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Development Camp Girls Hockey Player Development

Observations from the 2023 USA Hockey Pacific District Camp

Earlier this month my daughter attended the USA Hockey Pacific District Camp for the third and final time (she’s aging out of the U18 events).  Now that the results have been posted, I am posting my thoughts on this year’s event. Feel free to read my previous summaries from the 2021 camp and 2022 camp to understand the three year experience.

Overall, operationally speaking, this was clearly the best run district camp of the three she attended.

Just like previous years, there were three practice/skills sessions and three games. The practice/skills sessions were well organized and structured – and in my opinion, allowed the evaluators to see how players performed both offensively and defensively beyond just the games.

More Teams

There were some significant changes from previous years.  First, the number of teams for the 16/17 age group was increased from 4 teams to 6 teams (the 15’s age group had 4 teams similar to last year). There are arguments to be made on both sides about the pros and cons of increasing the number of players invited to attend. However, on-balance, as we try to grow the girls game on the west coast, I think it worked out just fine. The overall level of play may have been a little diluted, but the goodwill from attending the event works for me. Plus, the extra money it generated allowed more USA Hockey staff to attend from all over the country. 

More Coaches

Unlike the last couple of years where it seemed to be only 2-4 coaches watching from the stands while another 2 coached from the bench. There seemed to always be at least ~6-8 coaches scouting from the roped-off coaches section in the stand.  Another big change, as referenced above, was not only the number of participating coaches, but also the list of coaches and their role during the weekend was shared with all attendees via email.  In the past, I had to work hard to identify who all the coaches were and decipher the role they played. The day after camp ended, we were emailed the full list of coaches, where they were from and what role they played (evaluator, volunteer, USA Hockey Staff) – which was awesome.  No more guessing.

The only complaint I heard via several parents (from their daughters) was that it seemed that some of the coaches were over-coaching on the ice. There were lots of times coaches would stop drills and call everyone over or a coach would give detailed feedback to a specific player.  Feedback is good – I love player feedback – but at an event like Districts, players don’t want to get drill-related  feedback from every coach they interact with. What players really want is feedback on how to improve their overall game.

Same Number of National Camp Spots

I am not sure what players and parents expected in terms of realistically making the USA Hockey National Camps, but the odds aren’t good for most players.  Here are the numbers of National invites (based on % of registrations of girls in the Pacific District):

Notes:

  1. Only 1 2008 forward was selected to go straight to the 18s Camp (last year 1F and 1 D went straight to 18s)
  2. Goalies are selected at the national level and not dependent on the proportion of district registrations

So hopefully, most players, especially those who were invited from the alternate lists (or not even originally selected) understood they were long shots to make it National Camp and were just happy to go to Las Vegas.

Goalie Development

Another positive from the event was when I talked to the goalie coaches for the district and she explained how they evaluate goalies, the process of providing goalies feedback and tracking their development from year-to-year.  I wish they would have done something similar for skaters – because in the 3 years we’ve gone, there has been no pro-active mechanism to receive feedback from the event for skaters.

A few other points:

  • Games were two 32 minute running-time halves – which was 2 minutes more than last year
  • The refs were less noticeable this year compared to last year.  Which is a good thing.
  • The jerseys were 100 times nicer than previous years (not embarrassing to have mismatched jerseys and socks like last year) – with a number scheme which made it clear who were 2006s and 2007s.
  • It would have been nice to also have the jersey #s included in the roster lists that were sent out so parents didn’t need to try to figure who the players were by themselves
  • Everyone had to travel to Vegas for the weekend, with many coming from out-of-district.  I hope parents and players felt that the total cost of the weekend was worth it. Unless you were driving from California, the weekend had to be super-expensive.
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2023 College Hockey Recruiting Girl's Showcase Women's Hockey

NGHL NCAA EXPOSURE CAMP 2023

June 10-11, 2023 – Newington, CT

Go straight to: Instructions on How to Connect with Coaches

Why Create a Champs App Profile? (Video)

How to Create a Beautiful Hockey Profile That Gets Noticed (Video)

Coaching Staff

Katie zimmerman

Head Coach – Western New England Golden Bears

ashley salerno

Assistant Coach – Middlebury Panthers

jess koizumi

Associate Head Coach – Vermont Catamounts

RACHEL GRAMPP

Head Coach – Buffalo State Bengals

Taylor ham

Assistant Coach – Connecticut College Camels

eliza kelley

Head Coach – Worcester State Lancers

Tori emoff

Head Coach – Stevenson Mustangs

Mia del rosso

Assistant Coach – Trinity Bantams

Champs App lets players create beautiful, free hockey resume that facilitate the college and prep hockey recruiting process. 

