Carl Racki

Yeah, I am the one with no clue. Just send your kid to tier 3 juniors so they have a shot to make an ACHA hockey team plus you can tell everyone you kid plays juniors. Who knows they will probably get drafted to the NHL from that ACHA team (if they can still manage to make one). Definitely an intelligent way to spend your money. Great advice!

I played! I know how it works. I also know several of the local coaches. Again, if you have the talent to be in the top half of the team it doesn't matter. I have also played against MANY guys that have played tier 3 juniors over the years and no difference between them and good AA players. They usually make pretty solid upper c men's league players. Sure, their crazy parents will try to brag that they played "juniors". THERE IS NO WAY IN THE WORLD I WOULD TELL SOMEONE TO WASTE THERE MONEY ON TIER 3 JUNIORS SO THEY CAN PLAY ACHA HOCKEY (even ACHA ELITE). I FORFIET. THIS IS INSANE!! If you have money to waste and would enjoy it then fine. To do it to further your hockey career is insane unless you can't crack tier one or tier two and you would be a top tier 3 play hoping to later crack tier two. Not to go play ACHA ELITE (Hahahaha) Sorry won't beat this dead horse anymore. This has been painful.

Never mind, everyone send your kid to tier 3 pay to play juniors if they are to have a shot at playing ACHA D1 elite!!! (Obviously this is sarcasm). Who knows they may get drafted into the NHL from the ACHA D1 ELITE team! Money well spent then!!

Holy Cow again, they all play in the same league!!!!!!! Ohio plays Pitt, WVU,.... The same league!!!!!

Whatever, do you have a hockey background? Look on the web. Duquesne, Pitt, IUP, RMU are all ACHA D1 teams. When you say ACHA it is basically club hockey. You keep posting on here you need to play juniors to play ACHA hockey. Maybe I don't know about the ACHA D1 elite league that you must be talking about. Again, all those teams I believe still play ACHA D1 and you don't need to play Juniors to play. Holy cow.

It's because players and parents get tired of all the BS money and travel. They get tired of going to Texas, Minnesota, Boston, Florida,... 10 times a year to play beer league at the end of the day.

Again, please tell me what local ACHA teams are telling kids to go play Mickey mouse, pay to play juniors, before coming to their programs???? None. Not Duquesne, RMU, Pitt, Slippery Rock, IUP, ...... All local ACHA teams. I can't believe people actually think this. Sadly I have heard parents say that they are playing on these faux AAA teams so hopefully they make a faux (tier 3) junior team and then can play ACHA. That is absolutely hilarious! Again, if you are in the top half they don't care if you only played highschool. By the way I have never heard of the Ohio Bobcats. They are actually ACHA ELITE not just ACHA.

I don't care how people waste their money. I just try to educate the ones that don't want to waste their money and are on here for that reason. Telling people they have to play tier 3 juniors to play ACHA hockey is REALLY bad information and promoting uneducated people to waste money. I would love to know what local ACHA teams are telling kids to go play tier 3 juniors to be considered for the team???? Very bad information in my opinion.

The point of this board is to help educate each other about hockey especially people new to the sport. Yes people can spend their money however they choose. People on here just try to educate them so they don't unintentionally waste their money. It is absolutely insane to play pay to play juniors to play ACHA hockey. I repeat, it is insane to play pay to play juniors so you can play ACHA hockey. ACHA hockey is like everywhere else, if you are good enough you will get a shot. Not a bottom guy but a top player. PLEASE do not waste your money in tier 3 juniors so you can move on to ACHA hockey. If you go to a college with an ACHA program contact them and play there if you are good enough. If you are good enough they won't care what faux AAA team you played for or what tier 3 junior team you played for. Club hockey is a fun experience. The BS that you need to play tier 3 juniors is just that BS. If you would be a top one or two on the tier 3 junior team and still hoping to move on to a higher level (not ACHA club) then MAYBE take the gamble playing tier 3 understanding it will be very hard.

Those team typically aren't AA but yes if A major black it could be really bad.

No it is mostly to pitch it as AAA to parents that are either uneducated or to parents that just want to say little johnny is playing AAA.

