Level Of Play Choice?

[WayOutWest]

Scenario: You are fielding one Bantam team this year. You have 3-4 second year bantams, and the remainder of the team is made up of kids that played on three different Pee Wee teams last season, a B1, a B2 and a C team. The B1 Pee Wee team was competitive. last season, but all the other teams (including last year's B1 bantam team) were winless or had a single win.

Question: What level of play do you select for this season's bantam team? Why?

Answer?: B1? This was the level that was chosen. The explanation given was that these kids "need to begin prepping for high school by playing against decent competition." Now, there are a few of last year's PW B1 team players who will be able to skate at the Bantam B1 level, but the rest are going to be outclassed, each and every game. I question how much they are truly beng "prepped", unless they are being prepped for being blown out at the high school level. Plus, the vast percentage of kids are first year bantams. They have another year of "prepping" to go, after this. Would it not have made more sense to play at B2, and build some skill/confidence, instead of being thrown to the wolves? These poor kids will be lucky to win a single game, this year.

[GoldenBear]

WOW, I agree. B2 would be the best for these kids. What is the worst case scenario? They win more games then they lose if they play B2. If so, then the following year they play B1 or A if they really make great strides. GB

[Tenoverpar]

work hard, overachieve the "parents" expectations and do your best.
The rest will take care of itself.

[TheIceGuy]

WayOut West.....Waconia is 0-6-1 in D6 League Play an 8-5-2 outside of D6 League Play.... Looks like Waconia made the right decison... Challenge the kid's in D6 League to prepare for High School Hockey, while developing skills and confidence outside D6 League Play..... Why are you so anti - Waconia??

[WayOutWest]

WayOut West.....Waconia is 0-6-1 in D6 League Play an 8-5-2 outside of D6 League Play.... Looks like Waconia made the right decison... Challenge the kid's in D6 League to prepare for High School Hockey, while developing skills and confidence outside D6 League Play..... Why are you so anti - Waconia??

They are 0-6-1 in league play, and in last place. And have you seen the scores of those games?

10-0 loss to Minnetonka?
7-0 loss to Jefferson?
15-1 loss to Eden Prairie?

In those 7 games, they have been outscored 53 - 8.

They are completely overwhelmed in B-1, D6 league play. 53 - 8 ? That's not a "challenge", it's a massacre.
Sure, outside of league play, you can find tournaments that are more suitable for your talent level, and that is what was done. (and the 8-5-2 "outside of D6 league play" record that you quote, includes scrimmages. Come on! Scrimmages? Their tournament record is 3-4-0)

What do you imagine that these kids are learning when they get beaten 15-1? What do you imagine that does for their confidence, their will, and their excitement to play?
Numbers, in Waconia, are very low. Why put such added risk on a very fragile kid base?

You sound a bit like a proud parent, or a board member, trying to justify this decision. This is not a B-1 quality team. (though there are a very few kids that could play at that level.)
If they go winless in D6, will you still back the decision to play B-1?

[TheIceGuy]

Finished my Business Proposals for January 1. Sold 2 out of 15.. Lost most of the sales where the competition was cheaper by over 50%.... Would you consider that a challenge or a massacre?? Well, thats the way it has gone for the past 20 years, so I guess I will consider it a challenge. I will lick my wounds, learn from my mistakes, and go back to work on Monday. I guess I learned how to handle defeat going back to youth baseball, where our team went 4-46 over a 3 year period.. You might find it interesting to know, that a member of a team that had a record of 45-5, and won the league for three years in a row, works in the same office. He went 1-14 for January 1. I guess winning an extra 41 games in youth basball is irrelevant at this point in our lives....

What are the kid's learning when they get beat 15-1?? Great question!! What are the kid's learning when they win 15-1?? Or 9-7 or 8-8?? Without putting much thought into the question, I would hope they would learn that Faith, Family and Friends are most important, to do their best, play hard, make good decision's, sportsmanship, respect, how to be a good teammate, how to be a friend, how to pick someone up when they are down, how to lead, how to motivate, and how to follow direction. Hopefully, sports will better help them for the real world, where life isn't always fair and perfect.....

It is amazing how the kid's attitudes can be influence with positive Parents and Coaches....

Sorry to inform you, but I am not a proud parent of a Bantam, and not a Board Member.

Some day I hope to see the subscriber name has changed to "Moved East" or FartherOutWest"

[WayOutWest]

Finished my Business Proposals for January 1. Sold 2 out of 15.. Lost most of the sales where the competition was cheaper by over 50%.... Would you consider that a challenge or a massacre?? Well, thats the way it has gone for the past 20 years, so I guess I will consider it a challenge. I will lick my wounds, learn from my mistakes, and go back to work on Monday. I guess I learned how to handle defeat going back to youth baseball, where our team went 4-46 over a 3 year period.. You might find it interesting to know, that a member of a team that had a record of 45-5, and won the league for three years in a row, works in the same office. He went 1-14 for January 1. I guess winning an extra 41 games in youth basball is irrelevant at this point in our lives....

What are the kid's learning when they get beat 15-1?? Great question!! What are the kid's learning when they win 15-1?? Or 9-7 or 8-8?? Without putting much thought into the question, I would hope they would learn that Faith, Family and Friends are most important, to do their best, play hard, make good decision's, sportsmanship, respect, how to be a good teammate, how to be a friend, how to pick someone up when they are down, how to lead, how to motivate, and how to follow direction. Hopefully, sports will better help them for the real world, where life isn't always fair and perfect.....

It is amazing how the kid's attitudes can be influence with positive Parents and Coaches....

Sorry to inform you, but I am not a proud parent of a Bantam, and not a Board Member.

Some day I hope to see the subscriber name has changed to "Moved East" or FartherOutWest"

1) A bit of a stretch, comparing business sales to hockey games, wouldn't you say?
2) OF COURSE there are MUCH more important things to learn, in life, than effective hockey play. But I thought we were really focusing on hockey development, in this conversation. If you wanted to talk on the grander scale, I certainly agree with you.
3) It is not a "negative" to assess that a team should be playing at a lower level. Youth hockey is structured with differing levels to allow for ideal development of players at all levels. Why do you take offense to such? I even stated that this team would be better suited to play B-1 next year, when the brunt of the team becomes second year bantams. There is nothing inherently offensive about that assessment. The team does have some good potential talent on it. They just need time, and appropriate opportunities to allow them to progress. They are not getting much of that, in a 15-1 drubbing.

Cheers!