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posted 04/08/2012
Navy Youth Hockey Association
Preliminary Team Designations and Coach Candidates
We are pleased to announce the 2012-2013 NYHA coaching appointments and team designations. This year we have identified a truly impressive roster of talented parent and non-parent coaches willing and able to serve our players and their families – please give them your full support as we commence our tryout process and player selections for the upcoming season.
Note that we have also identified assistant coach designees for some teams. As with all of our teams, head and assistant coach selections may be dependent upon the tryout placement of the players. As a result, some coach selections are subject-to-change. Likewise, the club retains the option of adjusting coach placements and/or team designations to meet the needs of the organization.
Finally, all of our CBHL teams will be evaluated during and shortly after tryouts to determine preliminary CBHL placement. In some cases those decisions will be made by league rule. For example, if we elect to roster three travel teams at any age level, the highest-level team must play AA. Conversely, the lowest level team may play B so long as that team does not exceed 50% minor or first-year players at that age-level. Other nuances within those prescriptions will determine the middle team designations. These rules have been in place for two seasons and are not subject to exception. A club may appeal to have a team play out-of-class but will forfeit the ability to participate in CBHL playoffs. Likewise, any team found violating the rules is subject to the same sanction, or worse.
2012-2013 Coach Candidates and Team Designations are as follows:
NYH ALL-GIRLS TEAMS
Girls U19 (CBHL) – Molly Garrett
We are fortunate to have a commitment from Molly Garrett to return to NYH this year. This will be Molly’s fourth season at NYH and she has been a fixture on and off the ice in growing our girls program. Not long ago, Molly was a starter at UConn and Union College. From day one she was a contributor --- including being recognized as one of only two freshmen to start in all 34 games her first year. Before advancing to the NCAA ranks, Molly graduated from Pomfret School in Connecticut where she was nominated for the All-New England team her senior year and earned an invitation to the USA Hockey Select Festival in Lake Placid from 1999-2003.
We expect the U19’s to play in the CBHL Girls Gold Division and be a legitimate candidate to repeat their CBHL playoff championship win and vie for the MD State Championship pre-requisite for a chance at a National Tier II title.
Girls U14 (CBHL) – Fred Christie
Coach Christie returns for his third season with NYH and brings nearly four decades of experience and extraordinary enthusiasm to the rink. Fred played youth hockey in the DVHL then four years as a starter with Villanova University. He is also one of a handful of CEP Level V USAH coaches in the region.
The U14’s may be re-designated as U12 depending on make-up of the team. Nonetheless, they will likely participate in CBHL’s Silver Division and compete as a non-national bound team looking to defend their 2009-2010 CBHL championship.
NYH ‘BOYS’ TEAMS
Note: irrespective of CBHL rule, we anticipate all of our ‘boys’ teams to participate at the highest level of play available each season. To that end, we are hoping to roster several AA squads this year, particularly at the older age-levels. However, we will not finalize those decisions until such time as teams have been evaluated for skill, experience, potential competition in the league and requisite CBHL rule requirements. The CBHL will finalize team designations at their June/July meetings. Accordingly, NYHA will not have a final decision on team designation until July; and again, note that all CBHL clubs are subject to the same decision-making process.
Midget U18 (CBHL) – Dan Houck with Patrick McNeally
We are very fortunate that Dan Houck, current Director of Coaching for Team MD and NYH’s skills consultant, is joining us to help train our U18’s this season. Coach Houck will develop a full season of high-intensity practice plans and run each practice with an expectation of carrying the practice enthusiasm and intensity to each game.
Coach Houck grew up in Boyertown, Pennsylvania. As a youth player he played for both the Junior and Little Flyers. He attended Deerfield Academy in Massachusetts where he was a member of the varsity hockey team; he then attended Williams College where he was a four-year varsity player, team captain his senior year and team MVP.
