Air horns officially silenced at all QMJHL arenas under new policy

Stephen Brun · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 30, 2025 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 11 minutes ago

Even though P.E.I.'s biggest crystal arena already had a argumentation successful place, the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League has present made it authoritative — the usage of aerial horns is banned astatine games. 

QMJHL officials confirmed that they've told idiosyncratic teams without bans already successful spot that the usage of aerial horns is present prohibited. 

The determination comes aft nationalist wellness officials crossed Canada, including successful P.E.I., warned that the noisemakers had imaginable to origin proceeding damage. 

"The accusation that's been coming retired connected the dangers and the effect of conscionable however large those things are… radical are truly starting to go conscious of that and privation to marque definite that they tin spell and bask thing and not beryllium irritated oregon bothered," said Jason MacLean, president of operations for the Charlottetown Islanders hockey team. 

"It's going to marque the bulk of the instrumentality basal happy. There volition ever beryllium that number that doesn't deliberation it's indispensable oregon needs to happen, but I deliberation overall… it's a bully thing."

Late past year, P.E.I.'s Chief Public Health Office raised concerns astir the usage of compressed aerial horns successful crystal arenas aft receiving a written submission astir the issue. 

The bureau sent a missive to Hockey P.E.I. successful December that described the wellness risks associated with the usage of the product. 

"Compressed aerial horns whitethorn nutrient a dependable astatine 100 dB oregon higher," the missive read. "When an idiosyncratic is exposed to long, repeated oregon close-proximity vulnerability to decibels higher than 70 dB, it tin origin proceeding loss."

Fines and ejections possible

Both the Eastlink Centre successful Charlottetown, wherever the Islanders play, and Summerside's Credit Union Place did enactment their ain aerial horn bans successful place, but the QMJHL itself hadn't officially instituted specified a argumentation until recently. 

Raphael Doucet, the league's manager of communications, told CBC News that teams successful Moncton, Rimouski, Shawinigan and Rouyn-Noranda were told nary aerial horns would beryllium allowed successful their arenas by the clip playoffs started precocious past month. 

WATCH | Leave the aerial horns astatine location if you spell to hockey rinks successful P.E.I., apical nationalist wellness doc advises:

He said the authoritative determination came aft complaints from fans and broadcast teams that the noisemakers were excessively loud, and amid concerns astir subordinate safety. 

"We were conscionable trying to perceive to them, and successful the extremity we thought that it was the close decision," Doucet said. 

"The astir important portion is subordinate safety, due to the fact that with each this sound erstwhile players were connected the ice, sometimes they were not proceeding the referee's whistle." 

The league said it volition good teams that don't enforce the policy, portion information officials could region fans caught utilizing an aerial horn from the rink. 

MacLean said the Islanders had 1 insignificant contented with a instrumentality from out-of-province who deployed an aerial horn astatine a crippled since the Eastlink Centre's prohibition was enactment successful place, but their usage hasn't been a large occupation . 

"The level of chemoreceptor from an aerial horn and the magnitude of aerial horns successful a gathering tin virtually spell from zero to 100. It's brainsick the quality it tin make," helium said. 

"Maybe if you're connected the location broadside that's utilized to it, it would possibly assistance get you going… and it decidedly would beryllium an irritant to an distant squad that's not utilized to it."