News
Washington All Stars 97s Win Philadelphia AAA Shoot Out
Congratulations to the 1997 WASHINGTON ALL STARS who took home
the Pee Wee Minor Championship at the 2008 AAA Philadelphia
Shootout held Memorial Day Weekend. The 97s triumphed over Select
teams from New England and New York State after the local "year
round" teams, Philadelphia Junior Flyers and Team Comcast were
eliminated.
In the Play
Off round the Washington All Stars totally dominated their
opponents. The All Stars' unbelievable offense and tight D defeated
Westchester Selects 9-1 in the semi final and Long Island's Sound
Shore Selects 8-1 in the Championship game. No team in the
tournament could match the Washington area boys' speed and
skill.
The 97 All
Star players will skate for Washington Little Capitals, Team
Maryland, Richmond Royals and Greater Hampton Whalers in the
2008-09 season.
The
Washington All Stars program practices out of the Kettler Capitals
Iceplex and Skatequest, Reston.
The
Washington All Stars are the area's premier elite spring travel
program that combines some of the best players from Virginia,
Maryland and DC.
www.washingtonallstars.com
PVAHA Players Disappoint at National Camp Try Outs - Is there
Hope In Sight?
The recent South East District Tryouts proved a
disappointment for all but a handful of the players representing
the Potomac Valley Amateur Hockey Association (PVAHA). The PVAHA
accounts for approximately 34% of youth hockey registrations in USA
Hockey's South East area, yet for the second year our players
account for only about 10% of the South East districts spots at the
National Camp.
It can be hard to pin point exactly what could be
the cause of our region's shabby showing. Few doubt we have the raw
potential to produce great hockey players; excellent facilities and
many excellent coaches involved in travel hockey and instructional
programs. The struggles of Tier 1 hockey programs in the area have
been a common complaint among hockey parents. The view is that you
cannot create elite players without quality Tier 1 programs.
Quality cannot be defined purely by good instructors and facilties.
It is also an intangible quality and that is the governance which
drives the right players to the program and quality controls Tier 1
teams in order to ensure competitiveness. The PVHA and the areas
existing Tier 1 organizations have taken some bold and often
unselfish steps to ensure these changes.
A little bit of historical background is
necessary to explain how we have got to where we are today. The
Washington Little Caps held an exclusive grip on access to the
desrieable Atlantic Youth hockey League through its ownership of a
much coveted franchise which gave them exclusive rights of
membership for the region. One team practicing out of Laurel was a
prohibitive prospect for many of the parents of the areas most
talented players so independent teams emerged which struggled to
find respectable leagues to participate in. This led to the Tier 1
talent in the area being dispersed between too many Tier 1
entitities the most significant of which were Little Caps, Virginia
Statesmen and Montgomery Blue Devils in the immediate area of
Washington DC. There were also other Virginia based programs like
the Rappahannock River Rats which tried to fill a void for players
from southern central Virginia. In 06-07 the Washington Little
Capitals came to a definitive agreement which led to the Statesmen
voluntarily disbanding.The Statesmen would direct its players to
the Little Caps and the Little Caps would become the sole Tier 1
organization for the Virginia side of the Potomac. Maryland players
would be directed to the newly formed, and AYHL approved, Team
Maryland which would operate out of Laurel and Rockville. While
players from central and southern Virginia still find themselves
largely uncatered for the kids in Northen Virginia, the District of
Columbia and suburban Maryland have now a more clear pathway to
elite hockey training.
On the Virginia side of the river in the 08/09
season the Washington Little Capitals will field 7 youth teams for
the first time since 2005/06 season. While the benefits of the
changes will not be felt for some time. It is truly hoped that by
the time the 96 birth year players get their opportunity to be
considered for National Camp that the results will reflect a much
higher percentage of Virginia trained players.
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