Birth year 2002 AAA hockey

[CRMiteHockey]

I recently received a question from a parent regarding AAA summer hockey opportunities for their 2002 birth year level child. I don't know of any, but if there is something available, I bet one of you knows about it.

Thanks in advance for any help!

[offside14]

Yes I believe Minnesota Made has an 02 summer program as well I believe they also play a shortened tournament schedule. I think it may be 2 tourneys one local one in Canada if I'm not mistaken.

[Yakunin]

I heard Velocity has a added a 2002 team as well. They have been skating together for a couple of years. They will play in one local tournament next spring. Nice team!!

[O-townClown]

It is awfully young, but my son will be playing on a summer team. The problem we have here, and it may be the same as in the cities, is that there are only so many capable of playing in these tournaments. If you drag your feet someone else will corral the better kids.

While things change because kids get better at different rates, with only 362 Mites in the whole state it isn't like there are going to be 5 AAA teams.

We are looking for a goaltender. Anyone up for a tournament or two this summer? Plan is to play in the Cougar Classic (Chicago) and one or two in Massachusetts.

[Pylon]

Judging by this link http://www.northamericanhockeyclassic.com/ it looks like the Machine, Torspo and Monopoly all have teams.

[O-townClown]

NPC, yet another post from someone who has everyone else figured out. Ever occur to you that some people know exactly what they are doing when they sign on for summer hockey?

[Pylon]

No Political Connections, AAA hockey is only as competitive as parents and coaches make it! For our team, we have a very talented group of kids that have become best friends and truly love playing with each other. Do they like to win? Yup, but thats just their competitive nature. Do they love the mini sticks and playing in the pool at the hotel? Oh hell ya! Have they improved as players since playing together? Damn rights! Do the parents get along and enjoy it? Oh hell yeah!! Sounds like a win win situation to me!

[muckandgrind]

No Political Connections, AAA hockey is only as competitive as parents and coaches make it! For our team, we have a very talented group of kids that have become best friends and truly love playing with each other. Do they like to win? Yup, but thats just their competitive nature. Do they love the mini sticks and playing in the pool at the hotel? Oh hell ya! Have they improved as players since playing together? Damn rights! Do the parents get along and enjoy it? Oh hell yeah!! Sounds like a win win situation to me!

I think as long as it is kept in context and not turned into a parent going for a Tiger Woods type of deal it is OK. Honestly, my kids play summer hockey, along with a bunch of other stuff too. I just hate to see these AAA teams popping up at younger and younger ages. I think that in order to be fair to the kids we need to expose them to lots of things other than a hockey rink to see what they want to do and the summer time is the perfect time to do just that.

But, it's not. The youngest AAA teams have generally been comprised of 7-8 year olds. Last summer, there were 2001 teams and next year, there will be 2003 birth year teams and people like you will be back saying they are starting up at "younger and younger ages", when in actuality, they aren't.

Personally, I think that age is a little too young to be spending that much money. There are much cheaper options than AAA in the summer for the really young kids. I've had three boys playing AAA hockey over the past 12 years or so, total. And I've found that it's best to look at each kid and each situation differently. Some kids can handle a AAA schedule better at an earlier age than others.

My only advice for parents is you really need to do your homework. Check around and make sure you get a quality coach, otherwise, you may just be wasting your money and your kid's time.

[ACDCfan]

The youngest AAA age group is creeping downward. In the USA, the youngest age for years were the kids turning nine (2001s in 2010).

Two years ago, MinnMade made their starting age lower by putting 2000 kids on their lower 99 teams. This year, MM sent out a brochure telling parents that it is time to take their 2002s to a higher level.

I am not sure I like the trend. It certainly makes the kids better at the tender ages, but the long term impact of the years of intensity is questionable. Machine teams have all broken up at puberty, when the kids start to decide some things for themselves.

Frankly, nobody except you cares how good your kid is when he is ten years old or even 14 years old.

Whatever else happens, make sure your young kid has FUN EVERY TIME he is at the rink and learns the fundamentals at these early ages. Tournaments are candy, not the meal.
There will be plenty of Holiday Inns to stay in when they are squirts and peewees.

