Is "MLRH 2" even going to be the real deal?

[Vengeance]

Can't help but sit back and read the gossip around Raue's next creation. Known for his unrealistic pursuit of dreams, there is no way that I can believe this has any potential, and for the majority of roller enthusiasts on here (a good portion of you should be playing in AIHL or PIHA or have done so in times past), I really don't think I need to elaborate on my theory about it.

While Raue may be a smart man, no one ever claimed him to be so with the roller hockey market. No powerful team brands and inaccurate public relations/marketing strategies really mellow out his farfetched TV (or should I say, TV-ish, because it's web-based right?) campaigns. Heard about something coming up on Versus - what's the deal there? Did he already get broadcasted and I missed it or is it sometime in the near future?

I feel like I know so much but then again I'm also just as lost with this new "league." I know a lot of others probably share my confusion. Anyone want to shine some light on it?

[TULaw]

the league dosnt sound any better or worse then PIHA or AIHL at this point, I guess we just have to wait and see what comes of it. I dont recall there being any powerful brands or marketing in the other leagues either.

[Doug Jones]

McDonald's a nationally recognized name, has signed on as the "official" sponsor of the SC Buccaneers for the 2009 - 2010 season. The restaurant and six locations in Greenville are committed to help the Buccaneers reach out into the community and are supporting the team in it's inaugural season.

As part of the MLRH2 it's like anything else. Let's judge it after the season has commenced.

[phil29]

so we talking discounts on big macs now? j/k

awesome that you have such a big franchise to support the team.

[Narch321]

I don't know we will have to wait and see. However if the piha was a better league than it would be the only pro league like the nhl. But it's not. The only difference between the two leagues is that one is full contact. They both have pro players.

[DCbullets14]

is piha still around? the only news ive heard from them this year is about teams leaving? how many teams are left in that league 11 or 12 plus minors?

[Doug Jones]

DC Bullets,

It's obvious you've made your statement of playing in the AIHL.

We had a gentlemen's agreement on this site that no one in PIHA would speak out negatively about the AIHL, MLRH would not speak out about either league, etc.

You keep posting "negatives" on the MLRH and PIHA posts. My suggestion is, if you don't have something postitive to say about either league, then stick to the AIHL and the positives there.

Let the rest of us work on our leagues also to make them better.

Thanks

Doug

[Doug Jones]

Can't help but sit back and read the gossip around Raue's next creation. Known for his unrealistic pursuit of dreams, there is no way that I can believe this has any potential, and for the majority of roller enthusiasts on here (a good portion of you should be playing in AIHL or PIHA or have done so in times past), I really don't think I need to elaborate on my theory about it.

While Raue may be a smart man, no one ever claimed him to be so with the roller hockey market. No powerful team brands and inaccurate public relations/marketing strategies really mellow out his farfetched TV (or should I say, TV-ish, because it's web-based right?) campaigns. Heard about something coming up on Versus - what's the deal there? Did he already get broadcasted and I missed it or is it sometime in the near future?

I feel like I know so much but then again I'm also just as lost with this new "league." I know a lot of others probably share my confusion. Anyone want to shine some light on it?

Anyone who can post without their identity to me, is once again, a COWARD.

If you so strongly believe in what you say, then again, sign your name to your words.

Nothing changes here. Those with hidden agendas of discrediting others continue to do so from the safety of the keyboard and of course behind a coward's screen name. I say coward, because again anyone who throws a daunting, word ridden attack at others with a low post count isn't here to better our sport, but simply to throw darts at others when it's convenient.

I am sure you'll reply, but here's a challenge, when you do, sign your name....it'll make your post stand out so much more!

[DCbullets14]

Doug,
I like to express my opinion. If my questions on this thread came accross as negative that was not my intention. I was honestly asking if the league was still around. Most local teams are no longer playing in that league and because of that I havent heard anything. Also there have been very few comments about the league on here, with the exception of nonplayers who are asking general questions about the league.

I would still like to see PIHA be a success, mainly because I do not think that an amateur association like aau can ever truely have a PRO league. I do feel that until those in charge of PIHA make necessary chages this is simply not possible.

