AA and House Youth Hockey Fees 2013-14

By CAYH Editor

I'm delighted to announce the return of a feature that launched this blog - our herculean effort to consolidate published season fees (the infamous ice bill) for 39! Chicago area youth hockey clubs into one database. The original database has been viewed by thousands!!! Apparently I'm not the only one who wants to know.

We got away from doing this last year since most clubs work hard to keep increases to a minimum. A 25% increase in enrollments helps to accomplish that! But one of our loyal readers requested an update, so here it is! Also, I plan to compare this season's fee to the original database and write a post about those clubs that have increased fees the most (and least) from the 2010-11 season.

I am publishing a Google Docs version of the master 2013-14 fees database. This should make it easy for you to compare the fees charged by most clubs. Clubs are organized by travel B league for proximity with SSHL first, NWHL next, and NSYHL last. Central States (CSDHL), NIHL, and in house are also included. You will find the link after the jump.

Youth Hockey Club Fee Database 2013

Sources: Club websites and registration packages.

This document is copyrighted by Chicago Area Youth Hockey blog.  Please link the blog, not the document.

I cannot for the life of me find the fees for the Ice Dogs travel or the Lake Forest Winter Club. Both are highlighted to remind you of this fact. If you know anything about either club, please email me. The database will automatically update when changes are made.


Notes

A couple of notes on the database. First, any league members outside the immediate Chicago area are excluded. Second, the database may be missing some information but I will try to make it as complete as I can make it. For example, I do not know the uniform charges for most clubs but many have them and it is probably $200. At other clubs, the jerseys are included. You figure it out, because I can't. If you have some information that will help complete the table, please post it anonymously in the comments below or email it to me.

Next, I have endeavored to make the prices as comparable as possible. Discounts such as early registration, multiple player, or goalie are excluded for this reason. The highest fee is presented for tryouts and conditioning for those clubs that vary the fee according to the age group. This year, for the first time, I have added the mandatory tryout and/or registration fee to the total. This enables a more complete picture of actual cost, but makes comparison to the previous databases a little tricky. I did not do this for the house fees due to the fact that the tryout fee can be included in the house fee or, if charged, different (less) than that charged for travel. There are a couple of exceptions to this rule.

Raffle tickets have evolved into fee reduction opportunities. Because of this, the dollar amounts of these raffles are included in the fee in the database regardless of how it is presented by the club. Non-resident prices are used for all park district clubs.

There is considerable variation in what is included in the ADM/minor/silver mite programs. Furthermore, there were several USA Hockey mandates related to mites that were implemented this year, and that has affected what travel hockey clubs offer at the 8 and under (8U) age group ... and the price went down at several clubs as a result.

Finally, you must investigate what is included in the fee in order to evaluate the overall value you will receive from a given club. When looking at the fees, keep in mind that AA travel clubs are on the ice 3-5 times per week and have some degree of off ice or dry land training while house teams typically only get on the ice 1-3 times per week. Finally, no one but you can determine the value of the experience a coach or the philosophy of an organization.

As always, your mileage may vary.


Corrections To The Database

I want this resource for the hockey community to be as accurate as possible. If you notice any discrepancies, please contact me or email me:

See all posts on this topic here.


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