Edina's Sammy Walker to the Gophers

[TheMayor]

Westmetro
Yes, BB had shoulder surgery. I heard minimum of 4 months he will be out.

Shame. This is the most "can't miss" kid I've seen in Edina. No flaw to his game, has good size and great strength.

Even more so than Bellows? When I was still at Edina all you would hear about was how talented Bellows was going to be.

Nate Hagemo was the most "can't miss" player to come through Edina - he just went to AHA.

[green4]

Shame. This is the most "can't miss" kid I've seen in Edina. No flaw to his game, has good size and great strength.

Even more so than Bellows? When I was still at Edina all you would hear about was how talented Bellows was going to be.

Nate Hagemo was the most "can't miss" player to come through Edina - he just went to AHA.

Nate was a little before my time, so I can't compare. I do know the tough down fall he experienced after he his back injury and that is too bad.
But, before the downfall, if I am to use only statistics since I can't realte to growing up around his time of playing, Im not sure he would be the biggest can't miss player. His point production at USNDT was not great and he was drafted late 2nd round. All this before the off ice issues.
Even Budish was taken earlier than that after tearing his ACL. Probably because of all the noise around him too.
I think people say that about Hagemo because we never saw how good he really could have been.

[WestMetro]

Not to gum up the walker thread even further, but it would be interesting to tally up how many football injuries causedMSHSL D-1 prospects to miss most or a full hockey season. For the Hornets, you don't have to go back very far. Also, I recall Jack Harris missed most last season due to football injury. Wouldn't surprise me if a search might come up with 10 names. On the other hand, many hockey D-1s have played 3 sports injury free. Some hockey stars have gone D-1 in a different sport i.e. Alty. There are benefits for multi sports, but also risks. Nowadays, 4 years D-1 is worth up to 200k. This subject has been debated in forum threads in the past

[57special]

Westmetro
Yes, BB had shoulder surgery. I heard minimum of 4 months he will be out.

Shame. This is the most "can't miss" kid I've seen in Edina. No flaw to his game, has good size and great strength.

Even more so than Bellows? When I was still at Edina all you would hear about was how talented Bellows was going to be.

Yup. No telling how much this injury will set him back, though.

[Random_Sample]

Yep, Sammy Walker is going places.
Watched this youngster at MN Made Hockey since he was very young. He has always been a fine player. Better yet, he is a nice kid as well.
Agreed, size could be an issue down the road, but you never know.
It seems Sammy has plenty of fun while playing as well, which in the long run may be the most important thing. I was looking at the list of players playing beyond HS, here:
http://www.ushsho.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=34390
I was struck by how many of them had ties to MN Made. Love or hate Bernie, the results are there.

[C-dad]

I was struck by how many of them had ties to MN Made. Love or hate Bernie, the results are there.

This could also be an issue of "correlation does not equal causation." In other words, those who seek out any option to help their kids get better either have kids already recognized for their talent, or will find ways for those kids to get better. Maybe they get better because of Bernie or maybe those kids would have gotten better with or without him.

[GoldenBear]

C-Dad, agree. I think also what is important is that these kids with exceptional potential talent practiced/worked together. They had a venue MM which allowed that to happen. They were given the opportunity to be on the ice together to push each other. No easy battles when you are competing against equal to or greater talent. GB

[DrGaf]

C-Dad, agree. I think also what is important is that these kids with exceptional potential talent practiced/worked together. They had a venue MM which allowed that to happen. They were given the opportunity to be on the ice together to push each other. No easy battles when you are competing against equal to or greater talent. GB

beyond this ... that was really the only show in town during that age range (my son DID skate at Made). Tons of kids walked through those doors.

[northwoods oldtimer]

Pat yourselves on the backs hockey dad's as "Made" made your player what he is today!

[stromboli]

Pat yourselves on the backs hockey dad's as "Made" made your player what he is today!

If you don't think coaching has an impact on how a player develops, you're daft.

I can't tell you how many parents I've heard over the years say that what their associations provide for practices doesn't come close to what kids receive at the Made.

While there are lots of great volunteers and great associations out there, not all do a good, let alone great job of helping players progress.

Even for a great athlete, hockey is a skill that needs to be learned. That takes instruction and repetition.

The Made is one of a number of good options for those who choose not to rely on their local association coach/dad who struggles to put together a practice plan based on what he remembers from his high school playing days from 20 or more years ago.

Go ahead and be bitter and sarcastic all you want about the Made. It won't change my opinion that it makes sense for some.

