D-I And D-III Coaches Will Navigate Their Way to Oxford, Ohio and Miami University This Summer For USA Hockey’s National Development Camps
The Women’s College Hockey Pipeline…
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Latest From… The Women’s College Hockey Podcast – Episode #3B…
Episode #3A Part I – Is Now LIVE|The Recap
NCAA Coaches Have A New Location For USA Hockey Nat’l Development Camps
USA Hockey as well as NCAA D-I and D-III coaches will descend upon Oxford, Ohio and the campus of Miami University this June and July as the national governing body changes the location of its U15, 16/17, and U18 Select Girls National Development Camps.
The move to the Goggin Ice Center at Miami University comes after a lengthy stay at the National Hockey Center at St. Cloud State Univ. in Minnesota for the better part of the last 10+ years. While Miami doesn’t have a NCAA D-I women’s program, it does have a very successful women’s ACHA D-I program and a NCAA D-I Men’s program.
Interestingly, Miami’s former Men’s Associate Head Coach Eric Rud, was the St. Cloud State University Women’s Head Coach for 5 seasons. Rud, who’s daughter Gabbie plays at Cornell, is now Head Coach of the Sioux Falls Stampede of the USHL.
USA Hockey’s move to Oxford seems to be a welcomed change from other coaches I’ve talked with. You can read more on USA Hockey’s move to Oxford HERE.
Here’s all the camp info you’ll need to know. Kudos to USA Hockey for getting the schedules out early this year.
Dates & Schedules
U16/17 (2006-2007) National Development Camp June 24-30 – Schedule
U15 (2008) National Development Goaltenders Camp – July 7-10 – Schedule
U15 (2008) National Development Camp – July 10-15 – Schedule
U18 (2006-2008) National Select Camp – July 16-22 – Schedule
Camp Rosters
In total 387 players were selected across all camps this summer. Team rosters of each camp aren’t available at the moment, but a list of camp participants are. You can find links to them below. I’ll breakdown that camp attendee’s from each of USA Hockey’s 12 districts in a future post as we get closer to camp.
A note about the player selection process. USA Hockey splits the country up into 12 districts based on geography and each district has its own tryout process. Most are very similar–with some type of skills session, practices or games evaluated by a staff (sometimes college coaches). In true political fashion, each district is allotted a certain number of players it can send at each position. That number is based the number of girls registered in the district. The larger the district, the larger number of attendees it can send.
Is that the best way to select for these camps? Perhaps a post for another time. 🤔
We’ll have updates from Oxford as camps get underway.
Until Next Time Everyone… Be Well and take Care,
-Streams for games in the ECAC can be found HERE. Subscriptions will be necessary to watch games.
-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. Hockey East once again is streaming all game live and for FREE.
-Streams for CHA games with the exception of Penn St. can be found HERE. Paid 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 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.
Grant Kimball is founder and contributing writer at Women’s College Hockey.org and beginning his 4th 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 amateur 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.
Time To Investigate, Know The Types Of Summer Hockey Events That Are Out There
Types Of Events
Know What To Look For
Execute Your Plan
Sifters
Coaching Changes Continue & Updated Tracker
Another D-I Team Goes To Europe
Mergers & Acquisitions
Until Next Time Everyone… Be Well and take Care,
-Streams for games in the ECAC can be found HERE. Subscriptions will be necessary to watch games.
-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. Hockey East once again is streaming all game live and for FREE.
-Streams for CHA games with the exception of Penn St. can be found HERE. Paid 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 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.
Grant Kimball is founder and contributing writer at Women’s College Hockey.org and beginning his 4th 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 amateur 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.
Learn What To Look At When Evaluating Events To Attend
The Women’s College Hockey Pipeline…
Stay informed. Get educated. Become ‘HOCKEY-WISE’!
Your leading online resource for NCAA Women’s College Hockey
Latest From… The Women’s College Hockey Podcast – Episode #3B…
Episode #3A Part I – Is Now LIVE|The Recap
Get Out Your Hockey Specs + Sifters
Happy Friday everyone. I hope you’ve had a great week. Time to get our your hockey glasses and look for a good Summer hockey find.
