Monthly Archives: September 2021

Post #57 – 9/30/21 – Weekend Recap, More Coaches Polls, CAN U18’s Cancelled, Sifters

Posted on September 30, 2021 by Grant Kimball Leave a comment

In This Post…

D-I Weekend Recap |
More Coaches Polls |
Hockey Canada Cancels U18’s – Again |
Sifters |

D-I Weekend Recap

Game results, box scores, and statistics come directly from the NCAA Stats Site (found here).

Video highlight links are to individual program produced media, some of which may be found on team twitter or other social media accounts – so scroll the feed to see the game highlights.

Postgame links are any postgame video produced by individual programs and found on either team websites or social media accounts.

No link… for video highlights or postgame? Assume there was none available at the time of our post.

Game Results, Box Scores, Video Highlights, Postgame

Thursday, Sept 23rd

St. Lawrence 1

@ #9/10 Penn State 0

Box / Video Highlights / Postgame

Friday, Sept 24th

RIT 1

@ #4/6 Colgate 8

Box / Video Highlights / Postgame

Maine 2

@ #10/NR Quinnipiac 3

Box / Video Highlights / Postgame

Sacred Heart 1

@ #NR/10 Clarkson 6

Box / Video Highlights / Postgame

Minnesota State 3

@ Merrimack 0

Box / Video Highlights / Postgame

St. Thomas 0

@ #3/3 Ohio State 6

Box / Video Highlights / Postgame

Long Island Univ. 1

@ UCONN 3

Box / Video Highlights / Postgame

RPI 1

@ Mercyhurst 2

Box / Video Highlights / Postgame

St. Lawrence 2

@ Penn State 2 (OT)

Box / Video Highlights / Postgame

#1/1 Wisconsin 8

@ Lindenwood 1

Box / Video Highlights / Postgame

Saturday, Sept 25th

St. Michael’s College 1

@ Vermont 12 (exhibition)

Box / Video Highlights / Postgame

Franklin Pierce 2

@ #2/2 Northeastern 4 (Exhibition)

Box / Video Highlights / Postgame

Sacred Heart 1

@ #NR/10 Clarkson 5

Box / Video Highlights / Postgame

St. Thomas 1

@ #3/3 Ohio State 4

Box / Video Highlights / Postgame

Maine 1

@ #10/NR Quinnipiac 5

Box / Video Highlights / Postgame

Long Island Univ. 0

@ UCONN 2

Box / Video Highlights / Postgame

RPI 0

@ Mercyhurst 2

Box / Video Highlights / Postgame

Minnesota State 9

@ Merrimack 3

Box / Video Highlights / Postgame

#1/1 Wisconsin 10

@ Lindenwood 0

Box / Video Highlights / Postgame

#4/6 Colgate 13

@ RIT 0

Box / Video Highlights / Postgame

Observations

20 games played, 1 Thursday, 9 Friday, and 10 on Saturday.
The home team went 13-6-1 last weekend.
Colgate @ RIT Saturday drew 1350 in attendance, the largest crowd of the weekend. RPI/M’Hurst came in 2nd with 726 on Saturday. According to the NCAA Stats Site, 8,140 spectators attended the 20 games scheduled, an ave. of 407/game.
The average margin of victory per win this weekend was 4.65 goals. Exactly half of the games this weekend saw 5 goals or more scored by the winning team.
SLU/Penn State played the first overtime 3 on 3 game this year… with no winner.
St. Thomas played its first ever games as a member of Division I and the WCHA.
There we 7 shutouts.
Minnesota-State Mankato had the furthest road trip of any program this weekend… according to Apple Maps, it’s 1425 miles from Mankato, MN to North Andover, MA where Merrimack College is located.

Weekly Top 10 Rankings

We publish two nationally recognized ‘Top 10’ polls – 1) USCHO.com Women’s Top 10 Poll and 2) USA Today / USA Hockey Magazine Top 10 Women’s Poll.

The USCHO.com ranking will be listed first and the USA Today / USA Hockey Magazine ranking listed second when identifying rankings for teams. Example, ‘#4/5’

USCHO Division I Women’s Poll – September 27, 2021

Rnk	Team	(First Place Votes)	Record	Points	Last Poll
1	Wisconsin	(14)	2-0-0	149	1
2	Northeastern	(1)	0-0-0	135	2
3	Ohio State		2-0-0	111	3
4	Colgate		2-0-0	93	6
4	Minnesota		0-0-0	93	4
6	Minnesota Duluth		0-0-0	85	5
7	Boston College		0-0-0	48	7
8	Cornell		0-0-0	41	8
9	Princeton		0-0-0	20	10
10	Quinnipiac		2-0-0	19	NR

Others receiving votes: Clarkson 17, Harvard 9, Providence 3, Penn State 2

USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Women’s College Hockey Poll

September 28, 2021

# RK	Team	Points	(First Place Votes)	Last Poll	Record	Weeks in Poll
1	University of Wisconsin	190	(19)	1	2-0-0	3
2	Northeastern University	163		2	0-0-0	3
3	Ohio State University	143		3	2-0-0	3
4	University of Minnesota	120		5	0-0-0	3
5	University of Minnesota Duluth	107		4	0-0-0	3
6	Colgate University	106		6	2-0-0	3
7	Cornell University	65		7	0-0-0	3
8	Boston College	59		8	0-0-0	3
9	Princeton University	40		9	0-0-0	3
10	Clarkson University	22		NR	2-0-0	1

Others receiving votes: Quinnipiac 12, Providence 10, Harvard 6, Penn State 2.

More Coaches Polls

The NEWHA and Hockey East have released their 21-22 Preseason Coaches Polls. In just its third year, Long Island University claims the NEWHA’s top spot while in Hockey East, Northeastern was picked to finish first by league coaches. You can see both polls below.

2021-2022 New England Women’s Hockey Alliance Preseason Coaches Poll

RANK	TEAM	POINTS (FIRST PLACE VOTES)
1.	LIU	25 pts. (5)
2.	Sacred Heart	19 pts. (1)
3.	Franklin Pierce	18 pts.
4.	Saint Anselm	14 pts.
5.	Saint Michael’s	9 pts.
6.	Post	5 pts.

