Pam writes:
>I'm not sure I like this trend of high schoolers choosing to play in the
>USHL.  I suppose it's a higher level of experience for them, but those
>of us who became college hockey fans by first being high school hockey
>fans (I think I can speak for Lisa, Dan, and maybe Erik) have to hope
>this isn't a coming thing that siphons off the top Twin Cities high school
>players into the Juniors.  Or maybe I'm worrying too much about it!
 
Well, out here, it isn't uncommon for the top players in Mass, Connecticut,
etc. to leave their HS at some point in their careers and head to prep school
where they'll get more exposure and be seen by more college/pro scouts.  The
level of play in prep is probably about equal to the USHL, from what I have
heard.  And occasionally an Eastern player will head out to the USHL to gain
more experience and a better shot at playing college - that's what former
Northeastern defenseman Mike Roberts did.  It helped him go from a college JV
player to captain of the Huskies in his senior year.
 
There are two forces at work here, and it's hard to determine from the
article Pam quoted which one is involved with respect to Hendrickson.
1) Sometimes a college coach will encourage a player to go to prep (or maybe
 in the West, USHL) to get bigger, work on grades to have a better chance to
 be accepted, get more experience, etc. and thus increase his chances of
 getting a scholarship.
2) Sometimes players will go these routes on their own, hoping to attract
 attention and land a scholarship.
 
One or both of these may have played in Hendrickson's decision - i.e. "go to
the USHL and your chances of getting a scholarship to Minnesota will be very
good".  (I've heard of coaches supposedly guaranteeing deals if players went
prep and then the player being stuck out in the cold when the school decided
it wanted someone else, but I can't verify any of those.  Players may read
the above sentence in quotes as "go to prep/USHL and I *WILL* get a scholar-
ship".)
 
Either way, this all has to do with a player doing what it takes or what he
believes it will take to make himself more marketable, and I can't fault a
player for doing that.  In the end, it is the player's decision.  It is
probably true that without the prep schools, Mass. HS hockey would be even
better than it already is.  But there are also all of the cutbacks that are
taking place in Mass., both in public schools (public hockey is nowhere near
what it was) and the Catholic schools.  More and more, it is becoming evident
that only the schools that are completely committed to hockey can ice the
best teams, and this includes the Catholics, privates/preps, and some of the
best publics.  Likewise, USHL teams are clearly committed to hockey and can
probably provide an excellent environment for a player to improve.
 
Does anyone else see a similarity between the Eastern prep schools and the
USHL/Western juniors?
 
 
- mike