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Prospective Recruits


dagies

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I don't know if its a joke, they aren't a top team but they do play a pretty competitive schedule. I was really suprised by his move, I figured he'd go back to Crookston and if he did leave it would be to Ann Arbor.

Yeah like Kittson, LOW, Park Rapids, Bagley, etc.... Who are the competitive teams they play?
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Yeah like Kittson, LOW, Park Rapids, Bagley, etc.... Who are the competitive teams they play?

Hermantown, Duluth Marshall, Blake, St.Cloud Cathedral, Red Wing, Bemidji, Roseau, East Grand Forks, Thief River Falls, and Warroad. Don't get me wrong I'm not a fan of Crookston hockey since they were a high school rival and growing up I've played against them a number of times.

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Hermantown, Duluth Marshall, Blake, St.Cloud Cathedral, Red Wing, Bemidji, Roseau, East Grand Forks, Thief River Falls, and Warroad. Don't get me wrong I'm not a fan of Crookston hockey since they were a high school rival and growing up I've played against them a number of times.

Thanks. I knew that had to have some it was just fun pointing out the quality of some of their competition.
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I found out some more information that may shed a little more light on Paul Bittner leaving for the WHL. A lot of players, parents, and fans are glad he's gone even though he was a good player and they wish his brother (will be SR D-man) and dad (Crookston head coach) were going with him. Sounds like a lot of team chemistry issues surronding him and the family not meshing with a lot of the players and some favoritism going on. I also found out Paul isn't a real big fan of school and has a fair of amount of trouble with schoolwork as a Freshman.

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I found out some more information that may shed a little more light on Paul Bittner leaving for the WHL. A lot of players, parents, and fans are glad he's gone even though he was a good player and they wish his brother (will be SR D-man) and dad (Crookston head coach) were going with him. Sounds like a lot of team chemistry issues surronding him and the family not meshing with a lot of the players and some favoritism going on. I also found out Paul isn't a real big fan of school and has a fair of amount of trouble with schoolwork as a Freshman.

Wow, I really feel sorry for a kid that struggle's that much with school. Hopefully this move works out for him as he really is limiting his options to just a hockey career. I could be wrong, but I believe CHL player's still have to attend High School while they are playing.

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Wow, I really feel sorry for a kid that struggle's that much with school. Hopefully this move works out for him as he really is limiting his options to just a hockey career. I could be wrong, but I believe CHL player's still have to attend High School while they are playing.

Yes, they do. So he's not getting out of that until he graduates.

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Wow, I really feel sorry for a kid that struggle's that much with school. Hopefully this move works out for him as he really is limiting his options to just a hockey career. I could be wrong, but I believe CHL player's still have to attend High School while they are playing.

What I got out of it was kinda that he just doesn't care about school or whether he does the work, and I was told he was just plain stupid and not only when it came to schoolwork. I was in high school not too long ago and I would guess he was able to just get someone to do the work or compare answers with someone else on assignments and get by that way, I know thats what a lot of people at my high school did whether they were athletes or not, I mean I'm sure there were times where you get back from a game at midnight and you got homework due tomorrow morning and just say screw it and get the answers from someone before class.

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Via GF Herald article about Bittner

“They have great fans out there,” said Bittner, who went on a recruiting visit in early March. “The coaches are outstanding. They’ll go to the end of the earth to get you where you want to be. The organization is just great — the owner, the coaches, the players, everything. The guys were fun to be around. They took me as a friend even though I’m not on the team yet. I felt wanted out there. It was awesome.”

“I’m a Minnesota kid and always dreamed about being a Sioux or a Gopher, but you’ve got to look at the big picture and what’s my main goal in life. What route is going to take you there? I felt Portland was the best route for me.”

I hope he succeeds and it doesn't turn into a Brandon Shea situation where he finds himself with little to no options if things don't work out in the CHL.

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Why not play a year or two of USHL and keep the options open instead of slamming the door shut? Fine Crookston hockey is a joke but there are other avenues than going to the W.

