Icebucket

I'll take your word for it. I wasn't there and was going off of what I could see on livebarn

For the record. Every time I've posted I've said the CV players were very wrong and deserve a lengthy suspension. I just didn't like seeing the ref take a swing at a player. I get there is a level of physicality in breaking things up, but a ref throwing a punch isn't really part of that

I think the playoffs will be very interesting. Seems like the blue division is much stronger, especially if you go beyond the top 2 or 3 teams. I don't see QV losing in that division unless things go horribly wrong.

Again.. not defending the CV players. They were wrong and should be punished. But based on your stance and use of ALL CAPS, I'd wonder if you aren't the ref in question.

I already started that the CV players were wrong. Those players should receive lengthy suspensions for sure. But when a ref gives a forearm shot to a players face he should also be held accountable. Shouldn't take away from the CV players penalty, but the ref also shouldn't walk away with no punishment.

I wasn't there on person. But I watched it on the video many times and I never see anything other than the ref dropping the player

I wasn't at the game but watched the whole thing a few times on livebarn. It's a very bad look for CV. Not sure if it's just a team that isn't used to losing and couldn't handle it or what.. I will say. Regarding the player who swung at the ref. He did so from the ground because the ref gave him a forearm to the face. I'd think in addition to the players being suspended, the ref should be looking at a hefty suspension as well. I get the game got out of control, but a ref taking a swing at a player can't happen and will only make things worse.

That would take rational thought. I'm not sure Black Bear would ever consider lowering a price for anything

It's a big tournament weekend, but also a weekend where league and independent games are way down. If a rink isn't hosting a tournament it's probably pretty empty this weekend.

You never know how teams within a club differ from one age to the next, but in looking up to 12u, the Boston Imperials team would be competitive in A Major/Minor pahl. In MHR they rank out at 6 goals weaker than the lowest graded pahl AA 12u team. Maybe their squirt team is better, but based on peewee results they appear to be a club who is claiming AAA, but in reality is extremely far from there.

I think from top to bottom SV is on a other level. Every team has good players in the top half, but the bottom half is where SV pulls away. Obviously things change throughout the year and teams/players will change for better or worse. It's why we play the games.

I'm most familiar with AAA and A so I'll stick to just those two. I think your rankings for AAA are the same as what I would list. Lebo has looked good in both games I've watched and I expect them to stay near the top all season. If I were to make any changes, I'd consider swapping TJ and USC but it's very close. A is a little tougher since the level is split and they don't play any cross division games. Based on what I've watched, I believe the blue division is much stronger if you go 4-6 teams deep. Gold has a major drop-off after CV, QV, and Shaler. I don't know that those teams will see much of a challenge all season aside from each other. Blue will have a lot of good games between Mars, NC, Moon, Avonworth, WP, and maybe even Indiana. Here's how I would rank A, but really teams 3 through 7 might be interchangeable. 1. CV 2. Mars 3. QV 4. Moon 5. Avonworth

In the case of Avonworth, it appears they are trending in the right direction with the recent coaching change. But they are also a club that will struggle to even field a team some years as they are one of, if not the smallest school in PIHL

This year they did an even split for A based on where teams fell in their formula. 1 is gold, 2 and 3 blue, 4 and 5 gold, etc... It seems like they did actually get a pretty even split, but it was kind of dumb luck. The formula is a mess as it has McDowell, North Hills, and Meadville slated as the top 3 teams.

I don't think it's as bad as it seems. The list goes back to last year, so it's really only about 35 suspensions this season. Looks like 9 of the 35 were from one fight between USC and PR. And when it comes to the coaches, all but 1 of the suspensions are for the number of penalties the players took in the game.

Yea it's already looking like A is going to be a mess in terms of blowouts. CV, QV, Mars, and Avonworth are going to absolutely destroy the teams in the bottom half of each division. Many complained about them splitting the division into upper and lower levels last year. Not that I think it's the way to go, but it did help to at least lessen the blowout rate. Not quite sure what the right approach is.

They went over 6 full months between wins

I just noticed that the finals are tonight as well. Seems crazy that the tournament stretches out into 3 different weeks, yet they felt the need to cram the semis and finals all into one night.

SV has looked very good, but also probably the least tested to this point. I think that should be a good game. Best guess: SV wins 4-2 I think Lebo and FR are probably both surprises to make it this far, especially FR getting the bye. I think many expected FR to struggle getting bumped up to AAA, but maybe they will be just fine. I say FR continues and pulls it out, 3-2/SO

I did mention those two would be mid to lower AAA. Although looking deeper, USC might be more towards the middle with how many they returned. They were definitely a step behind the top few teams last year, but were also a young team.

Looks like two A teams beat AAA teams, and it appears both of those AAA teams played their actual varsity lineup. I would think those two will be top A teams, but still kind of shock to see them hang in there and top those AAA teams(even if they are middle to lower AAA).

Looks like 16U and 18U both went 2-2 in Chicago. And at the end of the day, those are the only two teams they care about. Everyone else is just paying the bill to help reduce the cost on those two teams.

I never stated that he wasn't good. The point was more about comparing a peewee to a midget. In most every case, the midget will be better than the peewee. To think Gibson isn't good is just silly.