2021-22 NEWHA Preseason Coaches’ Poll Announced

2021-2022 Hockey East Preseason Coaches Poll

Rank	Team (1st Place Votes)	Pts.
1.	Northeastern (9)	90
2.	Providence (1)	75
3.	Boston College	70
4.	UConn	67
5.	Boston University	59
6.	Vermont	52
7.	Maine	43
8.	New Hampshire	40
9.	Holy Cross	25
10.	Merrimack	19

Hockey Canada Cancels Under-18’s

Originally this was going to be a little boo-hoo blurb in our Sifters section, but as I got going on it, it became what it is below.

Monday evening, Hockey Canada announced the cancellation of three events slated to take place this fall due to ongoing COVID concerns. The 2021 National Women’s Under-18 Championships was one of them, an event cancelled last Fall and one many NCAA schools were looking forward to getting to. So our questions is this: Was there back-up plan?

Here is part of Hockey Canada’s official statement, “Despite a strong desire to work with three great communities to host the top players at various levels across the country this season, the health and safety of all participants and the communities at large continues to be of the utmost importance to Hockey Canada. The ongoing pandemic, in addition to the vaccination status of some international teams, has left us with no other option. We believe the decision to cancel these fall events is the safest decision given the ongoing uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic at a local level, as well as the uncertainty around countries and regions being able to safely compete...”

The Canadian Tire Para Hockey Cup and 2021 World Junior ‘A’ Challenge were the two other events cancelled. Other countries were set to compete at these two events. Looking at the above statement, we can buy the rationale for cancelling based on Canada requiring certain types of vaccines for entry. If teams can’t meet the requirement, than you have no choice but to cancel the event. But the Women’s U-18 don’t involve outside countries – just provincial U-18 teams. If conditions are such, that the intended locale doesn’t meet Hockey Canada standards, move to plan B. Why not announce a postponement with a clear plan to either move to a plan B – which would have already been figured out in advance – or a path investigate alternative locations or dates? Didn’t Hockey Canada just go through this a few months back with the Women’s Worlds being canceled? Didn’t Hockey Canada already have a front row seat for this?

A quick glance of Canadian Major Junior or Tier II Jr. A league schedules tells us games are being played across provincial lines, even US based teams are crossing into Canada. So what got missed? The development of a ‘what if’ plan to hold the event elsewhere if conditions warranted, that’s what. Organizations have had to learn to adapt in our new COVID world–event organizers need back-up plans! NCAA – you are on the clock too, should COVID concerns derail any championships in its intended locale, have a plan B. Insert hand slapping face emoji here. What’s the saying, history is doomed to repeat itself? Until it doesn’t.

Like most things in life you either want to do something and can. You want to do something but can’t, because of some limitation preventing you. Or – you just don’t want to do it. Curious to know where this situation falls. Health and safety should never be compromised – no question. The lack of explanation about possible alternatives leaves a lot to be answered. Where on the priority list does the Women’s Under-18 Championships fall?

Kudos to Manitoba Hockey for their statement HERE about putting in the work to find an alternative. Leadership comes in all forms, but sometimes, all it takes is effort.

Sifters

ECAC YouTube Page… The ECAC has its own YouTube page found HERE. Viewers can watch game highlights of ECAC teams. We hope to see more highlights this season.

CHA Celebrates 20 Years… College Hockey America is celebrating its 20th season as a D-I conference with five insitutitions–Lindenwood, Mercyhurst, Penn State, Rochester Institute of Technology, and Syracuse. The league was founded back in 2002-2003 as a four-team conference with Findlay University, Mercyhurst University, Niagara University, and Wayne State University. Sadly, only one program still remains active – Mercyhurst. Quinnipiac came into the CHA for the 2004-2005 after being an independent after Findlay dropped its program. Even Ohio State was a conference member of the CHA for a brief time prior to the 04-05 season before becoming a member of the WCHA (again). Mercyhurst has been to the NCAA tournament 17 times, Robert Morris twice, RIT and Syracuse once each.

CHA NCAA Auto-bid Situation… D-I NCAA conferences in women’s ice hockey must have 6 active members to be eligible for an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. With Robert Morris’ program still in doubt of starting back up, the CHA would need to find a 6th team by the ’23-’24 season or be in jeopardy of losing its auto bid. Conferences have a two-year grace period to find a 6th team under NCAA rules.

Hockey East Continues Free Streams… Hockey East will once again stream all of its conference games online, live, and for free. You can read the official announcement from Hockey East HERE. Hockey East provided free streams of its women’s and men’s game last season. Also in the coming days will be an announcement about the 21-22 TV schedule of Hockey East women’s and men’s games on NESN and NESN+.

2022 Olympic Schedule Released, Qualifying Tournaments Up Next… The IIHF announced the women’s hockey 2022 Olympic schedule last week. You can find it HERE. Games are set to begin Feb. 3, 2022 and the Gold Medal Game will be Thursday Feb. 17, 2022. Seven nations have already qualified, Canada, China (host–automatic qualification granted) Finland, Japan, Russian Olympic Committee, Switzerland, and The United States. 3 spots are still up for grabs. These will be determined by 2 qualifying tournaments held below:

Olympic Pre-Qualification Round 2 (7-10 October 2021)

Group F	Group G	Group H
(in Nottingham/GBR)	(in Torre Pellice/ITA)	(in Bytom/POL)
Korea	Italy	Netherlands
Great Britain	Kazakhstan	Poland
Slovenia	Spain	Mexico
Iceland	Chinese Taipei	Turkey

Final Olympic Qualification (11-14 November 2021)

Group C	Group D	Group E
(in Chomutov/CZE)	(in Fussen/GER)	(in Lulea/SWE)
Czech Republic	Germany	Sweden
Hungary	Denmark	France
Norway	Austria	Slovakia
Q6	Q5	Q4

OWHA Mandates Vaccines… The Ontario Women’s Hockey Association, in consultation with Ontario health officials, is mandating as a condition of eligibility, all players born 2009 or earlier to be fully vaccinated (2 shots + 14 days after 2nd shot) no later than Nov. 1. You can read there official statement HERE.

Stop & Go Offsides… We mentioned our displeasure about the new USA Hockey offsides rule. Looks like former Pittsburgh Penguin Ian Moran feels similarly – see his tweet below.

#MorandomThoughts
Stop & go traffic pic.twitter.com/ryy4oNIs9n
— Ian Moran (@IMHockeyskills) September 26, 2021

Until Next Time…

21-22 Streaming Info

-Streams for games in the ECAC can be found HERE. Subscriptions will be necessary to watch games in the ECAC.

-Streams in the WCHA can be found HERE. Subscriptions will be necessary to watch games.

