WHAT IS JUNIOR HOCKEY?

Junior Hockey is the pinnacle of the skill development program offered by USA Hockey, and the ultimate challenge for players wishing to test themselves and retain their amateur status. Athletes age 20 and under as of December 31 are eligible for Junior Hockey.

Junior Hockey is an alternative for exceptional athletes who demand a greater challenge than that provided by prep school teams, high school varsity or club teams, or area midget teams. The purpose of Junior Hockey is to develop and prepare the exceptional athlete for career advancement either in collegiate programs and/or professional opportunities.

THE GOALS OF JUNIOR HOCKEY

1. Skill Development
To provide talented your men with the opportunity to develop competitively in an organized, structured and supervised environment.
2. Quality Coaching
To provide considerable training time, quality coaching and concerned supervision.
3. Social Maturity
To provide players with a healthy, constructive environment in which to develop socially.
4. Educational Advancement
To provide assistance and opportunities for the accomplishment of the participants educational goals.
5. Recruiting Exposure
To provide players with exposure to collegiate and professional scouts.
6. Advanced Competition
To provide players with exposure to national and international competition.
7. Protection of Amateur Status
To protect, most importantly, the amateur status of all participants under the rules and guidelines established by USA Hockey.

THE PURPOSE OF JUNIOR HOCKEY

1. Opportunity
To provide an opportunity for players in this age group to play against superior competition with qualified coaching, in front of scouts.
2. Development
To improve and develop the skills and abilities to the highest level of all participants, including the players, coaches, and officials.

Because of its nationwide scope, a player, in order to play Junior "A" hockey, is often required to move to and reside in the community where the Junior "A" program is located. For this reason, many players opt to compete in their Junior "B" or Junior "C" programs.

Junior players are also provided time to develop physically and mentally while playing at a very competitive level. Junior Hockey is developing players who can step in and excel at the college level. In fact, most college coaches now agree that the premier training ground for college bound U. S. players have become Tier II Junior Hockey Leagues. Junior players are recruited heavily by Division I, II, and III colleges and are also scouted by all the professional leagues. U. S. Junior leagues are providing the opportunity for the young athletes to realize their potential.

As evidence of the success of the programs at the Junior "A" level, all three existing leagues have generated significant number of scholarship awards for their players. These leagues have also provided a training ground for many future professionals.

WHY JUNIOR HOCKEY?

Because the exceptional athlete who is attempting to advance his career to college and/or professional hickey needs to practice every day, play against the best, and be trained by qualified coaches with out losing amateur status. All USA Hockey sanctioned Junior programs afford these players that opportunity. If a player participates in a Major "A" League (OHL, WHL, QMJHL), he chooses to forgo this amateur status and may not be able to participate at the collegiate level.

Junior Hockey has experienced tremendous growth in the last 10 years both in the number of teams and in the professionalism of the individual franchises. Some myths that should no be dispelled:

Myth: Junior players are not adequately supervised
Fact: Junior players have extremely busy schedules including school attendance, daily practice(s), off ice workouts, and in some instances, part-time jobs. These activities are overseen by qualified coaches who are there for both supervisions and assistance. Also, in most instances, Junior players live with host families who also help lend stability and guidance to players lives.

Myth: School is unimportant to Junior Programs
Fact: Junior programs stress hockey and academics equally. Most programs are active in their academic involvement, which includes arranging classes and monitoring progress. Junior Hockey in the United States is the developmental program for collegiate ice hockey teams. While football has "red shirting" and basketball uses Jr. Colleges...hockey has Juniors which allows the athletes to mature and develop.

If you have any questions about our USA Hockey Sanctioned Valley Forge Minutemen Junior Hockey Program, please contact Head Coach and General Manager Jerry Domish at jerry@oakscenterice.com or 610-650-9690 ext. 11.

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SCHEDULES
Junior B