Vail-Eagle Hockey Association (VEHA)
2009-2010 Team Tryout/Player Evaluation Criteria:
The purpose of this coaches’ “Team Tryout/Player Evaluation Criteria” document is to outline basic procedures, methods and expectations for the conduct of the on-ice Tryouts and Evaluation sessions. It is not meant to be a rigorous set of rules to be applied to all age groups universally, but rather a guideline for coaching staffs. Ultimately, it is up to the Head Coach of each age group to develop a Tryout/Evaluation process best suited to his/her team age group.
Tryout Session Evaluator Staff:
§ RECOMMENDED EVALUATOR LIST
VEHA shall provide a recommended list of qualified individuals from which to choose Evaluators for the on-ice Tryout/Evaluation sessions. This list will be based on USA Hockey certification and generally will be comprised of CEP Levels 3-5 coaches.
It shall be the responsibility of the Head Coach of the team being evaluated to select and notify available, qualified Evaluators. It is recommended that Evaluators be independent and selected from older age levels than the level of the team and players being evaluated.
VEHA strongly encourages parents/parent coaches not act as Evaluators for their child’s age group level. It shall be the Head Coach’s responsibility to choose individuals from the recommended list or to develop his/her own Evaluation staff.
Should the Head Coach select an individual who is not on the recommended list, it shall be his/her responsibility to notify the VEHA Coaches Committee of the selected coach’s qualifications and related background for approval.
§ PARENT/COACH AS EVALUATOR
Should the situation arise where a coach acting as a Tryout Evaluator is also the parent of a child on the same team, that person shall not be involved in any evaluation involving their own child.
For example, should a particular age group have four selected Evaluators, one of whom is also a parent of a child on that team, that Evaluator’s scoring/evaluation methods and results shall not be counted in the player’s overall evaluation. In this case, the player’s evaluation results would include an average of the scoring results from the other three Evaluators.
Tryout and Skills Assessment Drills:
§ VEHA SHALL PROVIDE RECOMMENDED DRILLS
A recommended set of 4-5 drills will be provided to the on-ice coaching staff to aid in the skills assessment and player evaluation process. However, the Head Coach and the assistant staff shall have the flexibility to add to, subtract from and/or modify the drills so as to be appropriate to the age group being evaluated.
§ EVALUATION FORM AND SPREADSHEET FORMAT
VEHA shall provide an Evaluation format spreadsheet to be used in the Tryout/Player Evaluation sessions. The Coaching and Evaluation staffs shall have the flexibility to modify the format so as to be appropriate to the age group being evaluated.
Selection and Notification Process:
§ SELECTION PROCESS
Players will be selected and assigned to specific teams based on the Tryout and Evaluation process results. The Head Coach shall have the authority to make final personnel decisions for the team he/she is coaching. However, the selected players must come from the pool of players agreed upon by the Evaluators.
For example, it may be determined that a specific team shall be comprised of 13-15 skaters and two goalies. If the Evaluation staff determines that there are several players who maybe considered “on the bubble” for final selection to the team, the Head Coach shall have the authority to make the final decision.
§ NOTIFICATION PROCESS
The Head Coach, or assigned coaching staff member, shall notify players and parents of Tryout results and team assignments as soon as possible, but not later than one week after the completion of the Tryout/Player Evaluation sessions.
Notification shall be by private, personal telephone contact. There shall be no notification process that in any way may have the potential to cause personal embarrassment or single out the individual player in a negative way in front of his or her peers, other parents or other coaching staff members.
