Boston Showcase

Well the third showcase is done and we didnt fare too well. The team had alot of penalties the first four games and we lost both the games Devin played in. Had alot of 5 on 3's, all the goals were scored on penalty kills and the reffing was really bad. One of the ref's got a three month suspension because of the bad calls. We managed to win three of the games so we are still in a three way tie for first; however, Devin dropped to the middle of the goalie pack. He will have to work hard the next showcase to climb back up. One of his teammates made the ultimate blunder and may now be suspended from hockey for a year. He was so upset by the bad calling in the third game that he knocked the ref's feet out from under him and he fell to the ice pretty hard. This suspended the player for a month and he has to face a hearing regarding when he can play again. Past experience shows a years suspension in which he cannot go anywhere near a team, not even to practise, has to practise on his own and cannot play in a game until his year is served. Well this kid is the coaches son and had a good shot at the NTDP. He was also one of our best forwards and now he is going to be lucky to even play hockey again. Two of our defenceman were also hurt, one with a separated shoulder, the other with a broken thumb. It was not a good weekend for the team. What is ironic, the day before the kids left for Boston they played in a scrimmage against the number 5 team in the country and beat them 4-3 with Devin in net. Go figure...........!

Tournament In The Soo

Well this past weekend was a huge success, the Motor City Metal Jackets won it all in the Championship game. We were in Sault Ste. Marie, Canada for an international AAA tournament. Four regulation games were played and Devin played two, tending goal against the toughest team, who we met up again with in the championship game. His first win was 3-1 with their only goal coming at the end of the third period when our kids coughed up the puck behind our net with a minute left in the game. He got MVP for that game. In the championship game he got his shutout, 3-0 and again was MVP. We had two good teams with good competition, the other two teams were pretty weak and we won those easily. We ended up with five wins and a tie, the tie had the backup goalie in the net. One of the referee's, who reffed three of Devins games kept telling him how good he was and that he expected to see his name in the OHL draft next year. Just what the kid needs to hear, considering we dont want to go that route, though he does. Well we will see where it all leads.

San Jose Showcase

Well our second showcase is behind us and it was a great four days. We won all five of our games, two in shootouts in overtime, both of which Devin played. We played the team that was in first place, tied them 4-4 and then won in the shootout, taking over first place. At this time we have no losses in regulation, the only team out of 14 teams that has not lost a game in regulation. Though we did have alot of penalties in both of Devins games, 13 to be exact. Two of the penalties against the number one team were full 2 minute 5 on 3's. Once we get the penalties under control, we will do even better. The team is coming together well, passing is second to none and our speed is tremendous. Good coaching has a lot to do with the way the team is looking. After Devin returned home, Clarence received a call from the director of the USHL. He told Clarence that they have been watching Devin over the past few years and he has made every team he has been on better. He said Devin is a franchise player and that they consider him to be the number one goalie in the country. He also said that U of M, MSU, Ohio State, Ferris and a couple of other Division 1 colleges are interested in him. We have a tournament in the Soo next month and in December they go to Boston for the third showcase.

Minnesota is history

Well the first big showcase of the season is history and Devin's bus wheeled into Detroit at about 5 a.m. this morning. They had a successful five games and Devin played four of them. The first, second and third games were all ties and for the first time in his goalie career we lost all three in shootouts. Unfortunately our kids couldnt score at all and out of fifteen shooters, three goals went in, always the very last shooter. Though Devin was bummed, we were the only team without a regulation loss. And of course DWills redeemed himself by getting shutouts the last two games. Out of 24 teams we are number 5 and out of 24+ goalies Devin is number 5 with a 1.25 GAA and a .91 SV %. The sad thing was they left Detroit at noon last Wednesday and were on the bus until 2:00 a.m. After unloading the bus and getting to bed by 3:30, they had to get up at six to play their first game at 8:00 a.m. No rest for the wicked I guess. The goalie coach for the NTDP was there and watched two of his games as well as many college scouts. Next month they go to San Jose and I will send emails out with the schedule and arena times.