In Wednesday’s post, I tried to answer a common question that many of you have asked previously: Which Summer events are best to go to? How do you know which ones to attend?
Now, it would have been really easy for me to come up with the top 7-8 events college coaches go to. Bing, Bang, Boom – there’s your list, just register and sign up, right?
Well, it’s isn’t that easy.
My approach was to explain a methodology, a process of evaluating what should go into deciding what Summer hockey event you might consider. In the crowded schedule of Summer showcases, camps, ID Skates, and tournaments, if you know what to look for, the better off you’ll be.
And that is my goal today. To give you some valuable tips on how to evaluate your Summer hockey options.
First, know what types of events exist. Here are a few.
Day/Overnight Camps & Clinics
NCAA College Camps & Clinics
NCAA ID Prospect Camps/Showcases
Multi-Week Skill Development On-Ice/Off-Ice Programs
Showcase Camps
Showcase Tournaments
USA Hockey / Hockey Canada Sanctioned Player Development Camps
Summer hockey events fall into a few different categories. Most say they will either improve your game or… get you exposure to NCAA coaches. Some promote themselves as being able to do both.
As I said in Wednesday’s post, a good way to chose an event to attend is decide 1) what your hockey goals are, 2) what your hockey timeline is, and 3) what you need most as a player to reach your intended goals.
Events that are great for teaching skills and development would be Day/Overnight Camps & Clinics, NCAA College Camps & Clinics, Multi-Week Skill Development Programs, and USA Hockey / Hockey Canada Sanctioned Player Development Camps. Here are few things to pay attention to so you can choose the right one for you.
Who is doing the instruction and how experienced is the staff? To have played is one thing, to have played and know how to teach is another. Coaching experience matters. How much ice-time being offered mater too?
How long does the program run for… 4-5 days for a camp is plenty, 6-8 weeks where you are on the ice or in the gym a few times per week is a great for a multi-week skill development program.
NCAA College Camps/Clinics provide one of the better ways to see how a college coaching staff is like, while hopefully getting on campus. Perhaps there will be other college program there working? Best to ask!
USA Hockey / Hockey Canada events are not something you can just register to attend, you have to be selected. But if you do get to go to a camp, they do provide a great combination of learning, development, and exposure to some great coaches.
Cost & Value… What are you actually getting for your $?
NCAA ID Prospect Camps/Showcases, Showcase Camps, and Showcase Tournaments are intentionally wrapped up around exposure to college coaches with limited if any instruction. They can be a great way to get to know a coach or the entire staff. Some things to consider are:
For NCAA ID Camps and Showcase Camps… Is there instruction provided–if so, how? Is there a campus or facility tour? How many schools will be part of the staff – if any? Is there any feedback provided? Some of these events provide little instruction–and with good reason as most are about getting players to play in front of college coaches. To be clear, a ‘high intensity college level practice’ is not necessarily instruction or teaching… players taking a knee at the dry erase board to hear a coach explain a 4 part 3v2 breakout, re-group, attack offensive zone entry drill – is really code for college coaches to watch and see if these kids can follow directions, keep up, and not be a drill killer.
For Tournaments… or showcases as they are sometimes called… may not offer any instruction or practice time because college coaches usually aren’t involved. It’s all about the tournament operator inviting college coaches to scout games because of the caliber of players participating. You don’t always have to be on e ‘team’ to participate. There are quite a few individual entry showcase camp and tournament events.
On the issue of exposure to college coaches… There’s no way to guarantee it – so it’s probably not a great idea to attend an event just because you were told a certain coach or number of schools would be in attendance. It’s much easier for events to say we have a number of coaches working, but even that isn’t always possible. With just about every rink having some kind of LiveBarn type video service, NCAA coaches don’t always have to be in the rink to watch. A lot of events are using video services like InStat etc. where NCAA coaches have access.
Bottom line, do ask questions and get a sense of what you are paying for. Be sure to figure out your ‘why’, before deciding what to attend and you’ll better off for it.
