forbin

This season of 4 on 4 non contact will separate the good skaters and good hockey IQ kids from the rest of the pack. Should be really interesting to see how it all unfolds. Can't wait to see the sh*t storm of parents b*tching and moaning about their kids ice time!

There's a nice big lot right off 79 by Top Golf....would make a PERFECT location for something like this. Already has a big paved parking lot too. I would absolutely love to see this happen. Throw some synthetic ice or sport court down during the spring and summer months. We can dream....

Yeah that rink is only 85" X 185" but i have heard thats a legal sized rink for ages up to 16U. Not sure if id want to see a bantam checking game there as someone mentioned above those boards might as well be made from concrete. We're going to have to get creative to make this work. I am hopefully the powers at be feel the same.

I figured something was up when he was posting for the past couple of weeks. I think it’s hilarious he asked for all his posts to be erased. He can’t be that naive to think that they are gone forever. Good riddance.

So I guess we can expect some games to be scheduled at North Park, South Park, Schenley, RMU open air rink when those are up and running?

My son does not play for his school and I still want all fall and winter sports to happen.

The organization my son plays for is at about 75% registration as last year. I am assuming most organizations are around that number. Sucks for the growth of the sport in this area, but on a somewhat selfish note, it MAY be a slight positive in terms of open ice availability....

Exactly why I personally feel that "AAA" programs should not exist prior to Bantam. Get these young kids on the ice 3-4x a week in power skating, skill sessions, game systems style practices etc and develop their skill set before giving them all the "AAA" logo'd swag and sending them to tournaments in Canada to get spanked.

https://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2020/08/17/piaa-confident-fall-sports-proceed/

Then don't come to the rink. Can't follow the rules? Then get the f*ck out. Same principal as if your kid drops the mitts and starts a fight. He will be suspended. Or you get a smart mouth with a ref, you should be escorted out. Wear the mask, wash your hands, let your temperature be checked, follow the rink's guidelines or stay home. Playing hockey is a choice, nobody is forcing you or your kid to be there. But while there, they are asking that the rules be followed. Is that too hard of a concept to understand?

When it comes to PAHL I think they need to run a very tight ship in regards to people not following the rules. Take the kids name and suspend him. If its the parents doing, ban them from the rink too. I'm so sick of stupid people ruining everything for the rest of us.

They are also enforcing that masks be worn, no spectators, arrive only 10 minutes prior to your ice time. If every local rink follows these guidelines and the parents and players respect the rules, I dont see why PAHL cant have a season. If I see a player or parent not following these rules I call them out to their face. It only takes one to ruin it for everyone. The rules are not hard to follow.

Printscape has a fancy new temperature reader that reads your arm at the front desk and is requiring everyone to be scanned when you enter. This was as of 8/6 when I was there last.

Might be old news to some here but USA Hockey is leaving it up to its districts and MidAm is leaving it up to its local organizations. I heard from the president of a PAHL organization directly today that they have a meeting scheduled this week to discuss the plan moving forward. He wouldn’t go into specifics but a modified 4v4 format was suggested...

Do neighboring states have similar restrictions to the number of people on the ice? Seems like it would piss a lot of players and parents off if their kid is essentially a healthy scratch for half the season....

Not saying it won't happen or that you're wrong there, King Jr. I am just saying it sounds like he doesn't want to be held accountable for it so he will let the organizations and associations make the decision as of now.

A recommendation is not a mandate. Also, why the first of the year? If anything, the cases will go up and be worse because of the holidays and everything involved in that.

If there isn't a season, I sincerely hope that most (if not all) rinks are very smart and strategic about this and remain open while offering plenty of power skating, skills instruction, 3on3 games, etc all day everyday. Hockey 2-3 times a week is my kids only shred of normalcy right now and I honestly don't think his mental state can take an entire year of no in person school AND no hockey.

I could not agree with this more. Could a solution that could help fix this be make room for PAHL teams to practice 3x a week? Although it may not be logistically possible with the amount of ice available.

Yes the mens team has 4 local kids, 3 or 4 from Ohio, and 10 from Canada. The women's team is much more lopsided.

4/28 are from Pittsburgh and 10/28 are from Canada. I get what you're saying, and it is somewhat off putting, however even D1 programs like Boston College and North Dakota have a good amount of Canadian players as well as players from other parts of the country. As a side note, Interestingly to note, I know two of the local RMU kids personally and both of their paths to D1 were the same (PPE>NAHL>RMU)

College hockey in general, but even more so in the Pittsburgh area is like that awesome band or tv show you find and love but it just doesn't get enough recognition no matter how much you try to spread the word. I think a lot of people see club hockey or ACHA as glorified beer league. RMU not being closer to the city center, and Chatham playing in a dump of a rink really hinder their exposure. If Pitt was D1, had an on campus rink, and got a local name with $$$ to back them they would pack that arena every game. Think about how ridiculous that lists of "IF's" is though. Sucks that Pittsburgh isn't more of a hockey town but it is what it is.

In my joe blow opinion I think the Pittsburgh area should have 4 legit AAA teams at the 14U, 15U, 16U, 18U levels. One team at each age group and that's it. If those organizations should choose to field peewee and squirt teams then so be it. I think those teams should be based geographically around the city. One in the North (PPE) , South (TBD), EAST (Esmark), WEST (TBD). That makes it 20 kids per team, 80 kids per age group. Which I truly believe this area has the depth of talent to support those roster numbers. All other players would play AA or A which would bolster the PAHL divisions significantly. Although this model would never work because parents suck.

I've suggested this a couple of times here and while I think it would logistically make sense and also provide a lot of room for WPA bragging rights on who the best AAA team is, a lot of players and parents that are involved LOVE the travel and exposure part of playing AAA. Going to MI, MA, NY, MN and Canada and playing other AAA organizations is a big draw for these teams. That being said I think a local AAA league would work to make the scheduling of the non tournament games much easier. Hell, 99% of the "AAA" teams in the area are faux AAA teams and play independent AA/AAA schedules anyway. If the PAHL created a AAA division it might water down the AA and A divisions even more than they already are.

Take those "rankings" with a grain of salt. That guy makes those videos to boost his kids ego. They lived in MN, his kid played for Gentry Academy. Now they live in IL and I'm just going to assume his kid plays for one of the "top" 5 teams on that list. Notice how he mentions that the Chicago area is the best in the country for AA numerous times? Not saying he's wrong, just saying its a pretty biased list in my opinion.