Motor City Metal Jackets AAA

Well the season has begun and Devin had his first tournament this past weekend. We tied two, won one, lost one (Devin wasnt in net). The team looks pretty good and Devin ended up with a 1.5 GAA. They are now getting ready for the Minnesota tournament, leaving tomorrow on the bus for five days. None of us are going, which is unusual in itself, so it will be his first time completely on his own. They have a room reserved so the kids can do their homework. Next month is the San Jose tournament, of which Clarence and I may be going. Will keep you posted on his games. Clarence is getting calls on a daily basis from advisors and agents, he keeps telling them we are not going with anyone at the moment. He has plenty of time for that, he isnt even 15 yet. Right now he needs to concentrate on his schoolwork, he will be missing so much school.

His First Letter.....

Well since the Rochester camp, Devin has received numerous offers from advisors, wanting to promote him in his hockey career. Being that he is not even 15 till October, this in itself is amazing; however, he has plenty of time for that. Right now his concentration is on his new Motor City Metal Jackets team, which has been practising since his vacation in Manistee ended. Though not long enough, he had a nice little break with no hockey whatsoever. He also received a letter from Michigan State University expressing an interest, wanting to give him more information on their program and hoping to have him attend an MSU hockey game sometime this season, to let him see how the NCAA level competes. He also attended the Collegiate Summit in Ann Arbor, where the Western Michigan head coach expressed a great interest in him also. He was able to meet two young men currently playing in the NHL who went the college route to get there. It was an interesting experience and he will need to take the required courses to meet the NCAA eligibility. The next few years should be exciting.

Rochester Update

Well the showcase camp in Rochester NY was a huge success for Devin. He set out to prove that last years 18th place was not a good showing and this year he ended up in fourth out of 24 goalies. In five games he got two shutouts, allowed two goals in two games and allowed one goal his last game to help bring his team to 2nd place out of 24 teams. His GA was 2 and his SV% was .946. Given that he was not picked in the Soo but invited later, he proved why he needed to be there. The two goalies who were picked came in 17 and 24, while the two goalies they invited later came in 2nd and 4th. And the goalie who came in second has been playing AAA with Honeybaked for five years whereas Devin has only had one year of AAA. All in all he had a great time and came home with a different attitude about where he wants to go. After attending some seminars, Devin has decided that he wants to go into the NDTP (as he planned) with the hope of moving on to U of M. He is taking the college route very seriously and is even looking into college prep classes to take in high school. Yeaaaaa!

News Flash

Well Clarence received a call from USA Hockey, as well as the assistant coach of the NTDP. They apologized to Devin for being overlooked in the Soo and have invited him to the national camp in Rochester, NY. They said they wanted to represent Michigan with the best players and Devin is the top goalie in Michigan, and in fact, the country so they want him there. Well we were pretty resigned to him playing in Ann Arbor and looking forward to the fall season; however, we are now very excited that he has been invited to NY afterall. The coach from the NTDP also told Clarence that Devin is targeted for the program so long as he continues to impress and improve over the next year and a half. It is now up to Devin to continue to take his game to the next level and he will get his wish to play with the US national team.

The Soo Camp

Well the Soo camp was a success for Devin, he played very well and enjoyed himself tremendously. In five games he only allowed five goals and made a good showing. He loved the camp but was tired by the end of the week. Unfortunately he did not make the list of kids who go on to Rochester NY. I was shocked that he did not make the top four goaltenders who, two go to NY and two go to Kent State in Ohio. Given he went to NY last year I thought he would at least make one of the two camps; however,we were told later that he is already on the radar of scouts and it was time to give other goalies a chance to prove themselves. Well that made sence, though we were extremely disapointed. He is practising with the NTDP coaches in Ann Arbor three times a week until the end of July and this instruction is priceless. He is learning alot, improving his game and hoping to become part of the program in the future.