Upon graduating from Williams, Dan took over several local youth hockey skill development programs and eventually took the reigns for Team MD, the AAA Tier I youth program for MD. During his first season as head coach his Bantam AAA team won the PVAHA and finished runner-up in the SE Districts. In 2005-06 his Bantam AAA team won the PVAHA and was again runner- up in the Southeast. In 2006-07, his U16 AAA team won the PVAHA, Southeast Districts and advanced to the quarterfinals of the USA Hockey National Championship. His 2008 PW Major Team was the first TM team to capture the AYHL Championship and took bronze at the USA Hockey Tier I National Championships. This past season Dan’s Peewee Major Team lost in the semifinals of two of the biggest AAA tournaments in the country, the Warrior Cup and Bauer Invite. Dan currently holds a USA Hockey Masters Coaching Certification.
Patrick McNeally has been involved in the sport of hockey, both as a player and coach, for nearly 35 years. He played on various Select teams growing up followed by an excellent Junior and collegiate hockey career. His move to coaching began more than a decade ago and lead to his appointment as a head coach with the Washington Little Capitals organization for several years before returning to NYH.
Patrick’s teams have enjoyed great success and he routinely receives high-marks from players and parents. The past four seasons his U16 AA and U18 squads finished in the top two in those powerhouse CBHL divisions. Prior to taking over Midgets he lead our AA Bantam squad to a CBHL final round National Division finish. He is also currently the Head Coach for the Archbishop Spalding JV Ice Hockey Team.
The U18’s will follow a modified schedule this season that moves the season up a few weeks on the front-end, eases back during the peak of h.s. hockey and elevates again in January and February, concluding one week earlier than prior seasons and avoiding h.s. playoff conflicts. Because of the commitment from Coach Houck and the efforts by NYHA and the league to accommodate all players in this age group, we expect a similar commitment from those players agreeing to participate on this team. As a result, unexcused absences will include the potential for reduced playing time. This is to ensure a viable practice experience for all and to advantage the talent of Dan Houck and others on behalf of this group.
Midget U16 – Max Herrett
Returning for a fifth season at NYH, Max represents the epitome of non-parent coaches in our program. Max is an incredible hockey player who plays with great intensity – he brings that same enthusiasm and dedication to the bench. In his first four seasons at NYH he returned high-marks from all parents and players. This year he will lead our U16’s to what should be a competitive placement in CBHL and another great season.
Max played his early youth hockey for the Chesapeake Chiefs before advancing to play for the Little Caps. Shortly thereafter he played at the Avon Prep School in Connecticut before returning to Maryland for a successful career of collegiate hockey at Salisbury University.
The U16’s will likely participate in the A division of CBHL, subject to aforementioned elements of the rule that may require them to move up and/or skill-evaluation that determines a higher placement is appropriate.
Bantam CBHL Teams:
We are fortunate to have an abundance of talented players and coaches available for our Bantam group this season. With more than 40 players currently enrolled at NYH in this age-group we expect to roster three CBHL travel teams at Bantam. We will not enroll a Bantam Rec team next season so please have your player tryout if they are interested in skating at NYH next year – likely at the B level.
As mentioned, CBHL rule will require our top team to participate at AA. With all other teams in the league subject to the same requirements, we expect that our talent pool will be competitive in this model.
The middle CBHL team, Bantam Blue, will be an A team, Lower or Upper depending on skill-level and birth-year proportions. We will also add a Bantam White team to round out this group, again, likely a B squad assuming mostly first-year Bantams on this team.
Coach selections remain open subject to tryout results. Currently we have several great head coach candidates, including Eric Buch, Sylvain Cote, Eric St. Lawrence and Steve Yelton.
Equally exciting is the prospect of securing the skills and services of Mr. Peter Oshana. Peter grew up playing hockey in New England, winning the district championship in 1983. Peter played his college hockey at Westfield State College, after college he had a brief career in the professional ECHL before he moved onto the coaching ranks with Wesleyan University in Connecticut.
Peter moved to Seattle in 1997 to coach with Seattle Junior Hockey Association (SJHA). His first team, a U19 Girls squad, won Pacific District Championships and competed in USA Nationals. After three seasons with the girls program he went on to head coach at other levels of AAA Boys hockey within the SJHA. For nearly ten years Peter was one of the top coaches and the Director of SJHA. In 2001 he coached the Northwest Admiral Bantam AAA team, finishing tied for first in the Pacific Coast League and named sportsmanship team of the year. In 2003 his team finished second in the Pacific Coast League and won a Pacific Coast League Championship in the 2004 season.