“How do I know coaches will remember me after the NGHL NCAA Camp?”

By connecting directly with coaches, players can know that coaches will continue to follow them after the NGHL event during the regular season (see their schedule, video & profile updates). Coaches can not only get more details about each player, but also see their upcoming schedule, regular teams and coaches.

Instructions:

Step 1: Create your free Champs App Profile hockey resume here

Step 2: To make it easier for the NCAA Exposure Camp coaches to find you – add your NGHL Team as your current team to your Champs profile and make sure to include your jersey #

Step 3:  Review the list of the NGHL NCAA Exposure Camp coaches above to connect with and then send connection requests to the coaches/schools you are interested in from within Champs App.

Categories
2023 College Hockey Recruiting Girl's Showcase Women's College Hockey

CHS Girls High Performance Camp Coaching Staff

Go straight to the Instructions on How to Connect with the CHS High Performance Camp Coaches

Why Create a Champs App Profile? (Video)

How to Create a Beautiful Hockey Profile That Gets Noticed (Video)

Coaching Staff Profiles

Tara Watchorn

Head Coach – Boston University Terriers

justin simpson

Assistant Coach – Brown Bears

Brice Baricevic

Assistant Coach – Arcadia Knights

ashley salerno

Assistant Coach – Middlebury Panthers

Jessica Scott

Assistant Coach – Minnesota Golden Gophers

MIRA JALOSUO

Assistant Coach – St Cloud State Huskies

Erica kromm

Assistant Coach – Yale Bulldogs

Chris ardito

Assistant Coach – Union Dutchwomen

max gavin

Assistant Coach – Dartmouth Big Green

Makenna newkirk

Assistant Coach – Penn State Nittany Lions

Champs App lets players create beautiful, free hockey resume that facilitate the college and prep hockey recruiting process. 

“How do I know coaches will remember me after the CHS Girls High Performance Camp?”

By connecting directly with coaches, players can know that coaches will continue to follow them after the CHS event during the regular season (see their schedule, video & profile updates). Coaches can not only get more details about each player, but also see their upcoming schedule, regular teams and coaches.

Instructions:

Step 1: Create your free Champs App Profile hockey resume here

Step 2: To make it easier for the CHS Girls High Performance Camp coaches to find you – add your CHS Girls High Performance Camp team as your current team to your Champs profile and make sure to include your jersey #

Step 3:  Review the list of the CHS Girls High Performance Camp coaches above to connect with and then send connection requests to the coaches/schools you are interested in from within Champs App.

Categories
Coaching College Hockey Recruiting Player Development Women's College Hockey Women's Hockey

Some Thoughts on the Ohio State Women’s Hockey Recruiting Strategy

Ohio State women’s ice hockey head coach Nadine Muzerall is a winner. Muzerall, who won two national championships as a player and four as a coach with the University of Minnesota, has instilled a winning culture at Ohio State. She has a proven track record of success in her seven years at OSU. With Muzerall at the helm, Ohio State women’s hockey team has made the Frozen Four the last three years,  won the National Championship in 2021-22 and appeared in the finals again this past March.

Coach Muzerall Wants to Win Every Year

A key ingredient in OSU’s ability to compete these last few years for a National Championship has been to add high-end, experienced talent from other schools via the transfer portal.  In 2021-22, OSU had 8 upperclass players transfer from other schools n their roster (including 3 from Robert Morris University which had just folded).  In 2022-23 there were 5 players who came to OSU via the transfer portal including Makenna Webster (from Wisconsin who finished 4th in scoring on the team), Lauren Bernard (D from Clarkson who played in all 41 games) and Kenzie Hauswirth (from Quinnipiac who finished 8th in team scoring). So these players were significant contributors to the team’s success this past season.

