College hockey plans & current competition level

[brrian]

Hope it's okay to ask this here - this seems like a great place to get opinions & advice on this subject.

My daughter is a top player on a U16 Tier 2 girls travel team. Her goal is to play college hockey, most likely at the D3 level but not ruling out D1 depending on how she develops.

She's skilled enough to play Tier 1, and that's currently her goal for next season. We know that there will only be a few roster spots open though, so it's possible that she won't make it. Also, depending on what we learn over the coming months, we could decide to stay at Tier 2.

My question is, does being on a Tier 2 team greatly reduce her chances of being recruited? Is there a benefit to being a top player on a Tier 2 team instead of seeing limited playing time on a Tier 1 team? I don't know that she'd get limited time, but know that it's possible. If she stays at Tier 2 she'd get lots of minutes, power play time, possibly captaincy.

For what it's worth - her grades are great, she's a competitor, very coachable, selfless, and passionate about the game, no matter where she plays.

Any input would be appreciated. Thank you!

[claw]

Re: College hockey plans & current competition level

Hope it's okay to ask this here - this seems like a great place to get opinions & advice on this subject.

My daughter is a top player on a U16 Tier 2 girls travel team. Her goal is to play college hockey, most likely at the D3 level but not ruling out D1 depending on how she develops.

She's skilled enough to play Tier 1, and that's currently her goal for next season. We know that there will only be a few roster spots open though, so it's possible that she won't make it. Also, depending on what we learn over the coming months, we could decide to stay at Tier 2.

My question is, does being on a Tier 2 team greatly reduce her chances of being recruited? Is there a benefit to being a top player on a Tier 2 team instead of seeing limited playing time on a Tier 1 team? I don't know that she'd get limited time, but know that it's possible. If she stays at Tier 2 she'd get lots of minutes, power play time, possibly captaincy.

For what it's worth - her grades are great, she's a competitor, very coachable, selfless, and passionate about the game, no matter where she plays.

Any input would be appreciated. Thank you!

She'd probably be smart to try to get into a couple of the summer events...the Easton North American Showcase, NAHA, Beantown, Rinksport, etc...but Tier 2 doesn't necessarily mean she won't get looked at, even by D1 schools.

Hannah Hoenshell has been one of Penn States top offensive players since they started their program, and she was a Tier 2 player. Micaela Ross (formerly of Brown), Hayley Breedlove (UNH) and Carrie Atkinson (Lindenwood) also ended up at D1 schools from that same Tier 2 team, while several other players went on to play at D3 schools.

Im sure across the board there are fewer instances of T2 kids making an impact at D1, but it can certainly happen. Same at D3....most of your kids will have been T1 players, but often they were not the top T1 players on their respective teams as those kids ended up at D1. But there are still a lot of really good players who had T2 backgrounds, HS backgrounds, etc.

Being recruited when you're not a superstar is all about making sure you are putting yourself out there and doing some of the leg work yourself to help make sure the coaches know who you are. If you're willing to do that, then at the end of the day it doesn't really matter where you play...if you're good enough an opportunity will come your way.

[PuckRush]

Re: College hockey plans & current competition level

Hope it's okay to ask this here - this seems like a great place to get opinions & advice on this subject.

My daughter is a top player on a U16 Tier 2 girls travel team. Her goal is to play college hockey, most likely at the D3 level but not ruling out D1 depending on how she develops.

She's skilled enough to play Tier 1, and that's currently her goal for next season. We know that there will only be a few roster spots open though, so it's possible that she won't make it. Also, depending on what we learn over the coming months, we could decide to stay at Tier 2.

My question is, does being on a Tier 2 team greatly reduce her chances of being recruited? Is there a benefit to being a top player on a Tier 2 team instead of seeing limited playing time on a Tier 1 team? I don't know that she'd get limited time, but know that it's possible. If she stays at Tier 2 she'd get lots of minutes, power play time, possibly captaincy.

For what it's worth - her grades are great, she's a competitor, very coachable, selfless, and passionate about the game, no matter where she plays.

Any input would be appreciated. Thank you!

D1 college hockey is very competitive. Your daughter is competing for spots against girls from the US, Canada and Europe. Generally speaking, it's the best players on Tier 1 travel teams that will be recruited to play D1... meaning, it's just a minority of Tier 1 players who go on to play D1 college hockey. The remainder of these Tier 1 players end up playing very competitive hockey at the D3 level, play D1/D3 in other sports (after all... these are all great athletes), or even competitive and fun Club Hockey.

To answer your question directly and frankly, playing Tier 2 Travel essentially eliminates her from D1 contention. It also significantly reduces the chance of D3 hockey, although that goal is within reach if she can be one of the top players at Tier 2 or can jump up to Tier 1. The key if she stays at Tier 2 is going to be that you will need to do hard work writing to coaches and getting them to see her.

