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Priority list for the Penguins 1. Make as much money as possible by any means possible That's it. That's the list.

If you’ve ever been to Dallas - just about every rink is called the “stars center” with a Dallas stars logo. This NHL team invested in youth hockey for real, the penguins truly only care about themselves.

The short and cynical answer is because Pittsburgh is small professional football town who cheers for the professional hockey team when they are playing well. People don't give a crap about high school sports here. The long answer is there is simply no point in comparing Pittsburgh to Minnesota. High School Hockey in Minnesota is the pinnacle of top level play there. Every single youth organization feeds into their high school program, and every single kid that wears that sweater WANTS to play for their school. The varsity teams practice every day after school. These kids don't play for multiple teams. They play for their school and that's it. The high school games are packed every single night because the towns rally around them the way they rally around high school football in TX. The kids that don't play for the school essentially play high level in house. The only AAA hockey in MN is played during the spring and summer. There are dedicated newspapers, and websites and talk shows about MN high school hockey. People who don't have any kids on the team go to the games. Offices take their employees to games as a night out. People tailgate in the parking lots. Most arenas have a local water hole nearby that the old timers hang out at and watch the game on TV. When people talk about "did you catch the game last night?" its not about the Vikings game, its about the Edina vs Eden Prairie varsity game. It is an incredible atmosphere to witness. I highly suggest going to a game or two if you ever get the chance. I had the pleasure of living in MN for 3 years and saw some amazing hockey. The state championship sells out the Xcel center. There's nothing like it and Pittsburgh will unfortunately never get there. With how many AAA and "faux AAA", AA and National Bound teams here, there is no set in stone pinnacle of hockey. There is no community support for the high school teams, hell 99% of the teams are CLUB sports for their schools! They don't even have the financial backing of their own school! Most schools don't have youth programs too which is a HUGE issue. Some schools have "developmental" programs for the mites/squirts/peewees where they practice once a week and MAYBE play a scrimmage or two. That needs to change. Get these kids and parents on board from the start. Why can first and second graders play football for their school and play in actual games against other schools on the weekends but we can't do the same for hockey kids? Imagine how much pride those kids would have for their school if they did it from the beginning? As much as its a nice thought that the Pens and Flyers would support high school hockey, they wont. They both have their own "Junior" teams (PPE and Jr. Flyers) and those parents help pay for their practice facilities and that's all they care about.

Officating epidemic: Referees fleeing youth sports because of abuse, low pay, increased costs This article was in the Observer Reporter today. Behind a paywall but I'm sure it relates to Hockey as well. Not a new problem but people should think about it before getting on the Refs at games. Without them we don't play the games.

School hockey is a blast for the kids. My kids play both and I still get together with the guys I played with almost thirty years ago. My oldest son did not want to play school hockey at first but now he has as much fun if not more playing with his friends from school. Sure it is expensive but if you play AAA school hockey or even AA at the Varsity level it is very competitive and fun. The divisions below that are a bit rough as they just don't have enough kids to field quality teams. It is expensive for the price but if these wanna be AAA teams didn't travel so much to play another bunch of wanna be AAA teams they would be able to put that money toward the school team. Two tournaments with travel and hotels typically will cost you about $1000 each. That is tourney fee, cost to drive, hotels and food to play what 8 or maybe 10 games total. Now that is a waste.

That's nice and I agree, however they still bear some responsibility for what happened.

The number one problem with hockey is the cost. I know many kids that would love to play ice hockey. A lot start with dek hockey and roller hockey. They never move to ice hockey because it is so expensive. I also know parents who don't want their kids picking up a hockey stick because ice hockey is so expensive. The cost of the sport is the number one thing holding it back. It would be nice to see schools help with the costs to reduce them. Back in 2003 PIHL surveyed teams to see how much support they received from their school. Some schools received a ton and some nothing. It would be interesting to see or publish. Maybe put pressure on the schools through social media. Worked for the Mars/Armstrong incident. Like someone said on here, I would love to know what they spend on the other school sports. If you could get similar funding for hockey it would help A LOT!

I agree, Pittsburgh is not a State like "Minnesota" or a city as big as Chicago. Pittsburgh is a small town comparatively. Was a hotbed for High School Football talent. Maybe not so much anymore. Has come a long way in the last 20 years with Hockey but still has along way to go to get there and probably never will. I think the Pens and Flyers supporting High School Hockey more would help for sure. It's a great idea to play the State Championship games in the Arenas. The Flyers and Pens should make it free admission for the games and give an incentive to Schools that bring their teams to the game. Would love to see 10,000 fans at a State Championship game. It's called "Promotions"

Not with "fans" around here. How many fans could tell you: -the names of every player on the Penguins team, and what line they're on? -name every team in our division? -tell you TWO players on each team in the league? Or even on half of the teams? -how many games they watch in a season (not even attend, but on TV)? Take a poll next time you're at a game. See how many people are really hockey fans, and not there for the free corporate tickets or because we've had the best hockey players in the world here virtually since 1984 and that tends to draw a crowd. I think you'd be disappointed. I'm not knocking anybody, just being realistic.

well they are pouring money into Hunt Armory. Does that count?

I am glad to hear it. You put a lot of effort into it. But your last report was that you were around 200. You say there are 100 HS programs so you are averaging 2 per program. That's not enough interest to build the movement you want to see.

Right but building UPMC Lemieux is pretty self-serving. Us first, tax deductions second, community third. And by community, I mean only elite portion of the community. You know, the Pens and Friends. So again, very self-serving in many ways.

well how are book sales doing? that there might tell you why not. Minnesota hockey is such a different animal.

Honestly, that surge of interest to attend that game did not come from the Pens. That was the hockey community in general. My social media blew up in various groups I belong to and plans were being made to go to that game well before the Pens got involved I feel like they rode the wave, rather than built it. What are suggesting they do?