Want to Win Before Your Career Ends? Transfer to OSU

With as many as 8-10 players leaving the program this spring, Coach Muzerall’s strategy is not to rebuild, but to reload. Over the past few weeks, Coach Muzerall has reloaded with more experienced high-end talent via the transfer portal by adding Olympian defender Cayla Barnes from BC , Patty Kaz Top-10 Finalist Kiara Zanon from Penn State,  BC’s leading scorer Hannah Bilka, Kelsey King from Minnesota State and D Stephanie Markowski from Clarkson. Needless to say, a very talented group of transfers.

While there may be multiple reasons for these transfers to move on from their previous schools (e.g. graduated, no longer a fit etc.), the appeal of winning a national championship is pretty clear. For these new players, they know there is a very high probability they will be competing at the Frozen Four next March – while they may not have had the same opportunity if they stayed with their previous program. Why not go for it?

Source: https://gopherpucklive.com/transfer-portal/

The Impact on Underclass Players

At the same time, there were at least 5 OSU players who entered the transfer portal this spring, all with multiple years of eligibility left.  Most notably, Sydney Morrow, a first-year D who tied for team scoring with USA Hockey at the U18 Women’s IIHF tournament in scoring last summer, transferred to Colgate.  From what I could tell watching the Frozen Four, while dressed for the last two games, Morrow saw little-to-no ice time as the 7th D.

Implications for Incoming Recruiting Classes

With the increased number of transfers, potential recruits must recognize that freshmen may find themselves in a more competitive environment at schools like OSU and may struggle to find playing time early on. Furthermore, coaching staff may give priority to more experienced players over freshmen, and this may impact player development. As a result, incoming freshmen may have to consider the challenge in earning their spot on the team and how hard it would be to make a meaningful contribution to the program in all four years of eligibility. While the transfer portal provides more opportunities for players to explore their options and find the best fit for their needs, it also creates a more challenging environment for incoming freshmen to establish themselves in the team.

Creates an Environment Between the “Have” and the “Have-Nots” Hockey Programs

The women’s hockey transfer portal has essentially created a two-tier system between the top talented schools and everyone else. The portal has provided top-tier programs with the ability to attract and acquire the best players in the country, leaving other schools having to figure out to replace the top talent they lose to these programs. The top schools have the resources and coaching staff to offer a highly competitive environment and the opportunity to compete for national championships, which makes them attractive destinations for talented transfers. On the other hand, smaller or less successful programs may struggle to keep up, which creates a divide in the quality of play between the top programs and everyone else. While the transfer portal has created new opportunities for high-end players to explore and find the best fit for their needs, it is creating an uneven playing field in women’s college hockey.

It will be interesting to see if other Top 10 schools begin to copy the Ohio State strategy of picking off several top players via the transfer portal in order to better compete with the top recruiting schools like Wisconsin, Minnesota, Northeastern and Minnesota-Duluth who have not yet adopted this strategy (even though all schools have the occasional top talent transfer).

What Happens When No More 5th Year (Covid) Eligibility? 

It will be interesting to see how things go with the 2025 recruiting class for Ohio State. The last class of Covid year grad students is 2024, so the pool of 5th year transfers will be much smaller and potential players would likely need to be move prior to graduating from their current schools.  Will the top players from the incoming class of 2025 be concerned about transfer portal players at OSU and thus look elsewhere? We will find out this fall.

Implications For Potential Recruits and Which Schools to Consider

As a high school player trying to figure out which program is right for you, it would be important to be realistic about your own talents and where you might fit in the line-up over all four of your years. Even if you are a national U-18 team member, you might still struggle to get ice time at a top tier program that brings in experienced top talent with 1 or 2 years of eligibility left.

During the recruiting process, understanding the coaching staff’s player development process over 4 years and ice time philosophy is an important conversation to have before a decision is made.