PIHL

[aaaahockey]

Getting close to the start of the preseason, who is going to be good in PIHL this year?  Thoughts and speculation?   Obviously Peters is the returning AAA champs but they lost a couple of their stars?  Curious what people are thinking about who will be strong and weak. 

[Happy Hockey Fan]

Did Peter’s lose the two kids that were U16’s last year? 

[sarampage]

53 minutes ago, Happy Hockey Fan said:

Did Peter’s lose the two kids that were U16’s last year? 

One went to the Gulls...and he just verbally committed to PSU.

[dazedandconfused]

Uggghhh, that means no other schools can even talk to him I think. So many of these early commits end up not coming to fruition. I hope that's not the case in this one.

[Danner27]

On 8/3/2023 at 6:25 PM, sarampage said:

One went to the Gulls...and he just verbally committed to PSU.

That’s not going to work out in the end. 

[fafa fohi]

8 hours ago, Danner27 said:

That’s not going to work out in the end. 

I’m curious as to why.  

[aaaahockey]

1 hour ago, fafa fohi said:

I’m curious as to why.  

No speaking for @Danner27but often these verbal commits don't work out because the University will withdraw the offer closer to the actual Freshman year when they get better players to commit.   They aren't obligated to actually take you, but it also limits other Universities from talking to you so you can get screwed doing it too early.  

[carroll81]

On 8/3/2023 at 8:55 PM, dazedandconfused said:

Uggghhh, that means no other schools can even talk to him I think. So many of these early commits end up not coming to fruition. I hope that's not the case in this one.

 

No, that is not right.  Nothing is in stone until a letter of intent is signed and these days even those are dubious. 

If you verbal early, other schools may not want to talk to you.  IT is also not unusual for a student to make a verbal, hoping that will stir some interest.

[aaaahockey]

2 minutes ago, carroll81 said:

 

No, that is not right.  Nothing is in stone until a letter of intent is signed and these days even those are dubious. 

If you verbal early, other schools may not want to talk to you.  IT is also not unusual for a student to make a verbal, hoping that will stir some interest.

Yes, I think it isn't a hard and fast rule but it also may make a school think twice before contacting you out of the blue.  I wouldn't suggest it if someone came asking my advice.  Talk to several schools. If Penn State is interested in you I'm sure others are too. Play hard to get for a while and check out your options.  

[stickboy]

So why do so many kids verbal on Aug 1?

[sarampage]

1 hour ago, stickboy said:

So why do so many kids verbal on Aug 1?

NCAA rules for D1 Ice Hockey.  August 1 is the date when recruits can start taking official visits and receive verbal scholarship offers (prior to their Junior year).

Edited August 6, 2023 by sarampage

[stickboy]

Are 07s that verbally committed on Aug 1 then doing so without having visited the school?   I had heard that on Jan 1 of sophomore year schools can start contacting players. What happens during that period between Jan 1 and Aug 1 that has kids committing on Aug 1? 
Just trying to understand the process some.

[sarampage]

This should provide some answers...

https://collegehockeyinc.com/recruiting.php

[Rewster]

On 8/6/2023 at 5:10 PM, aaaahockey said:

Yes, I think it isn't a hard and fast rule but it also may make a school think twice before contacting you out of the blue.  I wouldn't suggest it if someone came asking my advice.  Talk to several schools. If Penn State is interested in you I'm sure others are too. Play hard to get for a while and check out your options.  

It can go both ways now. Giving an early verbal commitment is just what it is…a verbal commitment. It doesn’t seem like that type of commitment is viewed like it used to be. You have coaching changes year-after-year, which is a major pivotal factor for the student athletes. Plus, now the NCAA allows college hopping via the transfer portal. So, the major, top end players have the behind the scenes borderline tampering conversations going on with their “personal consultants,” or “paid for, but amateur agents.”
 

Just by watching the B1G Network and their hockey app, I noticed more than a few players who switched schools this past season. It’s not what it used to be. I mean, nobody knows what will be tried in the next few years with NCAA rules, player agents, transfer eligibility, outside tampering, scholarship eligibility, etc. On one hand it’s interesting to see what’s publicly happening in the major 2 NCAA sports (football/basketball), and then seeing some it even trickle down to the Olympic sports. On the other hand, (IMO) it’s decimating the fan bases by the decreased interest of following yearly player development, school pride, enthusiasm for each new season knowing who’s coming back and the strengths/weaknesses of each program. Frankly, it’s too difficult and time consuming for the layman fan to keep track of the comings and goings with recruiting. But, now you have to essentially do that with the rostered underclassmen, and even graduate students with eligibility remaining. Essentially, every college student athlete is a yearly free agent. Obviously, it’s mostly affecting football and basketball. But, hockey is not immune from the transfer portal and “Name Image and Likeness” (NIL) benefits that can directly influence players.

You have to believe that there’s plenty of people out there (probably with law degrees or similar backgrounds) that are interested in taking advantage of the opportunity to earn new money from this new venture.

Sorry for the long post, but I am just trying to bring to light the sudden and drastic changes that are starting to occur with NCAA sanctioned sports and how it’s affecting the players/families/coaches. Most student athletes will not be affected (especially in non-money generating athletics). But, there are people out there that are reading the fine print and are looking to financially benefit from their “representative athletes.”