BTHL Survey Return Summary

BTHL Survey Summary Report

Returns Received = 27

Your Position: 1-President, 3-Board Member , 5-Coach , 7-Team Manager , 11-Other
Your Association/Team: 3-Findlay Amateur Hockey Assn, 5-Cincinnati Amateur Hockey Assn, 2-Columbus Flames Youth Hockey, 3-Fort Wayne Youth Hockey, 1-South Bend Irish Rovers, 1-Fairmont High School, 1-Dayton Bombers Youth Hockey, 1-CAHA Bluejackets, 1-Oxford Youth Hockey Assn, 2-Athens Hockey Assoc., 2-N. Kentucky Youth Hockey, 1-Owensboro Youth Hockey, 4-Dayton Gems
If representing a team,
1. Your classification: 1-Mite, 8-Squirt , 9-PeeWee , 5-Bantam , 2-Midget , 2-None
2. Your level: 15-A, 12-AA
Overall, how would you rate your experience with the BTHL? 9-Excellent, 15-Good , 3-OK
How would you rate the overall competition within the division during regular season play? 3-Excellent (well balanced), 13-Good (Overall good) , 6-OK (Some good/some not) , 5-Fair (Many uncompetive games)
- Additional comments: i WAS AN ASSISTANT COACH. WE WERE NOT THE ONLY TEAM THAT HAD PROBLEMS PLAYING THE DAYTON GEMS. BOTH MAJOR AND MINOR TEAMS SEEMED TO BE MORE INTERESTED IN SLASHING, TRIPPING AND CROTCH SHOTS THAN PLAYING HOCKEY. A PHYSICAL GAME IS ONE THING, BUT THESE TWO TEAMS TOOK MOST OF THE FUN OUT OF THE GAME WITH THEIR ANTICS.
  Adding Owensboro was not good for the league considering competitiveness and travel distance. Obviously hind sight is 20/20
  With the benefit of hindsight, there was an obvious mistake made at the Squirt AA level. Columbus should have been an A team and Butler Co. should have been a AA team. I don't know how that problem could have been caught up front, but it was a mistake. I would recommend that we not allow a team to play both levels again next year, as the Dayton Minors did this year. A team playing both levels is bound to not be competitive at one of the levels, either too strong or too weak at one of the levels. It also creates a problem for the year end tournament. hould have been a AA team.
  Well balanced this year
  As the league expands, consider an additional level (lower A/B) to accomodate smaller market programs.
  For the second year in a row, the Bantam AA division was very competitive. Several teams had a real chance of winning the season ending tournament.
  In our peewee A bracket there were some decent teams and then there was a huge drop off. I don't really think that there is a whole lot you can do about that though
  The A league had three even teams but the other A teams were not as strong
  decide who is A or AA and stick with it based on the criteria the leage sets...don't play both divisions
  One team in division was too strong. At the year end they had to play "AA", should have all along.
For the 1999 - 00 season, the BTHL further refined the rule limiting the number of 2nd year players on an "A" team to six (6). A team with more than six 2nd year players is classified as "AA".
1. Do you agree with the rule? 16-Yes, 4-No , 7-Not sure
2. What are your suggestions for refining the rule? I think this is a good guideline but number of players at the try-out is an important factor is well. In our case we only had 12 try out for the team and we had to get two more players that were not of travel caliber. We had seven players and finished 3rd in the league
  Be very careful on making exceptions to this rule.
  This is a tough area. The goal is to have teams playing at the right competitive level. I think that there should be waivers for teams at the small markets, like Columbus, Indiana, if they want it. When looking at waivers, consideration should be given to the team's record the prior year.
  6 seems like too few, perhaps you should rate number of players as well
  Consider program size, demographics, player ability/years hockey experience, association philosophy, etc.
  Limit the number to 4
  Yes because that gives the first years more positions and experience at the A level because most will play AA the next year. That is an excellent rule in my mind and should deffinatly stay
  A small association like ours has only enough players to form one team. Several of the players may be at a low skill level, but because of the number of second year players they are treated as a AA team. Small programs should be allowed exem ptions from playing at the higher level is they request it.
  It should be base on more than just 1 set of criteria.
  If there is already a AA team within the association, then the second team should be placed at the A level regardless of the number of second year players. If there is no other team for that association, then any team with 6 or more second yea r players automatically becomes a second year team unless they submit a request to the board and have the board verify with previous records of where the team should play.
  No second year players in the A division
  I agree the teams in small market area should be aloud to have a waivers and the teams must have their roster to the league Offical befor the dead line.
  Have all associations vote on this. I attneded the scheduling to participate in the petition portion.
  no refinement neccessary....just enforce it this year
Overall, how would you rate the Scheduling, when games scheduled, length of season, etc? 7-Excellent, 18-Good , 2-No opinion
