I get that youth hockey can be difficult to navigate but to act like one league, let alone one level is the only thing that matters seems ridiculous.

Just curious what year/program OP's kid plays for? If they are being developed, why does it matter they aren't being talked about?

What the EHF Elite has over the E9 is more depth and competition. My bender has played in both. He was a top 3 player on his E9 team which was in the top 3rd and is an average player on his EHF team that is middle third. He is not ‘Elite’ by any means. He is an average AAA player. Most EHF Elite teams have 1 maybe 2 “elite” players. Some have none. The best have 3 or 4. That being said the EHF is more competitive top to bottom (Bandits / Breakers not withstanding). Just look at the scores. Some kids develop better with better competition. However for some, playing E9 could be better for developing confidence and applying skills during a game. I think Ideally if we wanted the best hockey, programs could have AAA, AA and A teams with movement allowed for the first half of the season depending on development and performance. The kids would benefit most from that. Unfortunately the parents Egos would not develop as they want and the “business model” would fail.

I think people are missing the point. This thread wasn't started in an attempt to argue over which league is better. The issue is that this particular forum only seems to think the EHF (elite) matters and that isn't true.

The suggestion of having different forums for different leagues and teams seems like a good one. Again, this forum gives a false impression of New England hockey. The top 4 EHF elite teams aren't all that's happening.