U11 Program Information for 2024-25 Season
Welcome to the Millwoods Hockey Bruins U11 program for 2024-2025. My name is Jordan Weiss and I am the U11 Director. I would also like to introduce Jared Trautman as Assistant U11 Director. We are all available should you have any questions throughout the year.
New to this season Millwoods Hockey has incorporated TeamSnap as a tool for better communication and team creation. If you have not created a team snap account you will be required to do so. Also, we have updated our website and if you have not checked it out I would recommend doing so. It is amazing!!!! New to this season name bars will be allowed under certain criteria. Please check the Jerseys page for more information.
Here are a few important dates and items that we want to share with you:
U11 AA Program
This year, Millwoods Hockey’s parent organization, SEERA, will run the U11 AA program, which will consist of players from Millwoods Hockey and North SEERA (SE Edmonton). Information on the SEERA AA program can be found by clicking on the link above. If you wish to have your child try out for the AA program, please contact Kerri Bishop at seeraadmin@shaw.ca. If your child evaluates with SEERA and doesn’t make it, they will then come to the Millwoods Hockey evaluation process.
Note, players must meet tiering criteria for AA tryouts.
Shinny Ice
Millwoods Hockey has secured ice times between August 19th – 26th for semi-organized shinny hockey. Players can sign up for these slots at a cost of $10/session. We have currently set up a max of 4 skates per player however, this can change if time slots do not get filled.
Registration will be on a first come, first served basis and will be completed online at U11 Shinny Registration.
Pre-Season Ice
All players at the U11 level are required to have two pre-season skates before evaluations. At the first session, players will play shinny, while at the second, players will run through the evaluation drills. You can find more information, including all the potential dates and times between Aug 26th and Aug 29th, on the U11 Pre-Season Ice page.
EVALUATIONS
Goalie Evaluations
If your child wishes to play goalie full-time this year, please email me at u11@millwoodshockey.ca to let me know.
Note: If your child opts to evaluate as a goalie, there is no guarantee they will be able to play out as a player this year (it will depend on the team they make, their ability to play out at the level they evaluated to and whether there is anyone else that wants to play goalie). In addition, if your child opts to evaluate as a player, there is no guarantee they will be able to play goalie (again, it will depend on the team they make, their skillset as a goalie at the level they evaluated to and if a full-time goalie is on the team).
Evaluations Overview
Evaluations will begin the first week of September. The full schedule has been released and is available at U11 Evaluations.
This years U11 evaluations will consist of the following:
- Round 1: Will consist of several timed drills which will test players forward and backward skating skills and allow us to sort players into initial groupings for the next evaluation rounds. There will also be a shooting drill added to Round 1 this year.
- Rounds 2-4: Will consist of semi-organized games at 4vs4 or 5vs5.
We hope to have the teams formed immediately after evaluations. Please note that potentially your child will have their first practice the following week.
Be aware that we have a lot of coordination and data crunching to do for evaluations, so final schedules will likely come at the last minute. I will share the potential dates and times with you for each round, but we won’t know the exact time your child will skate until after the previous round is over and the data has been input and processed. Our volunteers work extremely hard to get you information as fast as possible, so I appreciate your patience.
Evaluation Volunteers
We are excited to announce that we have hired an external company to do the evaluations and we will only require volunteers for the check-in tables.
If you are interested in Volunteering for that please send me a quick email, so that you can be added to the list.
Coaching
A list of head coaches and assistant coaches has been compiled based on input from the registration process. If you volunteered as a coach, your name has been added to my list of potential candidates and you will be contacted in the coming weeks requesting confirmation that you still wish to participate.
All coaches and assistants are required to undergo a Criminal Records Check through the Edmonton Police Service, and to obtain all qualifications, certifications or education as set out by Hockey Alberta. All bench staff must complete the Coaches Respect-In-Sport course, which can be completed online at any time in preparation for this upcoming season. For more information, please read through the Coach Certification Requirements.
The final decision regarding coaches will be made during the evaluations and prior to teams being formed. Head coaches will be selected based on their experience and participation in the evaluation process (on or off ice), which not only demonstrates their commitment, but allows for early involvement in player development. Being able to view players first hand in the evaluation process can offer potential coaches an advantage in assessing and understanding the skills and areas of development for his/her team going into the season.
If you wish to be added as a potential coach, please follow through the Head Coach Application to apply.
Player Development
Doug Auchenberg will continue on as Director of Player Development for Millwoods Hockey. Doug has exciting plans for this coming season, which will be great for the players and the coaches.
We look forward to another great year of hockey! If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to contact us.
Thank you,
The U11 Director Team
Jordan Weiss
U11 Director
u11@millwoodshockey.ca
Jared Trautman
Assistant U11 Director
asst2u11@millwoodshockey.ca
