AAA Tryout Log Jam

[fafa fohi]

It appears PPE, Esmark, SHAHA, Vengeance and Preds 06's ( am I missing any? ) all have AAA tryouts overlapping each other at some point which makes it somewhat difficult for any player to tryout for two teams if cut from one.  

That being the case, this could potentially strengthen some of the local AA teams with players looking for a home that do not make their desired team.  Or is AA beneath them - meaning AA is unacceptable for all of those parents?

Edited April 8, 2022 by fafa fohi

[Saucey]

Meh I am sure a lot of those programs will take other programs' cast offs after tryouts are over. 

[Denis Lemiuex]

Lots of supplemental tryouts coming I guess

[hockeyisgreat]

2 hours ago, Denis Lemiuex said:

Lots of supplemental tryouts coming I guess

Or they just take them without tryouts!   I hear there is a lot of that going on around here.

[hockeyisgreat]

There just aren't enough true AAA players to go around so they all fight for the same kids!

[Jack Handey]

3 minutes ago, hockeyisgreat said:

Or they just take them

or already took them - most orgs have the team picked already.

[hockeyisgreat]

I agree but a few kids will try to move and some will tryout hoping to move up from a AA team.  If they haven't been asked to tryouts I think they are wasting their time and donating 150.00. Just my opinion of course.

[aaaahockey]

If you get cut, then you take the road to Cleveland!

[3 Boys]

28 minutes ago, hockeyisgreat said:

I agree but a few kids will try to move and some will tryout hoping to move up from a AA team.  If they haven't been asked to tryouts I think they are wasting their time and donating 150.00. Just my opinion of course.

Yes, very true.  All the teams have 90% or more of the kids already picked.

[twoboys]

36 minutes ago, hockeyisgreat said:

I agree but a few kids will try to move and some will tryout hoping to move up from a AA team.  If they haven't been asked to tryouts I think they are wasting their time and donating 150.00. Just my opinion of course.

At the 06 level, the coaches know what AA players are out there that have a shot of cracking a AAA roster.  And if the parents haven't take the kid to a AAA skate then they deep down don't want the kid to play AAA.     

[hockey07]

1 hour ago, hockeyisgreat said:

Or they just take them without tryouts!   I hear there is a lot of that going on around here.

That’s the name of the game in AAA

[hockeyisgreat]

Who has the 1st National bound tryout date?  Anybody starting tomorrow?  Anyway good luck to everyone with kids trying out!

[RJUSHL]

I may be in the minority here, but I think the Pittsburgh hockey market (which is much better than it was even 10 years ago) can support four legit AAA teams for each birth year. In some weaker birth years, maybe just three. And when I say "legit", I'm saying a top 50 team.

[twoboys]

1 hour ago, RJUSHL said:

I may be in the minority here, but I think the Pittsburgh hockey market (which is much better than it was even 10 years ago) can support four legit AAA teams for each birth year. In some weaker birth years, maybe just three. And when I say "legit", I'm saying a top 50 team. 

It all depends on how many of the better kids play PAHL.  The top 10 kids in AA can definitely help a AAA team if you have 3 AAA teams.  

[mrfreeze]

Here is my take what will happen at the 06 level, feel free to take the over or under. 

PPE will add an 07 Pittsburgh kid and will loose/cut 2-3 more Pittsburgh kids, Some of their current imports will go home or greener pastures.

SHAHA will retain it's core, maybe pick up a player or 2 from Vengeance.

Esmark will keep telling everyone that they have all these kids coming and basically take a bunch of disgruntle vengeance players and parents, maybe sprinkle in a couple Russian/Ukrain kid or 2, but with the current issues over there, I think this will be harder and not easier, but that is my own opinion and I am not an expert on Geo Politics and how they relate to youth hockey recruiting. I think they will enviably add some AA or A major kids to fill out the roster and so Yurri gets paid, and those kids will not play and at least 1 will quit before the year ends and go back to AA or Highschool.

Vengeance will retain a couple players and will be similar to what happen with the 07 team last year. They may not fair as well during the season, but i think most of those players will be happy to be there and will develop and get better but will defiantly drop in the rankings, if that really matters. It's a shame, cause the Vengeance Hockey Director just does not see what is going on. He is so worried about Esmark and kids going there he had a meeting with the current parents basically telling them Esmark Bad, if you tryout or say the word Esmakr or Yurri, then don't come back. EGO's kill programs and his will be the death of that program. That is why they moved their tryouts up to run with and finish before Esmark. 