Anyway can we give it a rest with the coward thing already we have all seen and heard it before and it has accomplished NOTHING

[Doug Jones]

My posts in reference to the "cowards" is again directed at those with hidden agendas who attack on here.

When they post their name, I'll drop the "coward" monicker and the labeling. Until then, those who continues to attack MLRH, RHA, PIHA and whatever else organization, will continue to be a "coward" in my eyes.

Thanks for your input.

[growl89]

Anyone who can post without their identity to me, is once again, a COWARD.

If you so strongly believe in what you say, then again, sign your name to your words.

Nothing changes here. Those with hidden agendas of discrediting others continue to do so from the safety of the keyboard and of course behind a coward's screen name. I say coward, because again anyone who throws a daunting, word ridden attack at others with a low post count isn't here to better our sport, but simply to throw darts at others when it's convenient.

I am sure you'll reply, but here's a challenge, when you do, sign your name....it'll make your post stand out so much more!


I agree, cowardly move to not sign a name on such a specific topic, but you can't fault people for questioning a league that has left people high and dry, time and time again.

I hope your team does very well in MLRH and gets out what you put in. I for one was hoping you guys would have made the jump to AIHL to add even more talent in a talent filled AIHL Eastern Conference.

[kevinsmithAZ]

roller hockey will never be anywhere near other sports with 3 different "pro" leagues, no TRUE NGB (No, don't tell me one of the two is right now) and no real grassroots, learn-to-play program nation-wide. It seems like nobody is ever on the same page. When was the last time you heard of roller hockey refs REALLY getting certified (and re-certified every year), or roller coaches doing the same? we can't even get the basics down..

[iceburg]

kevin, you make a good point.but..now im just gonna throw this out there just for the heck of it.in the early 70s how many certified youth ice hockey coaches were there,and how about refs?how about in the 80s things started getting alittle more organized.90s?,how about now?now look at inline hockey.Inline hockey has come pretty darn far the last, say 15years.no?what im saying is give the sport time to make its journey,in my opinion I dont think its just going to fall off the face of the earth and people are going to say hey remember inline hockey.we have alot of good people working in the sport.lets hope the next 15years could be as productive.hey I know im doing my part.

Rob Burger.
hockey player.
hockey coach.

[alex]

kevin, you make a good point.but..now im just gonna throw this out there just for the heck of it.in the early 70s how many certified youth ice hockey coaches were there,and how about refs?how about in the 80s things started getting alittle more organized.90s?,how about now?now look at inline hockey.Inline hockey has come pretty darn far the last, say 15years.no?what im saying is give the sport time to make its journey,in my opinion I dont think its just going to fall off the face of the earth and people are going to say hey remember inline hockey.we have alot of good people working in the sport.lets hope the next 15years could be as productive.hey I know im doing my part.

Rob Burger.
hockey player.
hockey coach.

Positivity?! That's a new approach around here. I like it.

[kevinsmithAZ]

kevin, you make a good point.but..now im just gonna throw this out there just for the heck of it.in the early 70s how many certified youth ice hockey coaches were there,and how about refs?how about in the 80s things started getting alittle more organized.90s?,how about now?now look at inline hockey.Inline hockey has come pretty darn far the last, say 15years.no?what im saying is give the sport time to make its journey,in my opinion I dont think its just going to fall off the face of the earth and people are going to say hey remember inline hockey.we have alot of good people working in the sport.lets hope the next 15years could be as productive.hey I know im doing my part.

Rob Burger.
hockey player.
hockey coach.

You're totally right man, I honestly agree with you 100%. The other part I'm seeing is that we have a strong starting base with ice hockey and the standards they've laid out, and while we don't have to follow them completely we can at least use some of the things USA Hockey has done to help us become more organized. Supposedly AAU/USARS is going to be doing some sort of referee certification this year; they're really trying hard to implement it across the country. Hopefully RHA can do the same. I know everyone wants to make it work, it's just sad that sometimes people can't put their egos behind them.. that's more of the point I was trying to make.

