Developed April 15, 2014
CONSTITUTION
1. The North East Recreation Hockey League (NERHL) shall operate as an affiliate of the
Peace River District Minor Hockey Association.
2. The objectives of the North East Recreation Hockey League are:
a. To promote, govern, and improve organized recreational minor hockey
b. To foster among its members, supporters and teams, a general community spirit;
c. To maintain and increase the interest in the game of hockey at all levels
d. To have and exercise a general care, supervision and direction over the playing
interests of its teams and players;
e. To allow the children within the Peace River District Minor Hockey Association an
opportunity to play and enjoy hockey
3. The constitution shall not be altered except at the Annual General Meeting of the Peace
River District Minor Hockey Association; all proposed constitutional changes must be
submitted to the President in writing prior to the Annual General Meeting.
4. The North East Recreation Hockey League shall consist of one (1) voting member from each
minor hockey association within its jurisdiction. Members shall represent all of their levels
participating in the North East Recreation Hockey League. It is expected that those
members shall represent their association for the entire season and be responsible for
reporting back to their respective associations.
5. Each minor hockey association will have one (1) vote on league matters.
6. There shall be a minimum of three meetings (the scheduling meeting shall count for one of
these meetings) throughout the season. These meetings will run in conjunction with the
Peace River District Minor Hockey Association’s meetings.
7. The Board of Governors shall be comprised of three members from the Peace River District,
the Peace River District Minor Hockey Association President and Vice President for a total
of five (5) members. Each Association will assume either a Commissioner or Statistician
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North East Recreation Hockey League Constitution and Rules Rev. 2014
position each year and these will rotate on an annual basis.
8. DUTIES OF THE COMMISSIONER (LEAGUE AND DIVISION)-They shall include
but not be limited to:
a. Review and rule all game sheets and track all major, match, gross and misconduct
penalties
b. Abide by the rules of the North East Recreation Hockey League and the rules of BC
Hockey and Hockey Canada in special circumstances
c. Inform the President of the North East Recreation Hockey League and Peace River
District Hockey Association of any suspensions that are required to be handed out
(President will hand out suspensions) and at what level
d. Act as a first line arbitrator in resolving conflicts between teams on possible game
forfeitures
e. Enter in any game changes onto the website as required
9. DUTIES OF THE STATISTICIAN – The shall include but are not limited to:
a. Provide contact information for team reps to email or send score sheets
b. Enter the scores for each game into the web site
10. A bond of $1000.00 will be paid by each minor hockey association in the district for
participation in the NERHL; this bond will be forfeited if an association is in violation of the
NERHL rules or constitution (for example, poor sportsmanship, inadequate officiating,
cancellations/forfeitures, etc.); this will be voted on by the NERHL League Commissioner
and Board of Governors
11. An annual fee will be charged to each minor hockey association participating in the NERHL
to cover the costs of championship banners
12. The Board of Governors will be rotated every three (3) years and the President of the
NERHL will be given the title of League Commissioner and will be elected annually at the
PRDMHA AGM from member MHA’s
13. Rules and regulations will be listed separately from this Constitution in a Handbook to be
distributed to all minor hockey association reps, Presidents and coaches
14. RULES COMMITTEE – A Rules Committee will meet annually (upon necessity)
consisting of the NERHL League Commissioner, PRDMHA President, Vice President and
Board of Governors. This committee will act as an appeals board for rulings taken by the
league Commissioners, in fulfilling their responsibilities as described in the Constitution. If a
member of the Rules Committee is unable to assist because of absence or conflict of interest,
add the corresponding number of Commissioners, which were not part of the original ruling
to this committee.
15. All appeals to Division Commissioner’s rulings shall be initiated in writing, addressed to the
League Commissioner, and filed within seven (7) days of the date of the decision or ruling
being appealed.
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16. The appellant shall be required to pay the NERHL a fee of $300.00, which must accompany
the written appeal. Said fee will be refunded if the appeal is successful.
RULES
1. Associations will provide a preliminary list of teams and the levels that they request to be
placed in one week after the Kick Off meeting and a final list at the Annual Meeting in the
spring
a. Team placement, division splits and length of schedule will be determined at the
Scheduling Meeting
b. For the scheduling meeting, each team must bring 30% more ice slots than they need.