Youth Goalie Aims High

This was an article in the Saginaw News dated Thursday June 10, 2010:
"Youth Goalie Aims High, 14 year old gets taste of elite hockey"
Between the pipes and on the ice is where Devin Williams has always felt comfortable.
Thats a good thing, because he's been spending alot of time there lately.
"I liked being in the net,"Williams said, "It was just different from everybody else."
Williams, a 14 year old Saginaw Township resident, has been garnering plenty of ttention for his skills as a goaltender s he climbs the rungs of youth hockey.
Last month, Williams attended the third annual Warren Strelow National Team Goaltending Camp in Ann Arbor. The camp brought in 36 of the best youth goaltenders from around the country for four days of fundamentals work.
Strelow was the goaltending coach for the 1980 United States Olympic Ice Hockey Team, and spent 21 years as a goaltending coach in the NHL. USA Hockey sponsors the camp in an effort to develop elite goaltenders for its national teams.
"I was pretty excited to be asked to go there," Williams said.
The camp's affiliation with the USA Hockey program had Williams especially excited. A year from now, Williams said he hopes to be invited to the USA National Team Developement Program, which grooms some of the top American junior hockey players for college and professional hockey.
So far, the feeling would appear to be mutual. On top of being invited to the Warren Strelow camp, Williams also participated in the USA Selects program last year, which included a trip to the team's national player development camp in Rochester NY and has been invited to work out at the USA Hockey complex in Ann Arbor during the summer.
One of the reasons the USNTDP has caught Williams' eye is the international travel aspect. Their U-17 team took a trip to Slovakia last season, while the U-18 team traveled to Belarus, Russia and Finland.
But before he's old enough to join the USNTDP, Williams will play with the Motor City Metal Jackets AAA Midget Minor team in Troy, when he is a freshman at Heritage.
Williams moves on to the Motor City program after graduating from the Bay County Blizzards, FLint Phantoms and the Belle Tire program out of Detroit.
Last season, Williams finished with a goals against average under 3.0 and got a taste of high-level youth hockey. "I learned how fast the game was at the top levels," Williams said.
And he is confident he has the skills to take himself to the highest levels. "Im good at moving in the net and reading plays," Williams said.

NTDP Goalie Camp

Well the invite only goalie camp is now over and Devin had an awesome time. Four days of goalie instruction by coaches from the NTDP to the NHL. He learned alot and feels he is faster and better than he was before the camp. The coaches told him they are excited to be working with him this summer (he will be going down three days a week). He was also able to hang around with the goalies who are currently in the NTDP. He was able to see the high school they attend and is now more gung ho than ever to make the program. All expenses were paid by the camp, skate sharpening as he needed it, they washed his clothes each day, gave them tape for their sticks and even warmed their gloves before going on the ice. He shared a hotel room with one other goalie and were bussed to and from the arena. He is spoiled now and wants more than ever to be a part of the national team. He will have to work hard and focus his energy on making the team. In two weeks he heads for the Soo, he is also excited about that. Then if he makes the cut he goes to Rochester NY in July. Its a good thing he loves his sport as it is a year round endeavor.

A Place To Call Home...

Well Devin found a home for the fall with an independent AAA team out of Troy, MI. He will be on the Motor City Metal Jackets, a team affiliated with the North American Prospects Hockey League. He will have two exceptional coaches that come highly regarded and some of his teammates will be from Europe, including the other goalie. They will be attending tournament showcases in San Jose, CA, Indianapolis, IN, Boston, MA, and somewhere in Minnesota. They will also be playing some of the teams in Detroit. He will get alot of exposure and will continue to play at a high level, which will help him to continue to progress to the next level. I can now relax and enjoy my summer now that he has his team.