[muckandgrind]

The youngest AAA age group is creeping downward. In the USA, the youngest age for years were the kids turning nine (2001s in 2010).

Two years ago, MinnMade made their starting age lower by putting 2000 kids on their lower 99 teams. This year, MM sent out a brochure telling parents that it is time to take their 2002s to a higher level.

I am not sure I like the trend. It certainly makes the kids better at the tender ages, but the long term impact of the years of intensity is questionable. Machine teams have all broken up at puberty, when the kids start to decide some things for themselves.

Frankly, nobody except you cares how good your kid is when he is ten years old or even 14 years old.

Whatever else happens, make sure your young kid has FUN EVERY TIME he is at the rink and learns the fundamentals at these early ages. Tournaments are candy, not the meal.
There will be plenty of Holiday Inns to stay in when they are squirts and peewees.

Yeah, like McBain is an @sshole. It's not like they got burned out on hockey, just burned out on Bernie. They still play as much, or more hockey than they were when wearing the orange.

[dogeatdog1]

The youngest AAA age group is creeping downward. In the USA, the youngest age for years were the kids turning nine (2001s in 2010).

Two years ago, MinnMade made their starting age lower by putting 2000 kids on their lower 99 teams. This year, MM sent out a brochure telling parents that it is time to take their 2002s to a higher level.

I am not sure I like the trend. It certainly makes the kids better at the tender ages, but the long term impact of the years of intensity is questionable. Machine teams have all broken up at puberty, when the kids start to decide some things for themselves.

Frankly, nobody except you cares how good your kid is when he is ten years old or even 14 years old.

Whatever else happens, make sure your young kid has FUN EVERY TIME he is at the rink and learns the fundamentals at these early ages. Tournaments are candy, not the meal.
There will be plenty of Holiday Inns to stay in when they are squirts and peewees.

Yeah, like McBain is an @sshole. It's not like they got burned out on hockey, just burned out on Bernie. They still play as much, or more hockey than they were when wearing the orange.

WOW!

I m not a BM supporter but cmon if he isn't doing it there will be someone else out there to exploit parents and kids.

AA hockey in MN is rampant.. My advice is to take the approach that if your kid is good enough he won't be passed up by the AAA teams. If he is not there are a ton of AA teams to chose from.

[muckandgrind]

The youngest AAA age group is creeping downward. In the USA, the youngest age for years were the kids turning nine (2001s in 2010).

Two years ago, MinnMade made their starting age lower by putting 2000 kids on their lower 99 teams. This year, MM sent out a brochure telling parents that it is time to take their 2002s to a higher level.

I am not sure I like the trend. It certainly makes the kids better at the tender ages, but the long term impact of the years of intensity is questionable. Machine teams have all broken up at puberty, when the kids start to decide some things for themselves.

Frankly, nobody except you cares how good your kid is when he is ten years old or even 14 years old.

Whatever else happens, make sure your young kid has FUN EVERY TIME he is at the rink and learns the fundamentals at these early ages. Tournaments are candy, not the meal.
There will be plenty of Holiday Inns to stay in when they are squirts and peewees.

Yeah, like McBain is an @sshole. It's not like they got burned out on hockey, just burned out on Bernie. They still play as much, or more hockey than they were when wearing the orange.

WOW!

I m not a BM supporter but cmon if he isn't doing it there will be someone else out there to exploit parents and kids.

AA hockey in MN is rampant.. My advice is to take the approach that if your kid is good enough he won't be passed up by the AAA teams. If he is not there are a ton of AA teams to chose from.

Honestly, most parents that I know that have dealt with Bernie through his MM program, tell me that they could only take so much $hit from him before they bolted...and if it wasn't them, it was their kids. Parents of the younger players generally like him, but those opinions seem to evolve over the years to just the opposite.

I think you are wrong about one thing, though. People (scouts) DO care about how good a kid is at 14. It's about that age where most of the elite players really start to separate themselves from the rest of the pack and the scouts start tracking those top players.

[dogeatdog1]

Yeah, like McBain is an @sshole. It's not like they got burned out on hockey, just burned out on Bernie. They still play as much, or more hockey than they were when wearing the orange.