Each team must have their own set of ice and their own scheduler.
c. All divisions in the NERHL will be tiered based on team parity. Team parity will be
defined, discussed, and agreed upon by all Associations at the AGM. Team statistics
from the most current two (2) years will be used to help decide the parity of teams.
IF possible Atom and Pee Wee level travel considerations will also be factored into
the tiering process – however, parity will still be maintained.
2. The NERHL play will begin the first (1) week of November and include eight to twenty five
(8-25) league games with a ten (10) day Christmas break. Within the league there will be two
tiers if necessary for parity’s sake.
3. Playoffs will be voted on each year at the Scheduling Meeting with a majority 2/3 votes being
the deciding factor.
a. If the decision is to have no playoffs – league winners will be decided on points
b. If the decision is to have playoffs, the playoff structure may be as follows or played
tournament style:
All series to be two games total points
In Divisions With
3 teams
4 teams
5 teams
6 teams
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Series
Round 1 – two weeks
Round 2 – one week
1
Top team has a bye
Top team plays winner
nd
rd
2
2 plays 3
1
1st plays 4th
Winner of 1 plays winner of 2
nd
rd
2
2 plays 3
Bottom team is dropped, revert to a 4 team playoff
Top 3 teams become A division, revert to a 3 team playoff
Bottom 3 teams become the B division, revert to a 3 team playoff
North East Recreation Hockey League Constitution and Rules Rev. 2014
7 teams
8 teams
9 teams
10 teams
Top 4 teams become the A division, revert to a 4 team playoff
Bottom 3 teams become B division, revert to a 3 team playoff
Top 4 teams become the A division, revert to a 4 team playoff
Bottom 4 teams become the B division, revert to a 4 team playoff
Bottom team is dropped, revert to an 8 team playoff
Bottom 2 teams are dropped, revert to an 8 team playoff
4. Rule 14 (a-o) will be put into effect so that forfeits and fines can be enforced for all playoff
games. It is recommended that if playoffs are agreed to, that the following rules be
considered as options to assist with the completion of playoffs and the fairness in which
teams are tiered.
5. There will be forced movement UP ONLY for playoffs, only if there is a concern and then
at the discretion of the members of the league via email vote. If the team’s COACH requests
the move then it will be considered. All coaches MUST BE PART OF THIS
DECISION MAKING PROCESS. If a team is moved up, they will be placed at the
bottom of the tier they are moving into.
6. Playoff game scheduling – a minimum of 2 game slots need to be offered by the team with
the venue to get playoffs started.
7. Notification of each playoff game must be given seventy-two (72) hours prior to the game.
8. All playoff series dates and locations must be agreed to by both teams, with a signed playoff
agreement sent to the Commissioner prior to the game being played.
9. The NERHL’s Rules Committee will be given the right to extend playoff series only
specifically because of Arctic Winter Games situations.
10. Wherever possible, a three-man referee system should be used for playoff games.
11. The team not available will forfeit playoff games not scheduled due to tournaments; forfeit
rules will apply.
12. Formula to break a tie in the League standings:
a. Who won the most games in the match ups between the two tied teams during the
season?
b. In the event of a tie as per (a) who has the highest goals “for” in the match ups
between the two tied teams during the season?
c. If still tied after (a) and (b) who has the highest total wins throughout the entire
season against everyone in the division during league play?
d. If still tied after (a), (b), and (c), take the total number of goals “for” divided by the
total number of goals “for” and “against” in league play.
e. Straight up record versus team in highest standing not involving teams tied; the team
with the best record receives higher standing in the League play. If still tied proceed
to next team in the standings and so forth to the last place team
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f. Same as (e) except uses goals for and against instead of wins.
