Partnership expands resources for girls’ hockey ahead of Massachusetts showcase.
(DECATUR, ALABAMA – August 19, 2020) – Two weeks after Total Package Hockey’s (TPH) acquisition of The Prospect Exchange (TPE), an exciting new partnership has been made with Premier Ice Prospects (PIP). The new partnership between TPE and PIP will provide valuable resources to all involved in girls’ hockey around the continent.
Kathy Pippy, Director of Girls Hockey at PIP, will now also serve the same role at TPE. In addition, with the partnership, Pippy was named an equity partner of TPE. Pippy has been involved in girls’ hockey for over 10 years and that experience will be pivotal.
“Bringing Kathy in makes sense from a perspective of that she has an incredible network that is as deep as anyone, especially on the girls side,” said John Becanic, Co-Founder & Managing Partner of TPE. “She is an influencer and leader in the industry.”
During this unique time where travel by coaches is often restricted, the need for new ways to scout and recruit players is absolutely necessary. It’s one of the many reasons why the partnership just makes sense for all involved.
“We had to solve the problem of the player not getting seen,” said Becanic. “And as a coach, we wanted to solve the problem of not always having the budget to go see people. We wanted coaches to be able to be more efficient with their time. COVID has propelled us into a necessary resource. The partnership is important because it immediately makes an impact in the girls’ game through someone that is highly respected in it.”
Both Becanic and Pippy understand that more technology is needed on the girls’ side of hockey. Pippy’s passion is helping female athletes reach the next level through showcases. Add in the technology from TPE, and they’re setting it up for a long-lasting partnership.
“My passion is helping female hockey players navigate the process from a young age up through getting into prep school and colleges,” said Pippy. “I think that partnering with The Prospect Exchange will be a very effective tool to help girls in the recruiting process. It’ll make it easier for college coaches to scout them using technology. They will see video of their games, review statistics and use it for communication.”
Especially since Team USA won gold at the Olympics, there has been an explosion of girls’ hockey participants. That ramps up the need for more to be seen and have the opportunities to take their skills to the next level. Pippy wants to continue to give those opportunities while also helping to mold student-athletes into good people and leaders in their communities.
“It’s amazing that girls’ hockey has really grown, and there are so many incredible women role models such as Kendall Coyne and Hilary Knight,” said Pippy. “Cayla Barnes is a college athlete at Boston College right now. She’s someone that has gone through my program and was the youngest Olympian when the women’s team won gold [in PyeongChang]. Yes, I’m focused on girls’ hockey, but one of the things is to bring more awareness to women and girls in sports, period. I want to highlight the opportunities for girls and the great things they learn by being in a sport like hockey.”
One of those opportunities will be coming up soon in Bedford, Massachusetts for the PIP Prospect Exchange Showcase. The showcase will take place August 28-30 at The Edge Sports Center. A unique aspect of this showcase is that each player will be able to select three of their four games to have broken down and analyzed, receive video of individual shifts & performance statistics (analytics) through The Prospect Exchange. They will then be able to forward that information to NCAA coaches. Learn more about the showcase here.