F A C e o f f. Daniels: Cross-Ice Hockey Much Better for Kids

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1 F A C e o f f Volume XVII Issue 5 December, 2014 The Official Scorecard of Moorhead Youth Hockey MYHA BOARD OF DIRECTORS Brian Stavenger President Executive Committee Equipment Stephanie Gess Vice President Gaming Liaison, Membership Executive Committee Brent Teiken Treasurer, Finance Executive Committee Kathy Fischer-Thom Gaming Manager Julie Durgin Board Secretary, Office Manager Executive Committee Dennis Bushy Arena Manager, Scheduler Angie Searls Membership Kelli Dronen Fundraising Mark Hendrickson Fundraising Mike Simonich Equipment Chair Johnathan Judd Corey Delorme Tournament Co-Directors Jeremy Gregoire Hockey Director Rob Gramer In-House Hockey Director Jon Ammerman Hockey Committee Emily Sell Hockey Committee Office Hours 8:00 a.m. 3:00 p.m. Monday-Fridays Phone: Fax: Arena: Daniels: Cross-Ice Hockey Much Better for Kids By Michael Caples - Special to USAHockey.com Ferris State University coach Bob Daniels learned how to play the game through cross-ice hockey. But Daniels, an NCAA Division I head coach for more than two decades, watched full-ice hockey take over the youth circuit while he was rising up the ranks in Michigan. Now, with USA Hockey s American Development Model being incorporated into rinks and associations across the country, Daniels is happy to see the ice being scaled appropriately again. As a matter of fact, I ve been around long enough to see things come full-circle, said Daniels, who has received multiple national coaching awards. When I first started playing in mites, we were playing cross-ice in those days. Three games going at once, it was tremendous. Kids could score goals, you wouldn t have to worry about offsides and icing and all the stuff you could learn later in life. You got to play just for the sheer fun of playing. I think that, in terms of an experience for young kids, that s a much better experience. Smaller Ice Equals More Action What s the point of signing up to play youth sports? Keyword: Play. How can we get kids involved and active as much as possible to help them cultivate a love for the game? How can we create the best possible environment for them to improve? Age-appropriate playing surfaces are a large part of the answer. You put a young child on a full-length golf course and have them play from the blues when they re 7 years old, a lot of kids probably wouldn t want to continue to play the game, Daniels said. Why would you do it in hockey, when you could do a cross-ice game? Get more kids on the ice for a specific amount of time the kids will get more touches of the puck; goalkeepers will be more active and make more saves. On a full sheet of ice, it might be 15 minutes between shots for a poor goaltender at one end of the rink. In a small-ice game, they re going to see much more action. An Emphasis on Learning the Fundamental Skills No icing, no offside. In an ADM-approved cross-ice hockey game, referees are instructed to guide the game along, not whistle minor infractions or rules that might be difficult for youngsters to grasp. Instead of worrying about rules and systems, Daniels likes that, in a cross-ice atmosphere, kids learn how to compete with one another while working on their skills due to more puck touches and frequent engagement in the play. Kids are going to work on their puck-handling skills much more in a confined area, Daniels said. I think it will also, in some respects, force kids to pass and move the puck more, teach them how to compete in a small area. For so many reasons cross-rink games are much better for kids than trying to play on a full sheet of ice. I m a big proponent of that. The Right Time to Focus on Skill Development Daniels stressed that, at the 8U level, ice time should be about teaching kids the right way to perform hockey skills, not wins and losses. My feeling is that the kids in the younger age groups, yeah, they like to compete and that sort of thing, but most of them derive their fun from skill development from accomplishing or mastering certain tasks, Daniels said. They re not specifically geared towards competition. I also think that when kids are younger, it s a critical time period where you can teach them how to skate correctly, how to handle pucks correctly, how to shoot, how to do the fundamentals correctly and efficiently. By committing to small-area games and cross-ice competition, we keep the focus rightly on those fundamentals a decision that pays major dividends in the athlete s long-term development. Jeremy Gregoire, Hockey Director

2 Pee Wee AA rang the bell for the Salvation Army! Thanks Guys! Pee Wee B Braving the weather for the Red Kettle! Thank You to everyone that volunteered to ring the bell for the Red Kettle Campaign. YOU make a difference!

