My son just did JV as a freshman and it is a bit of a hockey wasteland. Plenty of playing time but the competition is all over the map and it seems more like an extension of youth hockey than high school. If nothing else it has motivated him to work hard this offseason to make the jump next year.
So, is it better to be a first-liner on the JV team, or a practice player on the Varsity team?
On one hand, as the JV first-liner, you get lots of meaningful minutes. On the other hand, the varsity practice player gets to see and feel the pace of the varsity level of play and get used to it, and hopefully next year s/he moves up to a line that sees playing time.