biggest pet peave of minor hockey..?

[Pensfan86]

Ok, what is the one thing that annoyed you the most about players in minor hockey. For me, since our aaa teams never had a trainer, it was always tough to tell if a player was genuinely hurt or not. Although most of the time, we just took the kids word for it, we had a player who used to push it really bad. One time he said he got hit in his head during a tournament, but then went on to play 6 more games in the tournament. We all figured it was just some weak headache he was having, then he goes on to skip our games the next weekend, citing that he had a concussion. The next time, we were a bit shorthanded due to real injuries, and in a practice 4 days before, he got hit in the foot with a puck. Now he skated it off, and finished practice, but was limping around afterward. He then proceeded to play in a highschool game the next night, but elected to skip our games in the upcoming weekend, saying he had "bruised tissues in his foot" -- (he always used like the exact medical term the doctor used to make it sound worse..for example he separated his ac clavical, rather then simply he separated his shoulder, etc). The worst of all his "injuries" though was when he claimed to have separated his shoulder. We knew he got slashed on his upper arm during a game on a saturday. Now he finished the game, played in our game the next day, played in a highschool game the day after that, then he goes on to skip our tournament the upcoming weekend. I've always been pretty trusting and indifferent when someone gets hurt, saying like, "well you dont know, its not your body, etc" but even this one got me off. The thing about this player was that he was one of those guys who found a way to scream on everyone when they made mistakes, and always looked for a scapegoat when he messed up...anyway...what made you guys crazy about other players in minor hockey??

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[Youreallygotme]

Players who get pissed off at you who dont play your position(Forward getting angry at a defenseman when he cant get them a breakaway pass) and selfish players. I cant stand selfish players. They drive me off the wall. theres just so many ways they can screw a team over.

 

[Goodwith Sticks]

For me it was the ridiculous amount of favoritism at try-outs based on who's father was this or that with the program. I was a player who was ALWAYS (no exaggeration) one of the last players cut from the A team, and on more than a few occassions there were players on the A team who were my inferiors (not massively so but noticeably) who were kept up on A because there father was more involved with the program than mine ( my dad's from England and didn't know a thing about hockey). It was pretty bad and I heard the same thing from others. I wasn't too bitter as I had a great 13 years playing B level hockey and I was one of the better players in B, but still I very quickly lost faith in the objectivity of the evaluation process. No complaints really though, minor hockey was great for me and gave me the skills to have a great recreational activity for my adult life and one which I can do very well at. I love playing hockey even if it's just a pick-up game at the rink.

 

[two out of three*]

Mine is players who don't take the game seriously, and just **** around in the lockerroom.

 

[Iceman23]

How house league players always got the shaft in comparison to the Rep Leagues.

 

[BCCHL inactive]

As a player, it was politics. If you didn't make the Peewee rep team when you were 12, you would never make the rep team in bantam or midget either. The only new players who ever made teams for the first time in bantam or midget were players who had just moved in from another town.

As an official, it's parents. I see some pretty clueless minor hockey players and coaches, but it is my job to deal with that. What is not part of my job, is dealing with clueless, arrogant parents.

That being said about the coaching, my biggest pet peeve is coaches who are also parents. I gave a bantam player a Match penalty for kicking earlier this season. After the game, the coach asked me if they could appeal the penalty. I said, "Why would you want to? Your player could have seriously injured his opponent with what he did." The coach just went off grumbling to himself. As I read the game sheet when I was writing my report, I saw that the kid I gave the Match to was the coach's son.

 

[Lard_Lad]

As a player, it was politics. If you didn't make the Peewee rep team when you were 12, you would never make the rep team in bantam or midget either. The only new players who ever made teams for the first time in bantam or midget were players who had just moved in from another town.

Conversely, one of the things that always bothered me was the guys who complained they didn't make rep teams or get a regular shift on them because of 'politics' (not suggesting your complaints are unwarranted, Van, just going on my own experience in Kelowna.) A couple of high school friends of mine used to ***** about the coach's son that always made rep teams 'even though everybody knows he doesn't deserve it.' The kid they were talking about was Jason Ruff, who somehow managed a 136-point season in the WHL and a short NHL career in spite of that lack of ability.

The last straw for me in minor hockey was a season playing house for a guy who sponsored and coached his kid's team. That should never be allowed, but I guess the MHA wanted his money. The son was actually a decent player, but was also a huge pain in the ass, and his dad made him captain and let him order the other players around. The following year was the one where they adjusted the age categories, and the prospect of possibly having to spend another year in bantam with those two (the kid was a year younger than me) was enough to get me to quit.

 

[Jacques Plante]

Players who get pissed off at you who dont play your position(Forward getting angry at a defenseman when he cant get them a breakaway pass) and selfish players. I cant stand selfish players. They drive me off the wall. theres just so many ways they can screw a team over.

Wow, you and me think exactly alike.

In my experience it's always the same kind of guys that hold these characteristics: The Braggers. The one's who think that they're better tahn everyone else and that they can do no worng. The ones who complain about thier icetime, the ones who take dumb penalties, the ones who don't back check. They always seem to be terribly Arrogant.

