Let's see now...... everyone thinks that LSL is going away from Hockey Quebec's philosophy or program & doing their own....
That being said, they've;
a- produced the most elite hockey players in the last 5-10 years.
b- managed to piss off every other association because they win more often that they lose.
c- get players from other regions to move to their region.
d- are extremely tough on their elite players.
Does that mean that they are doing something the right way or the wrong way?
Here's my opinion for what it's worth... Hockey has because a sport of the upper class because it costs lots of money to play hockey these days. For the most part, the upper class are very soft on their kids and they believe everything is owed to them vs letting their kids go out and earn everything. We've become a society where many people think everything should be equal and that we aren't allowed to have coaches yell at kids or discipline them. I once heard the expression that parents should let their kids cry at an early age so that you don't cry at a later age. I personally believe in that saying. In general, hockey parents of the upper class have difficulty cutting the cord and constantly want to somehow either pave the way for their kids or influence coaches.
The reality is that elite hockey as you go up the food chain is cut throat & it's the player that has to pave his own way. Elite players need to go through tough times early and develop good working habits if they ever want to play elite hockey. It's not it good times that you see the true character of an individual, it's through the tough times and how they battle through it.
LSL makes every kid earns everything. They create an environment for competition (both internal & external) for every single one of their players. If a player (or parent) cannot handle it, then elite hockey simply isn't for them and they should realize it and it will save them lots of money. When our kids go out in the real world and get a real job, our kids won't have their parents there to manipulate or control anything!