Coaches Roundtable… Late Monday night it was reported Minnesota Associate Head Coach Natalie Darwitz was no longer listed on the Gopher website, and now we know why. Darwitz and former Elmira Head Coach Jake Bobrowski will be teaming up (again) as Co-Head Coaches at Hill-Murray High School. Bobrowski was Darwitz’ assistant coach at Hamline University before both made the jump to the Gophers in 21-22.
Division I has its 4th head coaching vacancy open as Harvard’s Katey Stone announced her retirement on Tuesday.
Both St. Cloud and RPI look like they’ve posted for their 3rd assistant position.
You can catch up on all the coaching movement with our Coaching Changes Tracker right HERE.
Another Team Goes To Europe… Mercyhurst University will join Princeton and Providence College as they travel to Stockholm, Sweden this July where they will play the Swedish National and Developmental teams. NCAA D-I teams are allowed a foreign trip every 4 years (I think) where they can play international games. The Laker program has a long history of recruiting players from Sweden. The trip will be from July 22-31. You can read more about the trip HERE.
Mergers & Acquisitions… College Hockey America and the Atlantic Hockey Association on the men’s side will officially merge operations for the 24-25 season. Newly hired Commissioner Michelle Morgan made the announcement last week sighting a chance to streamline operations and build an enhanced brand on both the women’s and side side of D-I hockey. You can read the official statement HERE.
Until Next Time Everyone… Be Well and take Care,
-Streams for games in the ECAC can be found HERE. Subscriptions will be necessary to watch games.
-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. Hockey East once again is streaming all game live and for FREE.
-Streams for CHA games with the exception of Penn St. can be found HERE. Paid 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 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.
Grant Kimball is founder and contributing writer at Women’s College Hockey.org and beginning his 4th 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 amateur 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.
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.
In This Post…
Mailbag Monday #4|
Pipeline Post #53|
Mailbag Monday #4
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 #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…
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.
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.
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!
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 #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…
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.
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.
In This Post…
Mailbag Monday|
Today’s Pipeline Post #50|
Mailbag Monday #2
Click on the link below to watch this week’s version of Monday Mailbag!
Great question Shae. We hope this helps!
Be sure to tune in next Monday for another addition of Mailbag Monday. Remember you can submit your questions HERE or email them to us at womenscollegehockey@gmail.com
Today’s Post #50
In This Post…
D-I Schools Start The Year |
Observations: 3-Part Mutual Respect Series |
Sifters |
D-I Schools Starting-Up
By the end of Friday this week, 14 more D-I programs will have joined Franklin Pierce and Syracuse University and started classes for the 2021-2022 D-I season. Just about under 40% of D-I teams will potentially be on the ice this week back in session ]. Whether or not teams are on the ice, is an entirely different story. Ice needs to be laid down, lines need to be painted, equipment needs to be handed out, NCAA compliance meetings need to be held, medical physicals have to occur, COVID protocols need to be met, and classes have to begin. Needless to say there’s a lot that goes into getting a team on the ice. Check below to see who starts class this week.
WCHA
CHA
ECAC
Hockey East
NEWHA
Bemidji St. – Aug. 23
Syracuse – Aug. 20
St. Lawrence – Aug. 25
Boston College – Aug. 30
Franklin Pierce – Aug. 18
Mankato – Aug. 23
Lindenwood – Aug. 23
Colgate – Aug. 26
Merrimack College – Aug. 30
Saint Anselm – Aug. 23
St. Cloud St. – Aug. 23
Mercyhurst – Aug. 23
Cornell – Aug. 26
Providence College – Aug. 30
Saint Michael’s – Aug.23
Ohio St. – Aug. 24
Penn State – Aug. 23
Clarkson – Aug. 30
UCONN – Aug. 30
Post Univ. – Aug. 30
MN-Duluth – Aug. 30
Rochester Inst. of Tech – Aug. 23
Quinnipiac – Aug. 30
Univ. of Maine – Aug. 30
Sacred Heart Univ. – Aug. 30
RPI – Aug. 30
Univ. of New Hampshire – Aug. 30
Univ. of Vermont – Aug. 30
Observations – 3 Part Series On Mutual Respect
There is a tremendous amount of excitement as the 2021-2022 hockey season begins. Not only for NCAA programs, but for minor/youth players, coaches, parents, and everyone who plays a part in women’s hockey alike. We all want to get back to what was normal prior to the pandemic. We miss that sense of enjoyment we get from hockey. One of the ways we can ensure that enjoyment, is in how we treat one another. The better we treat one another, the more we enjoy the game. No matter what your role is within the game, we can all show a little more mutual respect between one another.
