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Polar Bear Tournament.........What Happened?

Re: Polar Bear Tournament.........What Happened?

ref11 said:
Agree with UCONN Fan post - Fitz deserves credit for starting this tournament going. It has benefited 1000's of young women to get the exposure to prep and college recruiters.

If we (the forum community) were a consultant to Fitz - what would we tell him to improve on the tournament?

Here is a start:

1) Start the tournament a day later - don't make anyone leave on Christmas Day. allow generous time to travel for teams from Midwest, Canada and West Coast etc

2) Every team plays 4 games (excluding playoffs)

3) Older teams play 15 minute periods

4) Make seeding random and geographic in initial pairings to the best extend possible - A team doesn't want to see their crosstown or cross state rival in the preliminary round. The team from Madison wants to play the team from California, Texas versus Massachusetts, Philly v Chicago.

5) Stop charging $20 to watch your Daughter play for 3 days - my #1 pet peeve. This fall into the "adding insult to injury" category.

I'm sure there are more.

If Fitz were to make the changes suggested above (and other added by this community), the tournament could regain its past glory.
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Little chance of regaining it's position as other tournaments have taken the time slot (Wizards tourney for U16/U19 this year) and lots of negative feelings (obviously from this thread!) about the tourney/organizer. Classic case of milking/abusing (over charge/bad schedule/etc.) a competitive advantage and losing that advantage as a result.
 
Re: Polar Bear Tournament.........What Happened?

Call It said:
Everything in the quote above sounds good BUT the 30k.

Who would want to go to a tournament right after Christmas anyway?
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Wow, things have changed. For 12 years, we left either Christmas night or the day after Christmas to go to CT. Sorta became a tradition
 
Re: Polar Bear Tournament.........What Happened?

HockeyEast33 said:
Little chance of regaining it's position as other tournaments have taken the time slot (Wizards tourney for U16/U19 this year) and lots of negative feelings (obviously from this thread!) about the tourney/organizer. Classic case of milking/abusing (over charge/bad schedule/etc.) a competitive advantage and losing that advantage as a result.
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Fitzy and the PBears just way to pompus and comfortable to change...and in the end the event will wither and die...Too bad because 10 years ago it was decent...well, maybe it was never really decent, it just didn't sukk as much.

I always especially loved when they would have the PBears play your team an our or so after you just played your hardest opponent, and it was their first game of the day....Unfortunately for the PBears, when you only play 12 min periods, they couldn't manage to beat you even with that scheduling advantage.:D
 
Re: Polar Bear Tournament.........What Happened?

I'm not sure how old Fitzy is but I can the Polar Bears disbanding in a couple of years. This program will not be the cash cow it has been for the last 20+ years. I'm sure Fitzy will give it soon.
 
Re: Polar Bear Tournament.........What Happened?

Well said Crosscheck! I actually saw Fitz call the local police on a coaches wife who had the nerve to enter a rink without a pass, of course her husband had the ticket and she was let off with just a scolding. I always asked for a recipt for my $60 gate donation,(my wife & son liked to try and sneek in). They could never come up with the Tax ID though.

It was always a joke up there. So Glad I didn't have to attend that mess this year, and I'll never be back!!
 
Re: Polar Bear Tournament.........What Happened?

ref11 said:
5) Stop charging $20 to watch your Daughter play for 3 days - my #1 pet peeve. This fall into the "adding insult to injury" category.
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... or coming up with $20 for 1 game so that my mother could see her grand daughter play,,,,,,
 
Re: Polar Bear Tournament.........What Happened?

As a side note, the Polar Bears were the host program for the Tier 1 Nationals last year (which oddly were in the MA district even though they are a NE district program). USA Hockey controls pricing and most of the tournament structure but the Polar Bears executed against the plan (for a piece of the revenue - don't know the details). By numerous accounts of people who were there they did not do a very good job controlling admission or taking payments, including leaving the rink effectively open and free on the last day of the tournament (nobody taking payment!). I have heard unconfirmed rumors that USA Hockey has indicated that they will not be allowed to be a host program again.
 
Re: Polar Bear Tournament.........What Happened?

North East DAD said:
USA hockey charges to get into Nationals??? What a friggen joke that is! Pathetic. Nationals and NDC camp should be free, like they are in Canada.
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Yup. Can't remember the exact amount but in the $20-30 range for the whole tournament, but I seem to remember they have day passes if you only come for one day/game so not quite as bad as Polar Bear tourney. At least the players get in for free.... :).
 
Re: Polar Bear Tournament.........What Happened?

Many have commented on the down fall of this tournament, but for those of us that were fortunate enough to watch our daughters play during the tournaments hey-day (10 years for me), let's not forget what the tournament really provided. Regardless of the length of periods, number of games per day, bracketology or ticket prices, this tournament provided FREEDOM and a FREE get out of jail card to leave the house during the holiday season when unwanted family members, neighbors and others were drinking all my beer and driving me crazy. Plus it allowed us to be with our true family; other hockey families! I think when you view it from this perspective, you would all agree it was one of the greatest shows on earth.
 
Re: Polar Bear Tournament.........What Happened?