[joisyan]

i'd like to do a little history lesson, ancient Greece was very separated. independent city states all over the country and surrounding islands. they never got along and never really unified. it wasn't until the Romans invaded Greece, that it was unified under one ruler, and later became it's own country.

therein lies our sport of inline hockey. it is very early in it's maturity (which, in ways, reflects alot of it's players/coaches/owners). not saying that anyone's immature like a grammar school kid, but just not exactly up to par with what is necessary to grow the sport.

basically if inline hockey is like ancient Greece, then it needs that Roman Ruler to bully everyone else into shape. i don't mean "bully" in a negative way, but someone's gotta take charge. alot of the sports problems can't be fixed with kind words. too many two-faced people.

i don't know if any one of the league's or tournament series could necessarily take charge of the others, i think it would have to be something much bigger. cause like i said, Greece was taken over by the Roman Empire, not just another little city state.

So in my opinion, the NHL, AHL, ECHL or some sort of national based league, or even a company like the old V-form that sponsored Pro Beach Hockey needs to step up to the plate and contact every league and create a new RHI type league.

but they need to make it only a few teams, to create demand. right now inline hockey is too easy to start a team and supply is way up. i think alot of the leagues tend to get watered down.

that and like someone else touched up on, inline hockey will be nothing without junior leagues. can not stress that enough. here in winchester our junior league is absolutely drained. i'm afraid it's happening in other places too

again it's all political

sorry if that came out negative in any way, i have no intentions of being negative. just trying to spark so ideas

[tommy]

Just a few points:

1. I honestly do not see what is so wrong with negative comments and people disagreeing with other people/leagues. If everyone agreed on this board, I for one know I wouldn't read it. That's what makes things interesting. Without conflict and "competition," there would never be any progress. All the new, developing leagues, insurances, etc. are good for the sport as a whole, because without new developments, no one would ever be forced to make their product better by keeping up with their competition. I think disagreement is good and healthy and there should be no reason why people aren't allowed to think differently than AAU, RHA, or any other governing body.

2. Agreeing with a previous post... roller hockey has only really been an established "sport" since the 90s. Considering its the early 2000s, I agree with the fact that roller hockey has made serious progress over the years. The NFL, NBA, or any other successful professional league didn't become so successful over a span of twenty years or so. Give it some time, and if something doesn't eventually develop, then it was never meant to be that way.

[Jon E. Smith]

who cares if the league is the real deal? if you or your team don't want to play, please don't. i'm new here, but it seems everyone is always against "the other league" and "mine is the best" syndrome covers most of the posters.....i was raised with the following saying "if you can't say something nice then don't."

opinions are like rear ends, every one has one and if you don't like theirs keep your nose out of their rear end!

[Doug Jones]

We're playing in the MLRH. If PIHA had a Southeast division, we'd be playing there too.

Anyway, we look forward to the 2009 - 2010 season in MLRH and the new teams.

Good luck to everyone playing this season

[Doug Jones]

I agree, cowardly move to not sign a name on such a specific topic, but you can't fault people for questioning a league that has left people high and dry, time and time again.

I hope your team does very well in MLRH and gets out what you put in. I for one was hoping you guys would have made the jump to AIHL to add even more talent in a talent filled AIHL Eastern Conference.

I appreciate your comment. thank you

[quick_dry]

Just a few points:

1. I honestly do not see what is so wrong with negative comments and people disagreeing with other people/leagues. If everyone agreed on this board, I for one know I wouldn't read it. That's what makes things interesting. Without conflict and "competition," there would never be any progress. All the new, developing leagues, insurances, etc. are good for the sport as a whole, because without new developments, no one would ever be forced to make their product better by keeping up with their competition. I think disagreement is good and healthy and there should be no reason why people aren't allowed to think differently than AAU, RHA, or any other governing body.
I agree that if every post here was positive, lovey-dovey and nobody had a differing opinion it would be boring and i wouldn't read this forum either. Why would I need to if it always agreed with my own views?

I disagree that the 'competition' as it is in roller hockey worldwide today is good.

If you were only talking about competition between for-profit ventures to offer better and better deals to lure money to one place or another, while the sport itself was still headed up by one governing body, I'd think it was great. But at the moment we have competition moving between groups dividing the whole pie.

