NAPHA prep schools?

[BTW67]

Does anyone have any info/opinions on the NAPHA prep schools (US)? What’s the level of play like? Do players also tend to play on club teams like they do in New England, and if not, is that a disadvantage from a recruiting perspective? How are the academics?

Thanks!

[Hux]

Re: NAPHA prep schools?

Does anyone have any info/opinions on the NAPHA prep schools (US)? What’s the level of play like? Do players also tend to play on club teams like they do in New England, and if not, is that a disadvantage from a recruiting perspective? How are the academics?

Thanks!

Prior to the inception of the JWHL, NAHA Red and NSA were part of the league, along with Northwood in Lake Placid, Nichols in Buffalo, Gilmour in Ohio, and some Preps in the Toronto area. I know that some of the girls who played for Ridley College (Toronto Prep) also played club for PWHL teams, and I've seen Nichols girls on rosters for the New York club teams.

I'd say the level of play is equivalent to Midget AA. The schools are all well regarded.

[notfromaroundhere]

Re: NAPHA prep schools?

Does anyone have any info/opinions on the NAPHA prep schools (US)? What’s the level of play like? Do players also tend to play on club teams like they do in New England, and if not, is that a disadvantage from a recruiting perspective? How are the academics?

Thanks!

I believe that Gilmour also competes in Mid-Am distict (the past 2 years), but has yet to knock off the Ohio Flames to get to nationals.

And I may be wrong, but don't a few of the Nichols girls play club hockey in NY as well?

Point here being that playing in the league (on the US side) doesn't preclude club play.

Agree with Hux as to the level of play.

[G-unit]

Re: NAPHA prep schools?

I haven't seen too many NAPHA games yet, but I did see a few PWHL teams & U19 (US)teams play at the stoney creek showcase tourney. Ridley College beat Honeybaked, Etobicoke, and Nepean then lost to the aeros and Belle Tire. RC just tied Appleby last week..not sure about the rest of the NAPHA teams but Appleby & Ridley look stronger than Midget AA. J Saulnier plays with Appleby..midgetAA??

[LG4]

Re: NAPHA prep schools?

I haven't seen too many NAPHA games yet, but I did see a few PWHL teams & U19 (US)teams play at the stoney creek showcase tourney. Ridley College beat Honeybaked, Etobicoke, and Nepean then lost to the aeros and Belle Tire. RC just tied Appleby last week..not sure about the rest of the NAPHA teams but Appleby & Ridley look stronger than Midget AA. J Saulnier plays with Appleby..midgetAA??

Like JWHL there is quite a range of caliber. Lower teams in jwhl are no better the midget aa caliber either. I think some NAPHA teams would compete ok vs us preps too. It's school with a little more hockey then most preps . Good US prep players play elesewhere as do the gd NAPHA players.

[Trillium]

Re: NAPHA prep schools?

I haven't seen too many NAPHA games yet, but I did see a few PWHL teams & U19 (US)teams play at the stoney creek showcase tourney. Ridley College beat Honeybaked, Etobicoke, and Nepean then lost to the aeros and Belle Tire. RC just tied Appleby last week..not sure about the rest of the NAPHA teams but Appleby & Ridley look stronger than Midget AA. J Saulnier plays with Appleby..midgetAA??

Ridley girls are not allowed to play club hockey unless their club team allows them to put Ridley obligations first. Since no top-end PWHL team would buy into that, the more talented girls wishing to play top-level hockey don't play there anymore. Jenner used to go to Ridley several years ago but moved to Appleby for that reason.

A handful of Appleby girls do play club hockey in the PWHL, including Saulnier as noted, but most do not. In the past Appleby was very accommodating of the PWHL commitments. Unfortunately Margot Page, the exiled ex-Niagara coach was hired by Appleby this season, and apparently has visions of a Ridley-type model, so expect that talented players there will no doubt wish to consider other options in future.

Having seen the Canadian prep school teams in action, they would at best be at a mid-range Midget AA level. They would actually not fare very well versus top-ranked Midget AA (U16) teams, although they may be able to beat bottom-end Intermediate AA (U19) teams. The reason is the broad range of talent level within the prep team vs clubs. Top end U19 players combine with many players who are BB/B and even at times house-league calibre.

In Ontario, if you want to play the best hockey, that's the PWHL (U19). Those wishing to move into the area to play high-end hockey tend to attend/board at other prep schools which do not compete in NAPHA (there are several of these), with a less intense prep schedule and fewer game conflicts, or else billet with local families and attend/play at public schools too.

[Really Old Coach]

Re: NAPHA prep schools?

Sorry about the bump on this thread. I have been meaning to reply for a few weeks now.

Having seen quite a few NAPHA league games over the past few years I would like to comment on the league and the level of play.

First, going through University and College rosters, there are currently 60 former NAPHA players on NCAA D1 (20), NCAA D3 (30) and CIS (10) rosters. Is the league a good alternative to other hockey options? Seems that it is if players have university hockey as a goal.

I would concur that there is a larger gap between the best players and the bottom of the roster on most prep school teams than on most club teams. But, I would find it unlikely that there are many house league players on any of the established NAPHA rosters (Ridley College, Trinity College School, Appleby College, Nichols School, Gilmour Academy, Wyoming Seminary and Northwood School). I don't know Kuper Academy, Rothesay Netherwood School or Stanstead College well enough to comment on their rosters. However, the best players in the league could easily play in the PWHL or ANY other prep program (hockey academy or New England Prep).

I think it's difficult to compare any elite teams whether they be club teams, prep teams or hockey academies. There is a very large gap between the top Midget (16U) teams and the bottom teams. There is a very large gap between the top PWHL (19U) teams and the bottom teams. There is a large gap between the top prep teams and the bottom teams. NAPHA teams being Mid-range Midget AA at best? I would agree with Hux that they are Midget AA but, I would argue that they are very good Midget AA teams. Ridley and Trinity usually play some Midget AA teams in exhibition play. They will usually be about .500 in those games but, they are generally played in mid November when the NAPHA teams are just getting started and the Midget AA teams are into their 30th to 40th games of the season.

A few years ago, a knowledgable hockey man who knows both NAPHA and the PWHL well suggested that the top half of the NAPHA prep teams would be middle of the pack PWHL teams. Not sure how accurate that would be but I thought it was an interesting comment.

All schools are highly respected academically. In particular, the Canadian prep schools in NAPHA are some of the very best schools in Canada sending students to the best universities around the world.

All NAPHA teams have different levels of commitment for their players. Some schools insist that there student-athletes are only engaged in school sports while some allow players to play outside hockey. At the end of the day, it is extremely difficult to juggle a club schedule (PWHL or Midget) with a school hockey schedule AND a rigorous academic program. Most schools will try to provide a 40-50 game season to make the schedule meaningful. Typically, hockey players a key members of school teams in other sports outside of hockey season. Many student-athletes relish the opportunity to play other sports at a high level.

A few notables that have come through or are playing in the league: Brianne Jenner (CDN U22 - Cornell fall 2010), Jillian Saulnier (Appleby College class of 2011 (?)), Blake Bolden (Boston College), Alyssa Clarke (Yale University), Celeste Doucet (UVM), Alena Polenska (Brown Unversity), Pam Zgoda and Kelley Steadman (Mercyhurst), Jacquie Greco and Kelsey Welch (Syracuse).