hockeyisgreat

Definitely could be a competitor to the PAHL. Have they tried to organize anything at Delmont (Allegheny Badgers) for their AHF?

So should we tell our kids to give up the dream now? What does that tell them?

First time going through this and I'm starting to understand. The one above I don't like is the connections part. I think the good AAA teams are like the club that once you are in the only way you get out is to give up. The thing I don't like about SHAHA and Veng are that they started young and have minimal turnover. I feel like you have to be 10 times better at tryouts to have a chance at making the team. That is one of the reasons Esmark was attractive. Kids with no history were competing for positions. I still say they could have tried to coach those kids up. Also why let them compete for 4 days if they weren't good enough. They knew after day 1 if my kid wasn't good enough. They should have cut him and let him move on instead of exhausting him for the rest of his tryouts.

Wow you finally get it. Mine didn't start out at the top of ADM. Didn't play birthyear as a 10 year old. He worked his way up. Absoulutely loves the game. Nothing he would rather do than play Hockey. Never misses a practice or a lesson. Always wants to get better. Not the best kid on his team but willing to work hard. Only has 4 more years. He might have the dream of playing beyond but he would need to put in a whole lot of more work and he knows it still might not be enough. Most importantly it's his dream and not mine. He knows that playing for the Hitmen or Predators isn't getting him anywhere any faster. He also thinks that the Vengeance and SHAHA are legit AAA teams. He's played with those kids and can always tell me who they are by watching them on the ice. My background is whatever the child is willing to work for.

Saucey, did you have a kid play? Did you tell him where to try out or let him make his own choice? I just want to understand where you are coming from.

Actually he wouldn't try out there. His choice! Did try out at Esmark and didn't make the team. Now I'm glad as he would have been crushed to have made it and then have them tell him they couldn't find enough good players to have a team. So you have no clue what I am talking about!

This is the bottom line. Especially by 14U. Parents can want it for their kids but the kids have to have the drive. Bottom line is asking the kid where he wants to try out. They have a sense by then of where they belong. Some want to reach. Why not let them. If AAA offers more ice and more practice whats wrong with it? And I understand a weak AAA team gets crushed but so what! As long as the parents can afford it and it's the kids idea let em tryout where they want.

Couldn't agree with you more. Glad there are so many opportunities for kids to play. I still say the overall quality of play in Western Pa is as good as it has ever been and appears to only be getting better. Can't wait to see what the 08 and under groups are going to be like in a few more years at U16. End game is being a part of something growing up that teaches teamwork, discipline and life coping skills to a whole lot of kids. Thanks to all the organizations and volunteers that make it happen.

Yet the Preds keep rolling out teams at AAA that are not as competitive as other AAA teams. I can't argue with any of what you say. The Preds are going to have a U15 AAA team this year. Do we know how many kids from last years team came back. I will follow their results this year to see if they are improved. But yes from what I have learned here they can go to Tier 2 AA in December if they aren't competitive in Tier 1. I'm getting a pretty serious hockey education. Thanks guys.

Yet 30 to 35 skaters were out there chasing that extra A. Hard to tell your kid he's not good enough to play AAA if he really wants to. That's what the tryout is for. Don't know what the answer is. If there is a demand why shouldn't an organization try to meet it. If the Icemen keep trying maybe they will get a team to Midams. Or maybe they will change their model to Tier 2. But for now they are meeting the demand. Good for them. As per most people on here all roads lead to beer league anyway. So people will spend their money however they want.

I wonder if those are the kids that Esmark thought were not good enough? I hope they field a competitive team and make Esmark feel pretty stupid! I would say competitive is top 60%. Hopefully I can come back on here in a year and say it's so. Forever the optimist.

We look forward to having another quality hockey player who most importantly loves the game in SW PA. Despite what some people say I think we have a very respectable Hockey community and players. Most of all we are trying to get better. A lot of serious kids doing as much as they can to improve.

