Watching the game I was at it seemed there were just 3-4 kids who can 'play' as in could or should play after H.S. other than that it looked like kids who might have other sports (not that there is anything wrong with that) and hockey is kind of just an activity.

It seems like the better players are on the younger side and have not made the jump yet. The upper classmen that can play at next level, need a year or two in Prep or Jrs

High school now is basically the 3rd level of hockey for high school age kids. Prep, full season club teams then MIAA is basically the pecking order.

Even prep is down compared to 3 years ago
They are not as talented or deep as years past

Thank you team owners...or have you just contracted out to Russian Bots...NO COLLUSION! Please stop with the full season dribble. Just because you’re gettig fleeced doesn’t mean the rest of us want about it. Publics and Catholics loose their top kids earlier to Preps once they’ve proven themselves. Same goes with Preps to good Jr’s. Full Season in this area doesn’t make the slightest dent in talent level. It does get ride of a few of the whiners though. So I guess we should say...Thank you team owners!

Myhockeyrankings is for squirt parents with delusions of grandeur, but I’m sure the owners of these youth hockey programs in the area will be ecstatic to know that there are enough parents of high school age kids that still believe in fairytales. It still doesn’t change the fact that full season programs in this area draw little to no discernible talent away from the high school and Prep ranks in New England. Yes, some of the full season U16/U18 teams around different parts of the country are the real deal, but those programs are situated in areas with no real high school/prep hockey framework to fall back on. New England full season teams are still littered with kids that couldn’t crack the lineups of their hometown squads and backfilled with marginally talented kids of malcontented parents from this area. Now if the USPHL/NCDC were to ever gat a clue...and get back in the good graces of USA hockey...and starts targeting the top national younger Jr level talent...and becomes a tuition free feeder league to the USHL...Nah, will never happen. Too much money to be made fleecing parents who still believe Myhockeyrankings is a thing. Good luck with that U18 thing though.

Every kid - EVERY kid - on the BJB and IHC U16, U18, Elite, Premier, and NCDC teams would be the best kid on their town HS team. The only people that don't believe that are the Townie dads who think their kid still has to play for the HS team to get laid.

Never heard of Snapchat, Dad? They don't have to pass notes in Homeroom any more.

No offense, but if you went all in on the hockey thing (kids one and only focus is hockey) and your kid is truly a legit player (a standout/all conference varsity player as a freshman/sophomore on his Public team) then you probably screwed up as a parent from the get go by not steering him towards a good Catholic or Prep. The tuition for Tier 1 full season and Catholics is pretty much a wash when you add in all the travel expenditures. Prep clearly going to be more, but you’re typically paying for better college exposure for both academics and/or athletics. Just remember that being a standout at a really crappy public is a long way from being a standout at a top Catholic...and is even a longer way from being a standout at a top Prep. Tier 1 in this area is what it is. You’ll get a few kids who come in from outside the area that have some real talent but didn’t make the cut at powerhouses like Belle Tire or Honeybaked. A few kids from the area that have solid talent but are not really academically inclined (and would have a hard time academically going the Catholic/Prep route) so stay at their public while playing for their local full season team. The rest are kids of disgruntled parents who end up on the 3rd and 4th lines while footing the bill for the players in the first two categories. In the end, it makes no difference to anyone but you and your kid where you choose for him to play next year. The choice is yours. Choose wisely.

What if your kid is a sophomore and the leading scoring at a D1 program and you cannot afford to pay for prep, club, etc? Are scholarships available? Thanks

Why can’t people just choose their own path and shut up about it? I’m sure you don’t care what my son does and I’m sure I don’t care what your son does. If you take the drama out of it the experience can be much more enjoyable for evertone involved. No?