Meramec Hockey Club uses USA Hockey’s Hockey Initiation Program (H.I.P.) as our
Learn to Play Hockey program for our youngest skaters. This program is designed
to introduce boys and girls that are 4-9 years old to the sport of ice hockey.
Our club provides a fun and age-appropriate program at a reasonable cost.
Development focuses on learning to skate and basic hockey skills at an
appropriate pace.
There is no previous skating experience necessary!
We use a station format and work on all skating and stick handling skills
necessary to advance to game play.
Our program develops the players' skills in preparation for recreational and
league teams in the future. We
occasionally use small cross-ice games during the session to keep the young
skaters interested.
Program Details:
We
expect to have approximately 80 to 100 skaters in our fall HIP program.
The players will be taught basic hockey skills by several certified
coaches during one of usually 2 session times.
For the first couple of weeks, the coaches will evaluate each player’s
ability level. Then, your child will be
placed in the appropriate session that corresponds to their ability level.
We place the beginners in one session (this session is usually comprised of our
younger players and/or our first year HIP players) and the more experienced
players in the other session (this session is usually comprised of our older
players and/or 2nd
year players). Please click
here for more
program details.
On the last day of the program, we let the children experience playing in an
actual hockey game against one another.
It’s quite a treat for the families to watch!
Also, it is an opportunity for the players to show off the hockey skills
that they have learned throughout the session.
Following the game, we celebrate their progress with a recognition
ceremony complete with individual trophies and a snack!
Location and Dates:
17 one-hour sessions will be held on Saturday mornings beginning on October 25,
2008 at the Shark Tank Ice Rink at All-American Sports Complex located at 11133
Lindbergh Business Court near Hwy. 55 and Lindbergh Blvd. The schedule for the
HIP sessions will be posted on the club website at
www.meramecsharks.com before HIP
begins. For the first couple of weeks, the players will be separated into two
sessions based on their last name. This information will also be posted on the
website. The first session begins at 8:30a.m. and the second session begins at
9:45a.m. Please review the
'08-'09 HIP
Schedule for more information.
Equipment: Meramec Hockey Club offers
rental equipment at NO
ADDITIONAL COST while supplies last. The
rental equipment is available for a
$100 refundable rental deposit.
The rental deposit will be refunded at the conclusion of
the HIP session provided that the equipment is returned in good condition and is
returned on the specified equipment return date. Rental equipment includes a
helmet, gloves, all pads (chest/shoulder, elbow and shin guards) as well as
hockey pants. An equipment fitting for the rental equipment is usually held
about 2 weeks prior to the start date of HIP. The date of the equipment fitting
will be posted on the club’s website as well as emailed to all registered HIP
players by October 4th.
Each player is also required to have hockey skates, a
stick, neck guard, mouth guard, hockey socks and jocks shorts or a protective
cup and hockey garter belt. Some of these items may be purchased from a sporting
goods store that carries used hockey equipment such as Play it Again Sports. For
new equipment, we recommend stores such as Total Hockey, Johnny Macs Sporting
Goods or Sport’s Authority.
Included with your HIP fee is a sharks jersey for each
player to keep!
Please check the following flyer "Hip
Rental Equipment & Fitting Information" for additional information.
Registration:
To register your player for our Learn to Play
program, please use our online registration system that can be accessed through
the homepage of the club’s website. This system allows you to enter all of your
player’s contact information as well as allows you to pay the program fee with a
credit card.
Registration for HIP is available now through the end of October.
If your player qualifies for the Buddy Program, please
contact the Club Registrar,
Cori Richardson, before
you register your player/s. For questions about registration for HIP, please
email Cori at
registration@meramecsharks.com or you may
call her at home at
636-861-9226. Please review the
following information for online registration instructions for
HIP USA Hockey Membership which is required for all players.