Being a Hockey Parent

[E.J.]

Bad news, HS team lost on Monday. Looked slow and the goalie the faced(brought in, not on the team) was a MONSTER, kid will be playing out of State come Fall.

Good news, the Little One hits the ice for Summer League tomorrow!

New replacement(warranty & purchase) N12's in the bag for the LM....

[Ahbroody]

Sorry about the loss, nice on the new twig. Good to see them step up.

That's crazy summer hockey starts so late there. Our tinker here are all about profit so hockey never stops.
Current Schedule which started last week:
Monday Hawks Skills Skate, Tuesday Cougars summer team skate, Thursday HawksSS, Friday Soccer, Saturday (all three things with new best friend) 9am roller, 11am Sharks Skills Skate, 2pm inhouse games, Sunday soccer or ice or nothing what ever he picks. Crazy thing is he wants to always do something. Thus schedule will hold till end of July when tryouts happen. I can't wait for tryouts. I am getting burnt

Got new jets lastnight. Kid on his summer team came back from anahiem with a pair. Ordered from anahiem ice rink with sharpening and heel lifts installed.


No custom holders for now. Going to see how these work out. Customs were 191 runners on his size 11, these are a size 12 and 193 runners.

[Ahbroody]

Side note Al, Scott, EJ need some feedback.
Last Sunday his summer team played another team that was good.
Micah scored a goal on a nice wrap around move.

My issue came when prior to that he went offsides bad on a breakaway and got basically yelled at by the coach loudly. He calls him out and then starts yelling asking if he knows what offsides is. Then right before the faceoff he yanks him off the ice and sits him for two shifts. He did sit down with him and talk with him, but I was a little suprised. I know its a team of mostly 8 year olds, but he's the one who wanted him on the team. We wanted just practices. He wanted him to play.

Did he not expect a kid who is literally 6.5 this month to brain fart occasionally?
I'm not sure about next year now. I had considered his team an option. I am not sure now. In practice often goes out of his way to help Micah understand drills. If he does yell at him he will generally go over and explain things. I just don't know. Micah is an emotional kid. While physically tough he gets worked up when adults reprimand him.

Any of you guys dealt with a coach who yells at the kids and how did it effect your kid.

[E.J.]

Tough call. I have not personally had to deal with it and even at 15, I know my son does not respond well to yelling... Not in sports or at home.

I think you discuss it with Micah and see how he feels about it. You could discuss it with the coach as well, explaining what you just said here, how he may not be at an age that he can process that type of direction and see if the coach has the ability to work around it, which is 50/50 at best IMO.

Usually coaches are pretty locked in to how they do stuff, not intentionally, it is just their make up. I think it is few and far between those that recognize who responds to what and play both sides of the fence.

Have to get back into court.... That is the quick, condensed....

[Eleven]

I don't think any of Cam's coaches yelled more than you'd expect them to when he was younger, but he didn't play high level hockey until his Peewee years (10 years old I think?)

Since then, what I've heard hasn't been over the top except one time in particular, and I addressed that with the coach immediately after the game. For the last 2 years I've worked the game clock and music for our home games, so I was right there, next to the boys.

When I say over the top, I mean yelling in a personal manner, degrading the kid. Not necessarily just yelling. Our coaches yell a lot, but it's mainly on the fly line and strategy stuff. Last year my kid got hurt on a shift and when he came back he asked the coach to sit one shift and the coach kind of went nuts with "Are you kidding me?" type of comments.

After that game I let the coach have it, and made sure we were on the same page when it came to something like that happening again. My kid doesn't cry wolf, if he gets hurt and has to mention it during the game, then he is really hurt.

I'm not the greatest when it comes to dealing with confrontation with the coaches, I'm usually more passionate about the situations than my kid would be. I think maybe at your kids age, it certainly isn't out of bounds for you to talk to the coach, at least to make sure you are both on the same page when it comes to how your kid reacts and responds to his coaching style.

[E.J.]

Fun night on the ice..... The Little One was not 100%, feeling a bit under the weather, but went out and played well. 4-5 goals and skated well. I think her positioning was off, assume the soccer had her playing too far away from the net.... But it is a transition that will come with a few more times out there. Really like her coach and we're playing with some friends as well, so it is going to be a good few months.

[E.J.]

[E.J.]

Add : I have been watching too much, not shooting enough... Man I have missed some great pics because I am just watching.... Bad habit....or better, cannot decide.... She had some really great shots tonight, I missed EVERYTHING.

Added bonus, I think the soccer is really bumping her ice awareness, passing. She moved the puck and to people better than I have seen her do in the past.... Age vs cross-training?

[Ahbroody]

That second from the bottom pic looks painful.

We just don't take pictures out here. I want to, but nobody does.


Friend took him mini golfing. Definitely a hockey player swing.

[Ahbroody]

As for the coach situation he is well aware of micahs not doing well with being yelled at. That's why he seems to always go over and talk with him after he yells. From his perspective I guess he can't play favorites. I am going to leave it alone for now. Micah seemed unaffected by it when we tapped.

As for next year I am leaning towards pushing for a Hawks redshirt if we can get it. I don't think I want to do full blown travel at age 7 next season. I don't think there is enough benefit. I just want him to do the practices. We got asked about playing for the new official Jr sharks inline team for next year. We may do that. Apparently its going to be a sponsored team .

