GTHL and body checks

[Freshtrax]

So why isn't football flag football in high school? Those kids don't have much chance of making it to the bigs. It's hockey, if you don't want your kids playing it have them play soccer. And don't let your kids go tobogganing either. That's far too dangerous.

Edited March 9, 2015 by Freshtrax

[msp]

[The Urban Fisherman]

I'm Just going to say this as it refers too some peoples thoughts on A AA AAA. Given this was about 15 years ago. Where I come from there are leagues with no contact " house league" and church league which has contact but also classified as "house league". A, AA, AAA were levels above those that would involve playing teams from other communities not other local clubs. To say that A is house league division and that there is no chance of those kids moving on to play junior is just false. Case and point in some communities A is there highest level of hockey due to participation numbers and size of there communities. Depending on the talent level of any given year you can run across a A team that has the talent level of a AAA team, I've seen it. When I was in my playing days we would run across a couple single A teams that were just flat out good, when we played there was a team from Cobourg that had a very good team and many of those players went on to play some sort of junior and some to the AHL. Now perhaps the year beneath them or above them were not as strong but that happens in every city at every level. I have played with guys who played A there whole minor league career and only till they were in major bantam - minor midget did they develop enough to play AAA and went on to have years played in the OHL. My birth year was so deep that in one year I believe minor bantam ( grade 10) the A,AA, and AAA teams all won all Ontario. No that's unheard of usually if the AAA team is very good the AA team may not be as strong and A even less. However perhaps in the GTA or larger communities there are more kids playing which allows the lower levels to still maintain decent teams. My belief on contact is this, if you desire for child not to participate in contact hockey, then you should consider putting them in a non-contact league, we have one here in town so I would imagine that in respectively populated city that option would be there as well. I believe there is right and wrong age to teach body contact and it never affected me negatively for the age at which I began at, I played with a lot of small guys who were very good checkers and were very difficult to hit. I always found the bigger guys were easier targets and easier to knock down then the smaller ones. Then again I wasn't wearing armour as protection either.

 

YES! It's simple. "A" and above should have checking at the appropriate age level. Period.

Edited March 9, 2015 by The Urban Fisherman

[BillM]

 

YES! It's simple. "A" and above should have checking at the appropriate age level. Period.

 

I can agree with this. Rep hockey, A, AA, AAA are contact leagues. If you don't want to play contact, you play house league (Kiwanis, etc)

[kickingfrog]

What is the purpose of minor hockey?

 

What is the purpose of body checking?

[pidge]

Take hitting/checking out and wada you got? This years Leafs. WhaWhaWha do t like it I say don't play and quit your belly aching

[kickingfrog]

It's a shame when someone leaves their computer open a their 8 year old gets on it.

[John]

It's a shame when someone leaves their computer open a their 8 year old gets on it.

[woodenboater]

interesting timing but someone sent me this link recently. a great read with lots of insight into the russian system. and he mentions tows and kane as well

 

 

http://www.theplayerstribune.com/miracle-on-ice-hockey-russia/

 

and on the topic of learning from losses. this is another insightful read about one of the bjj pioneers

 

http://www.mmafighting.com/2015/3/8/8160649/renzo-gracie-reflects-on-the-sakuraba-fight-and-his-life-changing

[landry]

less than 1% of the kids that play AAA will ever cash a check from playing hockey. The only thing we are doing is teaching these kids to play men's league, why have body contact so you can brag about your kid hitting another kid.

Watch the games from 40-50 years ago on TV, very little hitting and a lot slower. With the equipment they where today they move way faster and hit a lot harder and the injuries are way worse

Nailed it:)

[bigugli]

So why isn't football flag football in high school? Those kids don't have much chance of making it to the bigs. It's hockey, if you don't want your kids playing it have them play soccer. And don't let your kids go tobogganing either. That's far too dangerous.

 

While we are at it, might as well ban school rugby. There is a game that produces injuries. I played for part of a season, and then was bounced to football. At 6'1" and 180lbs, the rest of my grade 9 class were munchkins playing in Jr High. I was bounced to football after hospitalizing opposition players in 3 separate games.

Soccer can be dangerous too at the competitive level. Been knocked cold a couple of times.

 

So lets get out there and buy rolls of bubble wrap and invest in nerf sports.

[kickingfrog]

Waters are getting muddy here... And rugby does not produce more injuries than football, unless you're doing them both wrong.

[bigugli]

Waters are getting muddy here... And rugby does not produce more injuries than football, unless you're doing them both wrong.

It's all about the quality of the coaching, and how bloody minded your coach is/was.

Same goes for hockey. I've seen some coaches that would make good poster boys for a nazi death squad

[Paudash]

Many people are missing the point, this is GTHL A hockey which is house league with a jacket. Most house leagues in the GTA are now gone. The average GTHL A team could not compete with a Peterborough House \league team

[Freshtrax]

I grew up in the West hill Golden hawks system. Was contact in house league and A from the age of 13. Contact is part of the game, it teaches you self control, respect, and how to get back up when things didn't go your way. It's not just what happens on the ice but also about how the game shapes you off the ice. I'm tired of nanny state.

[wigler]

 

If someone isn't going to play in the NFL, should they be playing tackle football? That reasoning is ridiculous. Checking is a skill just like skating and stick handling.

 

I love this response.

[mattybculp]

I believe that any child regardless of skill level deserves the right to play the game in its truest form. If a parent or child does not want body contact then they should explore avenues to place them in a league that does not have body contact, that is there right . Don't ruin the game for the kids that want to play the game the way it has always been intended to be played.

[kickingfrog]

Truest form? When was that? Late 1800's? 1920's? No forward passing and goalies not allowed to drop to their knees? Was it when there were 7 skaters per side and players, except for the rover, were not allowed to move into the other zones? Maybe it was all those years when ALL peewee aged players were not allowed to body check?

 

It's possible that the league didn't just pull this decision out of a hat.

 

We're talking about lower skill levels of one age group of kids. For quite a while no peewees in Ontario had body checking until they shifted the age bracket (which I think they've since shifted back???).

 

Anybody watch a peewee game in the last 5 years? I did, the body checking was minimal. The charging, interference and boarding was substantial.

 

The big Quebec City PeeWee Tournament, as well as numerous others are no body checking. Rest assured the world will continue to spin and Canada will produce elite level hockey talent in spite of ourselves.

 

 

 

 

 

[Old Ironmaker]

An interesting discussion to read for someone that never really learned how to skate, yes I was born in Canada.