1. Did you attend the September 18, 1999 Scheduling Meeting in Dayton? 6-Yes, 21-No
2. When are your team tryouts/selections held? This year the first of April
  march/april
  August
  Sept?
  None. If you love the game you play
  Late August
  April
  March
  I don't know
  tryouts, if needed, are in mid October
  August
  Late May early June
  August
  April 2000
  April
  April
  when our ice goes up
  August
  late August
  Don't know
  May
  April this year
  April
  august
  May
3. If there were a perfect date for the Scheduling Meeting, when would it be? late august
  no preference
  Weekend after Labor Day
  August
  early October
  end of August
  early to mid September
  Mid September
  Early Sept.
  September
  In September
  july
4. Other comments on Scheduling no comments
  I thought the scheduling was excellent. I don't know of any thing I would change in the process.
  Scheduling meeting was hectic. Could a portion of scheduling be done on the internet site prior to the meeting?
  I was disappointed that I was unable to attend the scheduling meeting because it is always worthwhile. It can be a little hectic, but alot can be accomplished in a short time. The other Bantam AA team managers were very cooperative with sched uling issues. E-mail certainly is a tremendous asset for developing a schedule.
  Some league teams refuse to travel to play league members that may be several hours away. IF THEY ARE IN THE LEAGUE THEY MUST PLAY HOME AND HOME SERIES!!!
  The trip to Owensboro from Findlay was too far away.
  Well done
How would you rate the end of season Tournament? 3-Excellent, 19-Good , 2-OK , 2-Fair , 1-Poor
1. How would you rate the fees? 17-Average , 3-Above average - expensive , 7-Don't know
2. Last years' tournament was all held in the greater Cincinnati area. This year the tournament was split between Dayton, Cincinnnati and Columbus. Do you... 4-like spreading the tournament out, 17-like the tournament in one area , 6-no preference
3. The tournament is sponsored and run by the BTHL board with help from the local organizations. It's held on a 'break-even' basis and is not intended to be a money maker for the league. Any profits are applied to next years' tournament to help keep costs to teams down. Do you have any suggestions on how to better the tournament? I understand the cost issue but it's too bad that it is only a two game minimum. It is a tournament and most are a three game minimum at a higher cost. My problem is that all teams block off the entire weekend with hotels and activities but ma y only get two games in. We played three because we went to the finals but feel for the teams that only played two
  try to buy the ice time as far in advance as possible.
  I thought the game times were terrible. Squirt AA played at 6:00 and 7:20. The location was excellent...Cincy is a good central location for all of the Squirt AA teams. Also, I agree with the idea of the shootout. I understand that teams can't play long overtimes with more games scheduled, and I think that a shootout is a fair way to settle the game.
  It would be nice to think that the tournament could be scheduled in one central location. For us in South Bend, Dayton would be the best choice. Last year the BTAA tournament was in Louisville (which did not even have a BTAA team, and the to urnament was marginal at best) and this year it was held in Columbus,OH (they did a good job of hosting the tournament). I do realize the number of teams involved, the ice required, and the fact that we are way outside the basic geographical area for the Buckeye League. But any move to centralize the tournament would be appreciated by South Bend people.
  The tournament was excellent and very well run
  A tournament issue: teams were permitted to play individuals who were not on their roster as of 12/31. Some had not even submitted rosters until months after they were due. Some players were allowed to play even though they had not played t he required number of games with that team. Those things are clear violations of league rules. WHY WERE THOSE THINGS PERMITTED????? Sudden death overtime should be the first tie-breaker...not a shootout. The tie-breaker list needs some work.
  Have a large bracket sheet showing game scored and standings.
  Do not allow any division cross over. It is not fair to put an A team that you have not seen all year to have a chance to win the AA bracket
  Yes, perhaps taking the excess funds gained from the tourney to buy extra ice time to allow for overtime periods, not shoot outs it is sad to see two teams battle it out and tie and have to rely on 5 individuals and a goalie to win the game.
  Get corporate sponsorship to reduce cost to each team (easy to suggest, more difficult to accomplish).
  None - the tournament was handled great. I disagree with the tie breaker situation especially in the championship game. You should never settle a championship on a tie breaker. There should be a clear winner (case in point - Findlay vs Cinc i Cyclones where Findlay lost because of more penalty minutes). The game was decided by the referees not the players. BTHL should have anticipated this and should have planned for more ice time where the game could've been settled by a sudden death ove rtime. In Canada, they play 2:00 minutes with 5 players, then 2:00 with 4:00 players, then 2:00 minutes with 3 players and so on down to one player. This worked very well. Lastly, if you play all season and you get to the championship game of the tour nament, you shouldn't have to go to a scorecard playoff to decide the champion.
