With the start of each hockey season brings with it the annual PHPA Fall Enrollment Tour, where PHPA staff visit with each of the 58 teams and over 1,500 players which comprise the PHPA Membership for an hour long meeting, helping educate players on their rights as a professional hockey player.

During each team presentation, players are given a brief history and overview of the PHPA, an in-depth analysis of the health benefits program afforded to PHPA Members and their families, introduced to the variety of programs offered through their Association, and delve into topics which impact players across the sport.  

The first leg of the tour includes visits with 15 teams in a span of 10 days before embarking a few days later for the next swing.  The process continues until PHPA staff has met with the players from every American Hockey League (AHL) and ECHL team, which typically takes 7 – 8 weeks to complete.

“It’s tiring, but an essential component of what we do,” said PHPA Executive Director, Larry Landon.  “You can’t beat face-to-face interaction with players.  It allows us to keep our finger on the pulse of their thoughts and concerns, while bringing players up to speed on all aspects of the PHPA and their respective Collective Bargaining Agreement.”

During each team meeting, players are introduced to various programs offered through their Association such as the Membership Assistance Program (Redline) which provides counseling for players dealing with off-ice issues and other personal matters, a Career Enhancement Program for players who desire to continue their education while playing, the Group Licensing Authorization program which protects player likeness rights, an outline of the Association’s marketing partnerships, any PHPA business initiatives, and an in-depth look into items contained within each League’s Collective Bargaining Agreement.

This season, players will be given a walk-through of the new PHPA Players mobile app which was launched during the off-season, providing an enhanced means for the PHPA to communicate with players.  A Social Media Handbook has also been designed by the PHPA and will be presented to help educate players about social media etiquette, along with guidelines to help players build their personal brand through Twitter and Facebook.

In addition, with the current AHL-PHPA CBA set to expire after this season, discussion will focus on the items that matter most to the players, and what they would like to see in a successor agreement.

ECHL players will receive a thorough review of the current ECHL-PHPA CBA which will be especially important for players new to the League.

“Players need to be aware of what their Association does for them, and know that they have a very experienced and dedicated staff at their disposal,” added Landon.  “We educate and inform our Members about what their union does for them, so when they eventually reach the NHL (nearly 90% of current NHL players were at one time PHPA Members), they are fully acclimated to a unionized environment.”