Slow day today.....only one bit of news caught my eye really and that was that the Rebels assigned 16 year old defenceman Kevin Woodyatt to a midget team in Arizona.
Yes, Arizona. Of course, that's where he is from, although he played midget last year at Notre Dame in Saskatchewan. This year the Rebels had tried to assign him to the local AAA midget team in Red Deer, but I guess his presence on that team caused some controversy since he wasn't from the Red Deer midgets' usual drawing area, and thus his presence on the team was costing a local player a spot. It wasn't an issue last year in Notre Dame since that's a boarding school with kids from all over the place, but it was an issue this year. And I think everyone can certainly see where the Red Deer folks who had a problem with this are coming from too. I can't say I disagree with them.
So, now he's back in Arizona where presumably the calibre of hockey is a fair bit below what he'd be playing at in Red Deer AAA. Probably not what he needs at this point in his career. I guess the whole point of this post is, why don't the Rebels just keep the kid on their WHL roster? He has already played a few games for them this year and they only have 23 players on their roster, with only two other 16 year olds. Why not keep him around in the WHL, even if he only gets into 30 games and practices with the club every day, that has to be better than what he'll be playing at home.
7 comments:
Andy: I agree with you. I guess Red Deer feels its more important to play against lesser oppontants and lesser telents, than having him on their roster. Practicing against better players. Traveling and the competition could help hin when he is 17 and 18 year old.
Just my thought:
Brian in SHerwood
I would bet that Kevin is probably going to play for the P.F. Changs U-16 AAA team in Phoenix.Which is a top rated National Championship contending hockey club.They play in ther Midwest Elite hockey league with teams like Little Ceasars,Compuware,Victory Honda Belle Tire etc.....great hockey it may even be better than the midget AAA in Red Deer.
I would say that if he's playing for PF Changs it's a step above Red Deer AAA for sure! PF Changs is a Nationaly recognized program with some great coaching in very nice facilites with a 1st class weight room program. If he's from Arizona and has the option to play near home for PF Changs, he's much better off!
The folks in Red Deer midget not liking it is irrelevant. Once he was done at Notre Dame, a hockey academy, he automatically reverts back to his home branch which is USA Hockey. Inter-branch transfer for under 18s are not allowed except to a hockey academy, therfore he can't transfer from USA Hockey to Hockey Alberta.
Not sure this is the case he is a Canadian Citizen.
Canadian citizenship is irrelevant too. The only way it could happen would be for his parents to have their principal place of residence switched to Alberta and then apply to have a transfer of "Home Branch" from the USA Hockey to Hockey Alberta. But then that principal place of residence would also have to fall within the geographic limits of the Red Deer Minor Hockey Association or any of the LMHA from which the midget AAA team in Red Deer can recruit players. That's the same for a 10 year old Atom player whose parents move from Saskatchewan to Alberta.
My understanding is that Woodyatt's parents gave up their legal guardianship of him to a family in Red Deer, thus making this all aboveboard. From the legal point of view, his "parents" became that Red Deer family, which thus qualified him to play for the Red Deer team.
Now, whether THAT is in the best interests of the kid (any kid!) is whole other ball of wax.
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