Yes, we complained about the scheduling, fees, etc. But I agree with you that it was the only game in town. It provided a unique opportunity for girls from across North America to play other girls that they would not have any chance to otherwise. It was also great to see all ages of girls there. From the 10 year olds all the way to the future olympians, they were there. Sure, there was the politics, the outrageous entry fees. But remember, this was a fund raiser for the Polar Bears so they set the rules. I know many girls (mine included) benefited by being there even if the parents didn't.
 
Re: Polar Bear Tournament.........What Happened?

hockeyfan111 said:
Many have commented on the down fall of this tournament, but for those of us that were fortunate enough to watch our daughters play during the tournaments hey-day (10 years for me), let's not forget what the tournament really provided. Regardless of the length of periods, number of games per day, bracketology or ticket prices, this tournament provided FREEDOM and a FREE get out of jail card to leave the house during the holiday season when unwanted family members, neighbors and others were drinking all my beer and driving me crazy. Plus it allowed us to be with our true family; other hockey families! I think when you view it from this perspective, you would all agree it was one of the greatest shows on earth.
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No way. The Hockey season is long. Back in the day, this was the only show in town. Now a days, families appreciate staying home for the holidays with their true family. Once a good tournament gone awful.
 
Re: Polar Bear Tournament.........What Happened?

I wish our team manager or coach had read these prior to registering for this tournament this year. Only 6 U14 AA teams...yet it took 3 days to play 4 games and then a 4th day for the playdowns. My impression was that the tournament only exists as a money maker for the organizers/organization - $1,500-ish for the registration, $20 per person entrance fee (thankfully, poorly controlled at the rink we played in) and a schedule that maximized the # of nights out-of-town teams had to stay. The tournament was far more local (2 CT, 1 NH, 1 VT, 1 NY and 1 from TX) than we'd been led to believe and the atmosphere and scheduling was pretty bush league. We've had better experiences with house tournaments and I would not recommend any out-of-town teams ruin their Christmas vacations to play in this one.
 
MooseDupont said:
I wish our team manager or coach had read these prior to registering for this tournament this year. Only 6 U14 AA teams...yet it took 3 days to play 4 games and then a 4th day for the playdowns. My impression was that the tournament only exists as a money maker for the organizers/organization - $1,500-ish for the registration, $20 per person entrance fee (thankfully, poorly controlled at the rink we played in) and a schedule that maximized the # of nights out-of-town teams had to stay. The tournament was far more local (2 CT, 1 NH, 1 VT, 1 NY and 1 from TX) than we'd been led to believe and the atmosphere and scheduling was pretty bush league. We've had better experiences with house tournaments and I would not recommend any out-of-town teams ruin their Christmas vacations to play in this one.
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Yup, you hit the nail on the head...just a cash cow. Dropped by another tourney this past weekend which was almost as bad. U19s playing 15 minute periods with NO ice resurfacing during the games. Crap ice to begin with, only made worse by the lack of at least one flood. The Winter Classic will have less snow tomorrow than was on the ice in those games.
 
Re: Polar Bear Tournament.........What Happened?

Top 4 reasons the Polar Bear Tournament has declined (Under 100 teams this year vs over 150 5 years ago)

4. Christmas Vacation at a Hotel in Connecticut - isn't it supposed to be for family?

3. Fitz's scheduling - it is "presumed" to be random and objective, but has been anything but random and objective

2. 12 minute v 15 minute periods for older players - simple fix

1. $20 to watch your Daughter play - get real - colleges let you watch your Daughter play for free, but Polar Bears charge
 
Re: Polar Bear Tournament.........What Happened?

Isn't this a Tier 2 tournament now? They didn't have any known quality teams there this year.
 
Re: Polar Bear Tournament.........What Happened?

Call It said:
Isn't this a Tier 2 tournament now? They didn't have any known quality teams there this year.
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Too bad. I still remember back to the mid 2000's when there were many high quality teams in the U19 and U17 divisions competing at this event. Always loved this event, and our kids have some good and some heartbreak memories from this event.
 
Re: Polar Bear Tournament.........What Happened?

Did anyone here how the East Coast Wizards Tournament was? What teams looked strong? Who won?
 
Re: Polar Bear Tournament.........What Happened?

Any news on the East Coast Wizards Tournament? What teams looked strong? Who won the tournament?
 
Re: Polar Bear Tournament.........What Happened?

WIrinkrat said:
leave it to the insecure club teams to think that getting on the ice twice a week and playing a few tournament games is the best thing for a kid.

given how many prep kids also play for club teams i hardly think this is a big issue. also, there were still plenty of college coaches there. may not have been where it was at it's peak, but neither was the talent. if the talent is there, the coaches show up.

i imagine the 12 min periods and no floods is actually appealing to the college coaches as it keeps things moving and they can see more kids more quickly so if the good teams show up the coaches will go.

obviously there are administrative issues that have caused the tournament numbers to dwindle...whether it's the period length, the cost of travel, or whatever i have no idea. i imagine the rapid deterioration of the newington rink hasn't helped matters either.
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lost. the event has been going down-hill for about 4 years. I've been predicting it's demise for a few years...and I think you can stick in a fork in her at this point. It's now officially a joke. All the good teams have been going to the Wiz event for the past few years, leaving the PBears and Fitzy to stew in their own juice with the 12 min periods, overpriced mandatory hotels, crappy scheduling causing you to spend extra days in CT for nothing..and lousy seeding in the brackets [err, back when they actually had enough teams to need brackets and seeding!]. Can't say I miss this overblown waste of time and $$$.
 
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