When Hermantown goes AA?

[rainier]

This was brought up on another thread, but I thought it might be a good one on its own.

When Hermantown opts up, which it appears will happen before too long, what do you speculate will happen to Hermantown and the Duluth area HS hockey landscape?

Some questions:

Will Hermantown go "full AA" and allow unlimited transfers and actively seek out players from nearby youth associations? Will they take in all comers?

Will their being in AA finish off what little loyalty is left in West Duluth for Denfeld?

Will their being a top team in AA cause fewer high end kids to pick Marshall, who is currently an A school?

Will kids from East head up there during the Greyhounds' down years?

Will the relative wealth of Hermantown make it easier for families to "find" jobs and affordable housing in Hermantown? (i.e. Will rich boosters pave the way for this?)

When Plante retires, is there a more attractive head coaching job in MN HS hockey? Would a former NHLer such as Derek Plante take the reins?

With Hermantown already putting out teams that would be top 10 in AA every year, it seems that opening the floodgates to surrounding (or even outstate) talent would make them an AA juggernaut.

[TTpuckster]

This was brought up on another thread, but I thought it might be a good one on its own.

When Hermantown opts up, which it appears will happen before too long, what do you speculate will happen to Hermantown and the Duluth area HS hockey landscape?

Some questions:

Will Hermantown go "full AA" and allow unlimited transfers and actively seek out players from nearby youth associations? Will they take in all comers?

Will their being in AA finish off what little loyalty is left in West Duluth for Denfeld?

Will their being a top team in AA cause fewer high end kids to pick Marshall, who is currently an A school?

Will kids from East head up there during the Greyhounds' down years?

Will the relative wealth of Hermantown make it easier for families to "find" jobs and affordable housing in Hermantown? (i.e. Will rich boosters pave the way for this?)

When Plante retires, is there a more attractive head coaching job in MN HS hockey? Would a former NHLer such as Derek Plante take the reins?

With Hermantown already putting out teams that would be top 10 in AA every year, it seems that opening the floodgates to surrounding (or even outstate) talent would make them an AA juggernaut.

Funny rainier.

Way to go out of your way to defend STA.

[BlueLineSpecial]

So the real question is, will Hermantown sell out. Answer: of course!

[rainier]

This was brought up on another thread, but I thought it might be a good one on its own.

When Hermantown opts up, which it appears will happen before too long, what do you speculate will happen to Hermantown and the Duluth area HS hockey landscape?

Some questions:

Will Hermantown go "full AA" and allow unlimited transfers and actively seek out players from nearby youth associations? Will they take in all comers?

Will their being in AA finish off what little loyalty is left in West Duluth for Denfeld?

Will their being a top team in AA cause fewer high end kids to pick Marshall, who is currently an A school?

Will kids from East head up there during the Greyhounds' down years?

Will the relative wealth of Hermantown make it easier for families to "find" jobs and affordable housing in Hermantown? (i.e. Will rich boosters pave the way for this?)

When Plante retires, is there a more attractive head coaching job in MN HS hockey? Would a former NHLer such as Derek Plante take the reins?

With Hermantown already putting out teams that would be top 10 in AA every year, it seems that opening the floodgates to surrounding (or even outstate) talent would make them an AA juggernaut.

Funny rainier.

Way to go out of your way to defend STA.

I'm being 100% serious. I want to know people's predictions as to how a Hermantown opt up might change the HS hockey landscape in the Duluth area. It will be interesting to see what happens.

[Deck Slide]

This was brought up on another thread, but I thought it might be a good one on its own.

When Hermantown opts up, which it appears will happen before too long, what do you speculate will happen to Hermantown and the Duluth area HS hockey landscape?

Some questions:

Will Hermantown go "full AA" and allow unlimited transfers and actively seek out players from nearby youth associations? Will they take in all comers?

Will their being in AA finish off what little loyalty is left in West Duluth for Denfeld?

Will their being a top team in AA cause fewer high end kids to pick Marshall, who is currently an A school?

Will kids from East head up there during the Greyhounds' down years?

Will the relative wealth of Hermantown make it easier for families to "find" jobs and affordable housing in Hermantown? (i.e. Will rich boosters pave the way for this?)

When Plante retires, is there a more attractive head coaching job in MN HS hockey? Would a former NHLer such as Derek Plante take the reins?

With Hermantown already putting out teams that would be top 10 in AA every year, it seems that opening the floodgates to surrounding (or even outstate) talent would make them an AA juggernaut.

Funny rainier.

Way to go out of your way to defend STA.

I'm being 100% serious. I want to know people's predictions as to how a Hermantown opt up might change the HS hockey landscape in the Duluth area. It will be interesting to see what happens.

