Being a Hockey Parent

[Eleven]

Originally Posted by Ahbroody

crazy our tier teams have not had tryouts. A lot of travel teams are still playing odd games.
Summer tournament teams are a big thing out here. Wonder if that's why

The summer thing may be the reason. We have virtually zero hockey activity after Spring Hockey ends in May. Regular ice practice for the season starts again in late August.

Our team does dry-land at least 2 times a week throughout the summer, with as much open-ice time as they can find on the weekends, which is usually once per weekend.

[E.J.]

We have reg season tryouts here soon as well. Been talking with the Regulators & Jr. Grizzlies. U14 & U16 Regulator tryouts are actually this weekend. No date on U18, though sounds like Jackson may start training with the U18's and see how it goes. Though I think regardless, he'll skate in the Jr. Grizzlies tryout in June.

He's skating in the Jr. Grizzlies Spring Ice right now as well. Hoping to get in the tryouts of the U18 Utah All Stars Summer League. Have talked with them, but their plans are coming together slower than expected, should know more Thursday.

High School Summer starts in May. I've been approached about being the HS Hockey team trustee....

Little One is in Skills Clinic once a week, alonge with private power skating once a week. Summer 3-3 Starts in June...

Thought this was the off season.....

[E.J.]

Originally Posted by E.J.

We have reg season tryouts here soon as well. Been talking with the Regulators & Jr. Grizzlies. U14 & U16 Regulator tryouts are actually this weekend. No date on U18, though sounds like Jackson may start training with the U18's and see how it goes. Though I think regardless, he'll skate in the Jr. Grizzlies tryout in June.

Man, my head is SPINNING......... So I was told a month or so ago, Jackson would be a U18 kid.... After talking with a guy today, he was saying...."No, he'll be a U16 kid."

I have ANOTHER email out trying to get more clarification and cannot seem to google an answer..... WHAT IS THE AGE BREAKDOWN???????

He is 15 as of today.....he turns 16 mid June.... Birth year '96..... So January 1st 2013 he will be 16 years old...

[E.J.]

Originally Posted by E.J.

Man, my head is SPINNING......... So I was told a month or so ago, Jackson would be a U18 kid.... After talking with a guy today, he was saying...."No, he'll be a U16 kid."

I have ANOTHER email out trying to get more clarification and cannot seem to google an answer..... WHAT IS THE AGE BREAKDOWN???????

He is 15 as of today.....he turns 16 mid June.... Birth year '96..... So January 1st 2013 he will be 16 years old...

Nevermind, if I am reading this right....come the next calendar hockey year(Sept.-Aug.), as a '96, Jackson will be a 2nd year Midget(U16)....

http://www.usahockey.com/Age_Classification.aspx

[Ahbroody]

Todays schedule.
Soccer 945-1045
Baseball 12-2
Hockey 515-615

He made the summer team last night.
Not sure we are going to do it. The practices are Tuesday night and Sunday morning. Its a 40 min drive. Told the coach we were not sure. He is letting Micah come out and practice for free for a while no strings. He said we dont have to do the to Socal tourneys and can just do the local stuff.
Summer is looking like this.
Saturday Morning skills skate at Sharks Ice with former Shark player and hockey director Curtis Brown
Hawks skills skate 2x per week days vary
Summer team or just inhouse games.

[E.J.]

Down goes another APX.....

So the question/dilemma is this, getting 3-5 hours ice time a week, I should just be happy that he is getting 8 weeks out of a stick and pull out the AMEX...or think, this stick is fragile and look at something else?

He loves this stick, I just wish it'd last a bit longer... He'll, his 7 y/o sister snapped her APX within 2 months.... Though our sample is small, maybe just bad luck with the snap... Both his cracked in the blade....

Thoughts?

[E.J.]

Originally Posted by E.J.

So the question/dilemma is this, getting 3-5 hours ice time a week, I should just be happy that he is getting 8 weeks out of a stick and pull out the AMEX...or think, this stick is fragile and look at something else?

I am probably under estimating his ice time.... Hell, he has had 5 hours of ice time in the past 24 hours. 3 hours last night(Jr. Grizzlies Spring Ice) and 2 this morning(drop in).

[Eleven]

Originally Posted by E.J.

Down goes another APX.....

So the question/dilemma is this, getting 3-5 hours ice time a week, I should just be happy that he is getting 8 weeks out of a stick and pull out the AMEX...or think, this stick is fragile and look at something else?

He loves this stick, I just wish it'd last a bit longer... He'll, his 7 y/o sister snapped her APX within 2 months.... Though our sample is small, maybe just bad luck with the snap... Both his cracked in the blade....

Thoughts?

Every single kid we know that had an APX has broken it. 13 year old kids, and one of those was a pretty small 13!

Since my kid broke his, around New Years I think, he has used a Stealth RS, and he claims he likes it better than the APX, not quite as lightweight but it's close.

At the final night of tryouts last night, a boy broke his RS. Ironically he was the reason my kid ended up with an RS in the first place. This other boy hated the non-grip RS so his dad sold it to us for 70 bucks and bought him one with grip. He broke that sucker almost in half last night.

I laughed at/with the dad for a few, but he wasn't quite as amused as I was. My kid will probably break his next week!