So, beginning tomorrow we’ll introduce part 1 of our 3-part ‘More Mutual Respect’ series and take a look at ways in which Parents can be more mutually respectful of one another this season. We’ll follow that up over the next two Tuesday’s, September 7th and 14th, with posts about how Players and Club/High School Coaches can be more respectful as well. Club and High School coaches who intersect with NCAA coaches during the recruiting process will definitely not want to miss this post.
Sifters
College Hockey Season Update… The AHCA, American Hockey Coaches Association met last week to begin it’s 2021-2022 season. One item of note that came up was how conferences and the NCAA will treat COVID related games that do not get played. The Hockey Commissioners association met to discuss possible options. Football conferences, such as The Big 10, have determined how they will handle certain situations should a team not be able to compete due to COVID. We expect all D-I hockey conferences to announce how to handle such situations. The NCAA on the other hand, does not recognize forfeits and no contest games. It will be interesting to see how the men’s and women’ ice hockey committees handles these situations for the NCAA National Tournament. As always, we’ll keep you posted.
Northern Michigan University Talking Women’s D-I Hockey… As it has been talked about before, Northern Michigan University has voiced its desire to have a D-I women’s NCAA program again. Just two days ago an article that appeared in the Brainerd Dispatch where AD Forrest Karr was quoted, “To me it’s an obligation that we have in the state of Michigan to help grow the sport.” You can read the full article HERE. Michigan did have a D-I NCAA program at Wayne State University, where yours truly worked from 2003-2007 under then Head Coach Jim Fetter. But the program fell prey to statewide budget cuts in 2011. No women’s D-I team in the state has existed since.
Coaching Hires Continue… We are just a few weeks away from the start of the season and there are still a few coaching positions both at D-I and D-III left to be filled.
LIU… Head Coach Rob Morgan announced he has filled one of his two open Assistant positions with former Brown alum Erica Kromm. She played for the Bears from ’07 – ’11. You can read more on Kromm’s hire HERE.
St. Anselm College… Head Coach Jen Kindret recently announced the hiring of Vinnie Ferrainola as its new full-time Assistant Coach. Ferrainola comes to St. A’s after spending the 20-21 season as Director of Hockey Operations for women’s hockey at Robert Morris University. You can read more his hire HERE.
Concordia University Wisconsin… has hired Ellie Tabaka, former player at Augsburg College ’20 and will assume the Assistant Coaching duties. You can read more on Ellie’s hire HERE.
RIT, Merrimack, and LIU… still have Assistant positions to announce.
At Division III… There are several Head and Assistants positions that need to be announced. Trinity College has a job posting for it’s Full-Time Assistant Coaching position. Anyone interested in applying can do so HERE.
RMU Update… And speaking of Robert Morris, it appears there will be no hockey played for either the women’s or men’s team for the 2021-2022 seasons. However, the school athletic department announced a ‘Hockey Is The Goal’ fundraising campaign on August 18 to help reinstate the women’s and men’s programs. An amount to get to was never announced.
Muddying the waters a bit is a story on TribLive about a lawyer representing a few RMU hockey players, who has alleged, “…a university official ordered an athletic department employee to “get rid of” text messages and emails about the school’s decision to eliminate the men’s and women’s ice hockey programs.” You can find that story HERE.
Upper Midwest HS Elite League Schedule… The Girls Minnesota High School Elite League gets back into action for the Fall of 2021 September 7th. You can find the entire league schedule HERE. The schedule spans 7 weeks this year culminating the the Girls NIT Tournament October 22-24, 2021.