Preds = Are they even a AAA team, maybe they should just play tier 2

Iceman - i give them a 50% chance of fielding a team, but there is only a 10% chance of that. They have a lot of kids that left North Pitt, will they be welcomed back? Maybe some of them should tryout at the other spots if they want a place to play. 

 

I don't think the AA will reap that many players to be honest. 

SCIR and Allegheny will return most of its players and those 2 coaches will jump on any talent that falls through the cracks. NP still has a pretty deep group of 06 and might get a 07 or 2 to fill out it roster but does not have a solid goalie to compete with the other 2 at this point, maybe one will appear, but that program is geared more towards kids that play high school and will likely not play a schedule like SCIR or Allegheny, that would be appealing to entice a goalie to travel to them, but they will have one of the better coaching staffs in the area. I think they could be fighting for players with the Iceman and the NP tryout system does not far well when the other teams can quickly make players offers and secure them before tryouts end and not many want to wait around to find out if they made a team and some of these kids could be going through their 3rd or 4th tryouts.

So in the end

Tier 1

PPE  

SHAHA

ESMARK

VENGENACE

Tier 2

SCIR

ALLEGHENY

NP

PRED

ICEMAN

 

 

 

[Pucks11]

2 hours ago, RJUSHL said:

I may be in the minority here, but I think the Pittsburgh hockey market (which is much better than it was even 10 years ago) can support four legit AAA teams for each birth year. In some weaker birth years, maybe just three. And when I say "legit", I'm saying a top 50 team.

# of teams in the top 100 by birth year

18u - 4 (2 top 50)

16u - 4 (2 top 50)

15u - 4  (2 top 50)

14u- 3  (1 top 50)

13u- 5  (2 top 50)

12u- 4  (2 top 50)

11u- 5  (3 top 50)

10u- 4  (2 top 50)

It's not completely far fetched to think that 3 or 4 are possible with some of the top AA kids. 

Edited April 8, 2022 by Pucks11

[RJUSHL]

5 minutes ago, Pucks11 said:

It's not completely far fetched to think that 3 or 4 are possible with some of the top AA kids. 

You're right. And with the three Tier 1 organizations located in the north, there are usually a handful of AAA capable kids playing AA hockey at Lebo, SHAHA, or Rebellion who have parents that are just fine with AA hockey and don't won't to spend half their week driving to Alpha or New Ken. You don't see these kids hiding on AA PAHL teams in the north hills. Too many AAA options close by.

[PUCKCOVID19]

just cross PPE off the list if your from PGH and above bantam major, they no longer want or care for PGH kids they want the fat check book kool aid drinking parents now...... and how did they do at mid am and nationals........ enough said 

 

[BeaverFalls]

I’m going contrarian and saying there aren’t nearly enough AAA teams around.

[Denis Lemiuex]

On 4/7/2022 at 2:24 PM, hockeyisgreat said:

Or they just take them without tryouts!   I hear there is a lot of that going on around here.

That is wrong. It will never happen with the high integrity people involved in these programs.

[Spear and Magic Helmet]

2 hours ago, mrfreeze said:

Iceman - i give them a 50% chance of fielding a team, but there is only a 10% chance of that.

[mrfreeze]

1 hour ago, Spear and Magic Helmet said:

I was wondering who would pick up on that.

[Carl Racki]

7 hours ago, mrfreeze said:

Here is my take what will happen at the 06 level, feel free to take the over or under. 

PPE will add an 07 Pittsburgh kid and will loose/cut 2-3 more Pittsburgh kids, Some of their current imports will go home or greener pastures.

SHAHA will retain it's core, maybe pick up a player or 2 from Vengeance.

Esmark will keep telling everyone that they have all these kids coming and basically take a bunch of disgruntle vengeance players and parents, maybe sprinkle in a couple Russian/Ukrain kid or 2, but with the current issues over there, I think this will be harder and not easier, but that is my own opinion and I am not an expert on Geo Politics and how they relate to youth hockey recruiting. I think they will enviably add some AA or A major kids to fill out the roster and so Yurri gets paid, and those kids will not play and at least 1 will quit before the year ends and go back to AA or Highschool.

