WHATS IN THIS ISSUE:

• COVID-19
• New family night program -Meet NY Rangers Brian Mullen on FEB 11!
  
• New family mentor program - Volunteers needed!
• PLAYER SPOTLIGHT: Jackson Beard!
• COACHES CORNER: MEET Aaron Cowieson!
• 14 U GIRLS - 2019-2020 Season in review.
• Apparel store - NEW!
• SOCIAL MEDIA - VISIT US ON FACEBOOK / INSTAGRAM!
• BASEBALL SIGN UP!
• Jr Rangers Program - 10 week program. Kicked off in January!
• Product mention - DuraDerm

Many of you know that our community has seen an upward climb in the number of positive COVID19 cases. We ask that you continue to do your part to keep our skaters and coaches safe - over the next few days you will see communication regarding our safety protocols as we will have two rinks operational next week - but we wanted to highlight some here: • (1) parent per skater allowed in rinks. • No locker room access (players come 90% dressed). • Mask must be worn at all times while in the rinks (on-ice as well). • Social distancing for parents who are viewing and while waiting for your slot on the ice. • If you feel sick, please stay home. • Please follow the entering and exiting protocols in and out of the rinks.

Thank you families for doing your part to keep us all safe!

Please join us for an informational call for new families and existing SYH families to meet NY Rangers Brian Mullen and hear about his experience in youth hockey, hear from Coach Lou leading our LTS/LTP and Saratoga Coaches about the program. This is our first event to help kick off a program for new families to ask questions about SYH that will officially start in Oct of next season! Please click the link below to sign up and submit questions ahead of time. We hope you can join us!

Age: 10

Position:.Left Wing

Level: Squirt

Number: 10

Number years playing hockey: 2

Favorite Hockey Memory: Scoring first goal in tournament and his first goal ever in the Elmira Tournament 2020

Favorite hockey team: Philadelphia Flyers

Favorite Coach: Rodney- he makes us work hard and he has a good sense of humor.

Favorite stick brand: CCM

Teams you coach:

Mites 8U Assistant Coach / On-ice helper for 6U

Your player’s name / age: Levi Cowieson 8, Nell Cowieson 5

What can you tell us about your hockey coaching style and experience?

My style has always been to make hockey fun first and foremost. I try and joke with the kids and make our drills fun but still competitive. I firmly believe in the 8U age level that learning the fundamentals of skating and edgework is key to player development. A skill and direction I take from my time learning to skate with Dave Randall. This year, due to our hockey status in the state, we need to focus on developing individual skills as we are limited to competitive games.
I was lucky enough to play at the Division III college hockey level and had a short hockey career in Europe after college. I played for Saratoga High School and were state champions in 1999. During my high school hockey years, I was also able to play for the Saratoga Youth Hockey Program because it started before and after the high school season. After high school for the Capital District Selects Junior Hockey Program in Troy, NY, under coach Jim Salfi before attending SUNY Cortland and playing in the SUNYAC Division III hockey league. After college, I played one season (2006-2007) for the Kungsbacka Kings in Kungsbacka, Sweden, in the Division II Leagues of the Swedish professional hockey league.

I try and take the foundation of individual skill development such as skating and stick-handling, which I experienced in Europe, and combine it with the competitive and fast-paced ADM model we implement at our 8U practices.
At the end of the day, all the coaches at the 8U and 6U level and I try to put a smile on the kids' faces while improving their skills every time we step on the ice. When the kids have fun, they keep coming back to practice, and from there, we build a competitive and enjoyable program.

What made you decide to become a hockey coach?

I wanted to give back to my community and the youth hockey organization that I grew up playing in and provided me hockey opportunities. I had some great coaches that not only taught me about hockey but about life as well. They motivated me mentally and physically to improve my game and put in extra hours off the ice to improve. I hope someday I can do the same for our players. Hockey brought me many great memories and life learning lessons.

Tips for being a good team player?

The key tips for being a good team player is to support your teammates at all costs. You win as a team and lose as a team. Although some players will make mistakes on the ice, it’s important to help a teammate get back up and keep trying their best to improve and get better. Never point the finger at teammates who make mistakes.

Favorite College or NHL hockey team?
I grew up watching RPI hockey when I was a kid and will always root for my alma mater of SUNY Cortland. Our favorite NHL team is the New York Rangers.

The Saratoga 14u Girls Blue Knights inaugural season was a rollercoaster of a ride. The girls & families started our journey in Kingston, Ontario, and then in Boston, MA, during the summer of 2019 with impressive performances at both the Ontario Prospects and Summer Beantown Tournaments. The team announced themselves with distinction by getting to the Quarterfinals in both events while playing the top girls' teams from North America. The season ended 9 months later in Buffalo, where the team finished 2nd at the NY State Tournament. The coaches could not have been prouder of these terrific young athletes. After the NY State Tournament in early March, our team prepared for the National Tournament, but unfortunately, the pandemic hit. Soon after, USA Hockey canceled the Nationals, and then we were all sequestered to our homes. It was quite shocking to our group as the families, girls, and coaches did not want the season to end.
The team consisted of 15 young athletes from NY, MA, and Maine and eleven from the 05 to 06 birth years. Ten girls were home-grown in the Saratoga Youth Hockey, and all the families credit the ADM coaching philosophy embedded into the fabric at SYHI.
Below is a quick summary of some of the Saratoga 14u Girls' accomplishments of their 2019-2020 season.

