The Champions Hockey League Sports Board has decided to take no further action on SC Bern's complaint in regards to an incident that occurred in Mountfield HK's venue, concerning the intermission time. The statement is as follows:

• As per the IIHF Rule Book, Mountfield HK followed the intermission time of 15:00 minutes: RULE 44 – LENGTH OF PLAY - ii. Periods are separated by a 15-minute intermission.
• As per the CHL Game Operations, the intermission time is 18:00 minutes: Intermission – game clock must run down for 18:00 minutes immediately after the end of the first and second period.
• An error did occur as per the CHL directive of 18:00-minute intermissions.  This error is not an error of the on-ice game officials.
• The clock was set, directly after the conclusion of the 1st period, at 15:00 minutes to begin the intermission.  The clock ran down, in the correct time, unhindered and not tampered with in any form. In the dressing rooms of both teams and the officials' room, there was a run down clock based on the official score clock time.  The score clock time is considered the official time, both for game play (during periods) and intermission time.
• At the conclusion of the 1st intermission, the home team and game officials were on the ice and prepared to start the 2nd period as per the score clock time. The visiting team entered the ice approximately 55 seconds after the conclusion of the intermission time.

As per the IIHF Rule Book:

RULES 129–137 – DELAY OF GAME
DEFINITION: An act either intentional or accidental which slows the game, forces game action to be stopped, or hinders the start of game action.

RULE 134 – DELAY OF GAME/LATE LINEUP
i.  A coach who does not send out the required number of players in a timely manner to start a period, including overtime, will be assessed a bench-minor penalty.

The game officials, as per the IIHF rulebook, did apply the correct rule in assessing a 2-minute delay-of-game penalty. The game officials would not have been aware of the incorrect intermission time, nor is it the responsibility of the game officials to address or concern themselves with the intermission time.

In summary, a protest cannot be considered for the following reasons:

1. It is neither a rule application or rule interpretation of the game officials. The correct rule was applied as per the IIHF rulebook.  It is not a discretionary call by the game officials, it is a call they have to assess.
2. The rule application was correctly applied by the game officials and this is not a rule application or rule interpretation issue.
3. The clock was set to 15-minute intermission, immediately following the conclusion of the period while the visiting team was still on either the bench or ice sheet.
4. The clock was run down, based on 15 minutes, unhindered and not tampered with (considered in 15:00 of real time).
5. The intermission time is official by the time on the score clock.
6. A protest cannot be considered for the game officials application of the correct rule application.
7. A team cannot score or be scored upon during the intermission or for intermission time being set at 15:00 minutes.
8. The visiting team also has a responsibility to know the time on the official score clock, which is considered the official time.