Vengeance will retain a couple players and will be similar to what happen with the 07 team last year. They may not fair as well during the season, but i think most of those players will be happy to be there and will develop and get better but will defiantly drop in the rankings, if that really matters. It's a shame, cause the Vengeance Hockey Director just does not see what is going on. He is so worried about Esmark and kids going there he had a meeting with the current parents basically telling them Esmark Bad, if you tryout or say the word Esmakr or Yurri, then don't come back. EGO's kill programs and his will be the death of that program. That is why they moved their tryouts up to run with and finish before Esmark. 

Preds = Are they even a AAA team, maybe they should just play tier 2

Iceman - i give them a 50% chance of fielding a team, but there is only a 10% chance of that. They have a lot of kids that left North Pitt, will they be welcomed back? Maybe some of them should tryout at the other spots if they want a place to play. 

 

I don't think the AA will reap that many players to be honest. 

SCIR and Allegheny will return most of its players and those 2 coaches will jump on any talent that falls through the cracks. NP still has a pretty deep group of 06 and might get a 07 or 2 to fill out it roster but does not have a solid goalie to compete with the other 2 at this point, maybe one will appear, but that program is geared more towards kids that play high school and will likely not play a schedule like SCIR or Allegheny, that would be appealing to entice a goalie to travel to them, but they will have one of the better coaching staffs in the area. I think they could be fighting for players with the Iceman and the NP tryout system does not far well when the other teams can quickly make players offers and secure them before tryouts end and not many want to wait around to find out if they made a team and some of these kids could be going through their 3rd or 4th tryouts.

So in the end

Tier 1

PPE  

SHAHA

ESMARK

VENGENACE

Tier 2

SCIR

ALLEGHENY

NP

PRED

ICEMAN

 

 

 

Four AAA teams in the area is laughable.  We do have great hockey but I consider AAA to be in the top 40 or better.  As you see listed before this post it is typically is just two teams.  The rest are good tier 2 teams.  Sure they may have some middle of the road AAA players on those teams but not enough to be AAA.   Typically it is Pens and one other organization are AAA locally IF they get all the top local kids to come.  Get over having an ego and trying to say your kid is on an AAA team when their team can't crack the top 40.  They may even be a AAA player but not enough depth on the team to be AAA.  I will say hockey has been getting better in western Pa though.

[mrfreeze]

49 minutes ago, Carl Racki said:

Four AAA teams in the area is laughable.  We do have great hockey but I consider AAA to be in the top 40 or better.  As you see listed before this post it is typically is just two teams.  The rest are good tier 2 teams.  Sure they may have some middle of the road AAA players on those teams but not enough to be AAA.   Typically it is Pens and one other organization are AAA locally IF they get all the top local kids to come.  Get over having an ego and trying to say your kid is on an AAA team when their team can't crack the top 40.  They may even be a AAA player but not enough depth on the team to be AAA.  I will say hockey has been getting better in western Pa though.

I would say Pens will still be a top 20 program at u16, SHAHA top 30, Vengeance and Esmark will struggle to get to the 50s. The rest really don't matter. I do think Vengeance was a AAA team last year and would have easily beat the top u15aa team like Allegheny and SCIR by 3 or more goals, they where a much bigger, stronger and faster on average per player then those 2 teams had on their roster, but now that you split them over Esmark and ,make 4 teams, even with Russian imports and PPE Pittsburgh cast offs, that those 2 teams will be on the lower end of the tier 1 AAA scale. I don't think any will even make Mid ams with Cleveland, Columbus, Culver, Gilmore, Indy and Tri State also at the U16 tier 1 level. I also keep hearing these kids are leaving town and going to Cleveland and Columbus tryouts this weekend also. 

[Carl Racki]

17 hours ago, mrfreeze said:

I would say Pens will still be a top 20 program at u16, SHAHA top 30, Vengeance and Esmark will struggle to get to the 50s. The rest really don't matter. I do think Vengeance was a AAA team last year and would have easily beat the top u15aa team like Allegheny and SCIR by 3 or more goals, they where a much bigger, stronger and faster on average per player then those 2 teams had on their roster, but now that you split them over Esmark and ,make 4 teams, even with Russian imports and PPE Pittsburgh cast offs, that those 2 teams will be on the lower end of the tier 1 AAA scale. I don't think any will even make Mid ams with Cleveland, Columbus, Culver, Gilmore, Indy and Tri State also at the U16 tier 1 level. I also keep hearing these kids are leaving town and going to Cleveland and Columbus tryouts this weekend also. 

Exactly two teams 40 or better.  Not going to be four.  Plus if you mostly play high ranked teams it is easier to look better than you really are.  That is the game many teams try to play.