Folks,

There are some very important high school games scheduled for this week.  Many of our teams are in the hunt for state playoff berths and our players need your support!

Of particular importance is the Lexington Boys Varsity game this coming Saturday 2/13 (7:30 PM at Hayden) which is being dedicated to Chip Guthrie and his family.  As many of you know, Chip suffered a stroke several weeks ago and is now working hard on his recovery.  Chip’s son Charlie is co-captain of the LHS varsity team and came up through the ranks in the LBYH program.  LBYH has a tradition of helping fellow “hockey folks” and I encourage all of you to come out for what promises to be an exciting game against Burlington and to participate in the various fundraising events for the Guthrie family that will take place during the game.

Here’s what’s on the fan docket this week:

Wed. 2/10 – 3:45 PM -  Bedford Boys Varsity v. Concord-Carlisle @ The Edge

Wed. 2/10 – 6:00 PM – Lexington Boys Varsity v. Melrose @ Flynn Rink

Wed. 2/10 - 7:15 PM - Lexington Girls Varsity v. Hingham @ Hayden  (Big game for the LHS Girls!)

(Due to expected snow on Wednesday, please make sure the game you are attending is “on” before you venture out.)

Fri. 2/12  - 8:40 PM – Lexington Girls JV v. Chelmsford @ Hayden

Sat. 2/13 – 6:00 PM – Lexington Girls Varsity v. Burlington @ Burlington

Sat. 2/13 – 7:30 PM – Lexington Boys Varsity v. Burlington @ Hayden

Sat. 2/13 – 8:00 PM – Bedford Boys Varsity v. Newton South @ The Edge

Hope to see you around the rink.

Phil

Folks,

While I understand that players will sometimes need to miss a practice here or there due to academic and other commitments, I have noticed that for some teams, Peter Ward's Skill Sessions have been lightly attended.  Please don't treat skill sessions as optional practices.  
The importance of these skill sessions to your child's development cannot be overstated.  In terms of skill development, a single skill session is worth multiple games in terms of on-ice experience and multiple touches with the puck.   As an example, USA Hockey's statistics show that for a 60 minute Mite game, the total average puck possession time per player for the game was 20.7 seconds.  No player touched the puck for more than 85 seconds and some players never touched the puck during the game.  Average shots per game -- 0.5 shots.    The puck touch statistics for games for professionals and older youth players are not much different as shown in the chart belowt:

Player Ice Time # of Shifts Puck Possession Possesion per Shift Sakic, Joe 15:25 27 79.5 seconds 2.9 seconds Modano, Mike 19:47 28 58.1 seconds 2.1 seconds Amonte, Tony 12:51 22 46.6 seconds 2.1 seconds Average 16:01 25.6 61.4 seconds 2.3 seconds

Player Ice Time # of Shifts Puck Possession Possesion per Shift 1 19:09 22 53.8 seconds 2.4 seconds 2 17:43 15 29.6 seconds 1.9 seconds 3 27:09 27 112.9 seconds 4.2 seconds 4 13:32 16 24.1 seconds 1.5 seconds 5 16:25 17 26.9 seconds 1.6 seconds 6 10:31 15 52.8 seconds 3.5 seconds 7 19:26 24 54.7 seconds 2.2 seconds 8 13:49 15 34.1 seconds 2.3 seconds Average 17:13 18.9 48.3 seconds 2.5 seconds

Player Ice Time # of Shifts Puck Possession Possesion per Shift 1 15:58 18 34.1 seconds 1.8 seconds 2 20:02 21 99.8 seconds 4.7 seconds 3 19:14 19 77.9 seconds 4.1 seconds 4 12:33 14 26.3 seconds 1.8 seconds 5 16:21 20 52 seconds 2.6 seconds 6 19:48 20 75.9 seconds 3.8 seconds 7 23:34 24 97.3 seconds 4.0 seconds Average 17:13 18.9 48.3 seconds 2.5 seconds

Player Ice Time # of Shifts Puck Possession Possesion per Shift 1 17:36 23 43.8 seconds 1.9 seconds 2 18:34 22 35.4 seconds 1.6 seconds 3 15:09 21 30.6 seconds 1.4 seconds 4 12:56 18 47.3 seconds 2.6 seconds 5 15:56 21 41.8 seconds 1.9 seconds Average 16:02 21 38.4 seconds 1.8 seconds