That’s because in MA there are too many “elite” teams. In the smaller markets best on best play against each other more often - top talent in MA is spread too thin. The all mighty fed should only have 6 teams in their “elite” division.
MA hockey is like MA politics. Corrupt, inclusive, greedy, and you only advance when you know someone.
There are so many good players that are simply mishandled along the way. If I had a serious youth player and we weren't connected to the MA hockey insiders club I would seriously consider moving. Its a mess.
In Massachusetts the players dont play enough spring and summer hockey. They really need to play in more tournaments and do more skill sessions in April, May, Jun, July, August. Anyone who knows youth hockey knows that the more you play and focus on hockey the better the chances are for NHL looks.
That’s because in MA there are too many “elite” teams. In the smaller markets best on best play against each other more often - top talent in MA is spread too thin. The all mighty fed should only have 6 teams in their “elite” division.
100% agree. My guess is that about 60% of the FED Elite players would be better suited for Platinum or E9. So taking the top 40% of the FED Elite and the top 10% of the E9 would field you about 6-8 squads.
The bill they're all being sold is that prep hockey will get you there. No, top Jr. hockey will get you there which means they all have to put away the Vineyard Vines, the sport jackets and the short pampering schedule of prep hockey and move.
Until more do it, all this youth hockey stuff will be wasted.
Add in the fact that if you're not one of the original FED teams, you can't even parity your team to earn a spot in the Elite division. Hmmmmm.
There's not a single platinum team in the Fed that would win more than 3-4 games in a season playing an elite schedule. It's night and day. Go have junior try out and make an elite team if you're so hard up for him/her to play at that level.
You’re right, they would only win a handful of games…. Against the teams that have no business being in the elite division. On another note, will the Fed add another division soon? Maybe Learn to Play? Silver/Gold Lower isn’t that far off from that.
Earning the right to get your ass kicked 35-40 times a season through some parity process doesn't sound like much fun at all. Weird argument. Just go try to make an elite team...problem solved.
Just saying there are a lot of Elite level kids that are also playing in Platinum. Not saying whole teams but with the watered down "elite" division, the fact is that there may be some teams floating out there in Platinum that could be competitive. And maybe those kids aren't making the Elite team because Coaches/Friends kids are taking those spots. I agree that it's watered down but it always will be unless you can find a coach that really builds a team based on talent and not friends and can develop talent and not just poach talent.
History repeats itself. The old MBHL was once very select and the best around, but then got greedy and expanded too much diluting its talent. To fix that, the now Fed owners got together and left the MBHL to form their own league (Fed), killing the MBHL. Problem is the Fed is now more bloated and diluted than the MBHL ever was.
Why is MA hockey so F'd up? Greed. Greed. Greed. Simple.