hockeyisgreat

Pretty sure Burrell has only lost to Canevin x2, Deer Lakes x2 and Morgantown in OT with wins over Neshannock & Connellsville. That side of B is really lopsided.

I pretty much agree with everything you are saying! Except the last sentence! Last year we had a 16U Tier II win a National championship and a 14U finish 2nd from 2 different organizations. They must be doing something right. I also believe their are some Tier 2 teams in the top 25 from 16U this year! Not sure about 14U! Maybe the next 10 years will see a decline because of BB. But only time will tell! And what things need to change? Pretty sure BB is here to stay!

Sounds like there are still a whole lot of moving parts in the situation at PIA with Black Bear. I'm guessing that because Allegheny and South Pittsburgh have so many teams they didn't want to upset the Apple cart. They are getting enough revenue from ice rental with them. Unfortunately NHAHA is in a down cycle and they think they can do better. Big question is how are they going to attract kids. They will need to get some from all of the area rinks to play for them. I hope they have a marketing strategy to get kids to move. I haven't easily seen costs to play by organizations. How many parents determine where their kids will play based on costs? Or is it more location? Don't most A and B level players just play at the closest rinks? How many strong organizations can Western Pa support? What are the strongest organizations? Anybody care to put out a top ten? Who is the best PAHL org?

You nailed that Mite practice! Sounds like kids having fun at that age! Isn't that the most important thing. Also it's the coaches job to keep all those mite kids entertained and doing positive hockey things. Your example above has them having to much time on their hands at practice. But I love it and that's the real deal.

The top 16UAA team in the country came out of PAHL last year and they weren't perfect in the league! Didn't they win the league in OT last year? Sounds like a pretty good league to me!

Ok, so what is so bad about PAHL? What are the suggestions to make it better? Other than the Fair Play Points what are the other problems? Seems like a decent league for kids who want to stay local to play!

That's exactly what they are doing with the Vipers and Viper Stars. With Esmark it is the players but also the Coaches. AAA teams all have paid coaches as opposed to volunteer dads! Yuri and Kosick are the primary people behind Esmark and with Kopchack in the Huskies fold I'd be shocked if Esmark moved anywhere. Just my thoughts

Bottom line! If you are in Youth Hockey to get your kid a scholarship you are plain and simple wasting your time and money. Probably a better chance to hit the lottery! It's hard in all sports but almost impossible in Hockey for all the reasons stated above! I've got eyes wide open now and hope mine are just playing for the love of the sport. Although I would probably still let mine try to play Juniors if he really wants to try. I've wasted far more money on far less endeavors.

What are NTDP players? That is very interesting!

Why do we all just assume that this is all a bad thing? Maybe just maybe it will lead to better hockey in SWPA!

Sounds to me like Vipers will be gone after this year unless they decide to move to some other rink! But where? Alpha seems to be pretty full. When you look close at it the only real loser is NHAHA. The kids will still have a place to play with the Huskies. Only real question is how much the cost to play will go up?

I wonder if Clonbur will be happy now that the Vipers will have to find a new home or cease to exist?

Saucey, That wasn't meant for you I value your opinion. You tell it like it is without an axe to grind. You have to admit that there are some people who come here to be negative. I do agree 100% that Hockey advancement is very convoluted compared to any other sport I can think of. But for sure it's not going to change any time soon!

And is all that a bad thing? What is the big worry? That it will cost more to play? Hockey is already the most expensive sport! I guess time will tell if it's good or bad and what will be the measuring stick?

Thanks for putting it all down on paper. There are still a lot of organizations that Black Bear does not control that will stay in PAHL. PAHL will have to step up with the competition to make sure that organizations don't leave. Competition is not a bad thing. Hopefully SWPA hockey and the kids will benefit from all of this.

And what exactly does that mean? As you have seen what does NHAHA have that they want? They have the Huskies to take the kids that want to play at PIA. They unfortunately don't need NHAHA.

They could potentially have 4 programs in Western Pa to start to form their own WPA league competing with PAHL. Maybe some other organizations will like it better than PAHL and join their league. Not all competition is a bad thing.

Does any of this really surprise us! We all knew it was coming. At the end of the day Black Bear is a business, They bought rinks improved them and now are running the programs. They were smart to get the Huskies at their weakest point, I feel bad for NHAHA but they were vulnerable this year as their program and number of teams was way down. In the end isn't it most important that the kids in that area have a place to play and the rink stays open?

Thanks for sharing your experience. Glad to hear of something positive for a change. Although it seems that mostly unhappy parents frequent this site!

Same to you and all the members of the WPA Hockey forum. Great place to share and learn about Hockey!

Thanks for the info! Does that really happen a lot? 10-15 players from Western Pa or more like 5?

Saucey, just curious what you mean about not caring about their high school education? If it's a gap year? I do value Danners opinions but does he always have to be so negative and put down people that don't agree with him.

Help them do what? Decide that they are wasting their time? Maybe the kids just want to play! Maybe the parents don't care what it costs! I know, I know, They all should just get on with their lives and the only ones that should be still playing after 18 are the players Danner decides are good enough.

Very interesting in 18U. The lower the division the less FPP . AA 82% of games get FPP , A Major 73% and A Minor down to 64%. So the higher the level of play the less penalties per game! Are FPP unique to PAHL? Does anyone know the history of the FPP?

Just looking at the way to early to care PAHL standings this morning. It is interesting how the Fair Play Points seem to be the worst at 14U and 18U. Haven't added them up exactly but looking at them it seems like a pretty strong trend. Might have to try to do a more extensive analysis. Also I believe it is impossible to have more FP points than games played! There are 2 teams that have more FPP than games played.