Re: insurances - from being involved in the original NGB here in Australia, and when insurance was handled at a state level before we formed the national body - we were always looking for the very best insurance deal out there for members - cause we'd have to pay the fees too as playing members/parents of players. As a non-profit organisation it wasn't a 'product' to get profit from members. IMo it is best to have a federation to handle looking after the sport as a whole, while individual groups/companies/etc look after their own competing products within the sport i.e. separation of profit and governance.

To keep going with the city-states idea from earlier, do you think the USA is stronger as the UNITED states, or if it was a bunch of individual colonies with no federal level of governance?

[tommy]

I agree that if every post here was positive, lovey-dovey and nobody had a differing opinion it would be boring and i wouldn't read this forum either. Why would I need to if it always agreed with my own views?

I disagree that the 'competition' as it is in roller hockey worldwide today is good.

If you were only talking about competition between for-profit ventures to offer better and better deals to lure money to one place or another, while the sport itself was still headed up by one governing body, I'd think it was great.

That actually was what I was referring to, but otherwise good points.

The only problem with one governing body is that if that one governing body is extremely corrupt and inefficient, then everyone's out of luck.

[Fusion9]

As someone on the front lines in regards to the industry, I have to say that the sport is actually moving in a very positive direction.

The AIHL is an absolute monster, it's growing out of control in a good way. They really seem to have it together. I give them all the respect in the world.

MLRH has made a huge leap of progress this past year and even more so in the off-season bringing in a lot of talent and organization with the new teams that are on board. It has been much easier in the way of organizing and with what I know of the teams that have come on, it's going to be a great season. I really beleive it'll be the best season to date for MLRH, this is my 8th year in the league so I've seen the ups and downs of MLRH.

Manufacturers are also taking a lot more hands on approach each year. I remember a time when the tournament teams and the "company" teams were really the only ones who had deals with manufacturers, everyone in leagues had discounts at best.

I really think people are starting to understand that the sport can succeed without ONE governing body and if everyone leaves each other to their own devices, the sport will benefit from the competition between them. Pick your alliances and do your thing, at the end of the day, it's all hockey once the puck drops.

[Narch321]

I agree with you fusion 9. What do you think about chris street ?

[Fusion9]

ok, is that a trick question?

[yokes]

ok, is that a trick question?

Yes it's a really tricky question...Chris take a looonnng look in the mirror before answering.:D

[Fusion9]

thanks Jay, how ya been man? Long time no talk! Still back home in DE?

[yokes]

Yea, just working and taking care of my daughter. Where in FL are you? Ill be in Orlando the last weekend of the month. Him me up on PM

[skooled]

I agree with Fusion9 on how big AIHL has gotten, and would love to see where it can go in its current state. But I am also keeping a close eye on MLRH and all affiliate leagues. If Bill and his team have done their homework, it could be the best year for MLRH to date (even better than its first one or two in the 90's)

AIHL will draw players and teams, as its a format they seem to know and have grown up with (tournament style) whereas MLRH is trying to be more of a "traditional" league as such. It will be intresting to see where both leagues are at at the end of their respective seasons.

[knights11]

I was looking at the MLRH website and whats the travel gonna be like for this league. Are you only playing your division till playoffs? Some teams seem to have to do alot of traveling for one weekend of hockey which could possibly be only one game.

Not to start anything here but one thing i think is kinda cool with AIHL is that they do a couple festivals during the year so you get your moneys worth when you travel. With how spread out the teams are in MLRH it seems like festivals would fit in well to. just an idea though

[Fusion9]

it was very much debated during the formatting of the leagues. A lot of the events ARE festivals while a few teams have a home schedule. It makes things a little more confusing to the fan and a little less fair to the other teams that way but, It all came together and we have a complete schedule. It should be a good season by the looks of things.

As for the travel, most teams ONLY play within their division during the regular season. So technically, North division teams won't see south division teams until the finals. I beleive the only exception is the Fusion are going to Michigan for a weekend road trip to Detroit & Grand Rapids.

[Doug Jones]

http://i909.photobucket.com/albums/ac300/dougjscbuccaneershockey/floridafusionopeningnight.jpg

Looking forward to opening night in Greenville with the Fusion....