Re: Minnesota Girls High School Hockey III
Ideas from hselitehockey.com website on the Girls State Tournament.
I'm trying to take idea #7 to heart, but I have trouble letting it go. The tournament at Ridder would be very cool.
http://www.hselitehockey.com/news_article/show/357672?referrer_id=44823
Girls Hockey Needs Help From Within
03/07/2014, 12:45pm CST
By Jon Holmes
I had the pleasure this year of working with the Minnesota Girls Hockey Coaches Association, MGHCA, and the Minnesota State High School League, MSHSL, for the Girls State Hockey Tournament. My duties allowed for me to be present for both the AA and A games hosted at the Xcel Energy Center and Ridder Arena. In doing so this year, along with having been at most every boy’s and girl’s high school tournament over the past few decades, I have been able to observe and hopefully put forth some suggestions and a couple challenges to the girls hockey community.
In hopes of getting the MGHCA, MSHSL and MN Hockey into a more collaborative role we can try the following:
1-Place a higher value on the Girls’ State Hockey Tourney by eliminating competition for attendance. The State High School Tournament is the highlight of many top tier players’ careers. Even NHL players that have been to the Stanley Cup and the NCAA Frozen Four, rank the MN Boys’ State Tournament with their top hockey experiences. Currently, youth girls hockey district and region tournaments are held the same week as the girls’ state tournament. This effectively decreases the very population of people who would be most interested in attending the State Tournament, most especially younger girls who we want to aspire to it. Conversely, it prevents high school coaches who, after finishing the HS season, would like to support their Youth Hockey communities from attending some of their end of season games. We should fix this.
2-The X has over 60 suites. We can ask suite holders and area businesses to donate, or at the very least, make available the entire suite level for Minnesota Hockey and all its youth hockey associations to use or rent out during the tournament. Imagine the buzz of young hockey players packing the joint full, cheering and hobnobbing with each other in the most coveted level at the X. I would expect that more than a few of these energized spectators would love to come back on another day/night, even in regular seats. It would give the atmosphere a much-needed boost and it would surely create endless stories for the girls to brag about to friends and family.
3-High School Programs – Get your players to go and watch as a team. Offer it up as one last team event for the year. Get your captains to lead the charge and possibly go out to eat at Cossettas or any of the fine venues on West 7th and around the X. I guarantee it would be a tradition worth starting if your team hasn’t already! Use the buying of the state tickets early in November as incentive for your players to get to the X as a team and earn the ability to give away those tickets to their youth mentee groups once they make it there.
4-Parents – You’ve put in thousands of miles, and thousands of hours running your girls to hockey activities. The State High School Tournament is fun and exciting for students and adults alike. Give your daughter another glimpse of “the dream,” and enjoy watching her sport at its top level. Think of how cool it would be to have the X vibrantly crammed with youth girls when your young player today gets to play at the X in her own State Tourney.
5-Restaurants around the X – Run a special or two for those wearing a youth jersey. You will certainly get a few more willing parents to go out for a bite. Not to mention the ones that are less than willing will be badgered and pestered by their daughter and her friends that want the VIP status at your establishment!
6-Refrain from comparison’s to the Boys State Hockey Tournament. The Boy’s tournament has been around a lot longer and their success has come through similar ventures years ago. The only thing we should be looking to that tournament for is inspiration. Let’s concentrate on promoting from within our own ranks first, get the girls to support the girls! Who knows what will happen once we make that step.
7-Axe the “change the venue argument.” It’s exceedingly implausible that the venue of the Girls’ State Hockey Tournament will change, for a host of reasons, legal and otherwise. So, let’s embrace the venue rather than bring it down every year. The X is a top-notch setting for any event, even practicing there is amazing. Watching a game, with or without a big crowd is also an intense experience. The acoustics in the X rival that of a concert hall. You can be up in the press area, practically touching the ceiling, and hear a coach give their player the business after a missed assignment. A tiny 15-piece band can fill the place with sound and a whopping 130 one can blow you out of your seat! State-of-the-art sound panels serve to increase so many aspects of the fan’s pleasure. The same can’t be said for other rinks that are not built with the same level of technology in more ways than just sound.
