A Winning Combination The LA Hockey Club/LA Selects-Jr. Kings union brings plenty of opportunities for growth in Southern California By Chris Bayee


W


hen two of Southern California’s fiercest youth hockey rivals decided to break bread recently, no


one knew if the meal would turn into a food fight or a feast.


It’s safe to say the fine china got a lot of use during the ensuing days because talk of an alliance advanced to a more long-term relationship, and on April 4 the clubs formalized it, announcing that LA Hockey Club/ LA Selects would merge into the Los Angeles Jr. Kings effective immediately.


The transaction sent aftershocks through Califor-


nia’s youth hockey community because the clubs were two of the largest in the state, boasted two of the top coaching staffs and both have track records of success on all levels.


In early March, the two clubs combined to sweep all


four Tier I USA Hockey Pacific District titles, and the Jr. Kings’ 18U team earned a silver medal at the USA Hockey National Tournament, while the Jr. Kings’ 16U team and the Selects’ Pee Wees earned bronze. The Jr. Kings were runners-up in Pee Wee and Bantam at regionals. In addition, each club had a team reach the CAHA state AA playoffs, and the Jr. Kings had two teams and LA Hockey had one at the state A/B playoffs.


Concurrent with the merger, Toyota Sports Center announced that James Gasseau, who was LA Hock- ey’s president, has returned to the facility as its hockey director, a position that opened up after the resigna- tion of Tomas Kapusta.


Gasseau previously held the position in 2002-03 and founded the old El Segundo Regents program at the facility before forming LA Hockey. During his pre- vious five-year stint with the Jr. Kings, Gasseau guid- ed the club into Tier I hockey with dramatic results, capturing three national titles.


“This coming together is going to create more


spaces and opportunities to grow hockey in Southern California,” said Jr. Kings executive director Kelly So- rensen. “Kids who are playing and those who want to play will have access to the best skill development. “The LA Jr. Kings as we know them will become more competitive at all levels, not just at the tier lev- els. When you talk about James and the staff he’s de- veloped, these are phenomenal people. Combine them with our staff, and it’s pretty special.” The transaction came together in a matter of weeks after the two teams initially discussed the merits of a potential Tier I alliance next season, Jr. Kings presi- dent Steve Yovetich said.


“We did talk about creating homogenized teams that would not only be better for Tier I, but also better for the development of players at all levels,” Yovetich said. “We quickly realized we were on the same page on a lot of other things, and that’s how it moved towards


times we focus too much on the daily matters. “Two organizations this size coming together allows us to go after projects we didn’t have enough muscle to get done previously.”


The combined coaching expertise also will facilitate


growth on individual and collective levels, Yovetich said.


“Our club has recently gotten a lot of former profes- sional players who’ve come in and want to give back to the game,” he said. “Down the street (in Lakewood) you’ve got former players with a tremendous breadth of minor hockey experience. Now you’re taking the best of both worlds and getting the best collection of hockey experience under one roof.”


The Jr. Kings will continue to play out of Toyota


Sports Center in El Segundo and also at Glacial Gar- den in Lakewood, where LA Hockey/Selects had been based.


Gasseau said there are two areas in particular he wants to see the Jr. Kings expand into, given the amount of coaches and ice slots the club has at its dis- posal.


“We really want to put a priority on developing a girls program, and there’s a demand there,” he said. “And (pure) high school hockey has been growing. “What a nice thing if we had those programs and


then interfaced them with Anaheim’s teams in a South- ern California league.”


Members of the LA Jr. Kings, including, from left, Evan Nyhus, Taylor Maruya and Patrick Newell of their 16U AAA team, will benefit tremendously from the


vast resources LA Hockey Club/LA Selects will bring to the program. Photo/ ActionPhotos.net


this.”


Added Gasseau: “There was an interest by some of the coaches to work together on a couple of teams, and that initiated these discussions. That led to some brainstorming sessions - ‘What if,’ ‘What about that?’ - and, at that point, it took the form of a larger-scale idea to accomplish even more of what we were trying to do.” Boiled down, the mission is clear: offer more oppor-


tunities for players of all levels, emphasize skill devel- opment at all levels and expose more people to hockey to ultimately grow the sport in Southern California. The reformed club gives the Jr. Kings an increased reach and the capacity to add numerous teams. This past season, the Jr. Kings had 301 players on 18 teams, while LA Hockey/Selects had 236 teams on 14 teams. “Together with our resources, we can do so much more to get more kids playing,” Gasseau said. “Some-


Added Yovetich, “We’ve got so much all in one club. It’s a matter of how we can make this game expand. Girls hockey is definitely an area we want to expand into. Anaheim has a great program. Is high school hockey something we could get going? Hopefully.” The Jr. Kings will continue to operate as a non- profit organization, and club officials stated that making hockey more affordable is another primary goal.


“We’ll go out and tap into corporate resources, try


to raise funds to make this game more affordable,” So- rensen said. “We’ve been very successful this past sea- son (when the Jr. Kings’ fundraising efforts brought in $150,000), and we expect to do the same for all of our new members.”


Yovetich said the Jr. Kings will pursue sponsor- ships as another means of offsetting costs. “The profile of the club is high and this is a pretty decent-sized market,” he said. “We’d like to get some- one who either sees this as a pretty good opportunity in terms of a sponsorship investment or, even better, get somebody who’s emotionally involved. There are enough people out here who’d like to see the game grow, who are either transplants or who grew up in Califor- nia. Those are the people we want to get involved.” The merger came with the blessing of the NHL’s Kings, particularly Luc Robitaille, the Hall of Famer who now works as the team’s president of business op- erations.


Merger with Jr. Kings ends LA Hockey Club/LA Selects’ decade of excellence T


he April 4 merger of LA Hockey Club/LA Selects into the Los Angeles Jr. Kings signals the end of a successful decade for the former. Since its formation in 2003, LA Hockey Club/LA Selects won four USA


Hockey national championships and appeared in the championship game at nationals five more times. No club in the state has come close to the combined nine gold and silver medals, particularly in such a short period of time.


The club hit another high-water mark in February, when its Pee Wee AAA squad became the first California team to ever win the Elite division


6 HOCKEY CLUB of the Quebec Pee Wee International Tournament.


The club’s success continued through this season, when the Selects won CAHA state titles at Pee Wee, Bantam and Midget 16U, and the Pee Wee and Bantam teams won Pacific District regional titles. In addition, its Squirt B team advanced to the CAHA state tour- nament in San Jose, where ironically it faced off against the Jr. Kings for the final time.


- Chris Bayee


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