HighSchoolHockeyForums.com

[justhavefun]

A co-worker of mine told me today about her son's hockey team. They have to dress up to show up to the arena, walk in the door, go to the locker room then change into sweats to do pregame stretching her son's in 6th grade

is it just me or is this comical? is this a bit overkill. I understand high school and above.

[play4fun]

[dogeatdog1]

[hawkhockey]

To most people this seems a little ridiculous. I guess for 6th grade it is a little much. But my bantam team did this last year and it just always made me feel a little more respectable walking into a rink whether it was our home rink, or out of town.

[Titan2020]

I think it is ridiculous at the youth level to have the kids dress up for EVERY game. And, especially when they wear it for a total of 3 minutes walking to the locker room and back to the car. Not sure what life lessons could possibly come from wearing a shirt and tie to the hockey rink, but whatever. Let the kids be, well, kids and go have fun! There will be plenty of opportunities / occasions for them to put on the shirt & tie and comb their hair - especially later in life. That being said, I've had teams that have asked to wear shirt & tie during Regions or State...limited number of games - perfect! Less is more.

[Jimbo99]

It's a small thing, but our experience is: One gung-ho coach does it and then a few kids ask if they can do it every year thereafter (because they know it pleases the coaches) and the rest are afraid to say they don't want to.

I agree with above - special playoffs or tournaments can make some sense. The rest is overkill.

[multiplesportskids]

Totally agree with Titan !!!

[PWD10]

[justhavefun]

Thank you for your comments. I can see how "A" Bantams and up can where it. PW and below, I really question. JR kids maybe, Elementary?? NO way. funny when kids change at home to nice pants and a shirt (Plus wore out tennis shoes) walk in the arena door, the change to sweats. No one saw them walk in. In fact the coach wasen't isn't even there yet. then he shows up in jeans, looks like he just came form the construction sight. Much easier for the Coach to get cleaned up, then the elementary child..

[DMom]

[justhavefun]

what else is there to talk about when you have an office full of hockey moms?

[GreekChurch]

[dogeatdog1]

[skills_coach1]

[justhavefun]

[I also have them do a pre-game warm-up, yup, the same one each time, before practice too. Consistency and repetition builds familiarity and bonding... You should see how much they interact when they do the warm-up... All good in my mind.

Just another point of view. [/quote]


I agree with this part. believe me, team unity, chemistry very neccasry. I am questioning the walk in the arena Doors, go to locker room, change cloths. why not a simple hoody sweat shirt and sweat pants? they can walk in the arena looking like a kids hockey team, drop equipment in locker room and do team warm-up etc.. thanks for your comments, nice to get coaches comments.

[Maverick1999]

It is more about getting mentally prepared for a game. When you are getting dressed in your shirt and tie before you leave for the game, it is time to reflect and get prepared for the task at hand. I think of it as getting ready to go to the office, cause there is a job to do!!

[ThePuckStopsHere]

[Educator29]

[Maverick1999]

Typical MN Hockey responses. Stop comparing hockey to school. Hockey is just as much a mental game as a physical game. And if you do not think so I question how much hockey you have even played yourself.

[PanthersIn2011]

[muckandgrind]

My son was part of a Bantam team a few years ago where the Captains decided what attire the team would wear to each game. Some days the boys decided to wear a shirt and tie, other days they wore their warm-up suits...either way it was up to the captains of the team to decide....Nobody seemed to have an issue with it. And no, the boys did not stuff their shirt and tie into their bags, when they took them off, they put them on a hanger and hung them from a hook in the locker room. More than a few of them even showered after the game (where showers were available) before they put them back on.

I got a chuckle out of it, but the boys took it pretty seriously. My wife thought it was cute.

[Faceguard79]

For A PeeWees and A Bantams I think it teaches team unity and respect for the game and your opponent. I also think it should be each team's decision, I also like the matching warm up suits some teams wear, to me they make much more sense than Khaki's and dress shirts and shoes.

[phil mccracken]

[Faceguard79]

[DMom]

I actually know the manager of the team justforfun's "co-worker's" kid is on, and the initial talk was, yes, about the team looking like a team, and also that warmup sets are going for $100 and that just about every mom can dig a pair of khaki pants and a dress shirt out of their kids closets or they are on back-to-school clothes clearance racks at this time of the year, so the idea was to look like a team without spending a lot of extra money, pretty sure I've heard money is a concern for hockey families this year.