I asked the commish to put a category out her for prep hockey discussions because it is one piece of youth hockey that is surrounded by mystery and misconception.

Well, I'm here and I know there are a couple of others who have been through the process around here who can help you understand the what's when's where's why's and how to's of the prep school hockey world.

I'll start by letting you know where we are in the prep school arena. My daughter started at New Hampton School in New Hampshire this fall and will be shortly starting her first season in goal.

We went through the admissions and financial aid process last year and I have (from a couple of different boards) been engaged in discussions regarding the prep school admissions experience.

I am a supporter of prep schools and prep school hockey as a great life experience for kids as long as you understand that prep schools and prep school hockey is not a short cut to the NHL or any other silliness.

What prep schools can do...
1) Provide an educational environment unmatched in public education with academic support and resources not typically available in even the best public schools, increasing the chances for top level college admissions.
2) Provide an environment where kids can develop independent living and self-sufficiency skills preparing them for college.
3) Provide an athletic environment where a student can compete in multiple sports (in season) at a high level with excellent coaching support and college advisement and exposure.
4) Provide a living environment where kids make friends for a lifetime and truly enjoy the best years of their life.

What prep schools cannot do...
1) Change an academic underachiever into an Ivy League shoo-in. The kids still have to do the work.
2) Fix discipline problems with a kid. The concept of sending a "bad" kid to boarding school to instill discipline is the furthest thing from reality I can think of. There are schools for troubled teens, but those aren't the ones with hockey teams. And schools try very hard to filter out the discipline problems from ever getting in. And, from what we've experienced so far, the schools don't put up with much and do not hesitate to kick out kids who violate the rules.
3) Prep schools cannot change the untalented player into an NHL draft pick. Their programs run in a 3.5 month season with intense practice (typically 2 hours M, Tu, Th, Fr with games on W and Sa for New England Schools plus off-ice) and games. They generally have excellent coaching and trainers, but development is a two-way street. If a long season with spring hockey is what you want, prep school is not for you.
4) Prep schools cannot give every promising kid a full-ride. Financial Aid is on need only and the process is similar to college FA.

With that said, I'll open up the floor for questions...

Thanks for getting this started RWG. I've also spent alot of time looking into prep shcools as an option for my son - still haven't ruled it out, but for this season we opted to have him play with a MWEHL team.

Couple things to keep in mind about preps:

1. You will need to allow 18 months or so lead time prior to the date you wish to enroll to do your research on the schools, select schools to visit and conduct admissions interviews, complete admissions and financial aid applications, etc.

2. Depending on what area of the country (Northeast or Midwest), it's recommended that you get your player into showcases that will allow prep coaches to see them - Hockey Night In Boston, Chowder Cup/Jr Chowder Cup, Pre-Prep Showcase, etc.

3. There plenty of places on the internet to get information - here is a link to a page put together for my son's teams the past couple years (they've seen 10-12 players enter preps). Of those links, I suggest this site as the place to start.

If anyone has questions I'd be happy to try to answer the best I can.

There was an article written in the New York times yesterday about alternative prep schools for winter sports.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/30/fa...&ex=1165035600

National Sports Academy(NSA) is mentioned which does offer both boys and girls hockey and is a full school year program and North American Hockey Academy(NAHA) which is a girl's only program and offers both winter season and full school year program.

I enjoyed the article for the most part, however it was disturbing to me that they did not list the academic requirements of the programs that expect a student to maintain an 85% or higher in order to participate in the sport, but did mention the two ski academies that only require that a student be passing to continue in their sport.

I can not speak to NSA's requirements but I feel they are pretty much in line with NAHA's which does require an 85% in order to continue to practice and play.

There are New England schools that you can get in with average grades and other that you'll need 3.5 or better. Use the internet to do the research on where your child falls. Most paperwork needs to be in by Jan/Feb for the following year. Especially for those who'll need financial help (probably 90% or more of families need it as it could run as much as $35,000 per year)

Two assistant D-1 coaches told me HNIB is not watched as much as it used to be....however, the Chowder Cup and Jr. Chowder Cup are watched by many more coaches. There are also a few summer camps that are run by AD's and prep coaches that would be a chance to be seen individually if you are not able to join a team for the Chowder Cup, HNIB etc.

gotice & melrose - thanks for the comments. I've found the same that melrose has - the required grades/scores vary greatly. I found the Prep School Hockey Guide was a valuable tool in getting such info - it provided the average entrance score for each school (along with other key info).


And I've also heard the HNIB (especially at the Jr Hi & Soph levels) was loosing ground to the Chowder Cup (since they introduced the Jr Chowder Cup a couple yreas back).

We live in Arizona, my son plays Midget AA here. What is the best way to get "seen" by Prep Schools?

hello mrgoaliedad!

There are 2 times of year when you can get your player (or goalie in your case - mine too) - during season and off-season.