Ontario U18 Camp… Women’s minor hockey in Ontario is looking more normal as the weeks go by. One sure sign is the OWHA announcing its annual U18 High Performance Invitational Camp September 3-5 in Allston, ON at the Nottawsaga Resort. Eighty players born 2004 and 2005 will be invited. This event in preparation for the Female U18 Canadian National Championships Oct. 31 to Nov. 6, 2021 in Dawson, Creek, BC. Ontario will have 2 team entries – Red and Blue.
World Championship Update… Today the US meets Finland at 3pm EST and Canada meets the Swiss at 7pm EST. Winners of today’s semi-final matchups face one another for the World Championship tomorrow, Aug. 31 at 7:30 EST. The US’s lone loss in the tournament so far was to Canada 5-1 in the prelim round. Canada remains undefeated. Placement games for all other countries have been taking place, Russia takes on Japan tomorrow at 12:00pm EST in the final placement game.
Until Next Time…
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.
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 high value recruiting events we’re are aware of HERE. Want to add your event? Click HERE to fill out our WCH.org event form.
In This Post…
Mailbag Monday|
Last Week’s Pipeline Post #49|
Mailbag Monday #1
Today’s Mailbag Monday question is:
1. How important is it to attend college/university specific camps/clinics if you are interested in a particular school? 2. If you are not set on a particular school is it better to attend showcases or school specific camps?
Russ from Greensboro, NC
Great question Russ. Your question would have been timed perfectly had we started Mailbag Monday’s earlier in the Spring when summer recruiting got underway with camps/clinics, showcases, and exposure events. But nonetheless…
Question #1 – How important is it to attend college/university specific camps/clinics if you are interested in a particular school?
The short answer is – VERY IMPORTANT. Attending a college camp or clinic program could be the single most important college decision making exercise a recruit goes through to help them make-up their mind and pick a school – OR NOT!
Here’s why.
Attending a college’s camp or clinic automatically communicates to the coaching staff you have at least some interest in their program. Coaches LOVE when they know recruits have interest in their program and attending a college camp/clinic is a great way to show it. It’s always a good idea to send an email or call the coaching staff to remind them you have interest in the school and their hockey program. You’ll potentially stick out a little bit extra and perhaps the coaching staff will pay a little more attention to you during camp.
You actually get to be coached by the coaches! One of the hardest things for recruits to do in the recruiting process is evaluate their potential future coaches… as coaches. You can have all the emails, phone calls, texts, etc., it’s still extremely hard to determine if these people are the type of coaches you would enjoy playing for. What better way to evaluate your potential college coaches than to have them coach you at a camp? You’ll get to see how they communicate with you, other campers, as well as the other camp/clinic staff members. May you don’t want someone who is a bit of a ‘yeller & screamer’ or a coach who is too laid back. Going to a camp can also tell you a bit about their hockey knowledge and how they teach the game. Attending a camp is a great way to judge how you might be treated as a part of their program.
You put yourself on campus and in the physical environment. Pictures look great on the internet, but there is nothing like putting yourself in the exact physical environment of the school. A lot of college hockey camps take place right on their own campuses. Getting a chance to see what campus not only looks like but feels like could be crucial in making your college decision. Tough to do that from the internet.
Question #2 – If you are not set on a particular school is it better to attend showcases or school specific camps?
Great question Russ… there are a number of qualified answers we could give that might be acceptable. With out knowing your particular end-game in attending both, we’ll answer it this way.
If you are looking to become a better hockey player and improve your overall game, go to a camp that provides a structured hockey development experience you feel will help you improve as a player.
If you’re more interested in trying to catch the eye of a college coach with the hope of getting recruited, an exposure type showcase event is probably the right call.
Can you accomplish both development and exposure? Yes, you can, but most likely only at camps. Showcases are great for playing in front of many college coaches and showcasing your skills. They are not great on the hockey development end of things. There really isn’t a lot of teaching going on at a showcase. Camps can provide both hockey development and exposure (to a limit) at the same time. Only camps where many college coaches are part of the camp staff do you know what kid of exposure your getting. Don’t assume all college hockey camps are going to have 10-12+ other college coaches working at it.