Ideas from hselitehockey.com website on the Girls State Tournament.
I'm trying to take idea #7 to heart, but I have trouble letting it go. The tournament at Ridder would be very cool.
http://www.hselitehockey.com/news_article/show/357672?referrer_id=44823
Girls Hockey Needs Help From Within
03/07/2014, 12:45pm CST
By Jon Holmes
I had the pleasure this year of working with the Minnesota Girls Hockey Coaches Association, MGHCA, and the Minnesota State High School League, MSHSL, for the Girls State Hockey Tournament. My duties allowed for me to be present for both the AA and A games hosted at the Xcel Energy Center and Ridder Arena. In doing so this year, along with having been at most every boy’s and girl’s high school tournament over the past few decades, I have been able to observe and hopefully put forth some suggestions and a couple challenges to the girls hockey community.
In hopes of getting the MGHCA, MSHSL and MN Hockey into a more collaborative role we can try the following:
1-Place a higher value on the Girls’ State Hockey Tourney by eliminating competition for attendance. The State High School Tournament is the highlight of many top tier players’ careers. Even NHL players that have been to the Stanley Cup and the NCAA Frozen Four, rank the MN Boys’ State Tournament with their top hockey experiences. Currently, youth girls hockey district and region tournaments are held the same week as the girls’ state tournament. This effectively decreases the very population of people who would be most interested in attending the State Tournament, most especially younger girls who we want to aspire to it. Conversely, it prevents high school coaches who, after finishing the HS season, would like to support their Youth Hockey communities from attending some of their end of season games. We should fix this.
2-The X has over 60 suites. We can ask suite holders and area businesses to donate, or at the very least, make available the entire suite level for Minnesota Hockey and all its youth hockey associations to use or rent out during the tournament. Imagine the buzz of young hockey players packing the joint full, cheering and hobnobbing with each other in the most coveted level at the X. I would expect that more than a few of these energized spectators would love to come back on another day/night, even in regular seats. It would give the atmosphere a much-needed boost and it would surely create endless stories for the girls to brag about to friends and family.
3-High School Programs – Get your players to go and watch as a team. Offer it up as one last team event for the year. Get your captains to lead the charge and possibly go out to eat at Cossettas or any of the fine venues on West 7th and around the X. I guarantee it would be a tradition worth starting if your team hasn’t already! Use the buying of the state tickets early in November as incentive for your players to get to the X as a team and earn the ability to give away those tickets to their youth mentee groups once they make it there.
4-Parents – You’ve put in thousands of miles, and thousands of hours running your girls to hockey activities. The State High School Tournament is fun and exciting for students and adults alike. Give your daughter another glimpse of “the dream,” and enjoy watching her sport at its top level. Think of how cool it would be to have the X vibrantly crammed with youth girls when your young player today gets to play at the X in her own State Tourney.
5-Restaurants around the X – Run a special or two for those wearing a youth jersey. You will certainly get a few more willing parents to go out for a bite. Not to mention the ones that are less than willing will be badgered and pestered by their daughter and her friends that want the VIP status at your establishment!
6-Refrain from comparison’s to the Boys State Hockey Tournament. The Boy’s tournament has been around a lot longer and their success has come through similar ventures years ago. The only thing we should be looking to that tournament for is inspiration. Let’s concentrate on promoting from within our own ranks first, get the girls to support the girls! Who knows what will happen once we make that step.
7-Axe the “change the venue argument.” It’s exceedingly implausible that the venue of the Girls’ State Hockey Tournament will change, for a host of reasons, legal and otherwise. So, let’s embrace the venue rather than bring it down every year. The X is a top-notch setting for any event, even practicing there is amazing. Watching a game, with or without a big crowd is also an intense experience. The acoustics in the X rival that of a concert hall. You can be up in the press area, practically touching the ceiling, and hear a coach give their player the business after a missed assignment. A tiny 15-piece band can fill the place with sound and a whopping 130 one can blow you out of your seat! State-of-the-art sound panels serve to increase so many aspects of the fan’s pleasure. The same can’t be said for other rinks that are not built with the same level of technology in more ways than just sound.