You are not slamming the door shut on college, he can still go to college if hockey does not pan out for him (as his WHL team will pay for college for each year he is with the team). It's not like he committed to a college and then turned his back on his commitment at the last second.

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You are not slamming the door shut on college, he can still go to college if hockey does not pan out for him (as his WHL team will pay for college for each year he is with the team). It's not like he committed to a college and then turned his back on his commitment at the last second.

Sorry, but NCAA hockey > CIS hockey. I've heard horror stories about CHL teams backing out on the education package too. It's a big gamble at 15/16 if you ask me.

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Sorry, but NCAA hockey > CIS hockey. I've heard horror stories about CHL teams backing out on the education package too. It's a big gamble at 15/16 if you ask me.

First off, I want to make it clear that I do not blame this kid for making this decision. So you can hold back the "You just can't blame the kid for doing what he thinks is best for him" comments. My blame goes to the adults in his life and the deceptive tactics of Major Junior hockey.

This is what I have been talking about in other threads. These young kids are very impressionable and are easily influenced by others. I imagine that these Major Junior suits promised him the moon and told him that if he went the college route, nobody would give him the time of day when it came to draft positioning and signing a professional contract (yeah, the college route really hurt Jason Blake and others :silly:). If he had stuck with high school and kept improving as a player and maturing as a person, he would have even more leverage with Major Juniors and U.S. Colleges. But he chose instead to drink the Kool-Aid and flush any other options down the toilet.

I believe that College Hockey, Inc. has done good things in Canada educating kids on their real options (not the lies and distortions the Don Cherry types will dish out), but it looks like they need to shore up our defenses at home. This is war and the future of NCAA hockey hinges on whether we win or lose it.

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First off, I want to make it clear that I do not blame this kid for making this decision. So you can hold back the "You just can't blame the kid for doing what he thinks is best for him" comments. My blame goes to the adults in his life and the deceptive tactics of Major Junior hockey.

This is what I have been talking about in other threads. These young kids are very impressionable and are easily influenced by others. I imagine that these Major Junior suits promised him the moon and told him that if he went the college route, nobody would give him the time of day when it came to draft positioning and signing a professional contract (yeah, the college route really hurt Jason Blake and others :silly:). If he had stuck with high school and kept improving as a player and maturing as a person, he would have even more leverage with Major Juniors and U.S. Colleges. But he chose instead to drink the Kool-Aid and flush any other options down the toilet.

I believe that College Hockey, Inc. has done good things in Canada educating kids on their real options (not the lies and distortions the Don Cherry types will dish out), but it looks like they need to shore up our defenses at home. This is war and the future of NCAA hockey hinges on whether we win or lose it.

One father of a kid in the WHL called in to Beyond the Pond and talked about his sons choice and he said his son would develop better there, but gave no reasons as to why. Very evasive guy. Just kept repeating what he had already said. Parents definitely drink a bit of koolaid as well. I don't oppose the CHL as a means, just the shady tactics used. I'm definitely against young kids signing on at 15/16 though. Why rush into a decision that has that much impact on your future? Jason Gregoire is an example. He didn't sign because his dad told him to wait. I'm sure he is glad he waited after figuring out all the options

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I remember reading an article a few years back saying how the CHL education packages only pay out the amount of tuition of the school that is closest to his hometown. So in Bittner's case he would get tuition for UM-Crookston, which is about $10,000 a year. That really limits a player on where he can go to school. You will not find many 4-year institutions that are less than $10,000 a year in tuition, and if he is going to finance his education solely with that money, it basically guarantees he has to go to school in Minnesota, ND, SD, or Wisconsin. I also want to say that the player get's one year of tuition paid for every year they are in the league.

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I remember reading an article a few years back saying how the CHL education packages only pay out the amount of tuition of the school that is closest to his hometown. So in Bittner's case he would get tuition for UM-Crookston, which is about $10,000 a year. That really limits a player on where he can go to school. You will not find many 4-year institutions that are less than $10,000 a year in tuition, and if he is going to finance his education solely with that money, it basically guarantees he has to go to school in Minnesota, ND, SD, or Wisconsin. I also want to say that the player get's one year of tuition paid for every year they are in the league.