· Published national rankings – The girls finished #10 in the country at the 14u Girls tier 2 division.

· New York State Runner-up -

• At the Tournament the Team officially went 4-1. They scored an impressive 21 goals for and only had 4 goals against. The team eventually lost 2-1 in the finals.

· Final Team Record was 32-19-5.

• Teams from Ten Different States - Our team played teams from ten different states (NY, VT, CO, NH, CT, MA, IL, OH, AZ & NJ) over the course of the season.
• Wins over Tier 1 Teams - The Team had impressive wins over Tier 1 competition (Vermont Stars, Connecticut Polar Bears, Vermont Flames and Newark Ironbound Elite (Major)). The team also tied the Mass Spitfires & Buffalo Regals.

· Wins & Losses - Twelve of the Team’s losses were against tier 1 teams (7 losses to top 20 Tier 1 teams and 3 losses to top 10 teams).

· Head-to-head competition among top 25 teams & common opponents

• The Knights tied & beat the #4 team in the country, the Minuteman Flames
• They tied & beat the Rome Grizzlies twice
• They beat the Hanover Wild three times
• They beat the Vermont Dynamo twice

· New York State Northern Zone League Records – The Team went 6-0 in the Northern zone with 22 goals For and only 2 Against.

· 2nd place finish at the Tier 1 Fusion Cup Tournament (out of 12)

· 3rd place finish at the Tier 1 Cornell Showcase Tournament (out of 10)

· 3rd place finish at the Rochester Fire on Ice Tournament (out of 14 teams from 11 different states)

· 3rd place finish at the Tier 1 Vermont Stars Tournament

Some impressive facts about the Saratoga 14u Girls team at the New York State Tournament.

· Only team with a point registered by every player

· Only goalie with a point

· Every player ranked in the top half of 107 total players

· #1 ranked goalie in tournament

· Most players in top 5 ranking (3)

· Most top 10 ranked players (4)

· Most top 20 ranked players (8)

· Most goals for as a team

· Least goals against (tie with Rome)

· Saratoga was also the youngest team in the State Tournament

The New York State tournament was a fantastic event for our team. It did not end the way we wanted to, but the Team performance was awe-inspiring. It was a heartbreaking loss and a very tough ride home from Buffalo for everyone. A few days later, the world shut down, and our preparation for the 2020-21 season started.
Coach DeAnzeris, Coach Comora, and I wanted to thank the families of these young athletes especially. The girls would have been enough for us, but the families were also amazing all season long. We all spent many weekends on the road 3+ hours away, living in hotels and practicing late every week together. Many of the girls volunteered their Saturday mornings helping with the Learn-to-Skaters. They were a massive hit with the future young hockey players, and the girls positively impacted the kids. We received numerous compliments about the girls all season long for their hard-nosed play, competitiveness, focus, and attitudes. These compliments came from referees, other coaches, people within the SYHI organization, and other families from our competition. The compliments never got old, and it is a testament to these young hockey players' families.
As for the coaches, this was the most enjoyable hockey experience we have ever been a part of. Those who have chosen hockey as a lifestyle know that it takes everyone involved with the athletes to make a successful season happen. The season would not have been as enjoyable or as successful if it were not for the families who trusted their young daughters to be apart of our team. Everyone chipped in to make the past season awesome, and everyone came together all season long. We all created this impressive and memorable season together, and along the way, we created memories that will last a lifetime.

Saratoga 14u Girls Blue Knights Coaches -

Coach Mike, Coach Greg & Coach Josh

10 week program SAT at 10:30 AM

Start: Jan 2 2021 Ends: March 6 2021

$250—includes head to toe equipment!

Please contact: Stephen.Aruilio@msgsports.com, 212-465-5849.

President: Rodney Eddy President.SYHI@outlook.com

Vice President: Melinda Guyett mgguyett@gmail.com

Treasurer: Jason Hunt JHunt@huntcompanies.net

ACE—Charles Nelson crnelsen.4815@gmail.com

Secretary— Ryan Marry Ryan ryanmarrybauer@gmail.com

Registrar—Jill Ballou syhregistrar@gmail.com

Directors:

Josh Cooper John Hartzell Greg Comora

Ryan Raymonda Kirk Emmons John Phillips Frank Ovitt

Travis Higbee Michael Montelone Abbey Temple

Mathew Coseo Aaron Cowieson

Contact information for all board members on website

Saratoga Youth Hockey is a Non Profit organization founded in 1976 by Joe Vernon, Saratoga Youth Hockey has been providing organized hockey to boys and girls of all levels of ability in the Saratoga, NY region for over 30 years. We strive to meet Joe's dream of making ice hockey accessible to all.

COACHES