  Did not attend - no comment
  play it all in dayton 4 rinks in the area....silversticks uses it....
4. Plans for the Tournament were discussed at the September Scheduling Meeting and were discussed at subsequent BTHL Board meetings. Updates were posted on the BTHL WEB page and a mailing was sent out to all teams in early February with rink sites, fees, etc.
  1. Did you check the WEB page for tournament updates? 26-Yes, 1-No answer
  2. Did you receive the 1/27/00 letter and brackets? 14-Yes, 4-No , 9-Don't know
5. Other comments on the tournament A couple, We lost after being tied then still even after the shoot out and lost on penalty minutes. I do not nor did many on the Cincinatti team like this tie breaker because it puts the game into the hands of officials who make judgement throughout the game. The games in general were well officiated but we all know that many calls can go either way. Cinci had one penalty and we had two. Both teams played very well and clean. It is unfortunate that it was decided this way. I suggest that if tied after a five man shootout go to a one man shootout so that the first uneven point wins the tie breaker. Lastly, I did not watch the game, but I think Ft. Wayne should be approached about the senseless score of 18-2 in a tournament game. Their coaches could have prevented this and should fully understand that this is not a good example of good sportsmanship . This game is for the kids on both teams.
  Based on past experiences, did not quite get the logic of a 6th seed playing a 2nd seed and a 7th seed playing a 4th seed.
  The rules were posted they were not followed by some teams.
  Keep the tournament to one weekend.
  Very good but had no idea who was in charge!
Have you visited the league Home page on the Internet? 27-Yes
1. If yes, how would you rate it? 19-Excellent, 5-Good , 2-OK , 1-No opinion
2. What could be improved? Update statistics
  Keep the scoring and goal tending leaders more current or possibly eliminate it if it is too time consuming
  The web page is incredible. It is a great tool for keeping up with what is going on in the league. It would be nice to have a stats section, but I realize that it would take a lot of time to keep up with. Perhaps someone could be coerced into volunteering for that job.
  Continue expanding
  We would have to ask Len. I think it is wonderful.
  I have never seen a hockey league web page as good as yours and i have seen very many. I think it should stay the way it is
  It is an excellent home page and is maintained very well. I wish it were more friendly with Netscape.
  If teams aren't going to update games and scores, don't bother to show team, goalie and individual statistics at all.
  quicker and more complete statistical updates
  Rosters do not work using Netscape browser. I'm told they work fine with Internet Explorer.
  Perhaps trying to find a way to post the stats on netscape as well as internet explorer somehow, i know that my computer's internet explorer does not really work...nad i like to see stats
  Have good links to all member teams
  Have one person out of each division post all the statistics. (its a long shot)
  only showed top scores/goalies threw month of Nov. all sseason. Would like that updated more often.
3. Other comments Good layout
  Excellent way to communicate
  Len does a great job with the web page. The layout, graphics, links and information all are outstanding. He is also very good about keeping the standings current. It goes a long way to making all teams feel like they are a part of the leagu e. Being in South Bend, I rely on the web page for access to league rules, tournament info, meeting minutes and announcements. It is a vital component in our participation. Without it, it would be easy to feel out of the loop.
  All teams need to keep their stats updated for them to be meaningful.
  OVerall the league is a worthwhile experience. I'd say it will last a long time and will remain competitive.
  Great Job!!
During the season did you receive the BTHL mailings? 10-Yes, 10-No , 7-No answer
1. Have you read/seen the BTHL minutes? 19-Yes, 5-No , 3-No answer
2. If yes, are the minutes helpful in learning what's going on with BTHL? 17-Yes, 1-No , 9-No answer
3. This season the Minutes were posted on the WEB page. Did you read them from there? 19-Yes, 2-No , 6-No answer
4. Do you know who your BTHL Representative is? 20-Yes, 3-No , 4-No answer
Have you seen/read the BTHL Rules & Regulations? 24-Yes, 2-No , 1-No answer
Did you attend the June 1999 Mid Am Hockey Meetings in Columbus, OH? 1-Yes, 22-No , 4-No answer
- Do you plan to attend the June 24-25, 2000 Mid Am Meetings? 2-Yes, 11-No , 14-Not sure
The BTHL Meeting Minutes have been posted to the WEB page and sent to member organizations via e-mail, as well as sent through the mail. Which method would you prefer receiving BTHL information? 6-Mail, 12-E-Mail , 9-Other
- If other, please specify WEB
  Posted on Web as currently done
  and e-mail
  both works fine.