Can I put you on ignore? Does this site have that feature. You are the most annoying person on this forum. Someone had to take over for the King. You are it. This poster came on here for some honest feedback and you reply with that nonsense, Your kids are aged out so get lost! PLEASE

Interesting but not surprising. I have no reason to doubt you as you seem to know way more about local Hockey than I do. Thanks for the info.

Wow, I like that analysis. You are obviously someone who is in the know. Had no idea about the Barons. So would you consider the 06 Birth year in Western Pa to be strong or just diluted by all the teams. I thought I saw that the top 3 were in the Top half of Tier 1 rankings. You obviously have an ear to SW PA Hockey so I won't doubt your info on the Big Bear Group at PIA. I guess I think it was a tragedy from the start because they had those kids go through 4 grueling days of Hockey. 3 scrimmage days against 05 kids. They should have cut the kids they thought clearly weren't good enough for AAA after the first or second day and let them move on. Beaver Falls seems to think that this was the advertised Coaches decision to not have a team at 06. After checking out the MY Rankings for that 05 team above I wouldn't want my kid on a team that goes 2 & 49. And gets beat by double digits in a whole lot of games. They say adversity makes you stronger but that's a whole other level. So maybe they did the right thing. But we will never know if they could have coached them up.

Pending sale of PIA to the Black Bear Group? Where did you hear that? Why was the 06 thing a tragedy from the start?

OK so they picked a team and put it on their website. How many of those kids backed out? Hard to believe they didn't have enough quality kids. I heard the tryouts were well attended. Why wouldn't they have a supplemental tryout to see if they could attract a few more kids. I thought they were a pretty well run organization until this fiasco. Just Strange!!

Welcome to the real world. Nothing gets handed to you! Money might make it easier but in the end the best, most dedicated, hardest working rise to the top. In most cases where you start out has no bearing on where you end up because somewhere along the way the player decides how bad they want it and how hard they are willing to work for it. Nothing wrong with all that! It's life. I just don't like people who blame the organizations for wanting to be the best. Or catering to the demand for an extra A. It's law of supply and demand. From what I have heard there will be a lot of kids who tried out at the AAA level that didn't make it. If the worst AAA team next year turned away players then there is still a demand.

I agree with that 100 percent. Practice is 1000 times more important than game times. Practice is the hard work. Games should be the reward for the hard work.

Mr Freeze how does a person gain the knowledge you have about Hockey on the national level? Have you been involved at a National level for a long time? You have offered a lot of incite and good info. I do believe it is just the nature of sports and competition that teams and organizations are always trying to be the best and go to great lengths to accomplish it. I like the idea of trying to put a group of local kids together to try and compete with PPE but I do believe that is impossible. I think Vengeance thought they could make a run at them and it hasn't happened yet. Who knows what the future will bring. Bottom line with all this is it has to be the players dream and not the Parents. Thanks for the input!

So you are going to let the people who are just getting into this fend for themselves and not be guided by your wisdom? I think people like you might be a big part of the problem as they only care about their kids and then complain about the big picture after they have gained all the experience. Why do you even bother coming on here if you don't care?

That's interesting! I guess I have just never thought much about Hockey being a money maker. I mean AAA coaches get paid I'm sure. But is it enough to have that as your full time job other than PPE. Are the Esmark Coaches full time and that is their only job? If so then I think the quality should be way better.

What does that mean? In reference to what?

Wow, you would think that bringing in the top guys from Chicago and paying 6 figures would assure the same type of coaching and development of passing, hockey IQ, etc. Then all that would trickle down to the other AAA and Pahl programs. Not like as if there is a big shortage of guys that have played high level hockey in the area. Maybe we don't spend enough time on Film study and classroom work.

Wow you have done some serious research on all this. I'm impressed! So based on their credentials we should assume that they are making 6 figures coaching at PPE. That's logical without any first hand knowledge. If all this is as you say and I have no reason to doubt it I do understand why they bring in out of the area talent as they are probably under tremendous pressure to win. I am getting a good education into the history of Youth Hockey in Western Pa. I am a newbe in that respect only really into it since 2012. Maybe I am starting to understand why some of the old timers are so salty toward PPE.