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  2. Yes, you do just sign up. You don’t have to win anything to go. When Bethel Park won the “National Championship”, they were not even the top team in PIHL AAA.
  3. You can definitely just declare that you are “AAA”. Not sure about the tier 1 designation. But any team can claim to be AAA. And the Aviators have a long history of doing just that. I know. I have been part of the Aviators organization in the past and they have had a number of teams declare AAA. And it was always a reach and the teams struggled dearly. Somehow one of those teams got a game with Pens Elite, got blown out and it was ugly. I am not saying your new AAA team will be as bad. I hope that they are competitive. I saw the AA teams play last year and they were good. Not sure if they have enough kids that are AAA fast. But they were good. Good luck with your season, I hope they are competitive and I look forward to seeing them play.
  4. There is a lot of negativity on this thread as everyone tries to justify their decisions, both financially and developmentally. There will never be a consensus. It’s what works for your family and ultimately what you want out of the sport. Making it to the show is not a reality for most, but in reading this thread, there is one particular person with hatred for all. I’d be really curious what their goals are (no pun intended). AAA hockey offers way more than jockeying for a National Championship, but that is obviously a perk of playing for the Pens. And yes, if you pay that money, then there is an expectation of top skill development, wins and a chance at a national title. I haven’t researched the past, but would assume the pens are the team that has the best chance to compete at that level. I have researched the cost of other top organizations nationally including prep schools and the pens is a steal in comparison. It’s truly absurd what others cost. But what is often overlooked is what is behind the scenes. Putting the players aside, the skill and professionalism of dads that livestream games is incredible. I was interested in the banter from the pens and esmark arguments earlier so I watched those games. The pens out shot them like 200-25. Probably a slight exaggeration but not far off. The shot attempts almost doubled that number in pens favor. There were a couple questionable Esmark injuries that resulted in penalties and a misconduct only to have the injured players return in 5 minutes. That’s their gamesmanship I guess. Game was not as close as the score. But kudos to the pens broadcasting team. A truly entertaining experience. That alone is worth the cost of the program.
  5. Or do a all star game in each division and play each other
  6. Let's take the top 6 in D2 and play the stellar six and see what happens?
  7. 2 teams from here can go to nationals 1 in the open division 1 in the regular division The best team from the open division is rewarded by the league and the commissioner to go to nationals So no you don't just sign up If PIHL would move the playoffs up 1 week States would be over and one team from 1A 2A or 3A would be able to go
  8. Since many have chosen to look down on the Aviators, I figured I would post a little upside (truth) for you about the Aviators. Full disclosure, I'm a parent. Yes, a few years ago they were down to only a small handful of teams. Two, maybe three teams left including their 19u ladies team. They secured a home at Alpha and since then have grown to 8 teams, with 4 this past season competing in PAHL AA division. Two of those teams competed in the PAHL 14u AA minor(2010) division and both were playoff teams. A bounce either way could have had both teams playing for the championship. One of those teams won the regular season and playoff championship. It was actually their second consecutive championship in that division. In fact, over the past 2 seasons that team has compiled a record of 86-15-4 with a goal differential of 518-201. They played everyone who would play them. The record alone should show they need to be playing higher level competition. The problem is, without the 3rd "A", they can't get those games. The only local AAA organization that would agree to play them was Vengeance. Yes, the Vengeance won the game 5-1 (for those who wish to find out what the final was) however, it was a tight game (2-1) through two periods. The Aviators wore down, plain and simple. It was their second game of the day vs. the Vengeance only game of the day. So for those to say can't even field a decent AA team, or it’s one “Dad Coach” who is recruiting, well those are just ignorant statements. They had 4 this past season with 2 fantastic teams in the 2010 group alone. Next, to say it's a money grab, again that's simply just ignorant. The kids earned their rights to play higher competition and as I stated before, they can't get those games without the 3rd "A". I was happy to see someone explain Tier 1 for those unaware, and I just learned the true difference this year. No, you can't simply declare Tier 1 AAA. Doesn't work that way, and as far as Tier 1 or Tier 2 goes, there are tons of 2010 Tier 1 AAA teams out there ranked well below the lowly 2010AA 14U 1 Aviators. Many teams ranked above them are there simply because of strength of schedule. Because they are "AAA", they can get those games and benefit greatly from it when it comes to MHR, which drives everything in youth hockey. Not gonna argue what “true AAA” is and what is not. Is PPE the top team? Yep. Quite honestly it doesn’t matter. It’s nothing more than a snap-shot in time. Where they are today. None of the A’s indicative of their collective hockey futures or futures in general. There are kids playing at that “top level” today who may trade it all in next year and play something else, or simply never develop beyond where they are today and there are “A” kids today who may develop into a highly recruited kid in 4 years. None of us know what will happen. As I disclosed earlier, I am an Aviator parent, and proud to be one. We drive an extremely long distance, not to “chase a third A” but to be with an organization that we are happy with. A place we have fun. A place where our kid is happy and healthy. The organization is an extended family for us. We have relationships with families from just about every team in the organization. It’s those types of things that attract people to the organization, which is why it has grown so much in the past 3 years. At the end of the day, we as parents make huge commitments and sacrifices for our kids, shouldn’t it be fun for all of us? So I would say, don’t bash an organization you really don’t know anything about, or at least preface your statements with, “I really don’t know anything about the Aviators today, but……”. This is really a great organization to be part of. Great kids, great families, great coaches. Let’s Fly Boys!!!