That is probably why he signed so early (at least 3 years of school paid for). I think he signed early because he wasn't going anywhere. He didn't make the cut for the Under 17 team and no other JR teams were calling and he knew if he stayed in Crookston (nothing against the program, just not that good) he probably wouldn't get any better, so he took the only available option. I'm not saying he made the right or wrong choice, him and his parents just made a choice he thought was best for him. I hope he does well and everything works out for him.

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That is probably why he signed so early (at least 3 years of school paid for). I think he signed early because he wasn't going anywhere. He didn't make the cut for the Under 17 team and no other JR teams were calling and he knew if he stayed in Crookston (nothing against the program, just not that good) he probably wouldn't get any better, so he took the only available option. I'm not saying he made the right or wrong choice, him and his parents just made a choice he thought was best for him. I hope he does well and everything works out for him.

Really doubt that they were the only team interested in him from what I heard he had a spot on the development team if he wanted it, but didn't want to take that route. The main reason I'm so suprised he went to WHL is his dad is the Crookston coach who has been very vocal against players leaving early for the ushl and other leagues and hurting high school hockey. I thought he would play another year at Crookston with his brother and if he was gonna leave it would be after next season.

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Really doubt that they were the only team interested in him from what I heard he had a spot on the development team if he wanted it, but didn't want to take that route. The main reason I'm so suprised he went to WHL is his dad is the Crookston coach who has been very vocal against players leaving early for the ushl and other leagues and hurting high school hockey. I thought he would play another year at Crookston with his brother and if he was gonna leave it would be after next season.

Amazing how it changes once it is your KID!
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Would someone explain to me how playing against a bunch of boys or guys under 20 would develope a player better than playing against 18-24 year olds? The SPHL (Southern Proffesional Hockey League), ECHL, CHL (Central Hockey League), Canadian University Hockey, and the AHL are full of guys who went the major junior route at 16-17. Did wonders for them.

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Would someone explain to me how playing against a bunch of boys or guys under 20 would develope a player better than playing against 18-24 year olds? The SPHL (Southern Proffesional Hockey League), ECHL, CHL (Central Hockey League), Canadian University Hockey, and the AHL are full of guys who went the major junior route at 16-17. Did wonders for them.

It's the tradeoff. You play more games in the CHL, but it's against younger kids. College you play less games against older guys. I guess it depends what you're looking for.

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It's the tradeoff. You play more games in the CHL, but it's against younger kids. College you play less games against older guys. I guess it depends what you're looking for.

Unless you are a sure-fire NHL player, and just need to refine your game a bit, I would choose the CHL, but there aren't very many of those kinds of players. Most CHL player's play what would be there freshman and sophomore year's at the college level. How many player's are ready to make the jump to the NHL after their sophomore year of college? Not very many, maybe a few players a year, that is why I like the college route better. How many of those CHL player's would've benefited from playing two more years (in college rather than the CHL) before heading to the pro league's? I would guess an extremely large amount. What if Matt Frattin played in the CHL instead of UND? Would he be NHL ready after two year's in the CHL? Absolutely not, he was an above-average college player after his sophomore year, nowhere near NHL ready. Many players just need time to develop, college hockey gives them that, the CHL does not.

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Unless you are a sure-fire NHL player, and just need to refine your game a bit, I would choose the CHL, but there aren't very many of those kinds of players. Most CHL player's play what would be there freshman and sophomore year's at the college level. How many player's are ready to make the jump to the NHL after their sophomore year of college? Not very many, maybe a few players a year, that is why I like the college route better. How many of those CHL player's would've benefited from playing two more years (in college rather than the CHL) before heading to the pro league's? I would guess an extremely large amount. What if Matt Frattin played in the CHL instead of UND? Would he be NHL ready after two year's in the CHL? Absolutely not, he was an above-average college player after his sophomore year, nowhere near NHL ready. Many players just need time to develop, college hockey gives them that, the CHL does not.

I think one thing we are forgetting here is that there are only so many spots available in college hockey.

Has anyone ever heard someone making it to the NHL from a Canadian University?

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