MAHA announces partnership with NTDP for mite development program

By @MichaelCaples –

MOUNT PLEASANT – During the Michigan Amateur Hockey Association’s annual Summer Meeting, the governing body for youth hockey in the state announced a new program for Mite hockey training.

In a partnership with USA Hockey’s National Team Development Program, players from MAHA-sanctioned 8U Mite teams can take part in training sessions with the NTDP in a new “High Performance Mite Development Program” at USA Hockey Arena in Plymouth (formerly Compuware Arena).

Directed by USA Hockey and MAHA staff, practices will provide a “high performance level training experience” to challenge players and provide a foundation for elite development.

“We think that’s going to be significant, because we’ve never had a development program like that for the more advanced player, and certainly at that age group,” MAHA president George Atkinson told MiHockey. “We do have players who may have already been playing through four years already, and we also have players who are starting for their first year. Some of those players who have been playing three or four years already and have more highly developed skills now will have another program that they can participate in that will challenge them a little bit more and push them to the next level.”

Each association can nominate two players and a provisional player per session. Different players can be nominated for each session. Forty-eight players will be selected for each training day per session, with two sessions each day allowing for 96 total players to participate.

It will cost a player $59 per session.

Fall Session:

Saturday training at 6:10 p.m. on Nov. 7, 14, 21; Dec. 5, 12, 19 or Sunday training at 3:00 p.m. on Nov. 8, 15, 22; December 6, 13, 20

Winter Session:

Saturday training at 6:10 p.m. on Jan. 9, 16, 23, 30; Feb. 6, 20 or Sunday training at 3:00 p.m. on Jan. 10, 17, 24, 31; Feb. 7, 21

More information will be available soon on MAHA.org.