Albert Lee Team

[Marty McSorely]

Let me get this straight...... The Head Coach and Director of Hockey Operations have quit or been fired and the team isn't even been tendered yet?

What happens to the kids that were tendered? Are they free to leave?

[Puckguy19]

Let me get this straight...... The Head Coach and Director of Hockey Operations have quit or been fired and the team isn't even been tendered yet?

What happens to the kids that were tendered? Are they free to leave?

I would think those tendered, if any, would be required to stay with the team in they skate in the NAHL.

[HawksFan35]

Let me get this straight...... The Head Coach and Director of Hockey Operations have quit or been fired and the team isn't even been tendered yet?

What happens to the kids that were tendered? Are they free to leave?

I would think those tendered, if any, would be required to stay with the team in they skate in the NAHL.

Last year my son made the team on Owatonna. Meet the coach and everyone liked his philosophy and style. We took our son down Labor Day and the next day new owners came in and changed everything. He didn't know the kids and made it clear that he felt MI kids need a chance. Slowly he dismantled most of the kids Coach Cullen had chosen, some where traded and some quit out of frustration. They were lied too, even had to buy their own sticks, were not enough team warm ups for all players. Eventually he had his MI kids and the owners kids on the team and moved to MI. Good riddance to him. My son said he would never play NAHL again and was going to school. As far as life lessons go it was an eye opener. But for a hockey experience it was really bad. So I hope that doesn't happen in Albert Lea.

[SHAKEnBAKE]

Willett coached two of my kids while he was at Mound and he did a fantastic job. Things were going down-hill in Westonka when he showed up and it is now a respected program.
I know he was pretty excited to coach a Junior team, and he put in a lot of hard work with the Thunder. He moved his family (wife and 3 kids) down to Albert Lea, I’m pretty sure his house in Delano is still for sale. Must have been a tuff deal for him to resign. I’ve heard some stories about why he left but I won’t post them because I’m not sure what the whole story is. Just wanted people to know that Paul is a terrific person and a top notch coach….

[Stabbin31]

I always wonderd how he didnt do more with what he had. Maybe he was a nice guy, I dont know him personally. What I have heard from former and current players is that he is loved by parents, but his players on the other hand...

That is neither here nor there. I dont like the fact that he kind of left the program in the cold. Sure it may have been for a good reason, but how would you like to be the players?

[crash]

I was at both the Ice Hawks and the Dunder camps this weekend and I think minus a few top end forwards and overall goaltending in the Albert Lea the Ice Hawks camp was better all around.

The Ice Hawks had 2 VERY good goaltenders the rest we not very good, Albert Lea had a 4 or 5 OK tenders nothing great.

I hope thing level out in Albert Lea or this will be a really long season for them!

Owatonna looked solid last weekend, and I can't wait to see North Iowa next weekend in Anoka, I've heard they will be very good again!

[ThundrStruK]

Crash, did the Albert Lea team have a head coach yet? I have not seen any announcement.
I would expect that they would not have very many talented players at the camp this past weekend as it was their second open camp in this area. It will probably be a little better at their main invite only camp this week.
But what is with their on ice sessions being closed to the public? What are they hiding?

[aflac]

I heard they are announcing Zangs as Head Coach today at a press conference!!!

[Stabbin31]

What they are hidding is thier cut lists. The owner owns some Jr B or C teams, and who ever they cut, they want to send there to fill up the teams. A buddy of mine is on staff with a Metro team and tried to get some info on players being let go, they said umm we will see but I doubt it.

I talked with a AL staff member who said they cant even give out the info on guys they want to keep an eye on. They have guys they want to keep locally to watch for next year. He even (for all you haters) named the Ice Hawks as a perfect situation for some really good players who could get a call up or a call next year. He prefers to remain unknown for fear of his job.

What a joke this is, they would rather send a kid out to PA and have him pay $6-7 Grand and get word of mouth info, then have them pay $3 grand and play about an hour up the street.

[mnhockfanatic]

A friend of my son was invited to the AL tryouts this past weekend. Lets just say it was a Cluster@#$%. One parent was told that they were only looking at 20 year olds. The Director of Ops and the other coaches were in one corner of the rink either Laughing, reading, or talking amongst themselves but not watching the players. Hell they didn't even let them know that their wasn't a coach yet. The father said this was nothing but a money making try-out...He also said some coach from Pennsylvania was there trying to get kids to go there and play in a non-sanctioned team. At least it wasn't like some USHL try-outs...200 kids @ $300. a pop and looking for one kid. Like everyone say's...the water of Jr Hockey are very murky make sure you take your goggles.

[huville]

I'm not completely sure this is as shady as this is being made out to be but I don't have all the facts. But please don't let this situation give all junior hockey a bad rep. There are good coaches out there that do the right thing. Cullen and Fink in Owatonna, Crouse in North Iowa and Kinslow in Bismark are all the kind of coaches I want our players to move on too. There are others of course but these are 3 our team has had the most interaction with.

