nemesis8679

4 hours ago, Whyyyy said:

This guy is taking Esmark into the ground. At least renegades saw how toxic he was. He gets along with the kids because he is one himself and now he is bringing “friends” into the organization that act like him! 

I heard he was booted from his prior organization for not taking a certain kid or kids onto his team. Not sure if that's what happened but I've heard the same story from several unrelated persons.

10 hours ago, HockeyFan6687 said:

 

it blows my mind how underutilized in-house hockey is. We are making a whole sector of the population unable to access the game.  Not every family is able to manage the traveling around, not every family is able to afford PAHL hockey and there are families not interested in that much time and financial commitment from the start.  Some may never but others may get hooked by that low cost less commitment opportunity and eventually want more hence your PAHL program grows. 

Agreed 100%. There are plenty of kids that would benefit from in-house leagues. One practice per week, one game per week. 4 'seasons' per year, 8 or so games per. You can sign up for anything from 1 season to 4, like dek hockey. Depending what you want or what else is going on. Keeps the cost down. Keeps commitment down, but allows for an additional skating lesson each week if so chosen. 

There are so many kids and parents that just want to try out the game, or just have something fun to do, get some exercise or activity... and maybe do more serious hockey from there- or not, and continue to just play in-house in addition to baseball or whatever, don't have to extra money, whatever. A good portion of the kids will proceed to more from there. Some won't, they be happy with in-house just like adults are happy with rec league. But you'd get more people playing and less of the kids that are  watering down PAHL just because if they want to casually play they have no other alternative.

Since this is one of the difficult things every year, how about a thread where boards can look to see what coaching candidates are available? Might be a silly idea but also might be a good way to find a coach that a team otherwise may not know how to contact? Perhaps lead to multiple offers where you can pick the best one. Of course no currently employed coach is going to inquire in a public forum but sometimes a coach leaves on their own terms, new head coaches bring in their own staff, or whatever. Maybe somebody is young and looking to get started. And if a board is looking for somebody to help out, they may not know what options are available. 

So if there's any potential coaches out there, post what level you're looking for and some kind of contact info if you'd like. 

How about ridiculous travel with a young kid when you might have other kids with other interests and don't want to spend the money or drag the whole family along/leave half the family at home all weekend while you drive 4 hours to Buffalo to play some team equivalent to what you could play within an hour of your house.

Hopefully wait until one of the other teams with 7 skaters folds and convince them to join. Or vice versa. At least one team will fill. Some kids will be hung out to try, but hey, this is the price of high level 12u AA hockey.

Or just wait for a few kids that didn't make a team they wanted and dangle the AA carrot at them.

When you have too many teams claiming that they're AA, then you have a lot of orgs not "taking the best players available" in some cases and keeping or bringing in kids in favor of friends and/or school teammates... yeah those other kids that could be making some of these teams based on skill and hard work are going to explore every option they can. Or they say screw the tryout circus altogether and stay on a team that they already have friends on or that's easy and convenient. 

So where you could have some really, really strong teams, instead these players are spread out piecemeal over an array of different teams. So you wind up with AA or A teams with one or a handful of talented, hardworking kids with a high compete level and then on the same team you have a noticeable drop when it comes to the floor of the team.

50 minutes ago, No Politics said:

They get a couple to come out, and those kids are trapped on a team that has no chance of playing AA instead of playing on a team that actually has a chance.

They rob a kid of a year of their hockey lives, and develop a bad reputation because of it.

They get trapped? Robbed of a year of their hockey lives? How are they being tricked? The kids they'll be potentially playing with are on the ice at tryouts, too. That's kind of over-the-top. It's Tier 2 AA hockey, dude. Who cares? Get a grip.  

And, if not for nepotism, a lot of those kids wouldn't have to take spots on those other teams. 

I also have to say that declaring it unequivocally a AA NB team when it never has been prior is a dirt bag move. But if an org advertises a team as AA or A depending how it falls, that's fine. 

What organizations are those?

2 hours ago, Happy Hockey Fan said:

I think a lot of it has to do with two things, genetics and the fact that they have their own refrigerated rink! 

Bingo. And hockey being a major priority than most people can imagine. Also working on the ice with guys currently playing in the highest level certainly doesn't hurt.

2 hours ago, Saucey said:

You would no longer be able to say that you are having "open" tryouts. Although that is basically a farce for most places, but would cut into try out fees generated.

There is no such thing as open tryouts when the coach carries over year to year. Or at best, there's very, very few. 

32 minutes ago, 1976 said:

Armstrong Arrows have a few openings at 12U - All skill levels. 

Please reach out to Arrows Hockey Director at: aahlhockeydirector@yahoo.com 

I heard some teams, not 12u, already folded. Is this true?

39 minutes ago, HockeyFan6687 said:

What exactly is in an offer beyond the spot on the roster?  I love how some talk about receiving offers like they need to discuss with their agent.  

Knowing the most you can about what you're paying for and committing to is a fair ask. 

48 minutes ago, aaaahockey said:

I'll take your word for it!  It wouldn't surprise me. 

He's right, and the family knows how to hype the kid.

I do recall seeing the guy with the Huskies account say in s post here that they will wait to see what they have before claiming a certain level. Or something to that effect. 

2 hours ago, stickboy said:

What are you shopping for that you are going to find out at tryouts?