-Streams in Hockey East this year can be found HERE. Subscriptions will be necessary to watch games.

-Streams for CHA games with the exception of Penn St. can be found HERE. Subscriptions will be necessary.

-Streams for NEWHA games can be found at each teams’ website. Subscriptions may be necessary to watch games.

NCAA Coaching Changes… Keep up with all the coaching changes across D-I and D-III HERE.

Give Someone a Stick Tap… Know someone in women’s college hockey who’s work needs some recognition? Nominate them for WCH.org’s monthly ‘Stick Tap’ HERE or Email us at: womenscollegehockey@gmail.com

Recruiting Events/League Online Directory… Find all the recruiting events on WCH.org right HERE. Want to add your event? Click HERE to fill out our WCH.org event form.

Grant Kimball is founder and contributing writer at Women’s College Hockey.org and beginning his 3rd season as an Assistant Coach with the Yale University women’s hockey program. Grant has developed an experienced perspective in the world of women’s ice hockey, having coached and recruited players from across the globe during his 25+ year amatuer and NCAA coaching career. He has coached at 6 NCAA DIII and DI programs in the NCHA (D3), the CHA, WCHA, Hockey East, ECAC, and the Ivy League (DI). Beyond coaching, Grant served as a site representative for the 2019 NCAA quarterfinal of the D-I NCAA Tournament. He also currently serves as an Officer with the American Hockey Coaches Association as Vice President of Membership and sits on the AHCA’s Women’s Hockey Executive Committee.

Uncategorized

Mailbag Monday – #5 – Sept. 27th & Last Week’s Pipeline Post #55

Posted on September 27, 2021 by Grant Kimball Leave a comment

In This Post…

Mailbag Monday #5|
Pipeline Post #55|

Mailbag Monday #5

Click on the link below to watch this week’s version of Monday Mailbag! Jeff from Michigan wants to know the NCAA rules regarding when face-to-face conversations can take place between recruits and college coaches at the arena.

Great question Jeff. We hope this helps!

Be sure to tune in next Monday for another addition of Mailbag Monday. Remember you can submit your questions HERE, email them to us at womenscollegehockey@gmail.com, or send us a Tweet to @WMNSCollHockey and use the hashtag #MailbagMonday.

Post #55

In This Post…

The Adjustment Phase|
Pre-Season Polls |
Sifters |

The Adjustment Phase

If you are one of those players moving up an age level this year, from U14 to U16 or U16 to U19, how are you feeling about your game so far? A little off or frustrated you’re not playing as well as you thought you would… Overwhelmed with all those new skills & systems to learn… Not playing as much as you would like… No time yet on the PP or PK… does everyone you play against seem bigger, faster, stronger???

Well, if you answered ‘yes’ to any of the above – welcome to the Adjustment Phase.

Just about everyone, at every level hockey, has some kind of adjustment. Youth players all the way up to NHLers have adjustment periods – seldom is anyone immune from it. We’ll answer exactly what the adjustment phase is, how long it can last for, and why it’s probably the most critical period of your hockey development. The ‘Adjustment Phase’ is really just a period of time during ones hockey development where a player might struggle with certain elements of the game as they move from one level to another.

May be the pace of the game is too fast to handle and you struggle to make good decisions. Or you aren’t physically strong enough to handle the much older/stronger competition.

Yes – the adjustment phase is excruciatingly frustrating at times, who wants to play poorly, right? Players hate when this happens, that is until you understand how it can help you. It’s kind of like taking a test in school… if you knew what questions were going to be on the test before you took it, that would really help, right? Well, if hockey is the test, then the adjustment phase are the ANSWERS! When players go through the adjustment phase, they learn what they need to focus on in order to improve and hopefully get to a point where they can impact the game on a consistent basis at the new level they are at. The time it takes to get to that point can vary greatly however.

If we knew how long the adjustment phase lasted, someone would be a gazillionaire. There’s a lot that goes into how long this takes. For some players it could take weeks to get adjusted, or months, or the better part of a full season. It’s going to be different for everyone. Genetics plays a role, learning ability plays a role, work ethic, desire, mental mindset, and the list goes on. What can help accelerate passing by the adjustment phase? Tough to come up with a full-proof answer but, here are a few things you can do to possibly shorten the length your adjustment may take.

Know what your coach wants to see in your play
Evaluate your game with video (if possible), so you can see how what your coaches are describing… or perhaps in this case, not seeing so you can identify what you’re struggling with
Identify the skills needed to accomplish your goals
Create an action plan and timeline to work on the skills necessary

Bottom line, the Adjustment Phase could be the most important piece to your hockey development. It’s a necessary part of the process of playing well at the level you’re at. The more you understand how to approach it – the better you’ll be the next time it comes around.

Pre-Season Polls

It’s that time of year, Pre-Season Coaches Poll time. The NCAA D-I season starts up for real this weekend with games that count, and each conference has announced its pre-season coaches poll. In addition, USCHO.com and USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine publish a weekly Top 10 poll during the season.

Like with most pre-season polls, there is nothing to go on from this year. These for the most part, are purely based on last seasons records, key player departures as well as recruited additions. The WCHA, CHA, and ECAC have announced their pre-season coaches polls which are below. We’ll get you Hockey East and the NEWHA once they are officially announced.

Sifters

New NCAA Stat Site To Replace Collegehockeystats.net… Long time statistical college hockey website collegehockeystats.net, a favorite among college hockey coaches and fans, will no longer be updating statistical season data. 20-21 was its last year in service. The website will however, still remain and any of its prior year statistical data will be available. CHS filled a huge void and was the ‘Go-To’ college hockey online resource for live scores, game stats, game line-up charts, conference standings, and any number of college hockey stats. Taking its place will be a NCAA branded site found here: https://stats.ncaa.org/. We have provided a limited overview of the NCAA site and included a comparison vs. collegehockeystats found HERE. The NCAA site tracks many of the same data, there are some major differences as well. A detailed description of how to get certain data is outlined in the form also.

So why the change? The NCAA is transitioning away from a very popular game stats software program called StatsCrew and moving to a new software program called LiveStats.

Marmer and Roth Selected to Work With Boston Bruins… Quinnipiac Player Development and Operations Director Danielle Marmer and Holy Cross Associate Head Coach Meredith Roth have been selected to participate in the Boston Bruins Diversity & Inclusion Scouting Mentorship Program. The 9-month project aims to use members of the Bruins’ operations staff to increase the mentee’s pursuits in scouting and or a professional career in hockey. You can read the official Bruins’ announcement HERE.