[J0eybb]

I will say this is one of my favortie threads here on CA. I haven't been around much, life, work.

My daughter is through her first set of skating lessons. She said she was going to play hockey, but one look at the figure skating outfits, and that went out the window. Yay me.

[E.J.]

Good day/night.... Heard we are a go on the travel team we tried out for last week, so 2-2 with one team to go before we make a decision. Haven't even discussed it much with the Little Man, just letting it settle in, I guess....

Good night on the ice for the Little One... Man she is moving the puck like I have never seen before.... Goals down, assists WAY UP....

[Ahbroody]

new pants for the little man. JrSmall. Actually there european size 120, but same as small.
A touch big, but his youth Large are too small. Pant sizes are a bit*h at this tween point. Just over 4feet at 6.5 yrs old.

I love these pants though. Built just like Tacklas and Eagles. Super protective while being very mobile.

Edit
Forgot to mention european cut is definitely good for skinny kids. His youth large ccms needed suspenders. These fit great in the waist and could go tighter

[E.J.]

Looking good! Nice game face.... Agree, pants are a bit of a pain....ran into issues moving from Easton to Bauer and the sizing difference....

How'd you like to be listed as the first alternate....



Still in a holding pattern to see if Jackson gets a spot on Coach Oly's team or plays with the lower level. I'd say AAA and AA, but in truth, they are lot listing it like that. They are saying a combined AA/AAA, which they will enter tourneys as AAA or AA, depending on the talent level of the tourney. Then an “Elite” team that travels a little less, not sure what level of competition they will enter tourneys as…..

I was not at the parents meeting or any of the tryout stuff(out of town on a bike ride), so I don’t know what the story is, other than Jackson went in trying out for what we thought was the AA squad and got run on what we thought was the AAA squad, then they stated the above breakdown and ???? Paraphrasing what the trustee apparently said during the parents meeting. “Everyone around here just puts AA/AAA behind their name and assumes that is the level of hockey they are. Nobody is regulating that, you are what you say you are. We try to be realistic as to what we are putting on the ice, the fact is, we cannot compete with AAA teams back East and have found that out in the past, so we are not going to be listing ourselves as AAA or AA, we will have a Select and an Elite team.”

After day 2(of three) of the Jr. Grizzly tryouts, Jackson said if he didn’t make the AAA/AA, he was going to sign with the Golden Eagles(personally, my third choice, but he has friends that signed with them). He had offers from the AA Golden Eagles & AA Regulators.

Sometime after the tryout day 3 and meeting with the coaches, he decided to sign with the Grizzlies, so he is a Utah Jr. Grizzly player as of Sunday. I think after meeting with the coach, he felt really good about his plans. The question remains, if he will stay on the lower squad or get called up. As they explained, getting called up could happen within 48 hours(another kid doesn’t sign) or later, if someone gets hurt ect.

It is a ying/yang thing. I think the ice time(three 90 minute practices a week) under Oly & better competition would be huge for development. BUT the financial commitment and probability that his actual ice time in games would be limited, are a downside. Going to Chicago and Wisconsin with Oly would be pretty cool as well. His son plays for the Blackhawks and the kids get to go to a game if they’re in town, meet his son and some players ect, or at least have in the past.

Ahhhhh….whatever happens, happens…. He’s having fun and that is what counts…. Well, he loves playing hockey, he said the tryout was as tough as anything he has ever done. His mother said it was brutal physically(she is a marathon runner/triathlete) and the tension/pressure on the kids, trying to make the upper team could be felt in the air. It was NOTHING like the Eagles or Regulators tryouts, Oly is business.

How’s that for a novel….

[Ahbroody]

Any word?
Either way sounds like its a good fit as far as pracys go. Thats all we are focused on for this year.

[Ahbroody]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rl-Ts...layer_embedded

http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/ar...fsrc=foxsports

insane

[E.J.]

Guy should get a 5 year suspension at a minimum....maybe lifetime.

If any of you watch and don't look further, he was flipping off the crowd in front of the kids as well. What an asshat.....

[E.J.]

LM had surgery on his hand, so he's off the ice for the week.... Seems like a bit since I have shot pictures of him. The High School could have used him last night.... CRUSHED by a longtime rival. Without him, another top D, their best player and a kid I have mentioned before with concussion Hx that got dinged again last night in the first and didn't play the rest of the game.....it was shooting fish in a barrel..... Meh....it's just seeding for the playoffs....

Few shots of the Little One tonight....

[Ahbroody]

How many concussions has that kid had?
I thought they pull the plug after 3?

[E.J.]

Since I have been around, at least 2 that have caused him to miss a game/games. One that ended his ’11 playoff run. Then got one the first game of the '11 Summer Season(3 months later?) Made it all last year(regular season) without any issues.

I am not sure what the story is with this, if it is actually a documented concussion or he just got dinged(isn’t that a concussion?)…. He may have just sat to be on the safe side, I didn’t get any details. I guess we’ll see if he sits the rest of the Summer Season….

I have no idea what the point of no return is and hope I never have to experience that with either of my kids. I really feel for the kid. I remember correctly, the first one, was from being boarded.