The Player Development Committee ("PDC") is charged with designing and promoting hockey programs that advance the development of all players in the Wayzata Youth Hockey Association ("WYHA"). The PDC measures its success in terms of each player’s development over the course of a single season, including improved individual hockey skills, positional play, hockey theory, and team concepts/systems.
The focus of the PDC is the enhancement of each player’s individual skills and ability to contribute to team play through:
Recognizing the unique importance of goaltenders to the WYHA, the PDC also addresses special initiatives aimed at the recruitment and development of goaltenders at every level
WYHA Director of Hockey Operations, Miles Death
Miles Death currently serves as the Director of Hockey Operations at WYHA. In this role, he oversees the administration and player development for the entire association.
Miles brings a variety of coaching experience to this position. He is currently an assistant coach on the Wayzata High School staff in addition to working year-round in hockey skill development for Wayzata Hockey Clinics, Minnesota Lakers, Individual Skills Clinics, and several other youth associations around the Twin Cities. Since beginning his coaching career in 2016 with the Wayzata Squirt A’s, Miles has worked with players at all levels and developed a coaching philosophy based on individual skill development and introducing hockey concepts at a young age. His list of coaching qualifications is listed below:
- WYHA Head Coach, 2016-2020 (Squirt A & Peewee AA)
- Wayzata HS Assistant Coach, 2018-present
- Individual Skills Clinics Instructor, 2017-present
- Minnesota High Performance Section 6 Head Coach, 2021-present
The PDC is chaired by the Director of Hockey Operations (DHO) and the committee is made up of the following members:
The PDC welcomes questions and comments about player development. Our contact information is available on the WYHA web site.
New this season, WYHA will implement a new two part approach on how we develop our players during the season. One part will focus on the proper evaluation of our players. That will allow our coaches to highlight strengths, and correct weaknesses for each individual player. The second part will focus on association wide bi-weekly themes. These themes will cover the basic areas of the game, to allow our coaches to teach hockey concepts much more effectively.
WYHA's Core Four of Player Development
WYHA has made a commitment to offer clinics to its registered players at an affordable price utilizing top-notch instructors. The PDC helps plan clinics for all levels from Mites to High School. Clinics for Mite, Squirt, Pee Wee, Girls U10, and U12 levels emphasize skill development; and clinics for Girls U14, Bantam, and High School levels provide a more systematic program for the development of technical, tactical, and physical hockey skills.
WYHA encourages hockey parents to explore all opportunities for hockey skills development to find the camp/clinic that best fits their family’s situation. Click on Links page for opportunities. Parents should consider various factors in making a well-informed decision about the right camp/clinic in which to enroll their child. Ask questions! Inquire about the specific amount of on-ice instruction and the specific qualifications and experience of staff that will actually be on the ice during the camp/clinic.