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As the playoffs near, incidents have escalated.

He did not disclose where or when the incidents involving police occurred, the teams involved or the age group of the players, but said in an interview that parents of players from the novice division all the way up to midget have been disciplined. The most recent police incident was at a peewee division game.

In an interview with Postmedia, Doram said Edmonton police a lot more serious things to do than escorting a coach or official out of the arena because some parents got emotionally charged.

“It’s good to be a cheerleader for the team, but don’t go over that bar,” he said.

Doram said Hockey Alberta regularly loses officials, many of whom are teenagers or young adults, due to threats made by parents and coaches. Without officials, games aren’t played.

“Remember you are an adult and need to conduct yourself in a more mature manner,” he wrote in the email. “Let’s finish the season on a high note and not a long list of player, coach or parent suspensions.”

He said any parent who is suspended must drop their players off outside the arena and then wait in the parking lot until the game is over.

“Nine times out of 10, the player on the ice is really embarrassed,” Doram said. “We’ve witnessed where the child actually gets emotionally upset, not upset over the situation, upset that their mom and dad are acting in a way that they would get in trouble for.”

Doram said in an interview that it’s not just happening in hockey, but other sports as well.

He said he isn’t sure what has triggered the number of incidents this year, adding the weather hasn’t been bad, but suggested one reason may be the economy. There have been one or two incidents a year in the past.

“It’s been strange that there have been a number of them in a very short period of time,” he said.

There are ways to lodge a complaint, but Doram encourages parents to take a breath and wait 24 hours to reassess the situation.

kgerein@postmedia.com

twitter.com/keithgerein

cgriwkowsky@postmedia.com

Twitter.com/CGriwkowsky