Try out at 2 places?

[CoolCat20]

Hello I am a new hockey parent.  I have 2 children who started this year and they both tried out for the first time this year.  I don't want to go into details but some political crap held one of my kids out from making the team at organization 1, and I know there are politics everywhere so I'm fine with that but my kid who did not make a team deserves a team. He has worked hard and he is better than some of the kids who made the travel team even though he has just started recently.  Any way I am going to try the kid out who did not make a team at a different organization, we will call it organization 2 and it would be a lot easier if both of my kids played at the same organization.  Of course the commitment fee for my one kid who did make it at organization 1 is due before try outs start for organization 2. My question is for my kid who did make organization 1, if I pay the commitment fee at organization 1 can he still play for organization 2 if he makes it and quit organization 1 after paying the commitment fee for organization 1? I was reading the PAHL rule book and it says they can only be rostered on 1 team, once I pay the commitment fee at organization 1 would my kid technically be rostered?  Will I be obligated to pay more than the commitment fee at organization 1 if we do that?  I am a new hockey parent as well since they just started last year so this is all very new and very stressful for me.  

[aaaahockey]

You may be obligated to pay the commitment fee (up to organization 1 if they want to hold you to it) but you can have your kid removed from the roster and rostered on organization 2 no problem.  I would he up front and honest with both organizations.  

[zam]

52 minutes ago, aaaahockey said:

You may be obligated to pay the commitment fee (up to organization 1 if they want to hold you to it) but you can have your kid removed from the roster and rostered on organization 2 no problem.  I would he up front and honest with both organizations.  

You could ask organization 1 if they had any players decline placement and see if they would reconsider your kid for a spot.  

Agreed it might help by being honest with both organizations. But if your kids are young, as it sounds like they are, you are pretty much burning a bridge with that organization if you pull your kid after committing to them.  You might find it hard to make a team there again in future years.

[Saucey]

It's sad that even brand spanking new parents are playing the run the gauntlet game. It costs a lot of money to do this, and yes you risk losing commitment fees.  I don't know how organizations deal with this, gets worse every year.

[TigerMom]

Unless they’re the same age and skill level (which it sounds they are not) and you are hoping that they make the exact same team, there isn’t much of an advantage of having them at the same org assuming Org 1 isn’t the only rink in your area and Org 2 is an hour away. The likelihood of their schedules aligning and their practices or games being back2back is very very low. I have kids playing at different age and skill levels and they’ve played in the same org and different orgs. When playing in different orgs it wasn’t a big deal because it didn’t matter to us if we were driving 20min east to one rink on Monday and then 20min west on Tuesday to another rink for the other kids practice, I’m still driving 20min to a rink for a practice on that specific day. 
 

If your child who made org 1 is excited about their placement, I say let them be and allow your other child to have their own experience at a different org that is more open to their skill level. 

[stickboy]

I can’t believe that someone has to even ask this question. I would contact the organization and kindly explain your situation as a new parent with two players, etc. (skip going into your opinion on how you think your kid got screwed). If I was a new hockey parent the last think I would want to deal with having kids split at two different programs.   If they aren’t willing to release player 1, AND return his commitment fee, then you don’t want to play for that program.  Programs are loosing sight that this is Tier 2 Youth hockey -  know your place and treat member and prospective member with respect and make it fun for the kids. 

[Icebucket]

Just be honest and talk with organization 1. Most clubs are willing to help out to some degree.

But I will also say, it probably doesn't matter much to have kids playing for two different clubs. Unless they are the same age and capable of playing on the same team, there's not much of a benefit to having both with the same club. At most, you'd save a small amount of money if you are in a club who offers a discount for multiple players from one family.

[stickboy]

Are there programs that don’t offer a multiplayer discount?

[No Politics]

3 hours ago, zam said:

You could ask organization 1 if they had any players decline placement and see if they would reconsider your kid for a spot.  

Agreed it might help by being honest with both organizations. But if your kids are young, as it sounds like they are, you are pretty much burning a bridge with that organization if you pull your kid after committing to them.  You might find it hard to make a team there again in future years.

Zam's answer was spot-on.  

As others said, honesty is key.  You don't want to burn bridges, so doing it the way Zam explained makes the most sense.  

If you come across as being angry, or -- even worse -- that you are trying to extort the team ("if you don't take kid #2, kid #1 will fly"), that's not good.  But every organization, no matter how political will understand simple common sense if it isn't practical for your family.

You:  "Did you have any players decline placement?  If so, could you please reconsider my child for a spot?  It is too difficult for us to get kids to two different rinks, so I will most likely have to decline my other child's offer.  We don't want to do that, though, because my child really wants to play here.  If you aren't able to offer my child a spot, I totally understand and can appreciate that."

Something like that.

[pickle]

First of all, are these PAHL teams or independent teams?  It just makes a difference for how rosters and finances are resolved, etc.  

From a rostering perspective, you are not under any obligation for kid 1 to remain at organization 1.  If you ask for your player to be released from the roster, you can and will be released from the roster.  The organization has 7 days to release your child from the roster from whenever you request it,any time you request it.  I have seen instances where players tryout at multiple organizations and don't tell different clubs and then three teams are all claiming rights to the player when rosters are submitted over the summer.  The initial rights typically go to the first team that submitted a roster with the player on it.  Just because tryouts at organization 1 were completed before organization 2 even started, this doesn't mean organization 1 has their act together and submits the rosters first.     

The financial aspects are a different story.  This is the whole purpose of the commitment fee.  You are making a commitment to that team and they are counting on your player playing for them.  During the tryout process, it is effectively the cost of holding the spot.  I know commitment fees are typically $400-$600, etc.  If you accept the spot, and look to hold it until tryouts are over and then decide to de-commit, you should expect to have to pay it.  The organizations are entitled to that fee as it effectively helps offset costs of replacing the roster spot.  The cost is different for each organization, which depending on how many teams they have and can move players around and how many roster spots they have to fill from others declining, it may include supplemental tryouts.  Like others are saying, if you are upfront with them and explain situation, a lot of times they will refund you.  A lot of clubs will not want negative image of pushing for more money then they are typically owed based on when you decommit - considering if early on, before uniforms are ordered and before practices start.  

Feel free to PM me for additional information on the rosters or financial questions or if you need any assistance in a particular situation.      

[Lifelongbender]

11 hours ago, TigerMom said:

Unless they’re the same age and skill level (which it sounds they are not) and you are hoping that they make the exact same team, there isn’t much of an advantage of having them at the same org assuming Org 1 isn’t the only rink in your area and Org 2 is an hour away. The likelihood of their schedules aligning and their practices or games being back2back is very very low. I have kids playing at different age and skill levels and they’ve played in the same org and different orgs. When playing in different orgs it wasn’t a big deal because it didn’t matter to us if we were driving 20min east to one rink on Monday and then 20min west on Tuesday to another rink for the other kids practice, I’m still driving 20min to a rink for a practice on that specific day. 
 

If your child who made org 1 is excited about their placement, I say let them be and allow your other child to have their own experience at a different org that is more open to their skill level. 

This comment is reasonable, but it misses one thing. Many organizations give a discount for siblings, which is a huge advantage for having both players at the same org.