WOW!

I m not a BM supporter but cmon if he isn't doing it there will be someone else out there to exploit parents and kids.

AA hockey in MN is rampant.. My advice is to take the approach that if your kid is good enough he won't be passed up by the AAA teams. If he is not there are a ton of AA teams to chose from.

Honestly, most parents that I know that have dealt with Bernie through his MM program, tell me that they could only take so much $hit from him before they bolted...and if it wasn't them, it was their kids. Parents of the younger players generally like him, but those opinions seem to evolve over the years to just the opposite.

I think you are wrong about one thing, though. People (scouts) DO care about how good a kid is at 14. It's about that age where most of the elite players really start to separate themselves from the rest of the pack and the scouts start tracking those top players.

14 yes 7 not so much... Like I said if you have a top end kid they get noticed no matter where they play. The hockey community is very tight knit and not many if any slip by. My point is that if you have an 02 there will be a lot of promises made to get your almighty $ especially if your kid is good.. If he is a decent player that wants to play relax and search out a program that is right for you. You don't need to be a Blade or Machine at 7-8 to get noticed at 14-15. As far as BM goes I never got his style and don't think I ever will. I still am a capitalist and don't blame him for peddling his brand. Again he must be doing something right to keep his doors open in this economy. He just won't see any of my $ until he offers something that appeals to me.

[O-townClown]

There are much cheaper options than AAA in the summer for the really young kids.

75 bucks for a weekly one-hour 3v3 full ice game on an Olympic sheet? Oh yeah, there would only be kids much worse or much better than my son.

While there are cheaper options, it varies greatly what you'll find outside the Twin Cities.

I'll take my chances that the family will have fun going to Massachusetts for a few days.

[muckandgrind]

There are much cheaper options than AAA in the summer for the really young kids.

75 bucks for a weekly one-hour 3v3 full ice game on an Olympic sheet? Oh yeah, there would only be kids much worse or much better than my son.

While there are cheaper options, it varies greatly what you'll find outside the Twin Cities.

I'll take my chances that the family will have fun going to Massachusetts for a few days.

Remember that we are talking about 7 year old kids. I'm not sure spending $1500+ for summer AAA is really getting all that much bang for your buck. There are plenty of other options that aren't "one hour 3v3 full ice games" that you mention. Sure, it gets tougher to find options outside the metro area...

I'm only speaking from my own experiences, I HAVE had one of my boys start playing AAA as young as 8 years old and didn't find it worth the time and money. Just my opinion. If you want to drop some bucks playing hockey so you can take that trip to Massachusetts...you go right ahead.

I'm not "anti-AAA hockey" by any means....I'm just advising parents to make sure they know what they are getting for all that $$ they are willing to spend.

[dogeatdog1]

I agree with Muckety Muck on this. Spending $ on AAA prior to the first year of Squirts is not worth it. Lil Gretter will do better having fun and playing ball or getting out on the ice for a bunch of open ice skates with buddies. If you are real gung ho mix in some skating lessons to teach him or her something that they can use later on. stay away from games and instruction on systems and d to d to wing center ice regroup (there is my shot at BM) I'm old but still remember my first Hockey school (Quadnipi SP?) at second year peewees. I would have played HS and college eitherway. but it sure was fun..

[InigoMontoya]

I'm going to disagree with muck and dog on this one. I've seen too many times when one kid plays summer hockey and his buddy doesn't, when they come back in the winter, it shows - and thus starts the arms race, not to train the next D1 or NHL kid, but just to keep up with his friends. I know, I know, there are loads of great athletes that never played summer hockey - BUT there are also loads of so-so athletes that got a chance to play hockey a little longer (maybe high school, maybe D3,...) because they got an opportunity to improve in the off season. 2002? It does seem a little young to me, too; until you've tried to get your peewee onto a team because now he'd really like to play, so you go to a tryout where 30 kids show up to skate for 3 openings.