Spring Update

Well, the spring tryouts were not successful in that politics once again reared its ugly head. Devin attended Little Caesars, Honeybaked and Compuware tryouts and was not chosen, though he looked really good. Though this wasnt a major issue for spring (he has quite abit going on), there was great concern that he would not have an elite team to play on in the fall. In the meantime he attended the Toronto Prospects tournament in Toronto and made an awesome showing. Though we only won one game, we lost the other two 2-1 and all the teams were good. It is difficult to throw a team together for one weekend; however, it was a good time and Devin played very well. He is now heading for the invite only elite goalie camp in Ann Arbor sponsored by the NTDP. The roster came out, there is only eight goalies in the 95 age group and Devin is the only 95 goalie from MI. Take that all you coaches who didnt want to give him a chance!

Season Ends

Well Devin's first AAA season is over and now the quest to find another AAA team is on. Tryouts start next week and at this point we are unsure as to where he will go. There is alot of politics at this level and having to squeeze ten teams into five will leave alot of kids without teams. Will keep you posted.
His season went well in terms of getting noticed. As I said before he is going to the Toronto Prospects at the end of this month, the NTDP goalie camp next month, the Selects at the Soo in June and the Boston Jr. Chowder Cup in July. Should he make it again this year he will also go to Rochester in July. On top of that he has been invited to practise all summer with the NTDP and will receive alot of instruction. You would think coaches would be looking for him; however, we have had only a few inquiries so far so we will see.

News Flash

Well we have more exciting news for everyone and it just keeps getting better. There was a scout at our last game of the season, who had been watching Devin over the course of several games. He spoke with both Devin and Clarence, telling them he was very impressed with the way Devin plays and that he is putting together a 95 elite team from across the country for the Toronto Prospects the end of April. He is only going with one goalie and asked Devin to be in the net for the tournament. I guess scouts from colleges across the country will be there. Then Devin received a letter today (as well as a phone call) from the head coach of the NTDP. He has been invited to attend a goaltending camp the end of May, for the most elite goaltenders in the country. Its a four day camp and his hotel, meals, transportation and ice time will be covered. This camp is to train and condition goalies and determine who has the potential to move on to the USA national team. We are very excited and it is going to be a very busy summer for him again. Toronto Prospects Tournament in April, NTDP goalie camp in May, the Soo in June, Boston Jr. Chowder cup in July, as well as the possiblity of Rochester again. Will keep you posted.

Almost Over.........

Well I havent written much this season I am ashamed to say; however, there hasnt been much to write about. Now don't get me wrong, Devin has done an awesome job for his first year in AAA and he definitely belongs here. His record is 5-6-4 in league play and of the six losses, four were by Honeybaked (awesome organization), the #1 team in the country. In tournaments he has even more wins. He has been scouted by the NTDP and they have watched a few of his games and liked what they saw. He has been approached to play for the Belle Tire Midget Minor team next year and has been approached by the Honeybaked coach as well. It has definitely been a good year for him to be seen by others. The problem is this Belle Tire team he is on is hopeless. They are a bunch of undisciplined goons and we are not winning alot of games due to the stupid penalties this team takes. Since the bench brawl we average 10 penalties a game and are short handed most of the time. The kids are hot headed, do not respect the coach and do not listen. The coaches have just about washed their hands of this team, which is not good for the kids that are focused and want to improve, like Devin. He just shakes his head does his job with composure in the net and doesnt get involved in all the shenanigans of the others, which is why people are looking at him. His coaches LOVE him though, because he is so professional. So we are almost done with this team and not soon enough for me. Plus, the other goalies mom takes STATS and it never fails that Devins shots on goal are less and her son always has 10 - 20 shots more a game. Though this has been brought to the attention of others, it doesnt change. Luckily all AAA organizations are not like BT and hopefully Devin will be able to get on a team next year that will continue to progress him to the next level. It will be an important year for him as he will be 15, which is when the scouting really intensifies. The next year he is eligible for the NTDP or even the OHL.