Minor Hockey Talks - Hockey Forum

Hockey in Toronto is big business. All these coaches in the G are all about money because they know they can sell dreams to naive parents. Too many coaches running hockey programs on the side forcing parents to buy in if they want to be on the team. Head coaches should be coaches and there should be separate skills coaches not the same guy running skills sessions as well. OHF open border policy is a step in the right direction in one area but orgs need to do more and move the business aspect out of this. These money hungry coaches running skills sessions and camps should be banned. Force them to make money with real jobs and not through parents pockets.

Guest wrote: ↑Sat Dec 28, 2024 6:05 pm Hockey in Toronto is big business. All these coaches in the G are all about money because they know they can sell dreams to naive parents. Too many coaches running hockey programs on the side forcing parents to buy in if they want to be on the team. Head coaches should be coaches and there should be separate skills coaches not the same guy running skills sessions as well. OHF open border policy is a step in the right direction in one area but orgs need to do more and move the business aspect out of this. These money hungry coaches running skills sessions and camps should be banned. Force them to make money with real jobs and not through parents pockets.

Couldn’t agree more. These hockey high schools are also making big money off kids/parents pipe dreams. Not only are average players hoping for more success that won’t happen, they aren’t even getting a proper high school education. So when everything ends, your kid is not going to play high level hockey and he isn’t going to be successful in university because he was pushed through school by low level teachers who could care less.

As long as parents will buy into the dream why will these schools stop. Majority of Toronto parents think their kid is going to the show. But why worry about education when your kid is going to the show.

Guest wrote: ↑Sat Dec 28, 2024 8:45 pm As long as parents will buy into the dream why will these schools stop. Majority of Toronto parents think their kid is going to the show. But why worry about education when your kid is going to the show.

Listen, I have a kid into hockey school that practices each morning .. two hours. He is Grade 8. AA trying to go AAA. He misses 1.5hours of class each day and right now not feeling like I am cheating him his education. However, stress is on next year .. he has a spot on a AAA U15 team but they want him to go to a high school that puts him on the ice 2 hours/day on top of everything going on with AAA. He does not do gym thus gets a credit for hockey. However, will he be focused in school? will he get the proper teaching? will he miss too many days due to tournaments? will he be run down and be sick and miss more school? It is less about the money but do not want to shortcut one minute of a high school education. Am I overthinking it?? Let him stay the course towards AAA? Very stressful.

Guest wrote: ↑Sun Dec 29, 2024 6:43 pm

Guest wrote: ↑Sat Dec 28, 2024 8:45 pm As long as parents will buy into the dream why will these schools stop. Majority of Toronto parents think their kid is going to the show. But why worry about education when your kid is going to the show.

Listen, I have a kid into hockey school that practices each morning .. two hours. He is Grade 8. AA trying to go AAA. He misses 1.5hours of class each day and right now not feeling like I am cheating him his education. However, stress is on next year .. he has a spot on a AAA U15 team but they want him to go to a high school that puts him on the ice 2 hours/day on top of everything going on with AAA. He does not do gym thus gets a credit for hockey. However, will he be focused in school? will he get the proper teaching? will he miss too many days due to tournaments? will he be run down and be sick and miss more school? It is less about the money but do not want to shortcut one minute of a high school education. Am I overthinking it?? Let him stay the course towards AAA? Very stressful.

All this and he’s still a bust

Same parents on here shocked at the loss probably fought tooth and nail against HC implementing half ice hockey a few years ago for younger kids. In European countries and the US they play modified ice until after U12 or later. Many countries introduce contact BEFORE they move to full ice. Kids touch the puck way more, move in smaller areas, learn the contact game, and goalies get way more shots. Watch a u11 G game from a development standpoint, it’s a joke. Half the kids might touch the puck 3x in a whole game and the goalies stand there for an hour making a few saves. Paid coaches and parents screaming, benches shortened to win a game for standings that mean nothing. Sure kids love to win but they’ll keep score on the shinny rink and in a game whether they have the fancy bags and jerseys and scoreboards or not. There is no such thing as an elite hockey player under the age of 15 but our system funnels children way too early to determine who the truly talented ones are. Kids going to specialty schools and playing AAA at the age of 8… it’s a joke fuelled by an entire economy of paid coaches and parent dreams. We have it all wrong.

Guest wrote: ↑Mon Dec 30, 2024 1:20 pm Same parents on here shocked at the loss probably fought tooth and nail against HC implementing half ice hockey a few years ago for younger kids. In European countries and the US they play modified ice until after U12 or later. Many countries introduce contact BEFORE they move to full ice. Kids touch the puck way more, move in smaller areas, learn the contact game, and goalies get way more shots. Watch a u11 G game from a development standpoint, it’s a joke. Half the kids might touch the puck 3x in a whole game and the goalies stand there for an hour making a few saves. Paid coaches and parents screaming, benches shortened to win a game for standings that mean nothing. Sure kids love to win but they’ll keep score on the shinny rink and in a game whether they have the fancy bags and jerseys and scoreboards or not. There is no such thing as an elite hockey player under the age of 15 but our system funnels children way too early to determine who the truly talented ones are. Kids going to specialty schools and playing AAA at the age of 8… it’s a joke fuelled by an entire economy of paid coaches and parent dreams. We have it all wrong.

