[quote="HShockeywatcher"]It's been a week or so since I've been on here and it surprises me there's only one more page of whining, thought it'd be much more.
What strikes me as so odd about this whole topic is that you have "bashers" (for lack of a better term) who started this thread and have been going on and on
putting down teenagers and a school. What has this team/school/fans been doing this whole time? Playing hockey, educating students and answering questions. That's it. And somehow it is
"classless" to do that, but pointing fingers and talking down about others isn't?
We have teenagers that go out and play 6 post season games because they love hockey and regardless of what school they are from, they won the JV trophy.
In 2007, Hermantown did too, it wasn't any different.
1. I have not heard a single person bash any players for the school's decision to stay in A. A few posters have commented on their behavior on the ice, but that is not what we're talking about.
2. If after 21 pages you don't know what people are talking about when they say st. thomas is classless then I don't know what to tell ya. It is quite obvious to nearly every one else.
3. This is the part your REALLY not getting, it was NOT THE SAME when Hermantown won in 2007, Hermantown is a small community school who this single A tourny was made for, not your metro all stars team. I mean do you really not get it? This is the type of team we WANT to see win it and I wouldn't care if they never opt up, if they do great, but if not they are the ones who are where they are supposed to be.
The statement I've made multiple times that is usually agreed with and rarely refuted is that people just want something to complain about. What I'd like to know is: long term, [with the exception of a one class system that won't realistically happen] what solution are you really looking for?
a. One Class
It won't happen, but let's at least talk about it. I don't understand what would be so much better than what we have now. Half as many state games, less teams on display and even less small town feel than we have now.
b. Two Classes, no opting up
I've suggested this and have multiple people on both sides of the discussion. I don't see the down side of it, but apparently in a sport that enrollment admittedly has little to do with talent, the bigger enrollment class is "better" despite many years the big-enrollment finalists being small enrollment schools.
c. Two classes, no opting up, all privates AA
Could Roseau and Cloquet handle playing for the JV tournament? I don't know what would end up happening with hockey in places like Minnehaha/Legacy Christian. It'd be interesting to see.
d. Two classes, opting up, all privates AA
If all private schools were in AA next year, who would be next? I don't pretend to be in any administrations, but I would guess more than zero public school teams would also opt up. Is this what you want?
e. Two classes, bottom 64 in A, co-ops in A, privates in AA
What we have now with a "small town" feel and a
7A vs 8A championship every year.
I can tell you with certainty it wouldn't be a 7A vs 8A championship every year. You think Hermantown wouldn't consistantly be there or another 5A representative?
f. Three class, A, AA, PS
What the article posted suggested.
The article was right; in a sport where money is a
huge factor, private schools [and affluent communities] do well. Does that really surprise anyone? It is affluent areas that do well. Would it surprise anyone to learn that it is mostly big suburbs who dominate alpine skiing, golf, swimming, lacrosse, etc? I doubt it.
Will it stop if we point fingers on a message board? I highly doubt it.
In my opinion, the answer is trying to get numbers up in communities around the state. Starting programs that can get kids into arenas at a young age for a cheaper cost is a great start. Wouldn't it be great if 15 years from now we have 3 great tournaments at the X because we had 200+ high school programs.
I think you are very clueless as to what goes on in small town communities. What do you think they are doing now??? They are literally using every talent they have and developing it from early on to the best of their ability and filling in the gaps with whatever they can. Think about it, If schools like Virginia, Hibbing, Eveleth, Greenway, and I falls ALL came together to field a team, it still wouldn't be the numbers that St. Thomas and Breck are pulling from. Where do you think these "numbers" are supposed to come from? Just appear out of thin air?
The MSHSL seems to be doing in hockey similar to what the NCAA is doing with D1 FBS football. Every poll I've seen show over 90% of people want a different post season in football, yet they do nothing. Same with HS hockey; there is issue on both sides.
Would they make a rule singling out two/three schools? No, but if it was determined to be the intended result, why not call those two or three schools with a statement something like this:
"If you and the other one/two schools getting this letter don't opt up for next year, all private schools will be required to opt up. Ball's in your court."
It would be last on my list of things to do, but it is an entirely possible thing.
It may come to something like that who knows, but it is a sad message for a school of suppossed "excellence" to have to come to this and can't figure it out on their own.
Ultimately, I'm just asking what end result people want. It still seems to me like people just want to complain. I'd bet a good deal that if all
private schools were in AA and doing well, people would still complain instead of discussing ways to actually fix the problem. Any private schools supporter who wishes the demise of public schools is quite ignorant. We all want public schools doing well with private schools as an alternative for those who'd like to use them.
In case you weren't aware, there are private schools in AA that do very well and yes people still complain somewhat but that is more because they are the teams people love to hate, but they are still respected as a program for playing where they belong. As it is now, the only people who respect st. thomas (or Breck or a few others mentioned)in a hockey sense is students and alumni, and even some of those have said they are embarrassed by this; and they wouldn't dominate every year, there are too many very good public schools in AA for that to happen. They would win some of course and a lot of people will root against them, but that is part of the fun. That is not the case in single A.
I understand that "hockey's different" (as every sport is unique from every other), but were we to really have a state tournament that
drew fractions of what the Class A tournament does now just so small schools could live this dream seems odd (Class A set attendance records with mostly private schools this year; some people are watching).
Around the country, state tournaments are for the best teams. With the exception many years of the biggest/smallest classes in football,
most sports' smallest champion could play with and sometimes beat the biggest championI don't pretend to understand the
mentality of calling for a worse tournament (quality of play wise) instead of two great ones.
1. Do you honestly think that private school bring in a better crowd than community schools? These towns shut down their city to come down. Virginia and Hibbing are small towns that bring twice as many people with them to the tourny when they go than the single A privates. In fact, I bet there were still more people from Virginia and Hibbing at the tourny this year even though they didn't have teams there, than in the sections for St. Thomas or Breck. I don't think the attendance numbers would have been worse if the privates weren't there.
2. I just don't buy this statement. I have been around sports including and other than hockey my whole life, went to state in tennis twice, followed HS baseball and boys tennis closely (I went to state in girls), and softball and I have very rarely seen this to be the case.
3. Maybe you think it would be a "worse" tournament, however it would provide for much better matchups throughout the whole A tourny but especially the first round which would hold many more people's interest, not to mention the fact of what this whole debate is all about, the people who the single A tournament was created for will be playing there. Do you think for one second that the powers that be who made the decision to go to two classes forsaw this as the outcome? Metro all star teams making a mockery out of small town teams?
So, I ask:Not next year, not three years from now, but "10 years from now, how would you envision the perfect MN HS hockey system?"
[/i]
With class A the way it was meant to be, small town communitites, and yes that can include small town privates. And the st. thomas and brecks of the world would do what THEY KNOW and most everyone else knows is the right thing to do. I personally don't want to make specific changes to rules in the tournament or classes, I just want integrity back in the single A tourny. AA is one of the best tournys on the planet and will continue to be that way with hopefully even more good competition to come in. Ok I changed my mind, one rule I would like to see in place would be that you can't play teams of another class UNLESS they're in your conference. I think it is a joke that St. Thomas plays a predominantly AA schedule and then breezes through the tourny with no competition. You shouldn't be able to have it both ways. 
..this is most of what Chris Dilks on WCHBlog had to say... 