13. Formula for playoff overtime ties:
a. If series is best of 3, sudden death overtime will decide the result of all games; 10
minute sudden death overtime – then move to rule 12 (d) to finish the game
b. If series is a 2 game total goal, overtime is not played to decide the first games
c. If the series is a 2 game total goal series, and the teams are tied after regulation time
has expired in game 2, a ten (10) minute sudden death overtime will decide the series;
PLEASE BE AWARE that this rule may need to apply even though the second game
is not a tie (i.e. Blue defeats Red 6-4 in the first game, Red defeats Blue 6-4 in the
second game – now a 10 minute sudden death overtime will decide the series
d. If the series is still tied, a shoot out will decide the series. Start with 5 shooters on
each team; the team scoring the most goals wins. If still tied after 5 shooters, sudden
death shoot-out will take place with 1 shooter per team until tie is broken. NOTE:
Same player cannot take part in shoot-out until the entire roster has been used,
except for goaltenders; they can be switched at any time during shoot-out.
14. Mercy Rule – For playoffs there will be an automatic 10-goal mercy rule, which states that if
the first game has a 10-goal difference, the second game does not have to be played if both
coaches agree.
15. All teams must be registered with BC Hockey and their association must be in good standing.
16. All overage (OA), underage (UA), player relief (PR) and affiliated players (AP) must be
registered correctly and approved by BC Hockey or they will not be permitted to play.
17. Players will special circumstances (handicaps, small for age, medical problems, very weak
skills) should register with the proper category of play. However, players may be allowed to
participate in a lower level IF all of the BC Hockey rules and guidelines for overage
movement are followed and approved by the BC Hockey Rep and the President of the
PRDMHA/NERHL. This individual must NOT be in the top half of the players in the
lower level.
18. Anyone moving into the area can be registered in the league as long as they meet all BC
Hockey registration deadlines. A new updated HCR roster must be forwarded to the
Commissioner of that division if this player is added to the roster. There is a reminder that
once carded, affiliated players who play 10 games with a higher level team are not eligible to
be part of the recreation team roster as per BC Hockey rules (this includes tournaments and
any BC Hockey sanctioned event).
19. Before league play begins, all HCR rosters must be sent to the division Commissioner for
each division. The rosters must be HCR APPROVED rosters BEFORE the first league
game. The Division Commissioner will send them to the League Commissioner for final
approval.
20. ROSTERS: Must include:
a. Team player and personnel legal names
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North East Recreation Hockey League Constitution and Rules Rev. 2014
b. Show qualifications of coaches, managers, trainers, etc. – this must include Respect in
Sport for Leaders; personnel without RIS Leaders are NOT allowed on the bench as
per BC Hockey rules; coaches qualifications may show up as “certified” or
“qualified” either one is acceptable
c. Players dates of birth, BC Hockey numbers and HCR status
d. Identification of affiliated (AP), overage (OA), underage (UA) and player relief (PR)
on the HCR roster; these must be approved by the BC Hockey Rep and the
PRDMHA/NERHL President
e. If team to team affiliation is used, then the lower team HCR roster must accompany
the registered team (i.e. PW to Bantam affiliation – PW roster must accompany
Bantam roster to Commissioner)
21. Any association that loses their bond must replace it within one week (7 days) or their
association will be suspended from league play until it is replenished.
22. All bonds and annual fees must be paid prior to the commencement of league play.
23. All Commissioner, Statistician and Board of Governor positions are volunteer positions, and
no honorariums will be paid.
24. GAME DURATION: There will be no overtime during regular season games. Ice slots for
each division and game play will be as follows
a. ATOM – 1.5 hrs. – Period 1 – run time; Period 2 – run time; FLOOD, Period 3 –
stop time (if there is a 5 goal or greater difference, run time will be played until the
score is within 4 or fewer goals in the third period)
b. PEE WEE – 1.75 hrs. – Period 1 – run time; Period 2 – stop time; FLOOD, Period
3- stop time (5 goal differential rule above also applies to stop time periods)
c. BANTAM, FEMALE and MIDGET – 2 hrs. – Period 1 stop time, Period 2 stop
time; FLOOD at 10 Minutes of second period; Period 2 – stop time (5 goal
differential rule above also applies to stop time periods)
25. League games must use certified officials. All games shall have two (2) officials (3 are
recommended for Bantam and Midget). All referees must be from a higher division age
group than the one that is playing. The home team shall provide the referees and fines or
bond forfeitures will apply to teams supplying inadequate or unqualified referees.