U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Museum Game Announced… The Minnesota Golden Gophers will host St. Cloud State University Nov. 20th in the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Museum Face-Off Classic. Puck drop is set for 3pm cst.

Speaking of Minnesota, the Gophers program turns 25-years this year.

US Allows Non-Citizens To Travel By Air To US In November… The U.S. Gov’t announced Monday starting in November fully vaccinated non-US citizens will be able to fly to the US. A negative COVID test will be required within three days of arrival. The land border between the US and Canada remains shut-down for another month until Oct. 21. We can’t seem to find much in the way of specifics with the new US guidance regarding Canadians. We will keep you updated as more is known.

IIHF World Championships Moves to August… Women’s hockey just got a nice boost from the IIHF as it is moving the top level Women’s World Championships Tournament to August in Olympic years beginning with 2022. Denmark has applied to be the host country in 2022. It’s a move that makes a lot of sense coming off the sports most high profile event at the Olympics. The best get to showcase themselves on the world stage 6 months later at a time of year when there is a hockey void on TV. No other league in the world that garners a TV audience, are usually playing games in August. You can read the IIHF official announcement HERE.

NCAA Coaching Changes… Keep up with all the coaching changes across D-I and D-III HERE.

Recruiting Events/League Online Directory… Find all the recruiting events on WCH.org right HERE. Want to add your event? Click HERE to fill out our WCH.org event form.

Until Next Time…

Uncategorized

Post #56 – 9/23/21 – Weekend Game Schedule, Sifters

Posted on September 23, 2021 by Grant Kimball Leave a comment

In This Post…

NCAA D-I Weekend Game Schedule |
Sifters |

NCAA Coaching Changes… Keep up with all the coaching changes across D-I and D-III HERE.

Recruiting Events/League Online Directory… Find all the recruiting events on WCH.org right HERE. Want to add your event? Click HERE to fill out our WCH.org event form.

Streaming Info-Updated as of 9-21-21

-Streams for games in the ECAC can be found HERE. Subscriptions will be necessary to watch games in the ECAC.

-Streams in the WCHA can be found HERE. Subscriptions will be necessary to watch games.

-Streams in Hockey East this year can be found HERE. Subscriptions will be necessary to watch games.

-Streams for CHA games with the exception of Penn St. can be found HERE. Subscriptions will be necessary to watch games.

-Streams for NEWHA games can be found at each teams’ website. Subscriptions may be necessary to watch games.

NCAA D-I Weekend Game Schedule

With a weeks worth of regular season practice under their belts, quite a few NCAA D-I teams are playing games for real now. Some games on the weekend schedule are exhibition games. The new NCAA Stat Site schedule doesn’t reference whether games are Exhibition, Conference, or Non-Conference, which was a nice feature of CHS (collegehockeystats).

Several pre-season USCHO.com Top 10 ranked teams, as well as those just outside the Top 10, are in action this weekend.

Quinnipiac, just outside the Top 10 hosts Maine for a 2-game Friday/Saturday series at home. Clarkson, who is also just outside the Top 10 faces off against Sacred Heart at home for a pair of games Friday and Saturday. #9 Penn State welcomes St. Lawrence for a Thursday/Friday series. #6 Colgate and RIT play a home and home Friday and Saturday. #3 Ohio State hosts new WCHA member St. Thomas Friday/Saturday in Columbus. And #1 Wisconsin travels to North Andover, MA to take on Merrimack for a pair of games.

You can see the full weekend Thursday, Friday, and Saturday schedule below. All times are Eastern Standard Time. Streaming information can be found above.

Thursday, Sept 23rd – New NCAA Stat Site Link

St. Lawrence @ Penn State – 7PM

Friday, Sept 24th – New NCAA Stat Site Link

RIT @ Colgate – 5PM

Maine @ Quinnipiac – 6PM

Sacred Heart @ Clarkson – 6PM

Minnesota State @ Merrimack – 6PM

St. Thomas @ Ohio State – 6PM

LIU @ UCONN – 6PM

RPI @ Mercyhurst – 6:05PM

St. Lawrence @ Penn State – 7PM

Wisconsin @ Lindenwood – 8PM

Saturday, Sept 25th – New NCAA Stat Site Link

Saint Michael’s @ Vermont – 1PM

Sacred Heart @ Clarkson – 2PM

St. Thomas @ Ohio State – 2PM

Maine @ Quinnipiac – 3PM

LIU @ UCONN – 3PM

RPI @ Mercyhurst – 3:05PM

Minnesota State @ Merrimack – 4PM

Wisconsin @ Lindenwood – 4:30PM

Colgate @ RIT – 6PM

Sifters

Updated Coaching Changes… Nichols College has hired former Quinnipiac Head Coach Michael Barrett. Barrett coached the Bobcats from 2002-2008 before moving into an Athletic Department Development role.

Josh Glaser has been hired as RIT’s newest Assistant Coach. Josh has spent time with Vermont, Colgate, and Utica in various roles.

Kate Leary has been hired at Merrimack College as an Assistant Coach. She replaces Stephanie Moberg who is now at Dartmouth College. Leary was a standout at Boston College where she amassed 85 pts in 149 games.

Zoey Pellowitz iis the new Graduate Assistant Coach at Nazareth College. She just completed her playing career at Manhattanville.

Mike Frost is the new Assistant Coach at Johnson & Wales.

Transfers, Where Are They Now… It was quite a year for the transfer. Nicole Haase of USCHO.com has compiled a thorough list of which players have departed certain programs and where they wound up at for the season. You can find her complete list HERE.

Until Next Time…

Uncategorized

Post #55 – 9/22/21 – The Adjustment, Pre-Season Polls, Sifters

Posted on September 22, 2021 by Grant Kimball Leave a comment

NCAA Coaching Changes… Keep up with all the coaching changes across D-I and D-III HERE.

Recruiting Events/League Online Directory… Find all the recruiting events on WCH.org right HERE. Want to add your event? Click HERE to fill out our WCH.org event form.

In This Post…

The Adjustment Phase|
Pre-Season Polls |
Sifters |

The Adjustment Phase

Well, if you answered ‘yes’ to any of the above – welcome to the Adjustment Phase.

May be the pace of the game is too fast to handle and you struggle to make good decisions. Or you aren’t physically strong enough to handle the much older/stronger competition.