[northwoods oldtimer]

Pat yourselves on the backs hockey dad's as "Made" made your player what he is today!

If you don't think coaching has an impact on how a player develops, you're daft.

I can't tell you how many parents I've heard over the years say that what their associations provide for practices doesn't come close to what kids receive at the Made.

While there are lots of great volunteers and great associations out there, not all do a good, let alone great job of helping players progress.

Even for a great athlete, hockey is a skill that needs to be learned. That takes instruction and repetition.

The Made is one of a number of good options for those who choose not to rely on their local association coach/dad who struggles to put together a practice plan based on what he remembers from his high school playing days from 20 or more years ago.

Go ahead and be bitter and sarcastic all you want about the Made. It won't change my opinion that it makes sense for some.

Congrats to Sammy Walker and the Edina hockey association!

I realize the importance of playing year round hockey especially at squirt age. July ice is vital to assuring proper development. "Made" in July

[Wet Paint]

Pat yourselves on the backs hockey dad's as "Made" made your player what he is today!

If you don't think coaching has an impact on how a player develops, you're daft.

I can't tell you how many parents I've heard over the years say that what their associations provide for practices doesn't come close to what kids receive at the Made.

While there are lots of great volunteers and great associations out there, not all do a good, let alone great job of helping players progress.

Even for a great athlete, hockey is a skill that needs to be learned. That takes instruction and repetition.

The Made is one of a number of good options for those who choose not to rely on their local association coach/dad who struggles to put together a practice plan based on what he remembers from his high school playing days from 20 or more years ago.

Go ahead and be bitter and sarcastic all you want about the Made. It won't change my opinion that it makes sense for some.

I realize the importance of playing year round hockey especially at squirt age. July ice is vital to assuring proper development. "Made" in July

I don't think that a kid needs to be doing 2 a days in July but year around ice is becoming the norm. I know that back in the day when nobody played hockey out of season so to speak it was a pretty level field. The athletes and the guys with good coaches got just far enough ahead to make it. Now days it is becoming a race between the Haves and the HaveNots with the haves winning. Look at your serious hockey players or the kids who want to become serious hockey players. They are on the AA teams and are training year around. The kids who play hockey for fun only during the season are going no place. MM makes sense, as do all of the year around AAA teams and etc. You can look at the towns who are getting better and better and one thing that almost all of them have is either year around ice in town or very close to their town (thinking about Luverne here being close to Sioux Falls) are starting to outpace the towns and teams who don't have it. The old "back in my days" crowd doesn't like it but it is true.

[stromboli]

Pat yourselves on the backs hockey dad's as "Made" made your player what he is today!

If you don't think coaching has an impact on how a player develops, you're daft.

I can't tell you how many parents I've heard over the years say that what their associations provide for practices doesn't come close to what kids receive at the Made.

While there are lots of great volunteers and great associations out there, not all do a good, let alone great job of helping players progress.

Even for a great athlete, hockey is a skill that needs to be learned. That takes instruction and repetition.

The Made is one of a number of good options for those who choose not to rely on their local association coach/dad who struggles to put together a practice plan based on what he remembers from his high school playing days from 20 or more years ago.

Go ahead and be bitter and sarcastic all you want about the Made. It won't change my opinion that it makes sense for some.

Congrats to Sammy Walker and the Edina hockey association!

I realize the importance of playing year round hockey especially at squirt age. July ice is vital to assuring proper development. "Made" in July

How was the outdoor ice through November so far? Lots of shinny going on?

[imlisteningtothefnsong]

Find an association that is not controlled by a dad with $$ or a dad with 2 or 3 above average kids or both then I will say play baseball in the summer and hockey in the winter. Until then if you want your kid developed or better yet if your kid wants to be developed with out politics, better visit the Made, Yuro, or some other entrapenuer who will work your kid as hard as daddy war-bucks works his kid all winter at the association he puppets.

PS. Sammy is a high skill, high quality character and I would welcome him on any team my kids play for!!!!

[keepyourheadup]

This is basically the chicken or the egg argument. MM has had success the last few years moving players on but I repestfully disagree that they were MADE hockey players there. I'm willing to bet the great majority of those kids were born hockey players and MM gave them perhaps the best opportunity to develop their skills. The program at STA ...fhit? Not sure of the name anymore has done as much or more but tends to cater to kids that are older. Bernie has not created some master blueprint for success, rather he has brought a bunch of very athletic kids together that have likely benefitted from pushing each other.