La Jolla Jaguars Travel Hockey

What is the La Jolla Jaguar travel hockey program? 

The La Jolla Jaguars travel hockey program is designed to complement the house league program by allowing players to further develop their skills, improve their knowledge and understanding of the game, and nurture their desire, dedication and discipline to play the game of ice hockey against the best competition in Southern California. Some of the players that have completed our travel program have gone on to compete at the next level of competition including Junior A and Junior B hockey in the U.S. and Canada, collegiate club hockey. Some of our players have returned to youth hockey to coach, serve as volunteers, become members of the organization, or even have their children join and play in our programs.

La Jolla Jaguars travel hockey strongly supports the principles and guidelines of USA Hockey, Inc. regarding house and travel programs and we firmly believe in a balance between winning, learning the game, and having fun.  No player, team, coach, parent or supporter is more important than the program and the enjoyment of the game by the players.

How are players evaluated during tryouts? 

The head coaches for a particular age category (mite, squirt, peewee, bantam, and midget) along with a two or three other coaches will try to objectively assess the skills of each player at the tryouts. Using a set series of drills designed to help demonstrate the skills needed to play the game, the coaches will be looking for skating ability, stick handling and shooting ability, and knowledge of the game. Forward and backward skating, turning, "crossovers", stopping, transitions, lateral movement, and endurance are some of the skating skills that are evaluated. The coaches also evaluate stick handling, puck control with the stick and the skates, forehand and backhand passing and pass reception.

Coaches will be looking at proper puck shooting techniques, weight transfer, wrist shots, snap shots, and slap shots along with accuracy. Coaches will also determine if players have learned how to " read and react" and "have their head on a swivel" . At higher levels, players will be expected to forecheck and backcheck, aggressively pursue the puck, " play their man", and "complete their checks" . In addition to the foregoing, goalies are expected to demonstrate their ability to "cover the crease", " telescope in and out from the net", "drop and recover" , " stack the pads", " focus on the
puck", etc.  Every effort will be made to provide a fair, impartial evaluation of the players.

What kind of commitment are the coaches looking for? 

All the coaches are looking for players who have the desire, dedication and discipline to play travel hockey. This includes a willingness to attend all practices, off-ice conditioning (if any), games, and tournaments. Coaches expect players to have the self-discipline to notify the coach or team manager of any conflicts, perform well in school and budget their time to avoid excuses for homework or tests, and, above all, be respectful of others. While we understand that every player must balance their home, school, and hockey life, a commitment to a travel team implies a commitment and a responsibility to teammates and the coach.  Discipline is also expected on and off the ice regarding proper behavior. Fighting, profanity, and disrespect for other people (including teammates, opponents and game officials) and disrespect for property will not be tolerated and may result in disciplinary action including suspension from games or practices or suspension from the team. Jaguars has a long history of fielding teams that will play the game with dignity and respect whether they are winning or losing and we will not allow this tradition to be compromised. In this regard, and in the best interests of the program, players and coaches, La Jolla Jaguars Travel Hockey may exercise its right to deny participation to a player or parent based on prior incidents involving the player and/or a parent. Players and parents will be provided a "Code of Conduct" that they will be required to sign. This " Code of Conduct" will detail what is expected from them regarding their responsibility to the team.