Know what your coach wants to see in your play
Evaluate your game with video (if possible), so you can see how what your coaches are describing… or perhaps in this case, not seeing so you can identify what you’re struggling with
Identify the skills needed to accomplish your goals
Create an action plan and timeline to work on the skills necessary

Pre-Season Polls

Sifters

So why the change? The NCAA is transitioning away from a very popular game stats software program called StatsCrew and moving to a new software program called LiveStats.

Speaking of Minnesota, the Gophers program turns 25-years this year.

Until Next Time…

9/21/21 – Part III – Mutual Respect Series – Club & HS Coaches

Posted on September 21, 2021 by Grant Kimball Leave a comment

In This Post…

Part III – Mutual Respect Series – Club & High School Coaches |

Today we bring you the 3rd-part of our 3-part series on mutual respect within women’s hockey. We’re taking a look at three key participant groups – Youth hockey Parents, Players, and Club / High School coaches. We’ll identify some situations that commonly occur and ways in which we can show a bit more mutual respect to those we deal with throughout the hockey season. Enjoy!

Part III – Mutual Respect Series

Club and High School Coaches

Help your players explore all college hockey opportunities that come their way… Coaches or team personnel who help their players navigate the NCAA recruiting process can be very valuable, but only when you present all the options to your players! At times, some club/high school coaches can be selective about who tell their players who has interest in them. This is never a great approach. D-I coaches can’t communicate with players in grade 9 or 10, so club / high school coaches become gatekeepers of information of information college coached tell them–like when they have interest in a certain player. Let your players and families know every NCAA program that asks about them. D-I, D-III, ACHA teams – anyone. It should never matter to you who inquires. What you are, is someone who helps high school players and parents sort through information in order so they can make an educated decision. What you are not, is an some kind of agent, who picks and chooses which schools your players will have interest in.

Want to be respected in your role with your player’s/families and the NCAA coaches who have interest in you players – then give everyone a shot, remove your bias, and be inclusive of all programs. You are much better off developing a process to teach your players/families how make these decisions themselves. Show them how to evaluate the academic, the financial, as well as the hockey side of the opportunities that come their way. Have a player that wants to go to a top program? Great, sit down with them and watch a game online or better yet – go to a game live. Show them the level they are trying to get to. And If a NCAA coach asks for contact info for your players, don’t withhold it – get it to them. Once June 15 rolls around and coaches can make phone calls, eventually NCAA coaches find out if you don’t pass information along. So, respect the process, do right by your players and the college programs you work with.

Don’t be a broker in the transfer process… Those who coach players in grade 9 and beyond are what the NCAA considers a ‘Third Party’. In transfer situations, Third Parties have often been used to act behind the scenes in somewhat obscurity. Because NCAA coaches are not allowed to communicate with other NCAA players until the transfer process is initiated, ‘Third Parties’ have been used to help gain information for the player wishing to transfer. To communicate with college coaches at other programs who might have interest in the player.

Communication by a Third Party to another NCAA coach about a current NCAA player who wishes to transfer – has always been a NCAA violation, but extremely hard to track or prove. These conversations by Third Parties are dishonest and an underhanded way to operate around the NCAA rules in place. The NCAA has never really regulated Third Parties much – that is until now with new the NCAA transfer rules effective as of July 2021. It’s a bit of a back-door way of regulating Third Parties – but here is how the new rules work. Players who want to transfer must certify in writing, along with their new head coach, they did not have direct or indirect communication with the new school’s athletics staff prior to entering the NCAA Transfer Portal. That indirect or direct communication ‘behind the scenes’ is in reference to Third Parties. If impermissible contact was had, the athlete’s eligibility could be in jeopardy and infractions could be placed on her new school. The NCAA is now asking transfers and her new coaches, to be honest about their prior communications as they now have to report this to the NCAA. So, moral of the story for Third Parties: 1) If asked by a former player to help get some info for them in a transfer situation – decline, decline, decline. You will jeopardize her eligibility and could bring NCAA sanctions against her new school if you act on her behalf. 2) Respect the transfer process and wait for your former player to get in the NCAA portal – then you can help all you want. Doubtful D-I coaches are going to risk their jobs or sanctions from the NCAA against their program by lying to the NCAA and their institutions by having impermissible conversations with Third Parties. You can read more about how the new transfer process works HERE and get yourself educated.

Do Your Homework When Promoting Your Players…

Club/High School Coach: Hey, got a great D for you. Kid can really play.

College Coach: Oh, great, well how good is she?

Club/High School Coach: She’s in our top 4D, PP/PK all day long!

College Coach: Nice. Where do you think she fits at our level?

Club/High School Coach: You know, good question, I’m not so sure, never really watched much NCAA hockey. But i’m telling you – she’s AWESOME – you have to take her.

It’s a pretty common conversation actually. But there is a problem trying to promote someone if you don’t really know the talent level of the NCAA team you’re talking. Yes, the NCAA program always needs to do their homework on your player in question, but Club/HS coaches can do themselves a favor by learning a bit about the team they think one of their players may be a good fit for. Watching games live or on video of past games to familiarize yourself with the skill level and style of play the NCAA program has, can help mitigate a big risk of a player not working out and score big points with the program you’re working with. Promoting players that at the end of the day won’t be a good fit, doesn’t do anyone any favors. Just because your player does well for your team or in the league she is in – doesn’t necessarily mean she’ll be the same at the NCAA level. The more you can research and talk in specifics about how your players can help, relative to the NCAA program, the better you’re going to sound and the more a college program will respect working with you.

So do your homework/research and promote players that will be a good fit!

Until Next Time…

Mailbag Monday – #4 – Sept. 20th & Last Week’s Pipeline Post #53

Posted on September 20, 2021 by Grant Kimball Leave a comment

NCAA Coaching Changes… Keep up with all the coaching changes across D-I and D-III HERE.

Recruiting Events/League Online Directory… Find all the recruiting events on WCH.org right HERE. Want to add your event? Click HERE to fill out our WCH.org event form.

In This Post…

Mailbag Monday #4|
Pipeline Post #53|

Mailbag Monday #4

Great question Jeff. We hope this helps!

Post #53

In This Post…

Part II – Mutual Respect Series – Hockey Players |

Today we bring you the 2nd-part of our 3-part series on mutual respect within women’s hockey. We’re taking a look at three key participant groups – Youth hockey Parents, Players, and Club / High School coaches. We’ll identify some situations that commonly occur and ways in which we can show a bit more mutual respect to those we deal with throughout the hockey season. Enjoy!