Peter was eventually relocated to Maryland and comes to us from his most recent stint at Team Maryland where his Bantam Major AAA team qualified for the International Silverstick Championship in Port Huron, Michigan and took second in the AYHL Championships. In his second season with Team Maryland his Bantam Major 1996 Team won the PVAHA. Peter currently holds a Level 5 Masters certificate in coaching from USA Hockey.
The coaching committee and Board will resolve the Bantam coach selections after tryouts and prior to our return to the ice this summer.
PeeWee CBHL Teams:
Similar to the Bantam situation described above, we have an extensive and talented group of PW birth-year players this season. Anticipating three teams of players at tryouts, we are planning for PW Gold, Blue and White squads this season in the CBHL. As above, Gold will play AA; Blue LA or UA; and White will likely play B.
PW Gold will be headed up by Mat Matta, returning for his second season as a head coach off of a great run with last year’s PW Gold squad, Mat took a very good PW UA squad and turned them into a solid AA contender – winning the CBHL UA division and playoff championship with a focused effort on team play and skills-based practices. Mat’s calm but focused demeanor kept this team working hard while playing a clean competitive game on the ice. We are fortunate to have Mat returning to lead our top PW team again this season!
PW Blue will enjoy the return of our excellent Associate Hockey Director and last season’s Squirt Gold head coach, Rich Jondo. Coach Jondo played professional minor hockey for five seasons beginning in 2005. He was a four-year starter and top performer for ACHA Division I Towson University before turning pro and now leads the development of his alma mater as Assistant Coach for the Tigers. Coach Jondo brings a wonderful balance of enthusiasm, fun and focused-expectations to his teams. This season should prove to be a breakout year for this age-group!
PW White or Rec: Mike Ross continues his extraordinary contributions to NYH by offering another season of volunteerism as head coach for our third PW squad. Coach Ross lead last season’s PW gang to a season of success on the ice but more importantly, developed the team into a group of players who love the game and played as a group. Great puck movement and skills work will serve as the foundation for another Coach Ross lead team.
Finally, as suggested above, we may roster a PW Rec squad this year but encourage all players to show up at tryouts if you have any interest in playing at NYH this year. Please alert us now if you expect to return to NYH as a PW but would prefer a Rec experience instead. We will use this information to guide us in developing the final program offering.
Squirt CBHL Teams:
Squirt Gold: our top Squirt team will be evaluated by several members of the NYH hockey directorate. Final coach selections will be subject to tryout results with several good candidates being considered.
Squirt Blue – Matt Fleming
Great news awaits this group as Matt Fleming returns for a third season to the coaching ranks at NYH. Matt is an Annapolitan with deep roots in hockey. Matt grew up playing hocking in West Point, New York and played at the collegiate level for Binghamton University. After graduation and moving to Annapolis, Matt continued his involvement in hockey coaching at the High School and College level – including founding Anne Arundel County’s first public school hockey team. Matt and his wife and two young children live nearby the rink and look forward to continuing their journey as a young hockey family.
Squirt Rec – Brian Smack will return for a third season of leading this fun and developing group to another CCHL Rec championship run. Brian played college hockey in Glenn Falls and acquired several years experience as a coach during his time in upstate New York. He assisted former NHL star Kevin Dineen at their annual Adirondack Hockey School; was a power-skating instructor and played adult A hockey throughout the region until moving to Maryland.
Mite Travel
Because CBHL rules will limit full-ice travel teams to older birth-year mites only, we are expecting to roster a Mite Select team that will participate in a independent game schedule against local Mite travel teams plus participate in several Mite A tournaments in the region.
We will also continue to grow the foundation of our club at the Mite Rec level and are thankful for the return of Jennifer Adams as our leader for the Mite Rec group with on-ice support provided by Mike Shramek and the excellent team of non-parent and parent assistants in that stable.
We hope you agree that this roster of coaches is one of the most impressive to-date at NYH. We also hope you will give them your full support throughout tryouts and next season. Thank you as always for your continued support and Go Navy!
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