[dogeatdog1]

I'm going to disagree with muck and dog on this one. I've seen too many times when one kid plays summer hockey and his buddy doesn't, when they come back in the winter, it shows - and thus starts the arms race, not to train the next D1 or NHL kid, but just to keep up with his friends. I know, I know, there are loads of great athletes that never played summer hockey - BUT there are also loads of so-so athletes that got a chance to play hockey a little longer (maybe high school, maybe D3,...) because they got an opportunity to improve in the off season. 2002? It does seem a little young to me, too; until you've tried to get your peewee onto a team because now he'd really like to play, so you go to a tryout where 30 kids show up to skate for 3 openings.

Ive seen it the other way.. kid goes to BMcB and Plays all summer long best buddie plays AAA ball and skates with buddies on a spring and fall Mash league.. Player A's Dad states after 3 week fall clinic WOW what did Johnny do this summer I thought Iwould see a bigger separation.... Johnny makes the squad along with the BMcB prodigy. It all depends on the kid.. I agree if you are a bubble you might make a difference concentrating on one sport. I think you ae better off trying to play catcher and work on your legs and hand eye instead of running to the rink everyday. Who knows you might find that you are a D1 Lacrosse prospect and quit hockey all together. All in all 02's are a too young to give it all to hockey.

[Pylon]

If only a freakishly small percentage of kids playing summer hockey will ever make it to the NHL, when does $1500/yr really ever seem worth it? Whats the difference if you spend money for your 7 year old child to develop more and make new friends as compared to a squirt aged player? Do they get that much more out of it at an older age? I dont think they do. Its all in how you look at it. My son playing as a 6 year old allowed him to play with kids his own age and of similar ability. He has made some new friends and his game has definately improved. We have made it a family thing and I love spending all this time from March to mid June with my son and the rest of my family!

IMO if the kid has the ability to play it and WANTS to keep playing then go for it!! If its the dad that wants his kid to keep playing, then thats different. I don't let my kid play all summer long, mid June is when he is done and then he continues playing ball and soccer.

Just my 2 cents

[trippedovertheblueline]

bmcbain = cab driver

how does this fruit of orange color coaching staff compare to the other aaa teams in the state of hockey? Does he have a top staff of coaches for each of the MM teams? Velocity's is good, right? Others?

[CRMiteHockey]

Call me crazy but this is crazy. Why wreck the best hockey years for the kids and the parents? The kids all like each other (although that kid who gets the best action figures for Christmas might be loathed a little bit) and act like it on the team. The parents actually stand next to each other and talk about everything from hockey to the weather and lots of other stuff without bragging nonstop about how good little Johnie is. The crazy parents by their Mite goalies Vaughn V3 pads and get their helmets custom painted but you don't really mind, you just sort of chuckle at it and think that it must be their first kid in hockey. The kids race into the locker room to get a good snack after the game. The goodie bags at the tournyes are the highlight of it. Hockey is fun at that age, they should not have to try to cut the throat of their buddy until they are at least 11 maybe 12. Then you can tell them to go out and wreck havoc on kids that they should be friends with. After all, friend or not, you are the one who has the right to turn pro and I am the one who is sucking up to everybody in sight and brown nosing the coaches and board members to keep the political lines open.

Don't get me wrong, I like competition. I do tell my kids to work their hardest, listen to their coaches and to do their best. If they don't I tell them about it, you don't disrespect yourself, your coach or the game at that age by not trying. YOu have to wait for a couple of year to get into PeeWees, then you can slam your stick down on the ice when you get a penalty, you can dog the goalie for giving up an easy goal even though your line has gotten beaten all night long and your goalie is worn out from all of the break aways and odd man rushes. You can throw your stick into the penalty box and say things to the ref that your mom (if she was my mom) would find so shocking that you would suffer for it. You can do all of that "hockey stuff" when you are a PeeWee. As a squirt and below hockey is still fun to do, no pressure, just fun. For those reasons I think that summer AAA hockey for anybody under the age of first year PeeWee should be illegal.