 

[BCCHL inactive]

Conversely, one of the things that always bothered me was the guys who complained they didn't make rep teams or get a regular shift on them because of 'politics' (not suggesting your complaints are unwarranted, Van, just going on my own experience in Kelowna.) A couple of high school friends of mine used to ***** about the coach's son that always made rep teams 'even though everybody knows he doesn't deserve it.' The kid they were talking about was Jason Ruff, who somehow managed a 136-point season in the WHL and a short NHL career in spite of that lack of ability.

For sure. Both situations happen often.

What happened up here as I moved through minor hockey, is that I was the last cut off the Peewee AAA team when I was 12. I got a lot of support from other parents, but to no avail. The reasoning I was given was that I needed to work on backwards skating. That was it. I guess it was too hard for Paul Brown's dad (who was the coach who got fired...yes, fired from peewee rep hockey 3 weeks later) to help me skate better backwards.

Where my biggest problem is, was for the next few years up until Midget rep. It seemed automatic that if you hadn't played with the team since Peewee, you got your standard 3 tryout ice times and then you were cut, regardless of how good (or bad) you did.

 

[Malefic74]

My experiences in minor hockey were pretty good actually. The only real hiccup was when we moved across town and suddenly I was in no man's land as to which zone I belonged to. By the time it was sorted out, tryouts had already started and with the late start I wasn't able to make an impression to make the rep teams.

But there were some things then and there are more things now that really bother me.

1. Forwards who don't backcheck (this has actually gotten worse as I've gotten older.)

2. Too many coaches. Until I hit Bantam we only ever had 3 coaches. Last week I saw a peewee team with 7!

3. Backup goalies in Novice. Give me a break. Up until Peewee all teams only had one goalie when I was a kid. I can't imagine it's a whole lot of fun for these kids to sit on the bench.

4. Coaches who teach 7 year old kids to dump and chase.

5. Coaches who scream and yell and swear at refs and other coaches in front of kids. Show some class there big guy, we all know how tough you are.

6. Parents who tell their 7 year old kids what they should've done on the ice. After a game the only important question you should be asing your kid is "Did you have fun?"

7. Coaches who have set power play and penalty killing units in novice and atom. Hey Scotty Bowman, it ain't the NHL and it ain't about you , it's about the kids so let 'em play.

 

[FLYLine27*]

A Coach who only plays 7 players all game and only uses the other players when his best players need a rest. High school this was a huge problem...how the hell did he expect the other players to get better? the Players need GAME EXPIRENCE. So we had players who played on the team for 4 years and still looked like they were in the 2nd year when there high school years were done.

 

[BCCHL inactive]

2. Too many coaches. Until I hit Bantam we only ever had 3 coaches. Last week I saw a peewee team with 7!

If you're in Canada, that can't happen. The Hockey Canada rulebook states that a maximum of five team officials are allowed on the bench. That includes coaches, assistant coaches and trainers. If you are seeing Hockey Canada sanctioned games with 7 coaches/trainers on a bench, the referee isn't doing his job.

 

[Malefic74]

If you're in Canada, that can't happen. The Hockey Canada rulebook states that a maximum of five team officials are allowed on the bench. That includes coaches, assistant coaches and trainers. If you are seeing Hockey Canada sanctioned games with 7 coaches/trainers on a bench, the referee isn't doing his job.

It was a practice actually. And they were doing ridiculous drills that were far, far beyond their skill level. Over coaching seems to be a big problem. Hell 5 seems like too many. Head Coach, then what forwards, defence and goalies. That's only four, what does the other guy coach?

 

[semenko27]

I have to say that my biggest pet peeve is the refs. They are the ONLY paid people in all minor hockey, and as such, have a job to perform. On a regular basis, I see refs trying to take over the game, or just plain ol missing call after call. Yet, NOBODY can talk to the ref without potentially getting slapped with a suspension. If I don't do my job at work, I would get canned pretty damn fast. All I'd like to see is a little accountability with these officials, the good ones are few and very, very, far between.
I've coached in 2 different cities and the situation hasn't changed. And the big losers? The kids playing the games of course!

Just my 2 cents...

 

[FLYLine27*]

I have to say that my biggest pet peeve is the refs. They are the ONLY paid people in all minor hockey, and as such, have a job to perform. On a regular basis, I see refs trying to take over the game, or just plain ol missing call after call. Yet, NOBODY can talk to the ref without potentially getting slapped with a suspension. If I don't do my job at work, I would get canned pretty damn fast. All I'd like to see is a little accountability with these officials, the good ones are few and very, very, far between.
I've coached in 2 different cities and the situation hasn't changed. And the big losers? The kids playing the games of course!

Just my 2 cents...

I guess ILL add to this is my other biggest peeve is comming across COACH after COACH who DOESNT EVEN KNOW THE RULES! They argue calls and have NOTHING to back it up and HALF the time they are saying the wrong thing. Then they get mad when you IGNORE them but of course im going to IGNORE a coach who doesnt know the rules. Every USA Hockey coach get a Rulebook in the mail with there coaching stuff and if they dont take the time to learn the rules then I am sure not going to go over and explain anything to them.

PERFECT Example I had a week ago...

