Question on Recruiting

[OnMAA]

Re: Question on Recruiting

being a goalie is the worst

Not sure would go as far as if being a goalie is the worst. The one thing about goaltending is that someone has to be second and third string. While there are some examples of Rookies getting playing time in Nets at D1, that is often the exception rather than the rule, so you have to be prepared for it.

BTW Justamom, plenty fine examples of recent prime time Goaltenders coming from your neck of the woods that had, are or will be having great D1 careers. One is a rookie at Princeton, One is at Yale, One is at ND and then there is off course your D who just graduated.

 

[Justamom]

Re: Question on Recruiting

Not sure would go as far as if being a goalie is the worst. The one thing about goaltending is that someone has to be second and third string. While there are some examples of Rookies getting playing time in Nets at D1, that is often the exception rather than the rule, so you have to be prepared for it.

BTW Justamom, plenty fo fine examples of recent prime time Goaltenders coming from your neck of the woods that had, are or will be having great D1 careers. One is a rookie at Princeton, One is at Yale, One is at ND and then there is off course your D who just graduated.

I probably should have clarified it more,

the recruiting is worse,

The main thing to look at when you are going in, take a look at who is playing when you are being recruited, does that coach have a history of playing freshman, is the coach the kind that "has their goalie " and sticks to it,
It the coach doesn't typically play freshman there is is one answer for you, you would have to be the exception to be playing,

Ask the questions, that is what I suggest and if you can find out from any former players what they liked, disliked etc do it

 

[ARM]

Re: Question on Recruiting

I probably should have clarified it more,

the recruiting is worse,

Having observed parents at games for years, I think the whole experience is tougher for goalie parents. If your kid isn't playing, you feel bad. If your kid is playing, you're a nervous wreck. Maybe if you are Jessie Vetter's parents it is okay, otherwise, I don't know ...

 

[rinkrat890890]

Re: Question on Recruiting

Having observed parents at games for years, I think the whole experience is tougher for goalie parents. If your kid isn't playing, you feel bad. If your kid is playing, you're a nervous wreck. Maybe if you are Jessie Vetter's parents it is okay, otherwise, I don't know ...

In a recent interview with Jessie, I believe she said that her mom doesn't watch!

 

[OnMAA]

Re: Question on Recruiting

In a recent interview with Jessie, I believe she said that her mom doesn't watch!

Both Goalies and their parents must have nerves of Steel !

Everything else being equal, for players success in the game is 90% mental, for goalies it is probably 99% !

It is often easier on the nerves when you are playing than when you are watching !.

Glad I'm not a goalie parent.

 

[Justamom]

Re: Question on Recruiting

We had the opportunity to watch my D's former team play a couple of weekends ago and I have to say, what a nice change, no stress at all, I loved however I was also not as emotionally tied to the game.

And I can totally relate to Jesse Vetter's mom not watching a game, there are many times I just walked away from the screen for online games and at the games many can say they just watched me pace

I must also say I so miss it, I am having a much harder time than she is

 

[xwildfan]

Re: Question on Recruiting

It's really too bad that goalie parents can't enjoy watching their kids play. Most of the time, there have been many breakdowns by teammates that lead to goals....missed breakout pass, failure to get puck over own blueline, failure to keep puck in offensive zone, etc. Compounding that are the comments often heard in the stands regarding "soft goals" or so-called" easy goals" that goalie parents have to put up with. And leading up to a college career, the goalie position is the most neglected position in youth hockey as far as training. The goalie has to essentially rescue her teammates mistakes. I realize that is the goalie's job. When I coached in youth hockey, if I ever heard a teammate or parent complaining about the goaltending, that player was given the opportunity to switch positions with our goaltender; never had one player take me up on the offer. And it usually eliminated the complaints. The goalie position is by far the toughest position in hockey. Note: I am not a goalie parent.

 

[Hux]

Re: Question on Recruiting

It's really too bad that goalie parents can't enjoy watching their kids play. Most of the time, there have been many breakdowns by teammates that lead to goals....missed breakout pass, failure to get puck over own blueline, failure to keep puck in offensive zone, etc. Compounding that are the comments often heard in the stands regarding "soft goals" or so-called" easy goals" that goalie parents have to put up with. And leading up to a college career, the goalie position is the most neglected position in youth hockey as far as training. The goalie has to essentially rescue her teammates mistakes. I realize that is the goalie's job. When I coached in youth hockey, if I ever heard a teammate or parent complaining about the goaltending, that player was given the opportunity to switch positions with our goaltender; never had one player take me up on the offer. And it usually eliminated the complaints. The goalie position is by far the toughest position in hockey. Note: I am not a goalie parent.

I had a few Squirt parents that treated every game like it was the seventh of the the Stanley Cup finals. They stood in the corner and critiqued the goaltending on every shot. None of them had ever played hockey, let alone goal.

After hearing about what was going on during games I decided to have a father-son game during one practice. I made sure that the two bozos who were the goaltending experts were between the pipes.