My question... where is she playing during the week? If she wants to improve in hockey, it's about who she practices with and against the other 5 days a week.

[Hockeygirlzmom]

Re: College hockey plans & current competition level

I am by no means an expert on college recruiting but I am a parent of a former Tier 2 player who naively thought that if she was talented enough the colleges would find her. The reality of our situation was she was a talented player on a couple of okay Tier 2 teams whose prospects were limited to mostly club teams who spotted her at Tier 2 Nationals. It pains me to be negative but the reality is colleges don't have to spend time looking for that diamond in the rough because there is so much talent at the top tier. So what worked for us was moving our daughter to a Tier 1 team on the East coast and the real key was college showcases which is where she was scouted. She is now preparing to commit to a good Div. 1 school. For our daughter to achieve her goals the move paid off.

[Trillium]

I'm not clear what grade your daughter is in. But if she is u16 she still has time. I have been through the process with my own kids and many of their teammates who ended up mostly in D1 programs.

One of the biggest mistakes I have seen over the years is people being in too big a rush to play at the top level. In the process, they end up sacrificing their long term development. If you are not getting tons of playing time with experience in all situations (PK and PP), you are not developing as you should. Without this, players also tend to lose confidence, which is also critical to playing to potential. Sometimes in a rush to get to the top level, players also tend to go to weak teams where the team struggles to get the puck out of their own zone, also limiting their playing experience.

My advice would be to have patience, and a long term plan. Aim to get to a top team at the top level by Grade 12 (and ideally Gr 11 if possible For D1). In the meantime, find top teams at whatever level will translate to getting lots of playing time and leadership opportunity where you will be an impact player and still be challenged. Participate in the out of season tourneys/camps as well to get noticed and to benchmark your progress, and be proactive in contacting schools.

It's important above all that hockey remains a positive experience. If it leads to better educational experience, so much the better.

Good luck!

[brrian]

Re: College hockey plans & current competition level

Thank you all - this is all great feedback! Answering some of the questions that were asked:

She's a sophomore, 15 years old. They also play in a regional Tier 2 league, but at the U19 level. She also spends a few hours a week on the ice with a private trainer.

I've been told that we should be contacting coaches this year to get her on their radar, & generally preparing for the recruiting process. I'm not going to wait & hope they come to us - she'll do her part with her grades and play, and I'll get a profile together so when the time is right to start reaching out, everything is in place.

We just came back from a tournament in Detroit where she (and her team) played well against mostly Canadaian U17 teams. We went and watched our Tier 1 team play against one of the top U16 teams in the nation. We both immediately noticed the difference in skill and competition level - it was faster and there were no weak players. I thought it might intimidate her, but her response was "I belong here - I can hang with these guys". Awesome.

We're realistic - I know what she's competing against at the D1 level (top Tier 1, Canadian, European), plus my understanding is that D1 hockey is pretty demanding & it would be tougher to balance hockey & education. We think for those reasons D3 might be a better fit, but we certainly won't limit ourselves.

So, generally, the consensus seems to be:

• D1 is very tough or maybe even out of reach if she stays in Tier 2
• D3 via Tier 2 is possible as long as we're contacting coaches & getting the word out about her
• we have time - no harm in being proactive but her junior year is when we really need to get this going

Again, thank you all for your responses. It's extremely helpful to get advice from people who understand or have been through this process, and I may have more questions in the future...

[PuckRush]

Re: College hockey plans & current competition level

Thank you all - this is all great feedback! Answering some of the questions that were asked:

She's a sophomore, 15 years old. They also play in a regional Tier 2 league, but at the U19 level. She also spends a few hours a week on the ice with a private trainer.

I've been told that we should be contacting coaches this year to get her on their radar, & generally preparing for the recruiting process. I'm not going to wait & hope they come to us - she'll do her part with her grades and play, and I'll get a profile together so when the time is right to start reaching out, everything is in place.

We just came back from a tournament in Detroit where she (and her team) played well against mostly Canadaian U17 teams. We went and watched our Tier 1 team play against one of the top U16 teams in the nation. We both immediately noticed the difference in skill and competition level - it was faster and there were no weak players. I thought it might intimidate her, but her response was "I belong here - I can hang with these guys". Awesome.

We're realistic - I know what she's competing against at the D1 level (top Tier 1, Canadian, European), plus my understanding is that D1 hockey is pretty demanding & it would be tougher to balance hockey & education. We think for those reasons D3 might be a better fit, but we certainly won't limit ourselves.