26. SCORE SHEETS – must be submitted by the HOME team by Monday evening after the
game has been played
a. It is preferred to have score sheets scanned and emailed to the Commissioner
b. Score sheets not sent in will result in a loss for the HOME team that does not send
them in and NO points will be awarded to the HOME team if they are not sent in
c. Only the STATISTICIAN (or COMMISSIONER if STATISTICIAN is absent) will
enter scores into the website
d. Score sheets involving suspensions must be sent to the COMMISSIONER within 24
hours of the game being played – the PRDMHA/NERHL President will issue
suspensions as per BC Hockey policy
e. All NERHL game numbers must appear on the game sheet
f. Scorekeepers and timekeepers are game officials; associations must provide
competent volunteers. Illegible score sheets may result in fines.
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g. All score sheets must be signed by the on and off ice officials and their names should
be printed on them as well.
h. Game number, date of game, team names, roster (with OA, UA, PR and AP
identified beside the player name), location of game, scores and penalties must be
clearly identified on the game sheet
i. The white copy of the score sheet will be given to the HOME team to submit to the
COMMISSIONER
27. League standings will be kept on the PRDMHA website (www.prdmha.ca) and two (2) points
will be awarded for a win, one (1) for a tie and zero (0) for a loss
28. POSTPONED, CANCELLED and FORFEITED games that do not follow the correct
rescheduling procedure will result in fines
a. The bond placed by each association will reinforce this position
b. Changes to regularly scheduled games when agreed upon by both teams will require
BOTH teams to send in a Game Change Form to the DIVISION
COMMISSIONER; if the DIVISION COMMISSIONER does not receive a form
from both teams, the game will not be rescheduled
c. When both teams cannot agree to reschedule a game, there will be a seven (7) days
application for postponement indicating reasons for same given to the DIVISION
COMMISSIONER. The COMMISSIONER will consult with the LEAGUE
COMMISSIONER and they will rule on the postponement.
d. A minimum of seventy-two (72) hours notice is required to postpone a game unless it
is due to extenuating circumstances (i.e. extreme weather conditions or road travel
advisory warnings, team family emergency, serious illness or injury) or the team
defaults the points and the league may choose to institute additional fines for repeat
offenders of this policy
e. If the visiting team is a “NO SHOW” at a regularly scheduled game, an automatic
minimum fine of $100.00 and a maximum fine of $500.00 (for repeat offenders) shall
be assessed by the LEAGUE COMMISSIONER. Points will be forfeited to the host
team. Teams agreeing to reschedule the game will nullify this rule.
f. If a host team cancels a game due to no referees at a regularly scheduled game, an
automatic minimum $100.00 fine and a maximum $500.00 fine shall be assessed by
the LEAGUE COMMISSIONER and points will be forfeited to the VISITING
team. Agreements to reschedule will nullify this rule.
g. League games delayed due to tournament or exhibition games are to be made up
within (3) weeks of the scheduled time or before the end of the regular season.
Failure to do so will result in the offending team forfeiting two (2) points to the other
team AND, the LEAGUE COMMISSIONER will enforce bond forfeiture rules.
h. If the host team postpones a scheduled game, the host team must try to reschedule
and play this game within three (3) weeks or prior to the end of the regular season
(whichever comes first). If after offering three different times without agreeing to an
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North East Recreation Hockey League Constitution and Rules Rev. 2014
acceptable date for a rematch within the above time frame. The host team will forfeit
the game AND, the LEAGUE COMMISSIONER will enforce bond forfeiture.
i.
If the visiting team postpones a regularly scheduled game, the host team must offer a
minimum of two (2) dates for a rematch to be played within three (3) weeks or prior
to the end of the regular season (whichever comes first). The visiting team must
accept one of the alternate dates or forfeit the game AND, the LEAGUE
COMMISSIONER will enforce bond forfeiture rules.
j.
A league fine will be issued with a minimum $100.00 and a maximum of $500.00
against an association which has a team cancel or forfeit a game, unless for valid
reason (listed in d above).
k. The Commissioner will notify the NERHL LEAGUE COMMISSIONER. The
LEAGUE COMMISSIONER will then draft a letter to the offending association
Executive and DIVISION COMMISSIONER notifying them of the forfeiture and
the deduction of money from their bond. Upon the third (3) forfeiture, the
remaining bond money will be deducted and the team will be ejected from the league
for the remaining regular season and playoff games.
l.
