MMHA wrapped up their August ice sessions with a Prep Camp for PeeWee, Bantam and Midget players this past weekend for both coed and female hockey. With Tier 1 tryouts coming up in September, the pre camp was designed to get feet moving and expectations set for what’s ahead come tryouts.
Murray Kittelson (Coach, Evaluation Committee & Player Development), along with Chad Lang (Head Coach, Bantam AA) led the coed sessions, with the female sessions being led by Bryce Pasloski (Head Coach, PeeWee Female), Dean Thompson (Head Coach, Bantam Female) and Darci Kirkwood (Head Coach, Midget AA Female).
MMHA is moving to new territory this upcoming hockey season; integrating with Yorkton Minor Hockey and creating the “Parkland Female Hockey Program” and also moving forward with our succession planning for Tier 1 hockey. MMHA has requested a representative from each zone in their Tier 1 jurisdiction to be a representative for their respective association in creating a “Talent ID” group. This group will assist the Evaluation Committee in giving them some background knowledge on the players. While the evaluation committee may know of the local kids, it’s hard for them to know the other participants and this is where they will look upon the Talent ID committee to assist with that information.
How is Tier 1 changing in Melville? We have added the Female Midget AA Parkland Lions to the Tier 1 Portfolio, along with some new faces for our Tier 1 Division.
Ken Turnbull will be MMHA’s Tier 1 Director this year. His duties will be to lead the Tier 1 division to greater success this season, and working with the coaches to make that happen. Ken will also be the lead on the evaluation committee for tryouts; working with two other evaluators and the coaches for selection of the teams this year. Ken is committed to a fair evaluation process that gives each and every player that tries out an opportunity for a spot on the team which they are trying out for.
Jason Houston, Head Coach for the PeeWee Tier 1 Millionaires (and Melville Millionaires Jr. A Alumni) is looking forward to a successful season this year. Things are already starting to take shape that will see the integration of Fort Qu’Appelle kids coming to Melville to try out for PeeWee this season. Jason is a strong leader and community focused; he is looking forward to seeing and meeting many more kids at PeeWee tryouts this year.
Chad Lang, Head Coach for the Bantam Tier 1 Millionaires and new to Melville, brings a wealth of experience to the association. Chad has spent time as General Manager of the Regina Pats and the Moose Jaw Warriors of the Western Hockey League, coached Tier 1 hockey and has also played at a high level of hockey himself. During his tenure in the WHL, he helped Moose Jaw win the Eastern Conference Title in 2006 and a berth into the WHL Finals. In Regina, he helped the team capture the Eastern Division Title in 2013-14.
Chad is looking forward to seeing new faces at tryouts this season. With a bantam conditioning skate and prep camp in the books, Chad is now looking forward to meeting many more new faces at tryouts on September 9.
“We’ve spoken to players and parents about coming to tryouts and there have been questions about whether the team is locked in, or that kids are not good enough…...You never know where you stand unless you try. With being new to the organization, we would like to see as many kids as possible come out to Bantam tryouts this season so we can make our own determinations and selections this season alongside the evaluation committee. Each and every player that shows up to camp has the opportunity to showcase their talents and their ability to the evaluators and we encourage all bantam age players to come out and give it a try. ”
John Haubrich, Head Coach for the Midget Tier 1 Millionaires, is no stranger to MMHA. His son Marty has played in the Tier 1 program since PeeWee. John is taking over the reins from Ken Turnbull (last year’s Midget Tier 1 coach) where the Midget’s found themselves making a run into playoffs. Even though the Midgets lost out in Round 2 against the Estevan Bruins; it was the farthest that the Midget AA’s have gone in well over 20 years in MMHA history. We are sure this year there will be some determination to make that playoff run again!
Darci Kirkwood, Head Coach for the Midget Female Tier 1 Parkland Lions (and Prairie Fire Midget AAA Alumni), is also no stranger to MMHA. Darci has played many years in MMHA, as well as with the Melville Prairie Fire. Darci was MMHA’s PeeWee Fire (Female) Coach last season and looks forward to taking over the Parkland Lions this upcoming season.
Tier 1 tryout times are now available, along with a registration form for those that wish to register in advance. For any questions regarding this year’s tryouts, please do not hesitate to contact Ken Turnbull (306-730-5901) or Tammy Stevenson (306-730-5223).
Look forward to seeing you all there!
“You miss 100 percent of the shots you never take” Wayne Gretzky