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4 hours ago, HSFBLJ said:

Has anyone had any success with NCSA or Captain U?  I'm interested to see if coaches actually contact you.  I have been directly emailing coaches and filling out the new player forms with some success.  

Just Curious what level are you targeting?  Is this your first trip thru recruiting?  Sure would like to hear how your journey is going. It might really help others here who are not sure where to go and don't want to listen to all the nay sayers tell us we are wasting our time.  Thanks

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Actually just getting started.  Several conversations with Division 3 coaches and Club coaches.  Most are pushing the Jr's route.  From what I have learned most hockey players have 2 years of Jr's before they enroll in school.  Tough decision for a High School Sr.  I don't necessarily believe that if your good enough they will find you. I'm sure that is the case for the top 5%.  For all those other kids you need to find a school that is looking for what you bring to the table.  Hockey and Academics play a part in the decision making process.

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Reach out to the college coaches, but know that they don't personally recruit heavily once their season starts. They "may" send someone out to scout on their behalf. Let the coaches know when the kid is playing and where. They usually scout some of the bigger tournaments - cast a wider net kinda thing. Do not expect them to come out just to see your kid unless they're legitimately the next great hotness. HAVE YOUR COACH POLITIC\NETWORK FOR YOUR KID WITH THE COLLEGES. Put together a bio and some film - not just pretty goals... show that the kid can skate, pass, shoot, playmake, play defensively, is physical and aggressive both on and away from the puck, has hockey sense, is a good team player. In the BIO emphasize the academics. If the kid can maintain a 4.0+ GPA and play travel hockey that goes a long way to show they are dedicated, mature, and know how to manage time and priorities.

 

Oh, and IMHO NSCA and Captain U are bigger money grabs than most anything we debate on here.

Edited by GrumpyOldPucker
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Locally and Regionally, the CHMA and ACHA Division 1 Schools will be at the PIHL All Star Games, Penguins Cup Playoffs and the Pa Hockey Tournaments  in Pittsburgh and Jamestown. With Pitt ranked 12th in the country and local schools RMU. IUP and others (WVU, Duquesne, Mercyhurst, John Carroll and Kent State) in contention for Nationals, the majority of their kids are from local High School, Tier 2 and Tier 1 teams, Contact the coaches of the CHMA and if interested  PM me and I will put you in touch with the program(s) you may ne interested and I will put you in touch with them  

Edited by Pa Hockey
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Most of these local club teams would actually welcome you being proactive and letting them know you’re interested in playing at that level. There is no recruiting team or budget for them; so if you have a little bit of a playing resume you’ll be welcome. Some of them invite potential freshmen to skate with the team for a practice. 

Things are a little different the NCAA route. You should have a pretty good idea by 15U whether your anywhere near the radar for those programs without paying for “placement” services. (eg already playing legit AAA and being top 1/2 to 1/3 of that lineup as well as developing to at least be able to go tier II junior).  
 

 

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19 hours ago, BeaverFalls said:

 

Things are a little different the NCAA route. You should have a pretty good idea by 15U whether your anywhere near the radar for those programs without paying for “placement” services. (eg already playing legit AAA and being top 1/2 to 1/3 of that lineup as well as developing to at least be able to go tier II junior).  
 

 

Meaning Pens right? Seriously this brings us back to the circle arguments about what is "real" AAA

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4 hours ago, aaaahockey said:

Meaning Pens right? Seriously this brings us back to the circle arguments about what is "real" AAA

Idk these programs well enough honestly to say what is real and what isn’t. But legit programs tend to have a history of having kids move on the better programs along with are actively scouted by them. 

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1 hour ago, Saucey said:

Do they play some sort of juniors first?

Some do, a lot of kids just go right to college when it’s over. Some piss around in tier 3 or get a quick stop in tier 2. the top 4-5 kids keep pushing. 

Edited by Danner27
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Hi! So I am following this closely. My son is also a senior BUT could still play 1 more year of AAA next year. We are sort of in a weird area where he’s not sure if he should do another year and aim towards juniors (which is where he wants to play but feels like his time is running out) or just jump into college and play club for 4 years; like UPJ or Allegheny. And we have no clue on how to get him on there list for playing. I never thought about filling out new player forms…I’m just feeling overwhelmed and I know he is. Any guidance on this will help!