  9. Today
  10. The 2013 Birth Year Aviators are doing a goalie Interest S=skate before tryouts start next week. It is going to be at 7:00am-8:20am at Alpha Ice Complex on Saturday March 30th. If your child is interested in coming out, please complete the form below. I hope to see you on the ice. https://bit.ly/Aviators2013PreTryout
  11. Going to nationals is not a good indicator of a good team. You don’t have to win anything to get there. You just have to apply. That being said. They have been a good team. But I agree that running up the scores is classless.
  12. You do know that they volunteer to go to Nationals, they are not picked for it. Again it's the house league of Nationals. You have Tier 1 18u, 16u, 15o, 14u and 13o and Tier 2 18u, 16u and 14u. Then you have High School which has 4 different divisions Prep, Tier 1, Tier 2 and Girl's. BC plays in the 2nd lowest division (out of 12) just above the girls division.
  13. Everyone on this thread thinks they know it all and are so f*n smart. Well, Chimp has news for you.....shut the F up! Cheers!
  14. I thought that was already the case? All the As, divisions, etc are what the local areas do to help organize competitive divisions.
  15. I wouldn't call this statement a slam dunk. It certainly should be, but youtube/insta/tiktok along with parents and the love of the highlight play have skewed the concept of team a lot over the last 8-10 years.
  16. The designations have a lot to do with how much they pay. Tier 1 - players pay nothing. Tier 2 - players pay something for room/board. Tier 3 - pay to play. I'm sure people don't follow the rules exactly, but that's the basic rules. The anarchy of "Junior A" in the late 90s/early 2000s was not really ended by USA Hockey reclassifying the levels. They just pushed some teams out of USA Hockey who didn't want to conform. The NCDC wanted to be Tier 2, but USA Hockey said no and they became an unsanctioned/independent Junior league. I would imagine that the issue for them was cost. They wanted to charge the players tuition, and USA Hockey said only Tier 3 can charge tuition, so they left.
  17. I haven't coached in 10+ years, but have won plenty of league championships. And I'm sure the world hasn't changed that much and the players would much rather win it all, vs being given the opportunity to put up 9 points in a 15 goal win. Maybe develop someone other than your top 5 when games are in hand and it will pay off in those big games where depth comes into play.
  18. We're not that far from having only A or AAA here too. Back in the 90s, when they started using the AA designation, there were a lot more AA teams. Now there are 6-8 different designations within A, some of which would have been AA back in the 90s. I have friends in Columbus who say the same thing, that there is almost no one in AA there anymore either. Might end up being a bit of a re-categorization like Junior hockey. In the early 2000s/late 90s, there were Jr A, Jr B, and Jr C designations, and it was all over the place. I think (and I could be wrong) that only the USHL and NAHL called themselves Jr A. Most of the Jr teams were Jr B. Jr C was mostly younger kids. At the same time, there was a push in the rust belt and mid west to have "split season" midget hockey, and the response was to have more Jr teams, who were not bound by the split season agreement. Anyhow, the point of the rambling is that I would not be surprised if USA Hockey says there is only "tier 1" and "tier 2" and renders the AAA/AA/A labels meaningless, like it did with Jr A/B/C.
  19. Wow! I'm just wondering what your High School Hockey Coaching record is over the last 3 years?
  20. Unfortunately, the Black Bear Group has done nothing but increase the costs for the players everywhere. Wasn't there a post on here mentioning Icemen at $4400 plus Uniform package, plus Coach expenses and the excessive travel? No matter where you go play, the cost of the ice is going to be about what 65-70% of a team's fees?
  21. And to go a step further since you love he coach so much. He's a coach who can run it up against bad teams, but can't coach well enough to win tough games when it matters. "3 losses in 3 years", but zero championships
  22. Went to nationals... it's not like that's an earned spot at the HS level
  23. From email that was sent out by steel city, they said expect prices to go up 10 to 15% off last year prices.
  24. That coach s terrible he should sit his seniors in the 3rd period in there last year of high school hockey or have them pass 5 times before shooting you must watch CNBC! 3 loses in 3 years and went to Nationals 3 years in a row Who would want there kid to experience that
  25. For anyone interested, looks like Franklin Regional and Shaler have openings: https://www.pihlhockey.com/coaches
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