The kids lit them up, including the goalie they were so found of deriding. After that game there was a drastic decrease in the negative analysis along the glass.

 

[IceIsNice]

Re: Question on Recruiting

I had a few Squirt parents that treated every game like it was the seventh of the the Stanley Cup finals. They stood in the corner and critiqued the goaltending on every shot. None of them had ever played hockey, let alone goal.

After hearing about what was going on during games I decided to have a father-son game during one practice. I made sure that the two bozos who were the goaltending experts were between the pipes.

The kids lit them up, including the goalie they were so found of deriding. After that game there was a drastic decrease in the negative analysis along the glass.

I knew a very dedicated gentleman who was highly involved as a Board Member for the town program where my kids first learned to play. He had a name for this.... "Squirtitis".

It sort of coincides with the concept of "Sophomore", if you think about it. Literally, as most of us know, to be sophomoric essentially means to be "foolish". In the world of youth hockey, it applies similarly. Once youv'e had your first taste of travel, i.e. Mites, it's funny how in your second or third season you suddenly seem to "know it all" when in fact you still have so much to learn.

For the record, my wife has not only hid from the rink from time to time, but was even seen running out the door at the Chowder Cup this past summer....and this was after a save on a break-away, not even a goal!

There is another elite goalie whose mom can be seen with her head down in the stands doing word searches and crosswords. But hey, she's there, right?

Oh, and it doesn't end with Ice Hockey. I recently spoke with a woman at a professional conference who shared that her daughter was a prominent Field Hockey goalie for a top school, and that she too has only hung in there to watch maybe 2 or 3 games.

The "cant' watch club" is a very popular one. But alas, the puck was meant to occasionally cross the goal line, and human beings are...well...human, and so my best advice is just to lend all the support you can no matter what happens. Power to all who take on the task!

Hang in there mom's! Notwithstanding the occasional ignorant comment, the girls (and guys) behind the mask are far more appreciated than you may realize!

 

[law]

Re: Question on Recruiting

In evaluating a particular program another tool to consider is: http://www.collegehockeystats.net/0910/rosters/all

Track the roster of the team of interest for several years past & get a feel for the number of girls coming in as freshman & leaving as seniors. You'll see that at some schools a higher percentage of girls never making it all the way through as compared to other schools. Of course there can be many reasons for this but regardless, it may warrant further inquiry. If staying with the same team for four years is important you should at least consider this statistic.

 

[videohockey]

Re: Question on Recruiting

I had a few Squirt parents that treated every game like it was the seventh of the the Stanley Cup finals. They stood in the corner and critiqued the goaltending on every shot. None of them had ever played hockey, let alone goal.

After hearing about what was going on during games I decided to have a father-son game during one practice. I made sure that the two bozos who were the goaltending experts were between the pipes.

The kids lit them up, including the goalie they were so found of deriding. After that game there was a drastic decrease in the negative analysis along the glass.

It's really too bad that goalie parents can't enjoy watching their kids play. Most of the time, there have been many breakdowns by teammates that lead to goals....missed breakout pass, failure to get puck over own blueline, failure to keep puck in offensive zone, etc. Compounding that are the comments often heard in the stands regarding "soft goals" or so-called" easy goals" that goalie parents have to put up with. And leading up to a college career, the goalie position is the most neglected position in youth hockey as far as training. The goalie has to essentially rescue her teammates mistakes. I realize that is the goalie's job. When I coached in youth hockey, if I ever heard a teammate or parent complaining about the goaltending, that player was given the opportunity to switch positions with our goaltender; never had one player take me up on the offer. And it usually eliminated the complaints. The goalie position is by far the toughest position in hockey. Note: I am not a goalie parent.

As a goalie parent and goalie coach it is sometimes fun, yet more times difficult to listen to the goalie coaches in the stands. All the explanation in the world doesn't make up for the experience of playing the game.

Same strategy works for those critical of refs. If it where possible every player (and parent) should be required to officiate at least a scrimmage.

Basically: put up or shut up!

 

[Blackbeard]

Re: Question on Recruiting

I had a few Squirt parents that treated every game like it was the seventh of the the Stanley Cup finals. They stood in the corner and critiqued the goaltending on every shot. None of them had ever played hockey, let alone goal.

After hearing about what was going on during games I decided to have a father-son game during one practice. I made sure that the two bozos who were the goaltending experts were between the pipes.

The kids lit them up, including the goalie they were so found of deriding. After that game there was a drastic decrease in the negative analysis along the glass.

Great story...very funny.

 

[Hockeydad4two]

Re: Question on Recruiting

Many years ago, my wife put together a scrimmage for a bunch of hockey moms. Many had never put on hockey equipment before. One of the goalies was a goalie mom. She would walk at the top of the stands and yell at her son for every imagined mistake he made. She was also the local "tough woman" champion. She was intimidating if you didn't know her so many were not comfortable confronting her about it.

