U16 AA | U17 AAA | U18 AA
U16 AA | U17 AAA | U18 AA
U16, U17, U18 Tryouts
Tryout Registration for the 2023-2024 Season will open online April 15, 2023.
Early Bird Tryout Fee – April 15 to June 30, 2023 – $TBA
Tryout Fee – July 1 onwards – $TBA
U18 AAA – Those players interested in U18 AAA Tryouts, please do not register online with SSAC at this time. Information will be forwarded when it is finalized.
U18 eligible age players who choose to try out for Junior teams must also register for SSAC’s tryouts upon return.
Quick Instructions:
Step 1 – If not already in place, please create a family account at Spordle My Account in the parents name.
Step 2 – Add family players to the parents Spordle My Account under the Link a Member section by searching members/participants by name and date of birth.
Step 3 – Once account created and members added, register the player online using the link on the Spordle Dashboard or using the Hockey Canada link if no longer in Spordle. PLEASE NOTE: If you have not tried out for SSAC before or the system advises that there is no registration option for your player, please email registrar@ssac.hockey
Step 4 – Pay applicable tryout fee online by Visa or Mastercard or by E-Transfer.
Step 5 – Electronically sign and submit the SSAC Player and Parent Code of Conduct and SSAC Hockey Edmonton – Fair Play Pledge.
Step 6 – If you have not tried out for SSAC before, please upload a copy of birth certificate or passport to your Spordle Account or email to SSAC Registrar.
Step 7 – If you have not tried out for SSAC before or have moved since last season, please complete the Hockey Alberta Parent Declaration Form. Please enter the registrar email in the Minor Hockey Association Submission section. Upon completion, it can be uploaded directly to your Spordle Account or emailed to SSAC Registrar.
* The tryout fee is based on the date all documentation is received (online registration, conduct forms, age/address verification, and payment).
U16 | U17 | U18 AAA/AA Teams
This season, SSAC will field 2 U18 AA, I U17 AAA, and 1 U16 AA teams:
- 2 U18 AA team
- 1 U17 AAA team
- 1 U16 AA team
It is expected that player composition at U18 AAA, newly minted Alberta Elite Hockey League (AEHL), formerly AMHL, will be primarily 16 and 17 year-olds with some 15 year olds. There will be one AAA province-wide league overseeing U18 AAA, U17 AAA and U15 AAA.
At U18 AA, NAHL, teams will be comprised of a mix of 16 and 17 year-olds.
U17 AAA, also now AEHL, formerly AMMHL is for the elite 15 and 16 year old. The one U16 AA team will play in the REMHL, which are comprised of 15 year-olds only.
U16 | U17 | U18 AAA/AA Tryouts – Week 1 (to be confirmed for 2023-2024)
U16 | U17 | U18 AAA/AA tryouts begin the September Labour Day. Players will receive an email the week before with their first ice time.
U18 AAA/AA will be grouped together as 16 and 17 year-olds while U16 AAA/AA players will be grouped together as 15 year olds. U18 and U16 coaches will evaluate and Category Directors of the Hockey Operations Committee will observe. Groupings will occur randomly using the player’s preferred tryout position as declared on the application form.
There will be a separate goalie evaluation at beginning of September. Goaltenders will be emailed their group and time.
An injury or illness incurred at tryout time might cause the player to lose out on an opportunity to try out with SSAC. It is at the coaches discretion whether an ill or injured player continues on for further evaluation. The Club is not required to hold positions open for ANY player while they heal from an illness or injury, or while trying out with another Club in the AA Model Tryouts or AAA Player Movement process.
U18 AAA Group
U18 AAA tryouts return to the home club this season. Resident players tryout at their respective resident clubs. SSAC residents register at SSAC, CAC residents register at CAC, except KC and MLAC player residents will register at MLAC. There will no longer be a city wide tryout and full city draft selection process. However, Player Movement as per Alberta Development Model remains for up to 3 club tryouts at U18 AAA based on eligibility.
At the SSAC tryouts, after about 3 sessions, the U18 AAA coaching staff will invite and select up to 40 players from the open tryout random groups. There will be 2 additional U18 AAA sessions by the end of the first week to pare down the selection to 25-30 players. Then evaluations will continue throughout pre-season games and practices with potential player movement from Junior releases to U18 AAA. Team rosters will be declared by October 15 or by fifth league game.
U18 AA & U17 AAA & U16 AA Groups
At beginning of September, the U18 AA coaches will each select up to 25 players from the remaining 16 and 17 year-old candidates. A selection of up to 25 players of the remaining 15 and 16 year-olds will be selected by the U17 AAA coach for further evaluation. From the remaining list, the U16 AA coach will select up to 25 players from the 15 year-olds for continued evaluation.
Evaluations of drafted players will continue in the five new groupings, with constant player movement from Junior to U18 AAA to U18 AA or U17 AAA or U16 AA. Roster numbers will pared down according to Hockey Edmonton and SSAC pre-determined timelines. It is the Club’s desire to complete this process as quickly as possible while allowing players a fair opportunity to display their abilities.
U16 AA | U17 AAA | U18 AA Releases
At the U16 | U17 | U18 levels, rosters will be pared down to within one or two players of being “set” by the start of the SSAC Fall Tournament and be finalized shortly thereafter. If the tryouts in your District begin during this time frame, it is advisable that you communicate with your District Registrar or U16 | U18 Category Director to ensure knowledge of their tryout time lines.
Any player not drafted by the U18 AA, or U16 AA coaches will return to their Federation program or may enter the AA Model Player Movement process – see Elite Council.
U18 AAA and U17 AAA are eligible for a 2nd tryout in the Alberta Development Model Player Movement process. The AA Model allows for a 2nd tryout for another city club. For more step-by-step details to tryout for another club team, visit the Elite Council website.
Junior Releases
Players who choose to try out for Junior teams must also register for SSAC’s tryouts. If the player does not return from Junior camp (i.e. he makes a Junior team), the tryout fee will be refunded. Once a player returns from Junior camp, he will be integrated into the SSAC tryout process with evaluation by the U18 AAA coach as well as the U18 AA coaching staff.
NO player returning from a Junior camp AFTER October 15 will be accepted into U16 | U18 tryouts or on to a U18 AAA/AA, or U16 AAA team with ANY Hockey Edmonton Club.
NO releases to Clubs outside Hockey Edmonton boundaries will be permitted either.
The player’s options after October 15 will be extremely limited.
Responsibility lies with the player and the Junior team to ensure the October 15 deadline is observed.
All players who choose to try out for Junior teams should receive a Hockey Alberta Letter of Permission from the management of the Junior team. This form must be signed by the Hockey Edmonton Registrar Glenn Sommerville.