Games will be played at the MYHA arena and the Moorhead Sports Center.

4 50 Years of Moorhead Hockey Come and Celebrate 50 years of Moorhead Hockey on Saturday, January 24 th! The anniversary celebration will kick off with a full schedule of games featuring our Moorhead youth, JV, and varsity hockey teams throughout the day. Games will be played at the MYHA arena and the Moorhead Sports Center. Weather-permitting, some of the youth games may be played on the MYHA outdoor rink and open hockey will be available on the outdoor rink as well. There will be food vendors available in addition to our standard concession offerings. The featured game will have the Moorhead Spuds boys team facing off against their Section 8AA rival Roseau Rams at 6 pm at the Moorhead Sports Center. Check the MYHA website for the complete game schedule. The celebration will conclude with a social at the Moorhead Courtyard Marriott following the game. Former Spuds coach Dave Morinville and longtime Spuds Hockey radio broadcaster Larry Knutson will serve as MCs for the social. Representatives from the Spuds hockey team, the first team to play for Moorhead, will be honored during the festivities. The boys high school team will be wearing special throwback jerseys of the Spuds hockey team, and these jerseys will sold via silent auction during the social. In addition, a variety of Moorhead Hockey 50 th Anniversary merchandise will be available for sale at the events. We hope to See You THERE!!

Reminder to NOT leave hockey bags, sticks, etc. at the MYHA Arena overnight. The Arena and Office Staff are NOT responsible for items that are left unattended, lost, stolen or missing.

5 Reminder to NOT leave hockey bags, sticks, etc. at the MYHA Arena overnight. The Arena and Office Staff are NOT responsible for items that are left unattended, lost, stolen or missing. This procedure will help maintain the cleanliness of the Arena and the Locker Rooms as well as allow the Arena Staff to properly clean. Thank you! January 15 th is Youth Night at the Spuds Game! Attention all Moorhead girls hockey players! Come and cheer on the Moorhead Spuds as we take on the Fergus Falls Otters! There is still space available on our video board in the lobby for advertising! These advertising dollars will go to offset the cost of the new jerseys. If you or someone you know is interested in advertising at MYHA, contact Julie Durgin at the office ( or Admission is free to any player wearing their MYHA jersey. Post-game gathering in our locker room, treats and get your favorite Spud players autographs! Thursday, January 15 th JV Game (4:00 PM) and Varsity (6:00 PM) Moorhead Sports Center ARENA NEWS Time is flying by this season and so far things are going well at your arena. Thanks to all the volunteers who help, especially the concession and clean up volunteers. It really helps to keep our arena looking new. I would ask that the parents talk to their players about the shooting room. I don t mind allowing players using it but many times they just go in to fool around. I hate to say no or kick kids out because of the foolishness of just a few. Please tell your players the room is there for their development and use it accordingly. We tried to have the outdoor rink ready before Christmas but the warm weather messed that up. Now it s really cold but the ice is great! The warming shack has a heater in it so the kids can dress in there. We really have no supervision so hopefully the kids will conduct themselves accordingly. The shack is open after school and most of the day on weekends, if the door is locked come inside the rink and ask an attendant to unlock it. We will try and resurface the ice outside if we have time during the day. I hope to put some lines down on the ice soon. Have fun outside players! Denny

The Next Family Fun Night is February 6th vs. the Sioux City Musketeers. See the MYHA News Feed for ticket Info and forms! Moorhead Youth Hockey to be a part of Giving Hearts Day, 2015!

6 The Next Family Fun Night is February 6th vs. the Sioux City Musketeers. See the MYHA News Feed for ticket Info and forms! Moorhead Youth Hockey to be a part of Giving Hearts Day, 2015! Match Donors needed! This year, Moorhead Youth Hockey was chosen to be a participant of Giving Hearts Day which will take place on February 12th, We are excited to be a part of the biggest charity day of the year where nonprofits are impacted greatly by the generosity of their supporters. We are looking for businesses and/or individuals who would consider becoming a Match Donor for Moorhead Youth Hockey. Whether it s $50 or $5000, every dollar donated results in MYHA continuing to provide excellence to our youth. Our goal is to have committed donations from Match Donors totaling $4000 or more by January 23rd, Are you willing to become a part of this monumental day of giving? Does supporting youth hockey in Moorhead matter to you? If so, please consider being a Match Donor today! You can verbally commit your donation by calling Julie in the MYHA office or by sending an to admin@moorheadyouthhockey.com. No need to send money now-just let us know you will support us on GHD on February 12th!