Off-season is typically done by attending tournaments like those mentioned earlier or there are a couple of Canadian tournaments as well. Being from the girls side, I'm not as familiar with those. Perhaps Fangers will have more.

Being seen during season requires a bit more work and may require some help from your current team. These prep school coaches have busy schedules with either practices or games Monday through Saturday. Your best chance to get seen is if your team plays in a tournament in the Northeast and has Sunday games. It is then just a matter of getting the coach to drive to a game (which they do for a prospect of interest). Another strategy is to visit the school during the week and many coaches will let you work out with the team in a practice as an evaluation.

In any case, the first thing you need to do is to generate interest. I'm not sure if it is true with AA level hockey, but I've corresponded with a AAA level kid from California whose coach was networked with several prep school coaches. With one particular prep school coach, just the fact that another known coach said this kid was good was enough for him to have a look see at the kid.

If you are not lucky enough to have these kinds of connections, I'd say sending video (DVDs) of your son in action is probably the best method available to generate interest. For a goalie (or defenseman) I'd say shoot the tape from behind the net elevated a bit. If that is not available, I'd say a high corner shot is the next best angle. Select a game where he sees a lot of challenging action. Edit out the play on the other end of the rink (no coach wants to have to hit the FF button all the time), but give him enough context of the play so that he sees how your son sets up for the play as the puck enters the zone.

Use the video as an invitation to discuss more or invite him to see your son either for an on campus visit or a game in the region (during or off-season).

When you send in video, it is always a good idea to have a little write up on your son's team and the opponent to give the coach who is not familiar with hockey in your area an idea of the quality of the teams playing.

And of course, always send in some basic academic (and other favorable) information about your son. Even if you kid is the next Hasek, the coach cannot work miracles with admissions if he is a C student. My recommendation is to try to target schools where your kid is going to be in the upper half of the admitted class academically (upper quarter if possible). This means that the coach doesn't have to use a tip to get your son admitted, which gives you an advantage all things hockey being equal. Coaches like to be able to say they are improving the academic quality of the school.

If you want some information on boarding school admissions, test scores, etc. try Boarding School Review. They have lots of information about admittance rates, test scores, etc as well as links to schools.

Good luck and if you need more specific help, feel free to PM me.

RWG has some great ideas, especially as it relates to the videos. What I have to add from my experience (my son also a goalie):

1. Do your homework. Check out the schools and try to establish a list of schools that you think will be fits for your son academically and socially. There are lots of factors that come into play - size of school, religious affiliation, coed vs. same sex, casual dress code vs. more rigid, mix of boarding vs. day students, curriculum/course offerings, academdic philosphy, etc - and you need to know your son and what environment works best for him.

2. Request admissions packages for the top 15-20 schools that you like so you can get additional information on the school. If you request them online, they usually ask you if there are specific sports/activities that you are interested in (if the don't ask that specifically, make you you mention hockey in the comments). Most schools have coaches on the admission staff and all the schools will let the coaching staff know of anyone who who is interested in the school who mentioned hockey.

3. For those schools interested in, look at how many teams they have, how many goalies they currently have enrolled/rostered, and what grade are they in. The last thing you want to do is get stuck in a situatiion where you go to a school and have your son stuck behind the #1 goalie who is only one year ahead of him grade wise. Bottom line is trying to find the right combination of school/academics and the opportunity to compete for a spot on the school's top team.

4. Once you've narrowed the list down, contact the coach via email to let them know about your son and your interest. Tell them that you have video available if he would be interested and be prepared to to provide a couple references. But, don't overdo the email thing - these coaches are very busy so you have to be careful not to be too pushy.

5. For the Eastern schools, the primary places that the coaches can see a player who lives outside the NE area is via showcase/prospect events and the USA Hockey festival camps. The top showcase events in the NE are the Jr Chowder Cup (for jr hi ages), Chowder Cup, Hockey Night In Boston, and the Pre-Prep Showcase. You can apply as an individual to participate and they can try to get you assigned to a team, but from experience I know it's very tough to get a goalie spot. Look at the web sites for these events and check out the teams that have particpated in the past - I know they have west coast teams - and you may have a better shot of getting on one of those rosters by talking to those coaches directly.

6. For the Midwest preps (Shattucks, Lake Forest, Culver, etc) they get to see players at some of the bigger AAA level tournaments and the USA district and festival camps. There is an EHK Prospects tourney in Chicago in the spring that gets some attention too (don't know the web site off hand, will look up later).

7. If your son's current team doesn't play in such tournaments (in Dallas or Chicago for example) sponosred by groups like EHK/US Hockey News then you may need to consider looking at placing your son on a team that will provide such exposure. If there is not such a team in your area, there is always the option of him moving to play. Not an option for every family I know, but I live in Cincinnati and my son is living & playing in Cleveland this year as it was the best option. There are several AZ players playing in his organization and there was an AZ goalie at the same tryouts he was in, so it has been done before.