I am still trying to figure out if this thread is a joke or not. I hope so. Although if it is not I have a 2004 kid who can fall down and get up pretty quick and who will chase the puck when it is in his area. WHere do I sign the little bugger up? If he is gonna make it to the pros he needs to be able to lift the puck and deek the goalie before he gets too old. If he hasn't made it to the big time AAA teams by the time he is 8 is it too late? It is only 10:15 here now, he can easily get in another 200 practice shots tonight before bed time. Gotta keep the nose to the grind stone you know. No WWE action figures, no Leapster games, no wasting time playing tennis ball games with the dog, he needs to get to work so I need to get going.

Uh.... ok.

I think these particular parents just want to keep their kids active over the summer and they seem to like skating and playing hockey.

Am I missing something here? I don't know much about it, but from all of these posts it would seem that AAA summer hockey is not fun for 7-8 year olds. Isn't it fun? My association kids work really hard and they are pretty sweaty after practice and they are tired, but they smile a lot and they keep coming back and the parents are still nice to me.......

I guess I encouraged them to find something for their kids over the summer because I thought they would have fun doing it. They sure seem to have fun in the winter. What am I missing? They don't want to play baseball 24/7 all summer so they thought skating would be fun and great exercise. From what I can tell it's only a couple of hours a week and that doesn't seem excessive.

[muckandgrind]

I'm going to disagree with muck and dog on this one. I've seen too many times when one kid plays summer hockey and his buddy doesn't, when they come back in the winter, it shows - and thus starts the arms race, not to train the next D1 or NHL kid, but just to keep up with his friends. I know, I know, there are loads of great athletes that never played summer hockey - BUT there are also loads of so-so athletes that got a chance to play hockey a little longer (maybe high school, maybe D3,...) because they got an opportunity to improve in the off season. 2002? It does seem a little young to me, too; until you've tried to get your peewee onto a team because now he'd really like to play, so you go to a tryout where 30 kids show up to skate for 3 openings.

I have nothing against summer AAA hockey, in general...Like I said before, my boys have played and do play AAA in the summer and LOVE it.. I agree, that kids who play hockey in the summer, in general, do have a leg up over their peers that don't all things else considered equal. For the kid who might be a bubble player, playing hockey in the summer can provide them the edge they need to make their team in the fall.

My point, is that I'm not sure spending $1500 on AAA for a seven year old is the smartest way to spend your money. To each their own, but I'd rather spend money on a good skating school combined with a spring and fall league.

Like anything else, it's "buyer beware". Make sure you ask a lot of questions and check around before you write out that check.

[O-townClown]

Remember that we are talking about 7 year old kids. I'm not sure spending $1500+ for summer AAA is really getting all that much bang for your buck. There are plenty of other options that aren't "one hour 3v3 full ice games" that you mention. Sure, it gets tougher to find options outside the metro area...

I'm only speaking from my own experiences, I HAVE had one of my boys start playing AAA as young as 8 years old and didn't find it worth the time and money. Just my opinion. If you want to drop some bucks playing hockey so you can take that trip to Massachusetts...you go right ahead.

I'm not "anti-AAA hockey" by any means....I'm just advising parents to make sure they know what they are getting for all that $$ they are willing to spend.

Where on earth did you come up with $1,500? That's a number you've thrown out there.

Bang for buck? Not the issue I'm looking at one bit.

As for "plenty of other options", where? In the Twin Cities? Yes. Elsewhere? Maybe, maybe not. My son's home rink offered 3-on-3 full ice games on their Olympic sheet. He did not participate. (He loved his Spring league, a hotch potch of kids playing out of a different rink with no real youth program.) It wasn't easy leaving his program. Those in charge are pretty possessive.

You mention that you are "only speaking from your own experiences". That's evident. Which makes it seem odd that you are so ready with the advice for people that may not be in your circumstances or may not share your values.

I know of one affluent parent that not only paid for his son to play on a summer team last year, he paid for all the other kids too. Several parents told me, "Jimmy wasn't going to play this summer, but the team was sponsored so we figured why not!" Unless those particulars match your situation, your proclivity for speaking only from your experiences renders your opinion almost meaningless for parents with such an opportunity.

As I've said many times, my son doesn't know many kids that play hockey. There isn't another boy his age within 10 miles of our house. One boy a grade ahead at school tried it this past summer and seemed to like it, but his parents are Brits and he seems to be playing soccer only.