The non-offending team may make a formal application (in writing) with full details
to the NERHL for recovery of any receipted expenses (ice time charged, ref fees
charged) by the spring Wind Up Meeting. If the non-offending team does not make
a formal application for funds, the money will be retained by the NERHL. All league
fines will be reported in the Agenda for the Wind Up Meeting (in accordance with
Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, names will not be used).
m. The LEAGUE COMMISSIONER will rule on all disputes and his/her decision will
be FINAL.
n. All fines levied by the LEAGUE COMMISSIONER will be issued and invoiced
through the PRDMHA Secretary-Treasurer within ten (10) days of the infraction
occurring.
o. On games that are forfeited, a score of 3 to 0 will be given to the non-offending team
for statistical purposes.
p. League banners for A and B Champions will be presented at the end of playoffs.
29. The LEAGUE COMMISSIONER AND PRDMHA President in accordance with the BC
Hockey, Hockey Canada and NERHL rules as minimum standards will administer
suspensions; associations at their discretion may levy additional suspensions. Suspensions
will be served as assessed and will be served during league, tournament or provincial games –
suspensions CANNOT BE SERVED IN EXHIBITION GAMES. All players serving
suspensions must have the word “SUSPENDED” written behind their name for the games
in which they are serving their suspensions.
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30. Any member association in arrears with bonds/dues after regular league play begins loses all
rights to discuss or vote in the association until said fees are paid in full.
31. It is the responsibility of the league representatives to familiarize all coaches and managers
within their association of these rules.
32. Failure to comply with any of the above rules cause forfeiture of bond money by that
association.
33. Any minor hockey association not attending the PRDMHA district meetings will be assessed
fines as per PRDMHA rules and guidelines.
34. All associations will ensure that a minimum of one (1) representative for each team attend
the scheduling meeting prior to the start of league play. Each association will also ensure that
that person has ice slots available to them to schedule league games (each team must have
30% more ice slots than required home games and these times must be at acceptable times as
per BC Hockey and Hockey Canada guidelines). Any association that does not have a
member in attendance for scheduling will not be scheduled for that season.
35. No team shall be allowed to join the NERHL without the approval of two thirds (2/3) of the
association’s members in attendance at the Spring Wind Up Meeting. Associations making
application to join the league will do so in writing to the President of the PRDMHA and will
not be present for the discussion and voting related to their entrance into the league.
36. New associations wishing to join the league MAY be considered if they are approved in
accordance with #35 above and the PRDMHA guidelines.
37. Associations not entering teams in a certain year will not be required to pay league fees or put
up their bond.
38. The following list is to be kept to ensure rotation for Commissioners and Statisticians (note if
an association does not have ANY teams in the league, they will not be required to fulfill
their position and it will be assigned to another association with more than one team in each
division). The rotation will progress as follows and will apply even if an association does not
have a team in that division (i.e. if Clearview is scheduled to be a MIDGET
COMMISSIONER but does not have a Midget team, they will still assume that position)
ATOM COMMISSIONER will move to ATOM STATISTICIAN
ATOM STATISTICIAN will move to PEE WEE COMMISSIONER
PEE WEE COMMISSIONER will move to PEE WEE STATISTICIAN
PEE WEE STATISTICIAN will move to FEMALE COMMISSIONER
FEMALE COMMISSIONER will move to FEMALE STATISTICIAN
FEMALE STATISTICIAN will move to BANTAM COMMISSIONER
BANTAM COMMISSIONER will move to BANTAM STATISTICIAN
BANTAM STATISTICIAN will move to MIDGET COMMISSIONER
MIDGET COMMISSIONER will move to MIDGET STATISTICIAN
MIDGET STATISTICIAN will move to ATOM COMMISSIONER
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North East Recreation Hockey League Constitution and Rules Rev. 2014
39. Scheduling will take place in Fort St. John in October. One person for each team must be
present and master schedules will be uploaded to the PRDMHA at the completion of the
meeting.
