[dre]

Originally Posted by corporatejay

Your tone is very condescending. I think most of us are talking about getting double shifted in elimination games and third periods of playoffs. I'm not sure managing ice time for 10-11 year olds for a normal game in January is in any person's best interests.

If you want to play for fun there are clearly different avenues for you to take, but if you want to play competitive hockey, there's a pecking order, just like life. I'm not sure telling your kid that it's wrong for the best player on your team to get double shifted in the third period Mac's Midget Final is beneficial either.

http://www.mahockey.org/news_article...uld-be-sitting

Imagine this scene: Time is running out in a tied game, in a youth hockey season where wins have been rare. As the chances of winning shrink with each tick off the clock, should the bench shrink with it? Should a team send out only its best players in an effort to win while any perceived “weak links” remain on the bench?

The answer? No.

And in the eyes of Massachusetts native and USA Hockey Assistant Executive Director of Membership Development Pat Kelleher, it should never be an option, nor ever be considered.

“It seems so crazy to me that the importance of winning a single hockey game is more important than kids experiencing youth hockey,” he says. “Honestly, I can’t grasp that.”