By playing on the AAA (not real AAA actually, just a summer team going to two so-called AAA tournaments) team, at worst they aren't very good and he takes home a lesson to work hard to get better. Or maybe he gets a little of his enthusiasm extinguished, which actually leads to some time off. At best he gets to meet some new kids, play at a much more competitive level than our state offers, and learns where he fits in compared to other kids.

My fear is in-season AAA (real AAA) hockey and the astronomical cost of that. I could handle watching A hockey for several years if our program never fields a AA team, provided there is an annual pilgrimage to play in a couple summer all-star tournaments.

[muckandgrind]

Remember that we are talking about 7 year old kids. I'm not sure spending $1500+ for summer AAA is really getting all that much bang for your buck. There are plenty of other options that aren't "one hour 3v3 full ice games" that you mention. Sure, it gets tougher to find options outside the metro area...

I'm only speaking from my own experiences, I HAVE had one of my boys start playing AAA as young as 8 years old and didn't find it worth the time and money. Just my opinion. If you want to drop some bucks playing hockey so you can take that trip to Massachusetts...you go right ahead.

I'm not "anti-AAA hockey" by any means....I'm just advising parents to make sure they know what they are getting for all that $$ they are willing to spend.

Where on earth did you come up with $1,500? That's a number you've thrown out there.

Bang for buck? Not the issue I'm looking at one bit.

As for "plenty of other options", where? In the Twin Cities? Yes. Elsewhere? Maybe, maybe not. My son's home rink offered 3-on-3 full ice games on their Olympic sheet. He did not participate. (He loved his Spring league, a hotch potch of kids playing out of a different rink with no real youth program.) It wasn't easy leaving his program. Those in charge are pretty possessive.

You mention that you are "only speaking from your own experiences". That's evident. Which makes it seem odd that you are so ready with the advice for people that may not be in your circumstances or may not share your values.

I know of one affluent parent that not only paid for his son to play on a summer team last year, he paid for all the other kids too. Several parents told me, "Jimmy wasn't going to play this summer, but the team was sponsored so we figured why not!" Unless those particulars match your situation, your proclivity for speaking only from your experiences renders your opinion almost meaningless for parents with such an opportunity.

As I've said many times, my son doesn't know many kids that play hockey. There isn't another boy his age within 10 miles of our house. One boy a grade ahead at school tried it this past summer and seemed to like it, but his parents are Brits and he seems to be playing soccer only.

By playing on the AAA (not real AAA actually, just a summer team going to two so-called AAA tournaments) team, at worst they aren't very good and he takes home a lesson to work hard to get better. Or maybe he gets a little of his enthusiasm extinguished, which actually leads to some time off. At best he gets to meet some new kids, play at a much more competitive level than our state offers, and learns where he fits in compared to other kids.

My fear is in-season AAA (real AAA) hockey and the astronomical cost of that. I could handle watching A hockey for several years if our program never fields a AA team, provided there is an annual pilgrimage to play in a couple summer all-star tournaments.

Easton, Raging Bulls, RBK, etc. $1500 is about the avg dollar amount for those programs when you factor in all the costs including registration and hotel fees for out of town tournaments. Like I said, there ARE less expensive options in the TC area (like I said before). I don't know where you live, so I can't speak for your area.

"Sharing my advise"? Of course that's what I'm doing (this is a message board, is it not??), if you don't care to listen, move on....why respond?.....but I also say "to each their own", if you want to spend that kind of money go right ahead. I won't tell anyone they are wrong for doing so. If you like your situation and your kid is having fun, GO FOR IT!!!!! That being said, what part of "make sure you ask questions" is wrong advice to give to parents looking into AAA?

3v3 full ice on Olympic sheets? Maybe you should suggest half ice games instead.

[O-townClown]

Muck, I am in O-town, which means vastly different options from what you find in the Twins.

I should suggest half-ice games? Gee, what a novel idea! Of course it was suggested, but it didn't matter. Our program director has other ideas.

Not to fear, I have a sponsor and am conducting the Sunshine State Pond Hockey Championships this Spring as a way to show others that Mites can have fun with a less-structured format. It will be free to all registered players in our state.