Congratulations to the 31 players who have been invited to attend the 2019 USA Hockey Central District High Performance 14 Player Development Camp in Ames, Iowa, June 16-21, 2019. Their selection was based on their performance and ratings at the AHAI Player Development Evaluation Tryouts held March 22-24, 2019 at The Edge Ice Arena in Bensenville. Please click HERE to view list.

Congratulations to the 25 Illinois Girls and 21 Illinois Boys Invited to USA Hockey’s National Development Camps! Please click here to view the list invitees.

AHIHA is very proud to sponsor a Disabled Hockey Coaches Clinic on Sunday, June 9th. The clinic will be conducted by Lee Costley and will take place at the Edge Ice Arena in Bensenville, Illinois. This clinic is open to individuals who plan on coaching disabled hockey. Topics include, Sled Hockey, Blind Hockey, Warrior Hockey, Standing Amputee Hockey, Special Hockey and Deaf/Hard of Hearing Hockey.

DISABLED HOCKEY COACHING CLINIC
9am to 12pm – Classroom
12pm to 1pm – Lunch provided
1pm to 2:30pm – On-Ice

Clinic will cover all disabled disciplines of hockey. There is no charge for this clinic. Participants in this class will receive a Level 1 Coaching Certification. If they already have a Level 1, they will receive a Level 2. Please Contact Kanella Diakoumi at kanellaatc@yahoo.com to register.

LEVEL 2 CLINIC
Level 2 clinic will be classroom only from 9am to 1pm. Cost is $45. Lunch will be provided. Please Contact Kanella Diakoumi at kanellaatc@yahoo.com to register.

For more information, please contact Kanella Diakoumi at kanellaatc@yahoo.com or Kevin Delaney at kdelaney@ahiha.org.

AHAI Affiliate Leadership Conference
Saturday, June 1, 2019 | 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
Westin Chicago Northwest – Itasca, IL

Five (5) candidates have submitted their nomination in accordance with the AHAI By-Laws to fill the five (5) open seats to serve a three (3) year term on the AHAI Board of Directors. Please click on each individual candidate’s name to view their bio. The Board of Directors election will be held at the beginning of the Town Hall meeting (12:00 p.m.) at the 2019 AHAI Affiliate Leadership Conference.

CANDIDATES

Jim Clare*
Bill Crowley*
Paul Jakubowski*
Chuck Smith*
Jack Weinberg*

Additionally, please click HERE to view a proposed by-law amendment requested by Melissa Surrette, President of the Chicago Hawks; Steve Poapst, Hockey Director of the Chicago Hawks; and Brian Kelly, President of the Chicago Bruins.

Congratulations and good luck to the 74 young women invited to participate in the 2019 Girls Central District Player Development Camps! Please reference the 2019 National Notification Timeline for details about the 2019 notification dates and player selection process. Contact Andy Bradford, Central District Girls Representative at abradford@depere.k12.wi.us with any additional questions.

By Jack Weinberg, AHAI High School Committee Chairman

The most important new rule to be aware of in High School hockey this year is the minimum player requirement. All boys high school teams will need to have a minimum of 14 distinct skaters plus at least 1 goalie to qualify and receive a certified roster from the AHAI Registrar for the upcoming fall season. This increase came as a recommendation to the AHAI board from the High School Committee and was primarily adopted to help increase the safety of the players. There have been many instances where due to injuries and suspensions that available players for a game have diminished to an “unsafe” number. The minimum must be reached before the team plays their first game of the season or they may not play as they will not have a certified roster.

This year all combined organizations will have a thirty day period to file their complete Combined Applications. The electronic applications will available online beginning June 1st and will close June 30th. This application continues to develop, make sure you answer all of the questions including what is your home rink. This is important when the committee considers the distances that need to be traveled by players.

An exception has been added to the 7-up rule. A organization that has more than 2 teams may petition to bring up a player from a team below if they have dropped to an unreasonable number of players in the opinion of the High School Committee. If approved, the player must added to the certified roster and be approved by the AHAI registrar. If it involves league play, the addition must also be approved by the league. This may not be done to provide a team a competitive advantage. This is only for moving a player up, not down. The rest of the provisions of the 7-up – 7-down rules stay in effect.

AHAI will hold its annual gathering of all our Affiliates throughout the state on Saturday, June 1 at The Westin Chicago Northwest located at 400 Park Blvd, Itasca, IL. Formerly known as the AHAI Annual Meeting, this important event received a facelift last year to better reflect the purpose of the meeting. It was renamed to the AHAI Affiliate Leadership Conference.

The conference is designed to educate Affiliate Leaders and allow AHAI to hear from our members on a variety of topics which include player development, rules and ethics issues, referee retention, goaltender development, club communications and social media, among other topics. An exciting addition to the AALC this year is the Hockey Directors’ Breakout Sessions.

Additionally, the conference will include guest speakers from USA Hockey, the Chicago Blackhawks, the legal community, and other subject matter experts. George Atkinson, President of the Michigan Amateur Hockey Association (MAHA) will participate in several of our breakout sessions to provide invaluable insight into how other USA Hockey Affiliates operate. Our keynote speakers include Joe Terrasi of the Positive Coaching Alliance, and Tom Slaird (Minnesota Hockey) will lead a discussion on how to deal with difficult people. Just like last year, we will have pertinent vendors that serve our membership in attendance.

Check-in will begin at 8:00 a.m. The conference will begin promptly at 8:30 a.m. and conclude at 2:30 p.m. We look forward to seeing you there so save the date and bring out all your organization’s leaders. ~ AHAI Board of Directors

Please click HERE to download/print full schedule. Good luck, players! 

By Peter Humann, AHAI Player Development Chairman

Congratulations to the players who have been selected to participate in USA Hockey’s Central District High Performance Youth 15, 16 & 17 Player Development Festivals held May 10-12 in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin and the 2019 USA Hockey Central District High Performance Youth 14 Player Development Camp held June 16-21 at Ames, Iowa. Please click HERE to list of players.

By Gregg Chudacoff, Tier II Committee Chairman
 

The Tier II substitute choice application process, Squirt 10U through Midget 16U/18U will begin on July 19, 2019. All applications will be submitted online. The Tier II Committee will only have (3) three appeal hearings this year for those denied a substitute choice. The dates for the appeals are August 8, August 28, and September 10, 2019 at 6:30pm at the North Shore Ice Arena. If denied, please email Gregg Chudacoff, AHAI Tier II Chairman, at gregg.chudacoff@ahai2.orgwith your preferred appeal hearing date. The deadline for applying for a substitute choice will be September 15, 2019.

You will find helpful articles regarding the Two Choice Rule, Choice Substitutions and what you should consider before making that second choice as well as information regarding the Midget Third Choice in the articles below.

• Tier II Two Choice Rule: Clearing Up the Confusion
• What About My Second Choice: What Should I Consider?
• What is the Midget Third Choice?

Congratulations go out to these individuals in honor of 
their special accomplishments during the 2018-2019 season.

JJ O’Connor Boys High School Player of the Year 
Eamon O’Brien – Loyola Academy

Cammi Granato Girls High School Player of the Year
Madeline Babnik - New Trier

Disabled Coach of the Year
Rich Jecmen - Blackhawks Warriors

High School Coach of the Year
Matt Smith – Ignatius

Girls High School Coach of the Year
Lenny Munson - New Trier Girls

Boys Youth Coach of the Year
Chris Cimoch - Arctic Jr. Fury

Girls Youth Coach of the Year
Brit Volini - St. Jude