I was in Owatonna this past weekend scouting and there were 120 players in camp. This is normal but they had 20 some spots they were trying to fill. A 1 out of 6 chance to make the team ain't bad when it comes to juniors and they were very willing to give out contact numbers of players who weren't selected to play there.

In our 1st 2 camps we've only had about 20 players at each camp. This is because players are spending so much money on tier 2 camps. As a program we don't like many more than 20 players on a team (40 at camp) because we feel it gives the coaching staff and evaluators a better chance to take a look at each player. So no, not all of junior hockey is bad. You just need to do your research before you pony up your money.

[aflac]

Brad Zangs is the new Head Coach in Albert Lea

[crash]

It's as bad as it seems in Albert Lea.......players should get out now!

[mnhockfanatic]

I agree not all Jr. programs are bad.. In fact I would say the majority are good and that most coaches really do have the kids best interest first and foremost. I was just saying kids and their parents should go in as educated as possible for it can be a very frustrating experience for those not drafted and trying to make a team...

[Mario58]

Here's the article on Zangs. You all sound like you know of him.


http://www.albertleatribune.com/news/20 ... ead-coach/

[crash]

LOL yep I know of him...He coached in the MJHL, people questioned the 'He coached in Butte' thing because his 'coaching dates' didn't mesh with the dates on the lawsuit filed by Butte Irish Head Coach Tom McDermott or the dates listed by the Head Coach that took over for Tom, Joe Liquori. Brad was a pretty poor coach at the Jr. B level(back then). I remember one game in Albert Lea vs the Ice Hawks when he broke a stick and gongshowed his bench while he was up 7-4 late in the game and then went to the vendor and ate a hotdog while the game went on !

If I remember he was on the bench in Rochester for a 17-1 drubbing at the hands of the Ice Hawks, he pulled his goalie with 5 mins left in the game when he was down 10-1 and kept him out for the full 5 mins.

I hope this is better than it looks but I doubt it!

[Stabbin31]

OH NO, ahhhh I had lunch with a father who's son was at the albert lea camp. His son had a good camp, and I will not say if he is on the team or not, but he had the following to say.

Apparently they had a few kids from Chicago (owners home town???) who where TERRIBLE, but said they were on the team. One of them, a boxer who could hardly skate was out there trying to fight every one. The dad said he even thinks he tried to fight himself but couldnt stand up long enough to do so.

They cut some VERY good players in favor of thugs. (let it be known, I think fighting has its place in hockey, and should always be a part of it), however I do not think that players who could play college hockey one day should be let go for a hired fist.

Next note, now they would not let USA SANCTIONED T3 teams in to give players a potential place to play (that is up to them, so I dont care) however, they did THIS IS TRUE, let the penn enforcers coach (UJHL non sanctioned league) run around and tell players that they will develop them better and if they come out there, they will be back up in AL in a month or two. Now if they said this to 1-2 guys maybe, but this fathers son and a few friends just shook their heads. These guys must have talked to and feed that same load of bull to 60+ players. JOKE

OH btw, why would AL want to send players to PENN, when there are like 10 teams within driving distance to watch. AHHH hey go to penn and we will hear about you. OOOORRRRR go to ummm Roch or DBQ and we will WATCH YOU!

Next point, ok, so how are these players who are getting called up and down going to afford 1) the 7grand it costs to play in Penn 2) PLANE tix or Gas ??? I sure hope Soskins does not plan on paying for these flights and what not, that would make these players NOT ELIGIBLE for college hockey.

From what I have heard from some USHL, NAHL friends, people are shaking their heads and laughing at these clowns. OH how well has every other team SOSKINS has been a part of done? I think and could be wrong , but most have ran out of money, players and support sooner then an addicted gambler at an no limit game.

I could give two poops about any team or league, but things like this ruin JR hockey. Shame on you Soskin and shame on you Perkins. As much as I disliked WIllet in the past, and take back what I say about him leaving the kids in the learch. I gained a lot of respect for him when he jumped ship.

[aflac]

WOW!!!!!!

[Tony Soprano]

I did not see anything in the press release about where Zangs may have played in college? It sure seems like he moves around quite a bit, not sure if that is a good thing or not.

[ThundrStruK]

The circus has left town for a few weeks. The Thunder final camp is over and they have picked a team. Here is what we know from an inside source.

Yes they kept the goon. The kid actually looks like a clown. You can be sure they kept him on the team for entertainment purposes only. The owner knows this business.

Yes they kept the family member (son) of the Dir of H O Perkins. Can he play at this level? Probably not. But hay, they are going to need someone to put on the mascot costume.

The rest of team is surprisingly quit good. The owner of this team cast a wide net in recruiting for this expansion club. Sure he got a lot of rabble in his net but once he got rid of the riff-raff they were left with some talented players on both offense and defense. Dont worry, they kept a few Minnesota boys to show the kids from "out east" how the game of hockey is played.