Yes they would develop the same maybe even better. That is my favorite excuse. Again, because a few jump ship because they are all the sudden AAA it ruins PAHL AA forcing more to jump ship. Look at 09 SHAHA last year. They played several close games with the top few teams. Then figure that league was missing the Preds 09 AAA (HA), and the 09 Esmark team. Put those two in with the 09 independent Icemen and you would have a solid AA PAHL division. That is also what those teams are. Now the AA division has numerous A level teams because of all the bogus AAA teams that have left. Development??? For what?? Beer league?? So drive all over the country to play the same types of teams when you could have 20 solid home games. The money would be better spent on skills and skating for development. As for any of the PAHL teams getting ranked higher than those guys it is doubtful because they don't play high enough ranked teams enough. If you just hang in with highly ranked teams and don't compete your ranking will still be higher. That is why Pens do not like to play local. Everyone is worried about their stupid ranking.

Yet like I said before neither the SHAHA 2009 or Esmark 2009 are AAA. They will be ranked about 60 at best. I doubt even that high. A lot of great players on both teams but not AAA teams. In fact if you ask the parents of the top players on those teams they will tell you the same I bet.

Exactly and they should just be playing in the same PAHL division. If PAHL had a AAA 15u I guess they would sign up. As for the Pens 15u playing these teams that would be ridiculous. They are a legit AAA team with a pretty deep AAA roster. Not 5 or 6 AAA players.

Amen sir! Well written. My point is now at that 2007 birth year you have the new AAA Preds, AAA Icemen, SHAHA AAA and Vengeance AAA that all should be playing PAHL AA. It is a fast growing problem in the area. Same thing happened with the 2009 group. You had the 2009 SHAHA go AAA and Preds go AAA this year. The really sad part is the 2009 Pred and SHAHA then put two horrible A level teams in the PAHL AA division. They are A level teams that will water down AA and more teams will then follow to the "I am an independent AAA team because I did so well in PAHL. Very well said above

So where is your cut off? 60? Just because you have one win against a top 30 team and 10 losses doesn't mean you are competing. If you are 500 against those teams and the games are close I would say you are competing. Just my opinion and I have watched many parents and players blow tons of money playing for the faux AAA teams and even legit ones only to say years later why did I waste all that money????

Like I said, I will even give you to the top 40. Teams in the 50s, 60s,... Play the legit AAA teams in the top ten will get smoked. Again, they may have half a team of AAA players but not enough to compete with the real AAA. The stupidity is ruining local hockey and forcing dumb amounts of travel as Western Pa has so many faux AAA teams that PAHL AA is about half AA and half A major black by Bantam. It's such a waste. But hey you can say your kid is playing AAA.

Ok smart guy where is the cut off 400? I would say 30-40 max are legit. Guessing your son isnt on one of those teams. Not saying there aren't AAA players on AA teams just saying those teams don't have the depth to be considered AAA in my opinion. Hey tell people your team is AAA when they are ranked 80,100,150 heck even below a lot of AA team.

If they are ranked in the top 30 I consider them a legit AAA. If not I'm the top 30 then not a legit AAA. Doesn't matter what the name is on the organization.

Sounds like a real winner of a captain. Just the guy I would want leading my team!

Does the freshmen that lite up the league last year for Peters play for the 2006 SHAHA team? I would use his name but don't think that is allowed. I am betting he does. He is a solid legit AAA player. That is the type of player I am impressed with. He can take a faux AAA team and make them somewhat relevant.

Jason Crain, Andy Walbert, Jon Yackmak, Aaron Faust, JB Bittner, and Jake Hildebrand are a few I see missing. All played NCAA 1, 3 a couple even drafted. All great players. That is a few off the top of my head that you missed.

If you are not playing on a team ranked in the top 40 you are irrelevant anyway. No exposure. If you are good enough they will find you

Even some of those teams are money grabs at certain birth years. If you aren't in the top 30 maybe 40 you are not AAA. You are wasting your breath though as I have said it a million times.

That is because the bottom half of the legitimate AAA players are about the same as the top two or three kids on the better AA teams. It is easy to look good when you are surrounded by talent. It is much harder when you aren't surrounded with high-level talent and you have to do it on your own. I have explained this to people for years but Ego's get in the way.