mcm1610 Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 So many of you know I coach a girls 19U travel hockey team. We are more or less set with a roster, but could probably use one more player. A player has approached us about joining the team. I've personally never seen her play, but this is what the director of our girls program says about her: "yes i've seen her play and she's good but a little wild. Edd seems to think she's workable but the mom is a handful too. Tough decision." I know last year she got suspended "for kicking someone" but what the actual circumstances were I have no idea. I was suspended for kicking someone in hockey once, but that's because I got football tackled and my feet flew up and hit someone. A girl from the team last year that ages out and can't play next year says it would absolutely be a bad idea. My goalie says she'd make a good addition to the team. The last head coach before me says he would take her. My sister on the team says it's probably not a good idea. My assistant coach says he's uncertain of how she'd behave and a little iffy on it. I don't know.. what would you do? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lonesomexloveus Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 in situations like this, i'd say better safe than sorry. since you have a full roster (more or less), i'd say taking on a liability like that is more trouble/worry than it's worth. since multiple people (including your sister, whose opinion would hold the most value with me personally, if i was in your position) have said it's a bad idea, i'd probably not take her on. also, if someone mentioned the mom being a handful, that would be a red flag for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
midatlanticmauler Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 If I had a sister and she told me not to do something, I wouldn't do it. I side with family most of the time. Tough call though. I guess it boils down to how good she is and how much you care about winning if she's that good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
almightyseancore Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 kicking someone with an iceskate it some serious shit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hudsoncomplex Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 kicking someone with an iceskate it some serious shit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shenanigans Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 what are your options as far as getting rid of her once you take her? people get worked up in hockey and do stupid shit. look at bertuzzi or mcsorley. she served her suspension. take her and if she does something stupid again kick her off the team or suspend her for the season, whatever you gotta do Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcm1610 Posted June 6, 2011 Author Share Posted June 6, 2011 what are your options as far as getting rid of her once you take her? people get worked up in hockey and do stupid shit. look at bertuzzi or mcsorley. she served her suspension. take her and if she does something stupid again kick her off the team or suspend her for the season, whatever you gotta doThis is kind of how I want to go, but I also don't want to rock the boat.The team I have has a very rocky history itself. Last year was the first season with a new coach. The coach before that used to drink with the girls and encourage, or at least allow, all kinds of terrible behavior to take place and it showed on and off the ice (or so I hear, I wasn't around). Last year I started as an assistant but our head coach got suspended following a huge brawl right at the start of the season, and I took over as head coach and have stayed on for this year. We had 4 or 5 carry-over players from that mayhem team, and 3 of them, and sometimes a 4th, were brutal and we had to work the whole year on getting them to behave. By the end of the season we made a TON of progress, to the point where one of them was pretty much an angel, and the other two were significantly cut down on PIM. I'm nervous to throw a player that has a worse reputation than the kids I've had to reign in... rein in? right into the middle of that team, especially when we've got 9 forwards already. If she played goalie, or even defense we could make room for her. But forward is really where we're set. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snaggle Von Swift Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 It could say huge about you if you could get her under control and expose her true talent.. You could meet with her, lay down your expectations and show her you're not going to put up with the wild child act, and then let her decide if she wants to be a part of the team. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shenanigans Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 pushups/suicides for penalties/PP goals against. it works magic. you can always throw in the "good penalty clause" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
One Hundred Fifty-Two Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 Sounds like you don't need her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deafmx Posted June 8, 2011 Share Posted June 8, 2011 are you allowed to have her on the team as a 2-4 week probation/trial period? see how she works with the rest of the girls and how she would behave before making a final decision on adding her to the roster? otherwise, knowing her mom is a handful and that so many people already have a negative opinion of her, I would say cut your losses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harryq Posted June 9, 2011 Share Posted June 9, 2011 It could say huge about you if you could get her under control and expose her true talent.. You could meet with her, lay down your expectations and show her you're not going to put up with the wild child act, and then let her decide if she wants to be a part of the team. this sounds like advice you'd give your buddy when you're trying to convince him to hit on a drugged out girl at a club depending on how "serious" your team is, I'd probably lean toward giving her a chance and dealing with her drama if necessary. and btw, that "serious" bit wasn't meant to be rude or anything, but "19U"="19 under", right? so I'm imagining a high school team, and when I think of a high school team, unless (a) you're a convicted felon or ( there's a rule that says the team can't have more than x number of players, I think you should be given a chance. that said, I'm from a small town (not mpls), so maybe I'm old-fashioned... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silentgods Posted June 9, 2011 Share Posted June 9, 2011 "I played junior hockey and still hold two league records: most time spent in the penalty box and I was the only guy to ever take off his skate and try to stab somebody with it." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerseydave77 Posted June 9, 2011 Share Posted June 9, 2011 Probationary Period if it is available. Be up front about the mixed reaction to your taking her. If I wasn't given a second chance a few times then I'd have missed out on some valuable things in my life. There are limits though and you should have an idea in advance as to what that will be and abide by it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcm1610 Posted June 9, 2011 Author Share Posted June 9, 2011 Thanks guys.. it I bounced this off everybody I could, pretty much, and it was a really tough call. We have until December to finalize the roster, so a probationary period is definitely an option. Talking to a few of last year's players, the older girls who are more mature, only the goalie was really in favor of it. The two returning captains both thought it'd be bad and the other girl I talked to was absolutely against it. I very heavily considered giving her a "probationary" shot and stressing that a slip of her behavior could mean she's off the team, but in the end I decided it just wasn't worth the headache. We're more or less set at forward.. if I had to we could slide another player back to D, but I didn't want to throw a wild-card into the mix of an already unstable team (behaviorwise). Not that the team is bad, but we led the league in PIM last year without the help of this girl. My assistant coach thought I made the right move. It was a really shitty phone call though, I felt bad and could hear the disappointment on her end. Tough to do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rkfoster8 Posted June 9, 2011 Share Posted June 9, 2011 Her father is Matt Cooke I bet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suchashorttime Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 i would take her. just because kids have behavioral issues doesn't mean they're bad kids. kids, like everyone else, don't do things for no reason. they're usually just less aware of what the reasons are and what causes them. for some kids, having a structured athletic program helps to minimize behavioral issues. especially if you, as a coach, do a lot to promote concepts of team and the girls get close, could be the best thing that ever happened to this girl. plus, i assume there is some sort of academic standard held to play on the team. i don't know. i would pick solely on the basis of her skills as a hockey player. if she sucks, then you wouldn't pick her anyway. if she's good, i'd give her a shot. team sports do amazing things to young people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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