So, generally, the consensus seems to be:

• D1 is very tough or maybe even out of reach if she stays in Tier 2
• D3 via Tier 2 is possible as long as we're contacting coaches & getting the word out about her
• we have time - no harm in being proactive but her junior year is when we really need to get this going

Again, thank you all for your responses. It's extremely helpful to get advice from people who understand or have been through this process, and I may have more questions in the future...

One more thought... if she has great grades and great SAT/ACT scores, there are some pretty darn good D3 schools that become part of the equation. Go look up NESCAC... some of the top academic schools in the country are in that conference.

[HockeyEast33]

Re: College hockey plans & current competition level

Thank you all - this is all great feedback! Answering some of the questions that were asked:

She's a sophomore, 15 years old. They also play in a regional Tier 2 league, but at the U19 level. She also spends a few hours a week on the ice with a private trainer.

I've been told that we should be contacting coaches this year to get her on their radar, & generally preparing for the recruiting process. I'm not going to wait & hope they come to us - she'll do her part with her grades and play, and I'll get a profile together so when the time is right to start reaching out, everything is in place.

We just came back from a tournament in Detroit where she (and her team) played well against mostly Canadaian U17 teams. We went and watched our Tier 1 team play against one of the top U16 teams in the nation. We both immediately noticed the difference in skill and competition level - it was faster and there were no weak players. I thought it might intimidate her, but her response was "I belong here - I can hang with these guys". Awesome.

We're realistic - I know what she's competing against at the D1 level (top Tier 1, Canadian, European), plus my understanding is that D1 hockey is pretty demanding & it would be tougher to balance hockey & education. We think for those reasons D3 might be a better fit, but we certainly won't limit ourselves.

So, generally, the consensus seems to be:

• D1 is very tough or maybe even out of reach if she stays in Tier 2
• D3 via Tier 2 is possible as long as we're contacting coaches & getting the word out about her
• we have time - no harm in being proactive but her junior year is when we really need to get this going

Again, thank you all for your responses. It's extremely helpful to get advice from people who understand or have been through this process, and I may have more questions in the future...

If you even think she might be a D1 player, Junior year is generally too late to start the recruiting process - needs to start sophomore season - which is now for you. As you can see from the commitment threads, 80%+ of D1 spots are done and committed by December of Junior year and the commitments after that are teams filling in holes left by kids they didn't get - you have no control of the process and have to take what is offered as it comes - you are at the mercy of the all the kids that came before you. Because D1 recruiting has moved so much earlier, D3 recruiting is now moving much earlier. The NESCAC schools (sounds like your daughter may have an interest in them) have finalized their recruiting lists by summer between Junior and Senior year (they will have X+2 or 3 for X spots because a couple of kids on their list will end up filling those last D1 spots). All of the committed recruits will be required to apply Early Action in the fall of senior year because this is when coaches can exert influence. Given all of this, the absolute latest you should start for D3 is summer between sophomore and junior year - but even by then the D3 coaches have a list of 30 or so players that they are focused on - so getting visibility in sophomore year is even better. Short version - start now even for D3. My two cents...

[Rightnut]

Re: College hockey plans & current competition level

Another indicator is whether she has attended a National Development Camp? While certainly a flawed selection process, if she has attended one it gives you a ballpark as to where she fits in.

Along these lines, is anyone aware of whether there are any statistics on what percentage of D1 players in any given recruiting year have attended a NDC? It would seem to me that would be an important statistic in terms of determining whether the NDC and/or the selection process is effective.

[HockeyEast33]

Re: College hockey plans & current competition level

Another indicator is whether she has attended a National Development Camp? While certainly a flawed selection process, if she has attended one it gives you a ballpark as to where she fits in.

Along these lines, is anyone aware of whether there are any statistics on what percentage of D1 players in any given recruiting year have attended a NDC? It would seem to me that would be an important statistic in terms of determining whether the NDC and/or the selection process is effective.

I believe there are some statistics offered in other threads. But this is really a nebulous measure (and you really need to disregard the 14/15 age group because there are many attendees who don't play D1 hockey and not every district goes). I think if you look back over time, you will see that each district has a trend. For instance, in MN pretty much all of the 16 and 17 year old NDC players are D1 recruits/players - you rarely (if ever) see a D3 player out of that group. In MA, many of the 16 and 17 years olds end up at D1 schools, but there definitely is a small but noticeable and consistent percentage that end up at D3 schools. Compare this to say the Mid-Atlantic district where a significant number of the 16/17 attendees end up playing D3 hockey. Similarly, there are a large number of D1 players from MN that NEVER attend a NDC while there are a few from MA that don't - you never see a D1 player from ay Colorado who didn't go to the NDC as a 16/17 year old. The NDC has as a partial mission the spreading of hockey to the entire country and as a result a lot of the "non-core" district players end up at D3 level. So it's not really a great barometer in my opinion.