Hockey Players

Treat your teammates well… This is an issue that is rampant in the sport (as well as society) and has no place at any level in hockey–Bullying someone. Hockey has a code, an unwritten rule that teammates look out for one another-no matter what. You stand up and support each other with respect. Now, you don’t have to like everyone on your team, but you do have to respect everyone as your teammate and how they want to be treated. Great teammates are always building people up – not tearing them down. Bullying is dangerous stuff. It rips apart teams and lives. It messes with people’s mental health, no one wants to mess with that. There’s nothing more important than you’re well being or preserving someone else’s. So… Do keep the conversations as positive as you can with teammates. Every conversation isn’t always going to be positive – but it’s how you frame your words that will make all the difference in the world. Asking someone is always a bit better than telling (or yelling) at someone. Celebrate the great plays or near misses with words of encouragement. And in general, be nice to one another.
Be a good follower… There’s value in being a good follower. It sounds easy, but sometimes all it takes is just following directions and doing what is asked of your coaches or captains – that’s it. We mentioned last week how parents can commiserate and complain in groups–players can be the same way. That won’t get you very far up the hockey ladder. One definite way to show respect to your coaches and the players in leadership positions, like captains, is following their direction and doing what is asked. Being a good follower is a great leadership quality in fact. Be easy to deal with… meaning don’t always go against what is being asked – don’t be the player who always complains. Going ‘rogue’ and on your own path is never a good thing within a team sport.
Be good ambassadors for your team/program… Being part of a hockey program is really fun and special. But it also comes with an important responsibility–to uphold the values and expectations set by your coaching staff and or school/club association for which you play for. Respect who you play for and where you play. There were probably many people before you who laid the groundwork for your culture and how things get done. Here are a few ways to uphold that tradition. Please & Thank You’s – If anyone offers you help – the phrase ‘please and thank you’ go a long way. Use them early and often. They will put you and the program in a great light. Be ‘Present’ – Your team got asked to volunteer at the local food shelter; stay engaged, don’t make it seem like this is the last place you’d rather be. Show some level of enjoyment. The group you are supporting will have a great report back to your coaches. If you’re playing college hockey, conduct yourselves well across campus, in public, and online – You can’t hide from being a college hockey player, people on campus and off, know who you are. Each interaction you have impacts the reputation of your program. Positively interact with other departments around campus, especially those within the athletic department. Out to dinner with teammates after practice? Be extra careful what you say at the table and be nice to your servers and waitstaff. Who knows, you or your team photo might go up on the wall there! Keep it clean online with social media posts. Be funny, engaging, creative and above all – POSITIVE!

Until Next Time…

Uncategorized

9/18/21 – WCH Pipeline Weekend Edition

Posted on September 18, 2021 by Grant Kimball Leave a comment

NCAA Coaching Changes… Keep up with all the coaching changes across D-I and D-III HERE.

Recruiting Events/League Online Directory… Find all the recruiting events on WCH.org right HERE. Want to add your event? Click HERE to fill out our WCH.org event form.

In This Post…

Official Start of Season Begins Today
Lots Coming This Week

Sept. 18 – 1st Official Practice Day

Under NCAA rules, September 18 is the 1st official practice date for women’s ice hockey. With that, the 21-22 season kicks off for most D-I programs. Ivy league rules don’t allow their teams to begin until Oct. 1.

All teams across D-I, since their first day of classes, have had up to 4 hours per week on the ice to devote to skill work. Starting today, teams can use up to 20 hours per week (the NCAA maximum) for required on-ice practice, fitness training, team meetings, team/individual video sessions, etc.

Some teams are wasting no time in playing games. With the NCAA granting a waiver late this summer allowing NCAA teams to play each other, 2 exhibition games are taking place this weekend.

Saturday UCONN @ Quinnipiac – 4pm EST – Live ESPN+ Stream
Sunday Syracuse @ RPI – 3pm EST – No stream info available – Live Stats

Lots To Come This Week

With the kickoff of the hockey season there is lots to come this week on Women’s College Hockey.org.

Monday = Mailbag Monday Video Edition… Jeff from Michigan asks a great question about conversations at the rink.

Tuesday = Part III of our Mutual Respect Series… Club and High School coaches won’t want to miss this.

Wednesday = Pipeline Post #54… The Adjustment Phase, Pre-Season Polls, NCAA Rosters, D-III Update, Sifters.

Thursday = NCAA Schedules, Weekend Previews.

It’s a jam-packed week and we can’t wait to get going. Enjoy your weekend everyone!

Until Next Time…

21-22 NCAA Season Update

Post #53 — 9/10/21 – Labor Day Tourney Observations, NCAA In-Season Events, Sifters

Posted on September 10, 2021 by Grant Kimball Leave a comment

NCAA Coaching Changes… Keep up with all the coaching changes across D-I and D-III HERE.

Recruiting Events/League Online Directory… Find all the recruiting events on WCH.org right HERE. Want to add your event? Click HERE to fill out our WCH.org event form.

In This Post…

Labor Day Tourney Observations |
NCAA In-Season Events |
Sifters |

Labor Day Tourney Observations

Recaps

Labor Day weekend has come and gone and so too have the tournaments that kicked off the 2021-2022 amatuer hockey season. 60 teams from all over the US + 1 Canadian Province came to Burlington, Vermont to compete at the U14-U16-U19 age divisions. While in Pittsburgh, PA at the PIP Labor Day Girls Fest, a total of 54 teams faced-off against one another traveling from as far away as Anaheim to Boston and everywhere in between.

Hotel prices in Burlington were sky high. +$300 / night at area hotels was a common theme. Some coaches had trouble finding rooms and had to stay in nearby Plattsburgh, NY. The weather however, was a nice consolation. It was an all-Connecticut final in both the U19 and U16 divisions with the CT Polarbears beating the Mid-Fairfield CT Stars in each age group. The MN Jr. Whitecaps took the U14 Division title with a 7-0 win over Ironbound. The Jr. Whitecaps averaged just shy of 7 goals per game… while only giving up 3 goals total in 6 games.

From what we heard in Pittsburgh there was a larger contingent of D-I coaches in attendance, all but 3 D-I schools were there. Of course there was a great contingent of D-III coaches as well. Within 3 age groups, 6 champions where crowned – winners were: U19 Silver – Little Caesars, U19 Gold – MN Jr. Whitecaps, U16 Silver – Philadelphia Jr. Flyers, U16 Gold – MN Jr. Whitecaps, U14 Silver – Connecticut Jr. Rangers, U14 Gold – Chicago Mission.

