Knights Program and Team Summary 2010-2011

 

Atlanta Knights Program Objectives

 

• Primary Objective:  Our primary objective is to provide each player the necessary instruction and opportunity to develop the requisite skills and techniques to advance their abilities as they learn to play the game and have fun doing it.

• Hockey Development and Instruction Team:  This year the Atlanta Knights add a new level of player instruction to the program.  Director of Hockey Operations, Coach Kevin Kerr and selected and formed an Atlanta Knights Hockey Development and Instruction Team made up of paid coaches from our Junior A/ B program and several coaches from outside the program.  These coaches will be part of a team of instructors that will be on the ice no less than once per week with each travel hockey team in our program.  The concept is to bring a consistent theme of development and instruction between all age levels, higher level practice plans, strengthened tactical skills, and complimentary on-ice systems that will prepare each player for advancement.  This team will work with the primary coaching staff of each team to advance team and program goals.  A small increase in tuition will accompany this program to provide each player access to this team of hockey professionals.

• Birth Year teams and pooled talent:  The Atlanta Knights Hockey Development team has a sllightly different view than other local programs on the organization and allocation of player talent.  We agree that birth year teams can potentially build more cohesive team play for future years and that if a team can be formed with player talent that is consistent for that level, then that is an excellent goal.  Birth year teams may advance team goals, but they do not always address individual player development.  Although birth year teams may occur here, it is the belief of this organization that players should be challenged and developed in accordance with their skills, abilities, and maturity level, and should not simply be grouped by birth year.  Placing players with others with similar abilities accelerates all player development and reduces frustration and allows all players to contribute to team goals more uniformly.  Our model of player development is the same as academic development models utilized in the better schools, which place students together of similar aptitude.

• Birth Year Team Primary:  We intend to form teams at their level, with the goal of a birth year team as a primary objective, but to consider the talent pool available and to place players according to skill level if a birth year objective cannot be obtained.

• Atlanta Junior Knights Pathway:   With 10 players offered NCAA collegiate positions on hockey teams for 2009-2010 from the past season roster, the Junior Knights are delivering on providing an NCAA college pathway for local players without having to leave home to accomplish this.  With the presence of our Atlanta Knights Junior teams (Junior A/B/C), it is our goal to develop players who have the desire to ultimately pursue this more advanced level of amateur hockey, the opportunity to do in our program.  Other hockey programs in town offer excellent opportunities to advance players to preparatory schools or out of region junior programs for advancement to NCAA programs, but the Junior Knights is the only program to provide player placement to NCAA programs directly from Atlanta with no intermediary organization needed to accomplish this.   

•  Team goals vs. the Individual:  The player and coach focus will always be on team goals and to develop the necessary awareness of the game to contribute to the improvement and success of the team

•  Academics First:  Player academics and the maintenance of satisfactory academic progress is a central point of the program and will be a critical determining factor for ongoing participation

•  Opportunity created by effort and commitment:  All players are expected to have opportunities to experience all aspects of game situations.  Coaches are expected to allow all players to participate in penalty killing, power plays, other special teams, and to compete at the start and end of games.  However, players will always be rewarded for their effort and commitment first and for their skill as a secondary factor.

• Fair play:  Although coaches may shorten lines in the closing moments of games, it should generally be discouraged and limited to unique situations.  Coaches are not expected to shorten lines or overplay certain players simply to try to win games.  This program will sustain success only by developing each player to the point where they can compete in nearly all situations.  However, at older ages, coaches may begin to consider more specialized roles for players, but equal playing time is a constant theme.

• High School Hockey (GSHL): The Atlanta Knights support the GSHL and encourage our players to participate in the GSHL program as a supplement to our travel hockey teams.  However, parents and players are asked to respect the request of the respective coaching staff of each team to place a primary responsibility on the travel hockey commitment first.  This may involve avoiding GSHL games and other sports competition on the same day or within a 24 hour period of a travel hockey game.

 

 Atlanta Knights Coaching Staff and Team Summary

PENDING - TO BE POSTED BY MAY 1st, 2010