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1 hour ago, AMR24 said:

Hi! So I am following this closely. My son is also a senior BUT could still play 1 more year of AAA next year. We are sort of in a weird area where he’s not sure if he should do another year and aim towards juniors (which is where he wants to play but feels like his time is running out) or just jump into college and play club for 4 years; like UPJ or Allegheny. And we have no clue on how to get him on there list for playing. I never thought about filling out new player forms…I’m just feeling overwhelmed and I know he is. Any guidance on this will help!

Have you talked to your club coach and program director?  They should be able to give you a good read on where your son falls. 

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3 hours ago, AMR24 said:

Hi! So I am following this closely. My son is also a senior BUT could still play 1 more year of AAA next year. We are sort of in a weird area where he’s not sure if he should do another year and aim towards juniors (which is where he wants to play but feels like his time is running out) or just jump into college and play club for 4 years; like UPJ or Allegheny. And we have no clue on how to get him on there list for playing. I never thought about filling out new player forms…I’m just feeling overwhelmed and I know he is. Any guidance on this will help!

It’s really up to you guys. Do you want to  keep spending money ? Is your son mature enough to go away to school ? What is the end game ? How is your son’s grades ? Does he want to goto college ? 
 

rmu, pitt, Cal U & IUP  I can’t think at the moment, but there are others, these are just the ones I hear most about. If someone has the time or knowledge to list all the acha schools that are a reasonable distance for western pa players, with coaches contacts it would probably help a lot of folks here. Possibly start a new thread. Coffee just kicked in a little - mercyhurst, Duquesne & right across the border Wvu. I’m sure there are more. Over in Ohio you have Ohio U, kent, Miami & others. 
 

It’s really just as simple as sending a coach an email stating your son has interest in the school. They will have the kid down for a skate at some point & let you know if he has a chance to make the team or not.  
 

if your son is serious about his academics, don’t pick a college just because they have hockey. There are many different factors with the college experience & education. Choose wisely what is best for your child, don’t make the hockey team the priority. 
 

Edited by Danner27
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4 hours ago, AMR24 said:

Hi! So I am following this closely. My son is also a senior BUT could still play 1 more year of AAA next year. We are sort of in a weird area where he’s not sure if he should do another year and aim towards juniors (which is where he wants to play but feels like his time is running out) or just jump into college and play club for 4 years; like UPJ or Allegheny. And we have no clue on how to get him on there list for playing. I never thought about filling out new player forms…I’m just feeling overwhelmed and I know he is. Any guidance on this will help!

        Our experience is that kids who want to play hockey in college can do so right out of high school. My son did it and has enjoyed four years of education and hockey at Slippery Rock and now as an MBA Grad Student at IUP.  Juniors IMO are a waste of time and money.

      ACHA Division 1 Hockey is very good hockey and locally Pitt, IUP, Duquesne, RMU are all very good programs and regionally Mercyhurst, John Carroll, WVU and Kent State are very good as well. These programs carry 25-26 players on their rosters and work the freshmen into the lineup  if they make the team. If the player is talented, they play their way into the lineup and it has been a great experience for us.

       Education is a good starting point and once you decide what area of study you are interested in, then all of these schools mentioned above are in play. Grades in High School are very good barometer of where you end up as well. 

 

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I think the way to decide is to figure out where your son would like to go to college and then look into the background of the players.  Some ACHA Division 1 programs almost require Juniors.  Clearly, there are exceptions.  I would think that amount of success your son has had at AAA would be helpful in determining if his is the exception. 

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I have no idea!  Just starting to research all of this and realizing there are so many levels of Juniors.  Let's talk about the lowest level?  Is that where the Vengeance play?  Do those kids go on to play College Hockey at any level?  Of course anyone can walk on and get a tryout almost anywhere I would think.

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CHMA and ACHA has great competition and is a very good level of hockey. Look at last weekend RMU beat Kent State 2-1 and IUP beat John Carroll 8-4 and then on Saturday Kent State beat IUP 4-2 and John Carroll beat RMU 6-4. All good teams to give Pitt a handful for a berth to Nationals 

Lots of players on those teams and many just played AAA or AA and High School .............Juniors may not be necessary for this level 

 

Edited by Pa Hockey
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44 minutes ago, twoboys said:

Here is the roster for the IUP Division 1 team.  Some played juniors, some AAA and some AA. 

Roster | IUP Men’s Hockey (pointstreaksites.com)

And the IUP hockey website is pretty good.  Lists the fee associated with playing and what you get in return for the fee.

Thanks, That's exactly what I was looking for. Couldn't find that kind of info at Pitt website.

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