40. Current associations in the league will be the teams registered as part of the PRDMHA
district and will include: Clearview, Chetwynd, Dawson Creek, Fort Nelson, Fort St. John,
Hudson’s Hope, Taylor and Tumbler Ridge. Bonds will be collected from these teams at the
Scheduling Meeting in the fall of 2014.
41. Tiering may be set up if necessary to promote parity within divisions and will be determined
prior to league play starting either by a tiering tournament or on the advice of coaches in
consultation with the PRDMHA President and Vice President.
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Chetwynd and District
Minor
Hockey Association
South- to Tumbler Ridge boundary; North – from Carbon Creek east past
Mount McAllister to the south west corner of the District of Hudson’s Hope
District to the Peace River then along the south side of the Peace River to
appoint 5 km east of Attachie; West – along Rocky Mountains from Tumbler
Ridge boundary up to Highway 97 at the summit (Azouzetta) along Highway
97 north to the point where the highway swings east, then north to Carbon
Creek; East – from point 5 km east of Attachie, south-east to the Pine River at
Favels Creek, down along the Pine River (and including the area on the east
side of the Pine River up to the top of the hill along Highway 97) and down
the Murray River to the Tumbler Ridge boundary
Clearview Minor Hockey
Association
South – Taylor and Dawson Creek boundaries; East – Alberta border; West –
from the Beatton River Park, north along the Beatton River to the junction
with the Doig River and north along the Doig River; North – from the Doig
River to the Osborn River and to the Alberta border
East along the Alberta border; South- from the Alberta border along the Peace
River to the junction with the Kiskatinaw River, then east along the southern
boundary of the Government Reserve, then southeast along the northern
boundary of the developed area to the Pine River; South – Tumbler Ridge
boundary north of the Murray River to where it joins the Wolverine River;
West – Chetwynd boundary – junction o the Peace and Murray Rivers at East
Pine
South – Fort St. John boundary; West – Rocky Mountains; East – Alberta
border; North – northern boundaries of Wildlife Management Units #7-51, 754, 7-49, 7-56
South – Taylor boundary, Hudson’s Hope boundary and Chetwynd boundary;
East – Taylor boundary, Clearview boundary and Alberta border; West –
Rocky Mountains; North – northern boundaries of Wildlife Management
Units #7-37, 7-43, 7-44, 7-45, 7-46
Dawson Creek Minor
Hockey Association
Fort Nelson Minor
Hockey Association
Fort St. John Minor
Hockey Association
Hudson’s Hope Minor Hockey
Association
Taylor Minor Hockey
Association
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South – District of Hudson’s Hope boundary; West – District of
Hudson’s Hope boundary; East – District of Hudson’s Hope
boundary and then up the north side of the Peace River to the
junction with the Halfway River; North – from the northwest
boundary of Hudson’s Hope on the north shore of Williston
Lake and follow the Dunlevy Creek up to the Graham River and
east along the Graham to the Halfway River and down the
Halfway River to Attachie
Including Cherry Lane Subdivision. South – Dawson Creek
boundary; West – Chetwynd boundary; North – from Chetwynd
boundary on the Peace River, east along the south side of the
Peace River, then straight north and along Highway 97 to
Baldonnel, then north on paved road to the Beatton River, then
east down the Beatton River to the Peace River, then along the
north shore of the Peace River to the junction with the
Kiskatinaw River; East – Dawson Creek boundary
North East Recreation Hockey League Constitution and Rules Rev. 2014
Tumbler Ridge Minor Hockey
Association
South – to the Rocky Mountains; West – north along Wildlife
Management Unit #7-21 boundary to the District of Tumbler
Ridge boundary, follow District boundary around Mount
Chamberlin, then back along Wildlife Management Unit #7-21
boundary to a point directly east of the most western boundary
of Gwilliam Lake Park; North – straight east of the Wildlife
Management Unit #7-21 to the most western point of the
Gwilliam Lake Park boundary, following the Park boundary to
the Gwilliam River, then north to the junction with the Murray
River, then west along the Murray River and down to Foot Lake,
then east to Road 52 south on Road 52 for 12 km then straight
east to the Alberta border; East – Alberta border
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