Well, she may have been a physically fit athlete, but by now you have already guessed the ending. She could hardly crawl off the ice. She couldn't stand, she was so wiped out. She actually said that she would not ever comment on how her son performed. She kept true to her word as for the next few years, I would see her and hear reports that confirmed her statement.

 

[xwildfan]

Re: Question on Recruiting

Easy game to play or officiate from the stands.

 

[Radar3535]

Re: Question on Recruiting

I heard this said more than once at a rink and I think it really captures the mentality of the masses. " Hockey is one of the few sports where the goalie's mistakes are kept track of in bright lights for everyone to see"

 

[posttopost2]

Re: Question on Recruiting

Wow - thank you everyone. The first visit went well.
I love the stories. I unfortunately had to not only watch, I had to video tape all her games one year because her dad was over in Iraq. I remember getting the knots in the stomach and I was just waiting for the first goal to go in. During tense games, I would pace back and forth. However, as I get into the games, I loved listening to the crowd as a great break away would be coming towards my daughter confident that she would stop the puck, and I would just laugh as the crowd would just groan when she made that stop. I would also groan when it went in. My daughter and I developed a system of her letting me know how the puck went in during the game. It was usually a hand signal. This was for her sake so she could clear her head and get back into the game. I think it is moments like this that I will miss most as she starts her college career. How much I will get to every game that I can.
It is nice to know that I am not the only one who doesn't listen to parents who criticize the goalie.
I love the "revenge" stories - they made us laugh.

 

[Hockeydad4two]

Re: Question on Recruiting

I tell kids who are only a few steps into their goalie trek that I have never met a goalie who hasn't been scored on. The trick is to forget about the last goal and try to stop the next one.

 

[puck bag]

Re: Question on Recruiting

I'll address a couple of things that haven't been from your original post:

Majors - it's great that she is being recruited by schools that have her major. A couple of words of caution - 1) On your visit try to meet with the advisor for that major. My goalie daughter did not at the school she finally chose - that happened at orientation - immediate switch of majors and frankly I agree with her. 2) Not that many kids stick with their original course even after their sophmore year - look at a number of different programs at the schools - their third or fourth interest may become the actual major of choice.

Equipment - my goalie was recruited by 2 DI schools and a number of DIII schools. At the DI visits the coaches would say they supplied everything but the skates. I would assume that at "major" programs they would also supply the skates. Another interesting thing was that they both said that there was NO athletic scholarship money for the goalies. Not a big surprise. They did say though that as she progressed through the program that some money might become available. This is a good question to ask if it doesn't come up in conversations with the coaches.

DIII - equipment varied by school. We were told by the chosen school that they would supply everything but skates and the mask - however if she chose to have a custom painted mask they might find some money. What really happened is they gave her two sticks and some used leg pads that had been heavily modified for 11" pads. She continued to use her chest protector, blocker and catcher, skates.

Other DIII schools pretty much said the same thing, except a few of the private institutions said they would purchase the mask as well.

Video - we had one DI school ask for video of practices. I went and shot some video at a couple of different practices. I didn't do any editing - just straight up footage. In the end - really didn't make a difference but they asked and I obliged. One key thing we did find out was it does make a difference to supply the coaches with a stats resume complete with awards as well as a summary of educational accomplishments including any volunteer work.

Good luck and enjoy the trips.

 

[ARM]

Re: Question on Recruiting

1) On your visit try to meet with the advisor for that major. My goalie daughter did not at the school she finally chose - that happened at orientation - immediate switch of majors and frankly I agree with her. 2) Not that many kids stick with their original course even after their sophmore year - look at a number of different programs at the schools - their third or fourth interest may become the actual major of choice.

I agree on point 2). Because of that, it is good to start with something that gives you many options should you decide to switch. It is often the sophomore sequence where a student decides, "I don't think I want to do this for the rest of my life."

For 1), do you mean that your daughter didn't care for her advisor, or that she learned the curriculum was different than she expected? If it is the former, interaction with an advisor is a very small component in the big scheme of life. If the student knows what they would like to do for a vocation, it is optimal if that can drive the major rather than the other way around.

 

[puck bag]

Re: Question on Recruiting

For 1), do you mean that your daughter didn't care for her advisor, or that she learned the curriculum was different than she expected? If it is the former, interaction with an advisor is a very small component in the big scheme of life. If the student knows what they would like to do for a vocation, it is optimal if that can drive the major rather than the other way around.

It was actually a little bit of both. The first meeting was in a group setting - 14 kids and parents. Two of the kids were interested in the same major - but the negative attitude of the advisor was the first turn off.

We convinced her to stick with it until she was sure. About 2 months into her freshman year and dealing with this advisor convinced her it wasn't going to work. They gave her a "generic" advisor who was / has been very helpful in making her career path more what she expected.

I know that when I was at the U my career advisor was much more helpful than my major advisor. My major advisor had some serious blinders on at times.