Thanks for your questions Russ! Be sure to tune in next Monday for another addition of Mailbag Monday. Remember you can submit your questions HERE or email them to us at womenscollegehockey@gmail.com
Last week’s Post #49
D-I 2021-2022 Season Update
21-22 Season could in theory could start today… Hard to believe but yes, the NCAA D-I season here. Franklin Pierce University of the NEWHA begins classes today, Aug. 18. The NCAA rules allow teams beginning with the first day of classes or Sept. 15, whichever is earlier, to have up up to 4 hours of on-ice skill related activity per week. Most D-I programs will be up and running by Sept. 13th, that’s when Union and Dartmouth begin classes. Especially for the programs that did not have a season last year due to COVID, you can bet they’ll want to begin their seasons as soon as NCAA rules allow. There are also some programs that take a little slower approach and opt for a few days to go by, especially for freshmen, so everyone can get their bearings before jumping into the team schedule as to not overwhelm.
We went online and compiled a list of when each D-I school starts undergraduate classes… not taking into account COVID, some unknown delay like an athletic department policy, or scheduling error, here is a ‘fairly accurate’ (according to the internet anyway) list of dates when programs can get back on the ice if they so choose HERE.
NCAA 1st Official Practice Date… Contrary to the above mentioned 4-hours per week of on-ice skill work, Sept. 18 is actually the first official practice date in NCAA women’s ice hockey for the 2021-2022 season. That’s when all D-I programs, minus Ivy League schools, are allowed to begin their regular season allotment of up to 20-hours per week of required athletic activity–on-ice practice, strength & conditioning, team meetings, video sessions, team building, etc. The first official practice date for Ivy League institutions will be Oct. 1.
First D-I Games Just 37 Days Away… The first slate of games are scheduled for the weekend of Sept. 23-26 – just 37 days away. On Thursday Sept. 23, St. Lawrence travels to take on Penn State to kick off the 2021-2022 NCAA season. It’s customary for programs to schedule an exhibition game prior to the NCAA season beginning. After going through D-I online schedules, we are unable to find any exhibition games scheduled so far. Certainly we’re all hoping the season altering COVID restrictions are behind us and teams across all divisions (and in all sports) can have a safe normal season without interruption.
COVID Fallout – Large Rosters… As expected team roster sizes for the 21-22 season are bigger on average than in prior years. We went to every programs official website to look at 21-22 rosters that were posted. Thus far Harvard has the largest at 34 players. Not all teams are accounted for and there could be roster additions and even deletions as school begins. We’ll put together a comprehensive list once all teams rosters are finalised.
A 3rd Wave… Of Coaching Changes?
Historically the month of August and into September bring a few late coaching changes. A head or assistant coach leaves abruptly and bam, schools are left scrambling to find a replacement. This year is a bit different with more coaching changes than we’re ever seen. But that doesn’t mean we’re done with seeing some movement. Case in point, D-III Nichols College just announced an opening for their Head Coach position as Sam Fallon has resigned to take a similar position at a prep school. I expect a few more surprises. You can find our complete list of coaching departures and hires from this year HERE. As classes begin, programs are announcing recent hires… more on those below.
Mercyhurst University has hired Scott Spencer as an Assistant Coach. Spencer knows the CHA well as he was the first D-I Head Coach at Lindenwood University. Prior to Lindenwood, Spencer has coached at Ohio State, Robert Morris University, and Bemidji State on the men’s side. You can read more about his hire HERE.
Union College has filled its two Assistant Coach positions and has hired Chris Ardito and Breanne Wilson-Bennett. You can read Union’s official announcement HERE. Ardito comes to Union after having spent the past 3 seasons as the Head Girls Hockey Coach at Vermont Academy. Wilson-Bennett was a former player at Colgate during Head Coach Josh Sciba’s time as an Assistant at Colgate.
William Smith announced the hiring of former Dartmouth Assistant Coach Matt Cunningham as its next Head Coach. Cunningham spent the previous two seasons with ‘The Big Green’ in Hanover. You can read more on Matt’s hiring HERE. Cunningham who is originally from Phoenix, AZ played his college hockey for Minnesota State-Mankato. He will be the 3rd Head Coach in Heron history.
