Comparing the Three Youth Ice Hockey Levels
Hockey is a fast growing sport for many children and parents are looking for hockey youth levels to help teach the sport to children who are too young to be actively engaged in a more physical team sport. Youth hockey is a great way to teach kids the fundamentals of hockey while they are still growing up in their respective age categories. There are several different age classification systems in place for hockey and you can easily find one that will work for your child. Here are some of the different age categories that are used in hockey.
Youth hockey age groups are broken down into three different groups namely, the youth bantam (ages six to nine years old), the youth midget (ages ten to fourteen years old) and the youth full (ages fifteen to seventeen years old). These three age groups are separated based on the weight of the player. Younger players can play at a lower level than the older ones and players between the ages of fourteen to seventeen may not play at a competitive level yet.
The youth hockey levels are broken down by each of the three classifications. The lower youth hockey levels are usually for players who are below the age of seven years old. These include the seven-year old bantam, which is also known as theantam. Other classifications include the eight-year old, the nine-year old and the ten-year old.
The next of the youth ice hockey levels is the upper level. Players are then grouped into three other age categories. The first category includes players who are between the age of eight and fifteen, the second category include players between the age of fifteen to seventeen and the last age category is for players between the age of seventeen to twenty-three.
After the three age classifications there are further divisions based on the position of each player on the ice. For example, the left-handed player is normally placed in the left-wing position. If a player is placed in the center position, they would be regarded as a right-handed player. The same is true for the two positions on the bottom of the team. Younger players who are participating in the sport should be instructed to play in their respective age classifications before they begin.
As with other types of youth ice hockey, the player is then classified according to their height. In this case, the taller players are considered to be in the midget category while the shorter ones are considered to be in the mini-midget category. Mini-midget players have only completed the height difference between their knees and the shoulders. They cannot be taller than two feet. Players who are considered to be in the tiny height category are often grouped together with the midget youth hockey levels and they are usually unable to make it past the first year of ice hockey.