Did they let some go that can play at this level? Probably. There were some draftees and decent hockey players who were cut. But before these players get too upset about a goon and a daddy's boy making the team instead of them consider this, would you rather be a fourth line player on this team and see little ice time or a first or second line player on a Tier III team. Where are you going to develop more. The goon and daddy's boy have done you a favor.

And finally yes they did have some recruiting of players by coaches of the Junior teams Soskin owns out east. Most of those being recruited were likely from out east anyway or at least from further east than Wisc. Let them go back to IL, Penn, or NY. For the Minn players who were cut there are several local teams still looking for players. The local Tier III coaches know who you are. They did not have to be at this closed camp to get in touch with you.

As for Zangs we wont need to worry about him at all. If he pulls any antics Soskin will drop him like a hot potato. There is no doubt who is calling the shots in this circus of Thunder. Zangs wont take a **** without checking with Soskin first.

Unconventional or ideotic? I guess we will have to wait and see.

[mnhockfanatic]

This is going to be better than a E-ticket ride @ Disneyland... Buy a ticket and watch the show...

[friendlyreminder]

I was down at the very first AL OPEN camp in early june and saw a mix of some talented players who were actually cut and some not so good ones invited back to the main camp. As for the daddys boy who made the team it really upsets me to see that stuff going on. That kid was actually cut from all of the Chicago AAA Midget Major teams and actually played AA which is equivelant to JV here in MN. I've also heard many parents talking about there sons getting asked to play for penn so it seems pretty iffy on how many are actually going to get called up during the year and for someone to be on the AL team and get moved down why would they ever move out to penn with hopes of coming back to AL that is totally inconvenient. From the sound of it this team is DOOOOOMED.

[hardice]

All of the suspicions surrounding the foundation of this team are well founded. A lot of this doesn't smell right and doesn't bode well for the AL community.

1. Zangs has questionable experience. A long string of assistant coach jobs. Club level, Div III, and a couple of Tier III Junior A (or it is Jr B?). My question is where and when did he coach the 40 Div I players and 15 NHL players that he claimed to in the AL Tribune article last week? Hard to see how he did it. He will definitely do what ever Soskin wants him to do.

2. Dir of Ops son will make the team. Couldn't make any AAA teams in Chicago. The story in the locker room is that his best friend will also make the team to keep him company. This guy didn't even look like a hockey player let alone play like one. He played in the Sabres AA club in Chicago.

3. Word coming out of Chicago that several players literally bought their spot with a payment to Soskin. That's one way to make a team. In fact, one player's family bought a house in AL before tryouts. That is a bold move if, supposedly, there were no assurances given before tryouts.

Shaky foundation- shaky team. Proof will be in how they play and how many colleges like what they see and extend commitments. Good luck

[goldy313]

I've been involved with Junior hockey from the USHL down to the MJHL over the years, but not directly since 2003. From my experiance Junior Hockey is a business not really much more. If you take it from that perspective you'll understand what's going on at all levels. Say you own a business and your best friends son needs a summer job, you'll probably hire him, same in Junior hockey.

Even at the USHL level if you go through the rosters you'll find a handfull of kids who really have no business playing in that league, they're there because of the owner, gm, or coach put him there as a favor or to sell tickets. It may be a friend of the family, a local kid, or a goon but they all exist on nearly every team.

Winning doesn't guarentee financial success, most teams lose money. There has to be some benefit to owning a team, not every owner is a Stanley Hubbard who does it just for the fun of it. The NAHL is a pay to play league, there will be kids who bought their way on to the team.

[automan]

As you will notice I am a new user and I am from AL. I have read thru some of the post and I am shocked that individuals would even lower themselves to bad mouth people. Whoever said that the citizens of Albert Lea are concerned with the team and how its been running is a flat out lying. We like any other hockey town have the medling parents or the guy who thinks he knows everything that gossip about things they really don't know. The City of ALbert Lea is very happy that this group decided to chose Albert Lea for there franchise.

Lets talk about the Franchise. Fact is when the Commissoner came to town to approve ALbert Lea and the arena, he made it clear that to have a team in this town the group would have to have a net worth over 3 million and alot of that he said needed to be liquid along with purchasing the franchise fee of 200k. As a business owner myself here is this community they have alot to lose and the people talking on here have nothing to lose.

If its someones business then they can run it any when they want. They can have 25 ankle benders or 25 super stars in either case they can do what they want. I did hear that they picked up 6 to 8 MN players and I think that is great for our state, but thats not my choice. Also, in my business I have relatives working for me and this is no different why not help out one of your own. YOU would if it was your business.

Assumptions: This really gets me. You have bad things to say about the coach and his ability. You have bad things to say about the OM and his child and you have bad things to say about the owner. It dosent mean anything of what someone did in the past---because alot of that is even hear say. Life is about living in the future not the past.

I have met the OM and the Owner and I have nothing but positive things to say about them. They are willing to work with the community of Albert Lea in anyway possible to make this a win/win situation. These guys are all about the players. The problem is that some people on this site think they should be able to decide the players and not the owner. This is where the forum becomes a gossip location instead of facts.