While not a NCAA coaching announcement, we’re glad to see former Robert Morris University Head Coach Paul Colontino land a new job in Hockey. Colontino was recently hired as Vice President of Hockey Operations and U19 Girls Head Coach at Selects Academy. You can read more on Colontiino’s delima to move to Selects HERE.
Sifters
RMU Update… Speaking of Paul Colontino and the Robert Morris program, it seems the RMU administration has put the brakes on a reboot of the program until the 2022-2023 season, if at all. Tim Benz of Trib Live gives an update on where things stand with both the women’s and men’s program. You can read that HERE.
North Dakota Women’s Program Lawsuit Gets A Boost… 11 former University of North Dakota women’s hockey team members sued The University of North Dakota System for shutting down the women’s hockey program back in March of 2017. Well, they got some good news last week. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has reversed a 2019 decision by the North Dakota District Court which originally dismissed the case for what it called ‘a failure to state a claim’. The Eighth Circuit stated, “Ultimately, we conclude that the district court’s primary reasons for dismissing the complaint rested on an incorrect view of the law,”… “But given a level playing field, or in this case, a properly smoothed ice rink, the athletes may be able to state an actionable Title IX claim.”
Shortly after the University of North Dakota women’s hockey was shut down, a group of 11 former UND women’s hockey players sought legal action by filing a discrimination lawsuit against the University of North Dakota System and asked to reinstate the program on the grounds the decision was in violation of Title IX.
You can read more on this story HERE with an article that appeared in the Grand Forks Herald written by Brad Elliott Schlossman. Brad used to cover the women’s team during its existence.
2021 World Championships Get Underway… The IIHF officially announced the tournament is a go. 1,047 PCR tests were conducted in the Calgary bubble since teams arrived and all were negative.
Pre-Tournament games begin today, you can find today’s schedule HERE. Team USA takes on Russia at 2pm EST and Canada plays Finland at 6pm EST. Both games will be broadcast LIVE on the NHL Network. Get the full NHL Network Women’s World Championship telecast schedule HERE. It looks like all US and Canadian games will be broadcast live.
While official team rosters won’t be announced until tomorrow, IIHF.com did post a list of 250 players who came with each country to Calgary. You can find that list HERE. By our count, there are a total of 31 players who are listed on NCAA rosters, 1 U Sports player (U Sports is Canada’s version of the NCAA), and 5 players still in high school.
D-III Update… With D-I programs starting their seasons in a matter of days, the D-III season isn’t far behind. NCAA rules don’t allow D-III coaches to get on the ice with their teams until October 15th but you can bet teams will be getting organised well before that with Captains practices, strength & conditioning workouts, and plenty of team building, etc.
New this year for the NESCAC is the ability to begin practice when the Oct. 15th hits. It has been customary for NESCAC teams to begin practice Nov. 1.
We are hearing rumors that InStat, a video analytics company, has signed a few deals with D-III conferences for this coming season. InStat provides game video breakdown and scouting services to a bulk of the NCAA D-I and D-III women’s and men’s teams. This will make pre-scouting your opponent much easier as well as adding a level of player development. We can remember the days of VHS tape to tape recordings that had to be done and then Fed-Exed out to your next opponent. How times have changed.
Mike O’Grady, Head Coach at Chatham University announced the hiring of Lila Toczek as his new Assistant Coach.
Presenting Lila Toczek, Assistant @Chatham_WIH Coach❗️🏒 After a playing and coaching career at Buffalo State, Coach Toczek is bringing her talents to Pittsburgh🐅 👌 https://t.co/4zESNzgbbp
Tweet of The Week… Kelly Rider, Head Coach at Curry College, had one of the more interesting Tweets from college coaches this past week. Given WCH.org’s mission – which is in part to help educate parents, players, and coaches, her post seems very appropriate. Please take a look and click on the photo to expand. We’re not sure where she got the list from – but we’d love to know!
Hard for a coach to reach out or get back to players with feedback when they go to great lengths and can’t get rosters.
If you’re playing for fun that’s fine! But if you’re trying to get recruited DO NOT pay someone or to be in a showcase/tournament if there are no rosters. https://t.co/bFTDAyLf5S
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.