Actually not really any one thing. That's the point. Who are the coaches, does the kid fit in with the other kids, location, do the tryouts show that they will have a enough for a team or was turnout weak, what team will the kid place on, what kind of schedule will there be (will practices or out-of-town travel conflict with school hockey).... There's lots of stuff. Things change year to year everywhere. Whether the kid has stuck with one team for his whole life or played for a few, sometimes kids or a parent want to explore a change. And sometimes they don't, and that works out also.

2 hours ago, dazedandconfused said:

Well how about that? 2 Pittsburgh players on this team and yet the nay-sayers on here still bash local hockey.

Seems it's mostly disappointment of their own that they are displaying.

Local hockey organizations did little to contribute. Or at least, there's more to the story than local hockey.

As the title says. Why? Not even just regular tryouts, but teams having supplementals at the same times as teams are still doing regular tryouts?

As a parent, I would have no problem with my kid going to tryouts for 4-5 organizations. But it's really hard to do that when you're possibly going to miss at least a day at other places. So now you're sort of forced to put all your eggs in one or two baskets instead of going to several and missing a day or two of each.

Now this has to be on purpose, because there's not a lot of hockey going on right now at the rinks but not only are dates the same, but times overlap.

I get every org wants to get the commitments first before the others, but they're also missing out on kids that would otherwise perhaps at least get in the door of another org and consider playing there.

It's just another hockey thing that seems to be made more complicated than it needs to be.

18 hours ago, Huskies_Director said:

Pittsburgh Huskies supplemental - 

 

• 14u (2011/Mixed) - TODAY 4/25 - 6:00pm 

 

• 16u Mixed - TOMORROW 4/26 - 7:00pm

 

We are also still searching for 10u skaters! 

You're other post says the 16u is tonight?

I came across this.

1 hour ago, stickboy said:

Bingo!  Mom and dad finally realize the dream is not attainable and pull back. 

 It’s the same thing every year. We never listen to those ahead of us that tell us exactly how it is. We think they are just bitter and it’s going to be different for us.  But in reality it is the same:  If at 15u/16u you aren’t a top player on Pens or at a top nationally ranked out of town program, Tier1Juniors/NCAA/pro hockey isn’t in the cards.  Yes, there are a few exceptions, but be honest: is your player the exception?
 

 

 

Not even that so much about the parents seeing the dream isn't attainable. But where before the parents gotta get Little Johnny to the Vengeance tryouts because those kids are "better" and clearly Little Johnny is better... At 15, 16 years old Little Johnny is now Adolescent Johnny and he's saying, "I want to make extra money, I want to hang out with friends, I like hockey but it's not the only thing I'm interested in that I want to put all this time and effort into when I have a bunch of homework and a part time job and want some video game time, etc."

And for the dreamers- I don't think most people realize what that dream really takes. Meaning the work, time, money, and commitment that is in your control nor the "have-it-or-you-don't" genetics and mind for the sport, and luck that is not even in your control. 

6 hours ago, No Politics said:

Maybe I'm not understanding this team, but why is this posted under the "Western Pennsylvania YOUTH Hockey" thread?

Well if it's any justification, the owner/thief of the River Monsters is involved with a local youth organization.

2 hours ago, fafa fohi said:

This may be a topic for a different thread, but I never really understood why a parent, whose kid did not make a local U16-18 AAA team would send him away to play AAA in another city or state for his junior year or even worse, his senior year in high school?  I mean, are the scouts all of a sudden going to notice this player whether they play for Team Maryland, Tri-State, Nashville Jr Preds or any team in Detroit but were not good enough to make a local AAA team?  You would think not making a local AAA team would be a sign not to be ignored?

I know of several kids that went through this and ended up being non-drafted players while missing their senior year in HS and taking cyber school.  Maybe it's me, I just don't get it.

But saying, "my kid is such a great hockey player, he's billeting in Ohio to play" sounds so much better at the water cooler.

 The younger you start, the easier it is to get on teams. Once you're on the team, the easier it is to stay. At some point school hockey becomes important to kids. Say what you want, but playing for the school team is important for a lot of kids- it comes with a certain amount of popularity amongst their peers, hearing their name on the announcements, etc. Things that don't come with playing for a Vengeance, Esmark, or wherever. 

A lot of kids want to go to the movies with their friends or go hang out with their girlfriend or whatever on the weekend. Not say, "oh sorry, I can't go. I have to go to Philadelphia this weekend for hockey" and get left out. 

So with being on the school team and the commitment that goes with that (and the cost of playing for the school team added in), some kids are going to want to just play for school and a team that's a little bit more schedule-friendly. 

Believe it or not, some kids like to play hockey but also have other interests and things they like to do. So by this age they start realizing that. And at this age, the parental influence on what they want to do is becoming much less. 

6 hours ago, Goalsanddreams74 said:

Like I said already. We all only paid $350 in total to play for the season. 20 games and full jerseys and equipment I’ll take that any day. 

Paid for by your teammates' sponsorships they didn't get paid for.

Some places do the district play. I'm sure it has its own pros and cons but surely cuts down on lots of nonsense. Of course it's nice to have the opportunity to play with kids you don't play with at school otherwise wouldn't meet. But it would cut down on nonsense like letter shopping and people playing musical chairs every year.