Amen

Guest wrote: ↑Mon Dec 30, 2024 1:20 pm Same parents on here shocked at the loss probably fought tooth and nail against HC implementing half ice hockey a few years ago for younger kids. In European countries and the US they play modified ice until after U12 or later. Many countries introduce contact BEFORE they move to full ice. Kids touch the puck way more, move in smaller areas, learn the contact game, and goalies get way more shots. Watch a u11 G game from a development standpoint, it’s a joke. Half the kids might touch the puck 3x in a whole game and the goalies stand there for an hour making a few saves. Paid coaches and parents screaming, benches shortened to win a game for standings that mean nothing. Sure kids love to win but they’ll keep score on the shinny rink and in a game whether they have the fancy bags and jerseys and scoreboards or not. There is no such thing as an elite hockey player under the age of 15 but our system funnels children way too early to determine who the truly talented ones are. Kids going to specialty schools and playing AAA at the age of 8… it’s a joke fuelled by an entire economy of paid coaches and parent dreams. We have it all wrong.

Some solid points even though I don’t agree with everything. Yes, assuming a kid is elite before 14-15 is ridiculous. Kids develop at a different pace. Some kids more advanced now will continue while many will be at the level as the majority by 15. Once kids are teens the parents have very little say and the kids progression will fully be driven by self drive. Another joke is all the emphasis on the Brick. Parents think if you are in the Brick you are going far while others who are not think their kid has no talent.

Guest wrote: ↑Sat Dec 28, 2024 3:57 pm Anthony Stewart seeing the white man team lose is music to his ears

You are too funny. The system needs to be revamped it is certainly declining in the production of great hockey players from Canada. And for the record Stewart was quite an amazing story, coming out of poverty from Scarborough to make the NHL. He was however not a great player and was pretty much a very advanced grower and big body on the ice. Not a lot of vision and play making ability with really average hands, but he was BIG:(

Here are the changes that need to be made-

- Revamp entire OHL system and drafting kids at 15/16. Science knows way more now and the full spectrum of athletes are not fully grown until 18, with varying rates on maturation. We currently lose about 120 K athletes due to growing late as opposed to early maturation! Way too many.

- Fire all GTHL coaches and make them reapply to a system that is structured with aggressive oversight. No more corruption, buying teams, no more coach corruption with payments, no more politics. Kids are treated fairly and the ratio of kids staying in the sport will drastically spike higher leading to a much larger pool of talent by 18.

- Change the NHL draft age to 20.

- MAKE HOCKEY CHEAPER for more athletes to participate.

Guest wrote: ↑Mon Dec 30, 2024 4:29 pm

Guest wrote: ↑Mon Dec 30, 2024 1:20 pm Same parents on here shocked at the loss probably fought tooth and nail against HC implementing half ice hockey a few years ago for younger kids. In European countries and the US they play modified ice until after U12 or later. Many countries introduce contact BEFORE they move to full ice. Kids touch the puck way more, move in smaller areas, learn the contact game, and goalies get way more shots. Watch a u11 G game from a development standpoint, it’s a joke. Half the kids might touch the puck 3x in a whole game and the goalies stand there for an hour making a few saves. Paid coaches and parents screaming, benches shortened to win a game for standings that mean nothing. Sure kids love to win but they’ll keep score on the shinny rink and in a game whether they have the fancy bags and jerseys and scoreboards or not. There is no such thing as an elite hockey player under the age of 15 but our system funnels children way too early to determine who the truly talented ones are. Kids going to specialty schools and playing AAA at the age of 8… it’s a joke fuelled by an entire economy of paid coaches and parent dreams. We have it all wrong.

Some solid points even though I don’t agree with everything. Yes, assuming a kid is elite before 14-15 is ridiculous. Kids develop at a different pace. Some kids more advanced now will continue while many will be at the level as the majority by 15. Once kids are teens the parents have very little say and the kids progression will fully be driven by self drive. Another joke is all the emphasis on the Brick. Parents think if you are in the Brick you are going far while others who are not think their kid has no talent.

Nothing is "fully driven by self drive"! What happens is the parents opinion becomes less and outside opinions become valued higher (like a coach). The drive to practice hard everyday every shift comes from an athlete having some success and wanting more, loving the sport. The issue becomes coaches that shorten benches and favour more mature kids....they have single handedly killed 99% of the athletes drive and love for the game when this happens, then they quit. It is crazy how this is allowed!