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My apologies for the long story, please read if you can help though.

Am looking for a little advice from the CalgaryPuck faithful.
Some background,
My son is a goaltender in the local minor hockey system.
Each year all players go through an evaluation process to see which team they will be playing on. The process is an intense process over a two week period, in which they are on the ice for 5 sessions and they are then evaluated through each session by local hockey people according to their abilities and game scenarios.

This year for the Atom division (9,10 year olds) there was 45 skaters and 6 goaltenders. There are 3 divisions in Atom hockey, A, B and C. “A” being the highest. As it turns out my son ranked number 2 in the evaluation process, so he was slotted to play on the “A” team this year. During the team selection process, a process that happens at the end of the session amongst a group of 6 people, The President, Vice President, Evaluation Chairman, Atom Director and Head Coach and the on ice session co-ordinator (Me) sit in a “War room” and go through the evaluations and select the team. There is typically some movement on players due to having enough forwards and defence for each team. At this time, the “A” team Head coach, who’s son also happens to be a goaltender, ranked #1, advises us, that he would rather not have my son on his team because he feels that my son isn’t up to the same caliber as his son and he would just prefer to go with one goalie.

As it turns out, his son did rank higher and I will say that at this point his son is the better goalie. He also advises that teams wont play for a goaltender when the goaltender is the weaker of two and that will cause disention in the room. He advises that he doesn’t want to deal with that kind of situation. I say, WTF! And advise that my son, in his second year and final year of Atom works his ass of to make the “A” squad and then is told that he isn’t wanted??? I advise him that its his job to get the team going and playing no matter who is in net. This is afterall 9 and 10 year olds. I blow a gasket and leave the room and tell the committee that when they decide what they are going to do with my son, they should call me. I leave the arena and stew outside for while.

While I sit outside and stew, the Head Coach comes outside and advises me that after discussion with the other committee members, they felt that he should take two goalies in case of injuries, bad games, etc. I, still visibly pissed, tell him that it was totally out of line for him to make the kind of suggestion he did and that my son who made the team deserves to be there and that given its his final year of Atom, he deserves to shine on the A team. I, being a goaltender and instructor advise the coach, that I will work with my son and his son to make them both better goaltenders. I get told that I am not wanted on the coaching staff. I say, whatever, and that this is about my son and not me and leave it at that.

Move forward two months, my son has been pulled from a couple of games due to shoddy play, which is fair, but I see him sitting more and more lately. My son has had numerous good games as well, in fact facing over 40 shots in one game, keeping his team in the game and then getting pulled with 8 minutes left in the game. Which I may add the lost. My son advises me that he wants to play and due his part to be a better goaltender. I should also add, that at this point, he has had a “goalie coach’ come out for three sessions and my son advises me that he isn’t really learning anything from this guy. Yesterday, however was the pinnacle of my frustration with this coach and the team.

We hosted a tournament here over the weekend and my son decided to try out some new pads. During the game, he was playing well, but I noticed that the pads were a bit to big on him and told the coach during the break, that maybe it would be best that he swap the goaltenders out and for the next game, I will get my son his old pads and he could wear the old ones for the next game. My son was playing quite well to this point in the game. He agreed that the pads were too big and thanked me for noticing it too. Fast forward to the next, and final game. His son starts and is having a decent game, no question. Our team is up 3-1 at the half way mark. The other team switches goaltenders, it is afterall a tournament, and I await for my son to make his switch too. Nothing. So, we wait and are thinking that at the start of the third period, he will probably go in. Nothing. The other team ties the game up and it ends up going into overtime, then shoot out, with the other team winning. My son sitting on the bench the whole time, looking quite disenchanted by the whole process. He tells me afterwards, how much he wanted to play and that “dad, I really didn’t have any fun today”.

I wait for the coach to come out and advise him that “we” need to have a little chat.
We go into the local minor hockey room and he bring his coaching staff with him. I ask him what excuse did he give my son today for not playing him. He says I didn’t give him any excuse, but told him that he would play the next game full, which I might add he has told my son a number of times over the last couple of months and has yet to bear fruition.

To make a long story somewhat shorter, I get told that this is an A team and I best get used to the fact, that these things are going to happen. My son will play against the weaker teams in the Division until his confidence and the teams confidence comes up so that they will start playing for him. I call, BS! I also get told that my son needs to work harder in practice to get better, a fact that I will agree with. He needs to work more in practice and I give them full authority to kick his ass and make him work harder. But then to put the exclamation mark on the conversation, the coaching staff advises me that my son needs to get a better grip on his nutrition and that maybe if he was in better shape he would play better. This after the coaches son walks out with four pieces of pizza after the game and my son walks out with one and an orange. Now granted my son is no small child, but he certainly isn’t overweight. Could he be in better shape, absolutely, but these are 9 and 10 year olds we talking about and we are talking about a local minor hockey system that has less than 200 kids in it.

What do I do? And am I really out to lunch or is it time to put a legitimate beef in place.
Is this how minor hockey should be, even if it is A hockey?
Please CP faithful lend me your ears, and I certainly don’t need sunshine blown my way, if I am out to lunch tell me I am. I am all ears here.
Signed
Frustrated!