Mark your Calendar: Check our website for exact practice/game times and more info!

moorheadyouthhockey.com DON T THROW THOSE DEAD INK CARTRIDGES! Please turn in your used printer ink cartridges to the drop off box in the MYHA lobby.

Lisa Schmidt Ink Recycling Coordinator MEETING NOTICE The Board of Directors of Moorhead Youth Hockey meets on the third Wednesday of each month.

The next scheduled meeting will be held on Wednesday, December 17, and January 21 @ 7:00pm, at the MYHA Board Room.

SPORT NGIN Are you GETTING emails from MYHA? Each FAMILY should have only one NGIN login. It can happen. New email addresses, forgotton passwords, his and hers, etc.

7 Mark your Calendar: Check our website for exact practice/game times and more info! January 9 MYHA Youth Night at the Force Game January 9-11 Spud Classic - Bantam AA January 21 Board Meeting January 24 SPUD Anniversary (see article) January 30-Feb 1 Girls 14UA & 12UA Tournament DON T THROW THOSE DEAD INK CARTRIDGES! Please turn in your used printer ink cartridges to the drop off box in the MYHA lobby. We earn cash for each one we turn in for recycling/refilling so it's an easy way for us to make money for our organization! We have earned over $830 so far. Accepting small and large cartridges! Lisa Schmidt Ink Recycling Coordinator MEETING NOTICE The Board of Directors of Moorhead Youth Hockey meets on the third Wednesday of each month. At each meeting the financial records of the association and its gaming subsidiary are available to review by the members of the association. All members are invited to attend. The next scheduled meeting will be held on Wednesday, December 17, and January 7:00pm, at the MYHA Board Room. If you would like to be added to the agenda please contact Julie Durgin at or admin@moorheadyouthhockey.com at least one week pr ior to the meeting. SPORT NGIN Are you GETTING s from MYHA? Each FAMILY should have only one NGIN login. It can happen. New addresses, forgotton passwords, his and hers, etc. Our records show some people with multiple logins. This can effect DIBS records as well as s sent via Sport NGIN. If you want to check your account(s), the MYHA office at MYHA@moorheadyouthhockey.com and Alane will you back information that can help you. GAMING Pull tab and bingo gaming help to support and reduce the costs of youth hockey for the Moorhead Youth Hockey Association. MYHA appreciates the partnerships we have with the following gaming sites. Please patronize our MYHA gaming sites: ** RED HEN TAP HOUSE** CROWBAR ** DAVE S SOUTHSIDE TAP **GALAXIE **JC CHUMLEY S** **JC CORRAL ** MAINLINE** **MICK S OFFICE **O LEARY S PUB ** SPEAK EASY **VIC S BAR & GRILL **ALL STAR BOWL** O Leary s Pizza Special On Mondays and Tuesdays O Leary s will donate $2 to MYHA for every large pizza ordered for take out or eat in. (And O Learys is now open to kids until 9 pm!) Support Moorhead Youth Hockey and have a quick and easy meal every Monday and Tuesday! RECYCLING NOTICE: You are welcome to bring your aluminum cans to Minnkota Recycling and tell them they are for Moorhead Youth Hockey. Moorhead Youth Hockey will receive the rebate check back from the cans. Thank you!!

8 Moorhead Youth Hockey 707 SE Main Ave. Moorhead, MN RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED

F A C e o f f. The MYHA 10,000 Puck Challenge is back!

F A C e o f f. The MYHA 10,000 Puck Challenge is back! F A C e o f f Volume XVI Issue 8 May, 2014 The Official Scorecard of Moorhead Youth Hockey MYHA BOARD OF DIRECTORS 2014-2015 Brian Stavenger President Equipment Stephanie Gess Vice President, Gaming Liaison