hockeydadx3

Brandon Saad, Gibsonia, Hornets, OHL (Saginaw/Erie), NHL (CHI/CBJ/COL/STL) John Gibson, Whitehall, Hornets, NTDP/OHL (Kitchener), NHL (ANA) Vincent Trocheck, USC, Hornets, OHL (Saginaw/Plymouth), NHL (FLA/CAR/NYR) Logan Cooley, West Mifflin, PPE, NTDP/UMN, NHL (ARI/UTA) Parker Milner, Pittsburgh, Hornets, BC, AHL/ECHL/NHL (NYI org) Jack Dugan, Pittsburgh, PPE, USHL (CHI Steel)/PC, AHL/ECHL (VGK org) Ava McNaughton, Seven Fields, PPE, Lawrence Acad/WIS, USA pipeline Douglas Dorr, Wexford, PPE, NAHL/PSU Dane Dowiak, Wexford, PPE, USHL/PSU

It’s a word game that @aaaahockey is playing. They don’t refer to teams as Tier 1 and Tier 2 until teams go to Nationals. You’re right though, the Preds did form a AAA 2014 team this year.

Every year when the Pens Black Team goes away, it creates a ripple effect for that birth year and a lot of kids end up getting displaced. It seems like this year most of the top 2013 Pens kids went to Preds, with others heading to Esmark. Not really sure where the rest of the displaced kids landed.

And the best 2013 Pens kids that didn’t make Pens went to Preds

I heard 18U Vengeance also folded along with the 2012, 13 and 15s.

@Pa Hockey right now!!

Calling that a “poor showing” doesn’t add up. Western PA had multiple teams across Tier 1, Tier 2, and girls divisions reach the Final 8 and Final 4, which is a strong national result. Jumping from that to “we need fewer games and a high school-only model” ignores other factors like talent, coaching, and competition level, and it creates a vague, political “referral system” without any clear structure or proof it would actually improve results. Good try though.

That’s like Super Bowl Sunday for you.

Because why would any kid want to play more hockey right after their season wraps? These kids are already constantly traveling, practicing four times a week, and committing a huge amount of time and energy to the sport. Let kids be kids. Let them play other sports, spend time with friends, and actually have a break. To have their season end and then immediately throw them into high school playoff hockey is absurd. It’s a recipe for complete burnout. Kids need time to recharge, not another tournament the minute the season ends. And in fact, if these kids are allowed to be on the team, they end up missing almost all of the practices and games because of their existing commitments. How is that fair to the other kids who could have made the team and would actually be there? And how is that fair to the team dynamic when players can’t consistently practice or play with the group?

The post is so nice you gotta send it twice???

Ha!! Let it go and move on and let’s talk more about High School hockey power ratings!

For 14U Vengeance is ranked 20th in the country

The last year a Pens team has a Black team, it’s always an odd year. Many kids end up leaving once they see the writing on the wall. The 2013s were even more drastic, about half the top team this season is made up of players who used to be on the Black team, so the other half decided to move on. I think there are only three or four kids left on the Black team who were there last year.