Hermantown will not opt up in the foreseeable future. Not Until their enrollment levels warrant it. I am not seeing them winning 3 Class A titles in a row. And even if they did they are a Class A program. Roseau opted up but they don't have much now or anything coming up that is going to compete with the big boys in the MSP area.

[almostashappy]

This was brought up on another thread, but I thought it might be a good one on its own.

When Hermantown opts up, which it appears will happen before too long, what do you speculate will happen to Hermantown and the Duluth area HS hockey landscape?

Some questions:

Will Hermantown go "full AA" and allow unlimited transfers and actively seek out players from nearby youth associations? Will they take in all comers?

Will their being in AA finish off what little loyalty is left in West Duluth for Denfeld?

Will their being a top team in AA cause fewer high end kids to pick Marshall, who is currently an A school?

Will kids from East head up there during the Greyhounds' down years?

Will the relative wealth of Hermantown make it easier for families to "find" jobs and affordable housing in Hermantown? (i.e. Will rich boosters pave the way for this?)

When Plante retires, is there a more attractive head coaching job in MN HS hockey? Would a former NHLer such as Derek Plante take the reins?

With Hermantown already putting out teams that would be top 10 in AA every year, it seems that opening the floodgates to surrounding (or even outstate) talent would make them an AA juggernaut.

Funny rainier.

Way to go out of your way to defend STA.

I'm being 100% serious. I want to know people's predictions as to how a Hermantown opt up might change the HS hockey landscape in the Duluth area. It will be interesting to see what happens.

If you are trying to be 100% serious, then:

1) You shouldn't imply that the only way to go "full AA" is to actively recruit from neighboring associations (and correlatively imply that there isn't any recruiting at A level);

2) You should note that whether a specific AA high school is at capacity and closed to open-enrollment transfers is beyond the control of that school's athletic programs; and,

3) You should define what it means to be "open to all transfers." Are you slamming any coach who allows kids who are legal transfers or 9th-grade open enrollees to try out for their teams? Or only those who turn a blind eye to those that might be less-than-legal if they bothered to look?

[rainier]

Funny rainier.

Way to go out of your way to defend STA.

I'm being 100% serious. I want to know people's predictions as to how a Hermantown opt up might change the HS hockey landscape in the Duluth area. It will be interesting to see what happens.

If you are trying to be 100% serious, then:

1) You shouldn't imply that the only way to go "full AA" is to actively recruit from neighboring associations (and correlatively imply that there isn't any recruiting at A level);

2) You should note that whether a specific AA high school is at capacity and closed to open-enrollment transfers is beyond the control of that school's athletic programs; and,

3) You should define what it means to be "open to all transfers." Are you slamming any coach who allows kids who are legal transfers or 9th-grade open enrollees to try out for their teams? Or only those who turn a blind eye to those that might be less-than-legal if they bothered to look?

Just wondering how a Hermantown opt-up might change the HS hockey landscape in the Duluth area and offering up what I think some possible outcomes are. No need to read into it anymore than that.

[BlueLineSpecial]

I'm being 100% serious. I want to know people's predictions as to how a Hermantown opt up might change the HS hockey landscape in the Duluth area. It will be interesting to see what happens.

If you are trying to be 100% serious, then:

1) You shouldn't imply that the only way to go "full AA" is to actively recruit from neighboring associations (and correlatively imply that there isn't any recruiting at A level);

2) You should note that whether a specific AA high school is at capacity and closed to open-enrollment transfers is beyond the control of that school's athletic programs; and,

3) You should define what it means to be "open to all transfers." Are you slamming any coach who allows kids who are legal transfers or 9th-grade open enrollees to try out for their teams? Or only those who turn a blind eye to those that might be less-than-legal if they bothered to look?

Just wondering how a Hermantown opt-up might change the HS hockey landscape in the Duluth area and offering up what I think some possible outcomes are. No need to read into it anymore than that.

The fact that this particular topic is proliferating from the private school trash talk thread makes me question its validity. But I'll bite anyway

Hermantown, if they go AA in the near future, will inevitably accept players from other associations when done by the letter of the law. Why wouldn't they? Their coach's stand over the last few years is admirable and I don't mind them taking on the 'David' role. But reality will settle in and once you're at the top you'll do what is necessary to stay there.

Their coach was spot on when he said that 80+ programs are essentially creating 30 powerhouses. This is just what happens in sports on any level. Pretty sure it happens in basketball, football, wrestling, and frankly in academics in general. Good programs for anything naturally attract others and this will happen with Hermantown as the pressure to be consistently good settles in. It'll probably affect other Duluth schools temporarily but there's an ebb and flow to all of this. Hermantown will have their time in the sun, until another school snatches up a top-end coach or builds a new facility or demographics change or yada yada yada

[BP]

I don't see them moving up. STA, Benilde, and Hill will be in AA and all he'll do is complain about them being AA and that they should be AAA. At least he will only have 1 Metro A team to beat now.