RS and APX are virtually the same price, but for what we've seen, the RS holds up a little better.

[E.J.]

Bauer is out and Sher-Wood is in....at least at the moment....

[E.J.]

Scott, I had the RS & Mako in the cart at different times, before going with the Nexon12. I have yet to talk with someone who didn't like the t90, save for the weight... Thought maybe the Nexon would solve the weight issue...

Guess we'll find out quick how this experiment turned out....

[Ahbroody]

From what I have read the mako is the successor to the SE16 arguably the most popular stick Easton ever made. M5 is replacement to the ST I think. RS is lighter and seems to have best kick. Mako has best blade feel.

Saw the stuff about nexion looks interesting.

The boy has really become a fan of the Miken accuflex and has definitely learned to shoot well with it.
Hes playing in a cross ice tournament this weekend. Name of the team. The Ringers. Lol. Some dad we know asked him to play. Name fits the team.

[Ahbroody]

They beat everyone in the tourney. Issue was we had two kids who decided cross checking was a legitimate hockey play. Got a little ugly.

You know you have signed your kid up for two much stuff when you have two day a week when you have to decide what to go to.

That Summer team is practicing 4 days a week this month for the tournamanet Memorial Day weekend. Tuesday, Friday, Saturday (afternoon), Sunday. I told the coach yesterday we wont be doing either SoCal trip and cant make all the practices. Told him we will do local games. Seems like he wants him for next season.

we signed him up for Soccer classes Friday and Saturday(morning) a while back which he likes.

He has the skills skate with Curtis Brown right after Soccer Saturday mid morning.

There is the Hawks skills skate which days change weekly. We didnt sign up because they allow drop ins.

Then there is Sharks summer inhouse games only which is Saturday afternoons he wants to do as he has some good friends playing.
This doesnt start till next month after the memorial tourney.

Now some of these things end before others, but I need to sit down with a damn spread sheet and figure out what the hell we can and cant do.

[E.J.]

High School Summer league starts tonight.... I do love Summer Hockey....there is something special about watching hockey in shorts, tshirts and flip flops....

[E.J.]

These pics suck... I was in the PB and did my best.... I was pretty worried about this team we were playing, returned their top 9-10 guys from a better than average team last year, including their two goalies. We were breaking in a freshman goalie, playing his first game and the only one on our team at present....

Anyway....we CRUSHED them.... 10-3 and I don't think it was that close. I think it was a 50/50 thing, we may be a little better than I thought and they are worse than I thought....

[Ahbroody]

Not bad pics. He still wearing the guard?
LM is skating almost every day. So much ice in summer time. Thankfully baseball is almost over. Constantly having to pick what to go to.

[E.J.]

Originally Posted by Ahbroody

Not bad pics. He still wearing the guard?
LM is skating almost every day. So much ice in summer time. Thankfully baseball is almost over. Constantly having to pick what to go to.

Different one, not sure what it is....will ask him. VERY clear, not sure where he got it....

[Eleven]

Originally Posted by Ahbroody

Thankfully baseball is almost over. Constantly having to pick what to go to.

My kid wanted to participate in Track this spring, so that pretty much cut out Spring Hockey, and he missed a few Wednesday Clinics, but in the end I'm glad he chose Track. It gave him a little break from hockey, kept him active, and he bonded with a whole new set of athletes.

Most of the season he ran relays, with a few individual events sprinkled in. He's a 7th grader, but was able to hang with the 8th graders, I'm sure because of his previous hockey dry land training. He was the starter for the 4x100, 4x200 and 4x400 relays almost every event.

Only on the very last meet, the championships, he got a charlie-horse in his butt that hurt, so he pulled out of the 4x400. The team went on to win it anyway, and it gave 4 8th graders the chance to finish strong as a group. Most of the season there were 2 8th graders who were battling for the 4th spot on the 4x400 team, we were actually glad they didn't have to chose between them, they were all great kids.

So now Hockey Dry Land kicks in full speed, and with Track being over, its perfect timing. Cam's Track coaches made the choice to keep all the medals for the season and hand them out when it had ended. Since we don't have a "Being a Track Parent" thread, here is my kid with his medals, they are all 1st, 2nd and 3rd place relay medals:

[E.J.]

Watching the Little One in a Skills Clinic Camp she has been going to, amazed at her progression this past year, night and day... I actually was sort of shaking my head watching...

Same with JB, I had not watched him skate a ton since the end of the regular season last year.... Kid is jumping...

It really floors me the pride and enjoyment I get from sitting here on a hard aluminum stadium bench, watching this stuff....day in, day out, night in, night out, morning..... The driving, the time & financial commitment...wouldn't change a thing. Well, maybe I'd wish for cheap ice time & great $20 sticks...

[E.J.]

Awesome, Scott.... Added bonus, all that running will make drylands a little easier...

[Ahbroody]

Nice Scott. Got my kid swimming almost everyday now trying to build legs and stamina.
Todays a good test. Summer team practice a bunch of kids were fighting, not mine. BAG SKATE! These kids are getting worked but he's hanging with the big boys. 20+ minutes of really hard skating.

Now he's explaining life to them and why everyone gets punished. Good stuff. He looks over at me and I'm laughing.