The BTHL is run solely with volunteers from member organizations. In some cases, board members don't have players in the league. Do you have any suggestions on how the BTHL can better identify volunteers for board positions and committees? Ask for player/family e-mail addresses from each BTHL team rep so the league can do direct advertising for the positions with these e-mail addresses.
Give better advance information about time commitments required. Lacking this info, people are reluctant to volunteer for fear it may be more than it actually is.
no
Have member organizations advertise openings - I've never seen anything from Ft. Wayne Youth Hockey asking for BTHL volunteers.
No
Most board positions are open for the 2000-2001 season. Starting with the new season, the board positions will be filled via a rotating list of member organizations. However, we will gladly accept volunteers to hold one of the board positions. Would you like a board member to contact you for one of the following positions? (include phone number) 27-No answer
- Phone
Any other general comments This was my first year with BTHL, and we enjoyed it greatly. The league was ran fairly, with good competition, and was a very positive experience. There are always the jerks out there who don't have the correct approach to youth hockey, but the league is very well done. My thanks to all of the volunteers who work so hard to keep the league running!!
This is my last year playing with the BTHL as I'm a third year midget. I've only been playing travel hockey for the past 3 years and I believe the team has only been with the league for 3 years... Last year It seemed like the teams were a little uneven in our age bracket (Athens and Hamilton dominated), but it seems like that has been straightened out a bit... For the most part, the officiating was all you can really ask for... My only complaint is the lack of knowledge of the game on the parents/spectators' part (yes, all of them), and the lack of class portrayed by those people.
Refereeing was in general acceptable. In Findley, it was exceptional.
This is my first year as anything other than just a parent. I was very impressed with hospitality and cooperation of everyone I came in contact with.
Re-visit the BTHL geographic boundaries.
Two concerns about league games: - Many teams did not purchase enough ice time. One game in Toledo was called due to curfew with over 5 minutes remaining on the game clock. The referees did nothing to speed play, accepted time-outs, or did not hurry time between periods. This was made worse by the concern below. The second game in Toledo was only right because the Toledo coach, to his credit, told the Zamboni driver to let the game finish since it was only a one goal lead. It is not right for us to pay for 75 minutes of ice at home, but when we go on the road only get 60 minutes (minus 10-15 minutes for ice cut) - Several teams (Toledo, Indy Racers in particular) shake hands before the game, in violation of BTHL rules. The refs were advised in advance, but when the other team lines up, it is hard (and looks like we are the poor sports) to just send out the starting five. This rule needs to be enforced. If teams cannot shake hands in a true sporting fashion after a fierce game, then the players and coaches and players should not be involved with this sport. The delay caused by us not anticipating a before game line-up made the only 60 minutes of ice problem worse. In Toledo, the game actually started almost 25 minutes into the 60 minutes allotted.
I've been a member of the conduct committee for 2 years and have not been contacted for any official discussion/review/action. Have there been no conduct committee actions in 2 years?
The Web Page was exceptional. All of our teams scores for all games were posted on the web.
Your Name/Address/Phone/Email (optional) SHAUN WILKINS ASSISTANT COACH CINTI SQUIRT "AA" SWILKINS@ZOOMTOWN.COM
Jon Ballinger jonb@werk-brau.com 419-422-2912
Steve Moody 1800 Grand Villa Drive LaGrange, Ky 40031 stevemoody@prodigy.net
Matt Durrett Northern KY mattdurrett@home.com --To whom it may concern, I have heard that you own our jerseys and it being my third year and all I was hoping to purchase at least one of them, (both if possible). I've known people on teams in KY in other leagues to just take them, but I'm not going to do that if they are not rightfully mine. Please email me a number to call or whatever or a simple 'no' if that is not possible. Thankyou
Joe Tessandori
Mike Schuster, Team Manager, South Bend Irish Rover, BTAA, puckprez@aol.com
Derek White/8826 Anna Ct./513-777-2081/dwings21@mail.com
Dan Greene 521 7th Street Columbus, IN 47201 812-376-0106 dangreene@iquest.net
Mike Fairbanks 6167 Fox Knoll Dr. West Chester, Oh. 45069 cintidman@cs.com
Mark Busche Assistant Coach Ft. Wayne Squirt AA Conan.The.Farbarian@worldnet.att.net
Dan Henry 6420 Alp Court Huber Heights, OH 45424
kim.james@daytonoh.ncr.com
Bob Steele, 2631 Covington Woods Blvd, Ft. Wayne, IN 46804-7759, (219)432-0408, srrobo@aol.com
Doug Losure tlosure@iquest.net
Ray Finnegan 6551 Greensway Loop, Dublin, OH 43016 rayfinnegan@ameritech.net
A1soldit@aol.com
Mike Elsea mhockeysk8@aol.com
Wcdisp5@aol.com

Generated: April 21, 2000

BTHL Survey Summary Report

Returns Received = 27

Generated: April 21, 2000

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