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I happened to be browsing the Edina Youth Hockey website when I noticed that they are having two squirt A teams this season. I realize that they have the numbers and the talent to do so but I heard rumors they tried to do it last year and district 6 wasn't a big fan of the idea. I'm just wondering what is up with the sudden change in heart. Is anyone else going to field two A teams in the next year or so?

i believe they are the only ones- I will bet if successful you will see Wayzata, EP, WBL and MG give it strong consideration next year. It would be great if MN Hockey would require it for the LARGE associations.

That is what I'm thinking. I'm glad that these guys are realizing that they can develop more players at the A level and still have success. I would love to see other large associations do it as for it would create a slightly more even playing field.

We'll see how it goes. No doubt the A2 team will have a hard time against the best in the district and it looks like the B teams will not be dominant. They've lost their top 3 players each, the kind that are the difference-makers.

puckboy wrote:i believe they are the only ones- I will bet if successful you will see Wayzata, EP, WBL and MG give it strong consideration next year. It would be great if MN Hockey would require it for the LARGE associations.

WBL and MG? Are you serious?

Edina also has two U12A teams, unbalanced. Lots of controversy and unhappiness.

Woodbury will also be going with two Squirt A teams this year.

Are the Edina teams balanced or not because that would make a huge difference.

Unbalanced, A1 and a A2 for Edina

Which team is better? White or Green

Green=A1
White=A2

congrats to Woodbury for having 2 squirt teams!!

nhl'er wrote:Green=A1
White=A2

I hope white wins when they play each other... (They do that right?)

It would be a great game, all the pressure on Green because they are supposed to win, and all the motivation going for White being the underdog.
The upset would tip the entire apple cart over. (or should I say shake the Hornet nest right out of the tree).

Can't Never Tried wrote:

nhl'er wrote:Green=A1
White=A2

I hope white wins when they play each other... (They do that right?)

It would be a great game, all the pressure on Green because they are supposed to win, and all the motivation going for White being the underdog.
The upset would tip the entire apple cart over. (or should I say shake the Hornet nest right out of the tree).

I'm just wondering why they wouldn't make 2 equal teams? Wouldn't that make the bottom half of that A team better if they were playing with the top kids all the time.

For everyone that wants to give Edina so much praise for doing 2 A-teams make sure that you understand that they are unbalanced before you pat them on the back - the real gutsy move would have been to make them balanced but I guess they didn't want to give up the best possible scenario of maintaining their SqA dominance.

Don't get me wrong, I think it is great that they have the membership and quality to be able to field 2 A teams I just don't want to read about how they made the decision in the name of "development" because if that was the case they would have made them balanced.

puckboy wrote:i believe they are the only ones- I will bet if successful you will see Wayzata, EP, WBL and MG give it strong consideration next year. It would be great if MN Hockey would require it for the LARGE associations.

I think it would be a great idea for large associations to have two squirt A teams. Depending on the community athletic talent, Edina, Wayzata, EP and others could field two Pee Wee A teams.

Good for them. if it makes people feel better to have multiple teams I give them credit. this is a sport and its sappose to make people feel better.

Two A teams make sense if your B teams dominate. What good is it to have your B teams win 90% of their games when the kids would be better served playing as A2s? Nothing wrong with an A2 team, just do what is best for that group of kids.

I think that the reason that they have 2 "A" teams now is that they are afraid of letting kids know that they are not good enough to make the team.

The Woodbury teams will be balanced. We'll see how it works out for us. The squirt numbers are actually way down this year.

Agreed - wish these big associations would not only go with two A teams, but make them balanced. Gives more kids the opportunity to play at a higher level. If your B teams dominate, definitely go with the two A's. Curious why the girls teams are unhappy in Edina? Are the Squirts unhappy with the two A teams as well? I would think especially with them unbalanced, they would all be happy?

JimmySizzle wrote:I think that the reason that they have 2 "A" teams now is that they are afraid of letting kids know that they are not good enough to make the team.

Thank you for your informed and consdered opinion on the matter. Did you see the records of the A and B teams last season? Did you go watch the Edina invitational at BIG in March - also known as the District 6 playoffs?

Crazed Hockey Mom wrote:Edina also has two U12A teams, unbalanced. Lots of controversy and unhappiness.

Can you tell us where the unhappiness is coming from? Is it from within the association or from without? Is it from the A1 parents or the A2 parents or somewhere else? My opinion: this group of kids (all A1) is so good it would be a shame to split them up. Other good U12A teams want to play the best, not a split squad.

}Can you tell us where the unhappiness is coming from?

Some A2 parents upset that they took so many first years on A1 especially with the coach being the father of a first year. there are 11-12 obvious A1s but on the bubble kids they went against association policy stating preference should be shown to 2nd year players. some B parents angry that the same logic was not applied at A2 where they only took 2 first years and the point of that team was development. i'm not as qualified to comment on that part.

Some A2 parents upset that they took so many first years on A1 especially with the coach being the father of a first year. there are 11-12 obvious A1s but on the bubble kids they went against association policy stating preference should be shown to 2nd year players. some B parents angry that the same logic was not applied at A2 where they only took 2 first years and the point of that team was development. i'm not as qualified to comment on that part.[/quote]

This is tough. However, at least in Edina we have some guidelines that may help some players and have the coaches thinking about their decisions- this is not the case with most associations. Having lived through this in the past... Tryouts/drafts are not perfect- sometimes it is blatent. But most kids know where they belong and who should be with them- it is harder on the parents- and even harder for us when everyone keeps rehashing it. Get the kids playing and have fun. With so many 2nd yrs maybe the A2's will come out stronger! I know my player prefers to be with same age kids- maybe that was part of the logic? Good luck to your player and team!