The rumor was both events in VT and Pittsburgh were well run and with no major snafu’s.

Absent from this weekend’s’ slate of events NCAA coaches could get to was the Team Ontario U18 High Performance Camp being help north of Toronto. Many NCAA coaches might say this would have been the best of the three events to evaluate at. Why? A condensed topo-end talent pool and one location to manage. Quite a few D-I coaches (myself included) who were slated to go to Ontario found their way to Burlington instead, once news of the U18 HP event being closed due to COVID concerns became public.

First Look At New USA Hockey Rules

NCAA coaches caught their first glimpses of new USA Hockey rule changes regarding offsides and when a team is penalty killing. The changes are as follows:

Automatic offsides will be called… no ‘Tag-Up’ offsides is allowed. Ensuing faceoff at offending teams offensive blueline.

Teams killing a penalty may not ice the puck. If the puck is iced, icing will be called and ensuing faceoff will be in the defensive zone of the offending team.

Most NCAA coaches we talked to don’t care for the auto offsides. Most seem to be okay with no icing on PK’s. The Games were choppy and hard to get into a flow at times due to a lot of offside calls. Icing on the penalty kill seemed to have more of an affect on the parents in the stands than the players on the ice to be honest. We get the intent of both rules, make a smarter play. But the offside rule, really? If the intent is to make a smarter play, blowing the whistle doesn’t accomplish that, play stops. What about the defending team, who could retrieve the puck, regroup, breakout, attack etc., they don’t have a chance to make a smart play–it’s like the rule was only taken from the offensive perspective of the game.

And the auto offside faceoff location did not change – it’s still at its normal spot – at the offensive blueline of the offending team. Understood when icing occurs, the normal faceoff comes all the way down. I wonder if the faceoff location for the auto offside call should have been changed too. May be the ensuing faceoff should be at the offending teams defensive zone blueline instead? You are somewhat being rewarded by still getting the faceoff at your offensive zone blueline – even though you went offside.

Like most rule changes, it will take some time for players/coaches/officials (and parents) to adjust. We shall see if there is a positive impact.

NCAA In-Season Events

Here is the line-up of in-season D-I tournaments and special events. If we’re missing something send us an email so we can announce it.

Division I

Smashville Women’s Collegiate Showcase — Nov. 26-27 — Boston College, Colgate, Mercyhurst, Minnesota
Nutmeg Classic — Nov. 26-27 — Quinnipiac, Sacred Heart, UCONN, Yale
DI in DC — Nov. 26-27 — Ohio St., Penn St., Univ. MN-Duluth, St. Lawrence University
World University Games — Dec. 10-17 — Northeastern University, Team Switzerland, Team China, Team Canada, Team Russia, Team Japan. You can find out more on this event HERE.
Battle At The ‘Burgh — Jan. 1-2 — Boston University, Penn State, Syracuse, St. Cloud State
Minnesota Hockey Day Outdoor Game — Jan. 23rd — Mankato vs. St. Thomas
Mayor’s Cup — Jan. 29 — Union College vs. RPI
The Beanpot — Feb 1 & 8 — Boston College, Boston University, Harvard University, Northeastern University

Sifters

Friars’ Domenico Named To Canada’s National Women’s Team Staff… Providence Friar Associate Head Coach Alison Domenico was named to Canada’s National Women’s Team coaching staff as an Assistant Coach for the 2021-2022 season including the Olympic Games in Beijing. Domenico was recently promoted to the position of Associate Head Coach at Providence after finishing her 3rd season as an assistant. Jim Midgley left Team Canada’s National Women’s Team to join the New York Rangers as an Assistant Coach on Aug. 24th. Gina Kingsbury, Director of Hockey Operations with Hockey Canada made the announcement of Domenico’s hiring September 1. Kingsbury is very familiar with Domenico as she has been part of Hockey Canada’s women’s coaching staff before. Both are alums of St. Lawrence.

Providence has not named a replacement for Domenico yet. In these types of situations, a program usually has the option to add someone as an NCAA emergency hire just for the year on a temporary basis. Head Coach Matt Kelly only used 2 coaches on staff last year. Perhaps that will be the case for this year? You can read more on Domenico’s hire HERE.

The Hunt For Coaches Continues… LIU, Merrimack, RIT, and RPI, have yet to name Assistant Coaches to their respective staffs as of yet. There are several D-III Assistant Coaching positions that have yet to be filled also–Nichols and Hamline need to hire head coaches.

COVID Updates… As the Delta COVID variant presses on around the US, athletic departments are being faced with major decisions about fan attendance. The RPI Athletic Department of the ECAC came out with a statement as follows: ‘As per Rensselaer’s plan to return to campus-based operations of August 13, 2021, external spectators are not permitted at this time. Only RPI faculty, staff and students who are fully compliant with the Institute’s COVID-19 protocols are allowed to attend games.’. Other athletic departments are most likely pondering potential adjustments to spectator protocol should the need arise.

Early Exhibition Games… In looking at various schedules, it appears teams are taking advantage of the new NCAA rule on exhibition games allowed to be scheduled vs. NCAA schools for this year. The earliest games we’ve noticed thus far:

Sept. 18 — UCONN @ Quinnipiac
Sept. 19 — RIT @ Mercyhurst
Sept. 19 — Syracuse @ RPI
Sept. 25 — Franklin Pierce @ Northeastern
Sept. 25 — Saint Michael’s @ Univ. of Vermont

RMU Update… Robert Morris University Athletics has announced that former RMU Men’s Head coach Derek Schooley has been named Head Coach and director of hockey operations for both the men’s and women’s programs effective immediately. From the story that appears on USCHO.com HERE, a total of $2.4 Million is needed to reinstate both programs by Dec. 15, 2021. Brianne McLaughlin-Bittle, former US Olympian and RMU goaltender has been named as a special assistant for hockey operations.

Perhaps RMU can follow in the footsteps of The University Alaska-Anchorage as their men’s program recently announced it had reached its fundraising goal and will be reinstating the program for the 2022-2023 season. They raised over $3.1 million.

The Hall Calls For Purple Eagles… Niagara University will induct the 2001-2002 Women’s Hockey team into the 2021 athletics hall of fame class. The announcement was made earlier this week. The 01-02 Purple Eagles went 28-6-2 that year winning the ECAC regular season championship, making it to the Frozen Four, and playing Minnesota to a 2-2 tie in the 3rd place game. The induction will be held Dec. 4th, 2021. The Purple Eagle program was cut after the 2011-2012 season.