Girl is going in on a breakaway....defending player while BEHIND the girl takes his stick and turns it OVER onto the girls stick....Girl cannot get a shot off...I call Penalty Shot because he HOOKED her by turning his stick over on top of hers....the Coach start FLIPPING out saying that they CAN do that with there stick....I mean GIVE ME A BREAK..he was a Peewee coach so he already had at least 3 years coaching expirence and he DIDNT even know that is illegal.

 

[usmhuskies]

PERFECT Example I had a week ago...

Girl is going in on a breakaway....defending player while BEHIND the girl takes his stick and turns it OVER onto the girls stick....Girl cannot get a shot off...I call Penalty Shot because he HOOKED her by turning his stick over on top of hers....the Coach start FLIPPING out saying that they CAN do that with there stick....I mean GIVE ME A BREAK..he was a Peewee coach so he already had at least 3 years coaching expirence and he DIDNT even know that is illegal.

It may be a rule but I would agrue that call: sounds like a good defensive play...I know if they called that on me every time I was playing i would never stay out of the box...

 

[nic29+]

One of mine are when a player knocks the other teams player into their own goalie and the other team scores and the goalie freaks out because it the guy was in the crease. Freak out on your own player not the ref.

 

[FLYLine27*]

It may be a rule but I would agrue that call: sounds like a good defensive play...I know if they called that on me every time I was playing i would never stay out of the box...

It was an obvious call..he wasnt even arguing the penalty shot he was arguing the hooking call. ..not the type you see in the NHL of course because they know better but she couldnt even move her stick with his curled on top of hers. I tell the kids all the time..LIFT the stick dont turn your stick over on theres.

 

[Mountain Dude]

It was an obvious call..he wasnt even arguing the penalty shot he was arguing the hooking call. ..not the type you see in the NHL of course because they know better but she couldnt even move her stick with his curled on top of hers. I tell the kids all the time..LIFT the stick dont turn your stick over on theres.

Or try and hold it down without turning your stick over.

 

[BCCHL inactive]

It was a practice actually. And they were doing ridiculous drills that were far, far beyond their skill level. Over coaching seems to be a big problem. Hell 5 seems like too many. Head Coach, then what forwards, defence and goalies. That's only four, what does the other guy coach?

Trainer.

I have to say that my biggest pet peeve is the refs. They are the ONLY paid people in all minor hockey, and as such, have a job to perform. On a regular basis, I see refs trying to take over the game, or just plain ol missing call after call. Yet, NOBODY can talk to the ref without potentially getting slapped with a suspension. If I don't do my job at work, I would get canned pretty damn fast. All I'd like to see is a little accountability with these officials, the good ones are few and very, very, far between.
I've coached in 2 different cities and the situation hasn't changed. And the big losers? The kids playing the games of course!

Just my 2 cents...

You've gotta be f'ing kidding me.

Just because minor hockey officials are paid does not make them professionals. These kids are not at work. They are learning, just like the players.

You sound like a bitter parent. Anybody thinking the officiating is minor hockey's biggest problem shouldn't be allowed near the rinks because they are the biggest threats to the safety of the young officials skating minor hockey games.

 

[FLYLine27*]

Or try and hold it down without turning your stick over.

Ya that would be fine also.

 

[Frightened Inmate #2]

Either players who take the game way to seriously, the coaches that take the game to seriously, and the freaking parents that think their kid has a chance at the NHL. Guess what you won't make the NHL so stop thinking you will, and just enjoy the game.

 

[usmhuskies]

It was an obvious call..he wasnt even arguing the penalty shot he was arguing the hooking call. ..not the type you see in the NHL of course because they know better but she couldnt even move her stick with his curled on top of hers. I tell the kids all the time..LIFT the stick dont turn your stick over on theres.

Ok that makes more sense: I guess I reado your first post wrong...

 

[devilsfan26]

One of my biggest complaints has to be that there was no ice hockey in my area when I first got into hockey when I was about 5 or 6, so I've been playing roller hockey since then. Now I'm 17 and I want to make the transition from roller to ice hockey, but I have to deal with going from being among the best on the team to now being among the worst on the team because everyone else has been playing ice hockey for years.

...but by far my biggest complaint is that my damn high school is too poor to afford a team.

 

[Malefic74]

One of mine are when a player knocks the other teams player into their own goalie and the other team scores and the goalie freaks out because it the guy was in the crease. Freak out on your own player not the ref.

If a goalie is watching the puck (which he should be almost to the exclusion of all else) he doesn't always see that it was his guy who pushed the player in him. And yes I do speak from personal expeirence as recently as last night. Didn't know my own guy was partially to blame until he apologized at the period break.

HOWEVER, 90% of forwards in that situation do not in any way try to avoid the goalie; either by slowing down or curling away. And of that 90% I would say there's probably a healthy 10% or so who try to get a shot in on their way by.

I've been burned by a few of those calls, but I've had a few go my way too because I complained. And the other reason is simply convenience. Yelling at my own guys out of frustration doesn't help anything, in fact it can be pretty harmful to the team. Sometimes refs just happen to be targets of convenience. It sucks, but it is what it is.