

Hockey Fee Descriptions

There are three fees paid for participation in Hockey Regina.  These are payable at two points in the year, the first being upon initial registration, between June 2 and August 27 and the second upon placement to a team, in September or October depending on the age division and tier.  Most simplistically this is because fees will vary depending on the tier a player plays and teams individually manage a portion of hockey fees to facilitate team specific activities.  

The fees payable includes an HRI registration fee, an evaluation & administration fee, and team fees.

HRI Registration Fee

Covers the costs to facilitate hockey in the division and tier your player plays – HRI registration fees are a cost recovery model.  These fees include the costs for practice ice, game ice, timekeepers, officials, playoff games, insurance, league fees, jerseys, socks.  Also included are administration expenses and development costs.
​​​​​​​**Note that in Coed U15AA, U16AA & U18AA fees do not include that for referees.
**Note that HRI Registration fees are paid to Hockey Regina.  The majority of these fees are paid upon initial registration and the remainder are paid to the team your player is placed on and remitted to Hockey Regina via your team Manager/Treasurer.

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Fixed Hockey Costs: These costs include items such as the Hockey Canada & Hockey Saskatchewan per participant fees, insurance, league fees, jersey costs, sock costs, pant shell cost (where applicable).
Administration: These costs include items such as salaries & benefits, hockey operations contracts, office administration & software, advertising & promotion, awards, etc. and are offset by non fee revenues such as sponsorship, interest income, associate revenues etc.

Evaluation & Administration Fee        

Costs for administration and facilitation of registration, evaluations and team placement; including ice, vendors (evaluators, instructors) and software.
**Note these fees are paid in full at time of registration to Hockey Regina, they are non-refundable and cannot be paid via third party funding.

Team Fees

Collected and managed by teams; these fees cover additional team specific costs such as exhibition games, additional practice ice, tournaments, clothing, team pictures, team building etc.
**Hockey Regina sets a maximum amount teams may collect from families. Note that costs for team clothing and pictures are optional for families.

2025-2026 Hockey Regina Operating Budget
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2025-2026 Hockey Regina Restricted Funds Budget
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