Until Next Time…

21-22 NCAA Season Update

Post #53– 9/7/21 – Part II – Mutual Respect series – Hockey Players

Posted on September 7, 2021 by Grant Kimball Leave a comment

In This Post…

Part II – Mutual Respect Series – Hockey Players |

Hockey Players

Treat your teammates well… This is an issue that is rampant in the sport (as well as society) and has no place at any level in hockey–Bullying someone. Hockey has a code, an unwritten rule that teammates look out for one another-no matter what. You stand up and support each other with respect. Now, you don’t have to like everyone on your team, but you do have to respect everyone as your teammate and how they want to be treated. Great teammates are always building people up – not tearing them down. Bullying is dangerous stuff. It rips apart teams and lives. It messes with people’s mental health, no one wants to mess with that. There’s nothing more important than you’re well being or preserving someone else’s. So… Do keep the conversations as positive as you can with teammates. Every conversation isn’t always going to be positive – but it’s how you frame your words that will make all the difference in the world. Asking someone is always a bit better than telling (or yelling) at someone. Celebrate the great plays or near misses with words of encouragement. And in general, be nice to one another.
Be a good follower… There’s value in being a good follower. It sounds easy, but sometimes all it takes is just following directions and doing what is asked of your coaches or captains – that’s it. We mentioned last week how parents can commiserate and complain in groups–players can be the same way. That won’t get you very far up the hockey ladder. One definite way to show respect to your coaches and the players in leadership positions, like captains, is following their direction and doing what is asked. Being a good follower is a great leadership quality in fact. Be easy to deal with… meaning don’t always go against what is being asked – don’t be the player who always complains. Going ‘rogue’ and on your own path is never a good thing within a team sport.
Be good ambassadors for your team/program… Being part of a hockey program is really fun and special. But it also comes with an important responsibility–to uphold the values and expectations set by your coaching staff and or school/club association for which you play for. Respect who you play for and where you play. There were probably many people before you who laid the groundwork for your culture and how things get done. Here are a few ways to uphold that tradition. Please & Thank You’s – If anyone offers you help – the phrase ‘please and thank you’ go a long way. Use them early and often. They will put you and the program in a great light. Be ‘Present’ – Your team got asked to volunteer at the local food shelter; stay engaged, don’t make it seem like this is the last place you’d rather be. Show some level of enjoyment. The group you are supporting will have a great report back to your coaches. If you’re playing college hockey, conduct yourselves well across campus, in public, and online – You can’t hide from being a college hockey player, people on campus and off, know who you are. Each interaction you have impacts the reputation of your program. Positively interact with other departments around campus, especially those within the athletic department. Out to dinner with teammates after practice? Be extra careful what you say at the table and be nice to your servers and waitstaff. Who knows, you or your team photo might go up on the wall there! Keep it clean online with social media posts. Be funny, engaging, creative and above all – POSITIVE!

Until Next Time…

Post #3 – Sept. 6th – Mailbag Monday & Last Week’s Pipeline Post #51

Posted on September 6, 2021 by Grant Kimball Leave a comment

NCAA Coaching Changes… Keep up with all the coaching changes across D-I and D-III HERE.

Recruiting Events/League Online Directory… Find all the recruiting events on WCH.org right HERE. Want to add your event? Click HERE to fill out our WCH.org event form.

In This Post…

Mailbag Monday #3|
Today’s Pipeline Post #51|

Mailbag Monday #3

Click on the link below to watch this week’s version of Monday Mailbag!

Great questions Pete. We hope this helps!

Post #51

In This Post…

Part I – Mutual Respect Series – Hockey Parents |

Beginning today we start our 3-part series on mutual respect within women’s hockey. We’ll take a look at three key participant groups – Youth hockey Parents, Players, and Club / High School coaches. We’ll identify some situations that commonly occur and ways in which we can show a bit more mutual respect to those we deal with throughout the hockey season. Enjoy!

Youth Hockey Parents

Let the coaches, coach… It’s hard. You see something that makes you go cross-eyed and scratch your head. “What in the world are my daughter’s coaches doing,” you think to yourself. Before you get too frustrated and wind up telling your own daughter how YOU think she should be playing – try asking the coach first what her/his thoughts are. Sometimes parents can wind up undermining the coaches efforts and possibly confuse their own daughter without knowing it. Best to get all the facts first. Your daughter may not know who to listen to if she has 2 sets of people telling her what to do. So before coaching your daughter, ask to talk with the coach. You can frame your question as, “Hey I noticed you did x, y, or z in the game the other day. I wanted to ask you first so I don’t mix messages with my daughter. Can you help me understand what you want from her?” Any coach would not only welcome the conversation but respect you for understanding her/his position. By doing this, you are clearly respecting the boundaries between coach, player and parent.
Use your words to be supportive, acknowledge great effort, and encourage… Hockey is an exciting game that elicits instant knee-jerk emotional reactions. Sometimes it’s hard not to voice that excitement out loud. So when the occasion presents itself and something exciting happens – be that positive voice in the crowd! Let it be known, appropriately of course, that someone other than your daughter just made a great play. Her parents will appreciate you for it! As fast as hockey is, mistakes happen. You don’t want to be that parent who lets everyone in the building know who just made a mistake, believe me, they saw it too. And especially if it’s not your own daughter! Probably best to watch your comments about the officials as well. They have a tough job as it is. If you don’t have something positive to say, best not to say it. The more you praise, the better everyone will feel around you, and the more respect you’ll earn as someone other parents will enjoy being around.
Be a positive organizer… Pizza parties at the team hotel, pool parties at someone’s house in the summer, if it’s positive and for the good of the team – go for it! If you are getting people together – make sure it’s for a positive purpose and for everyone to enjoy. As they say, misery loves company too, and the disgruntled hockey parent is one person you don’t want to commiserate with. You know this person… the one who always complains about the coaches decisions or lack of ice time their daughter gets. Some of the stuff that goes on from parents these days is down-right diabolical. Respect your daughter, her experience, and her teammates enough to stay away from the negativity. There is no need to corral a group of parents to plan and take down your daughter’s youth coach because she or he is not working on the PP breakout enough. You have an out, it’s called the end of the season when you have a choice to return to the club or not. Be the type of parents who bring people together, not pull teams apart!

Until Next Time…

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