HOCKEY & FAMILY ADVISORY SERVICES

What Is a Hockey & Family Advisor?

Choosing the right hockey path for your son or daughter can be one of the most important—and most confusing—decisions a hockey family will make.

A Hockey & Family Advisor is someone who helps families navigate that process.

At EDGE Hockey Skills, our advisors use their experience, relationships, and network throughout the hockey world to help families understand their options and identify opportunities that make sense for their individual player.

That can include:

• Youth & AAA Hockey

• High School Hockey

• Prep School Hockey

• Junior Hockey

• NCAA Hockey

• College Recruiting

• Finding the right league, level, and team

• Academic & Athletic Planning

• Understanding recruiting rules and restrictions

• Connecting families with coaches and programs

Our job isn't to tell every player that they belong at the highest level.

Our job is to be honest about where we believe you fit—and help you find the best opportunity for you.

WHY USE A HOCKEY & FAMILY ADVISOR?

The hockey landscape has never been more complicated.

There are more teams, leagues, showcases, prep schools, junior programs, and college opportunities than ever before.

At the same time, the college hockey recruiting landscape continues to evolve, including changes surrounding NCAA eligibility, recruiting, and player movement.

For families, it can be extremely difficult to know:

Who should we talk to?

What level is right for my son or daughter?

Should they play AAA, Prep, Junior, or High School?

When should we start the recruiting process?

What schools should we be looking at?

Is this team actually a good fit?

Are we being recruited—or are we simply being sold something?

That's where an experienced advisor can make a tremendous difference.

You shouldn't have to navigate your player's hockey journey alone.

EXPERIENCE AT EVERY LEVEL OF THE GAME

Zach Lebowitz brings experience from across the hockey landscape.

One of the biggest advantages of working with EDGE Hockey Skills is having an advisor who has experienced the hockey pathway from multiple perspectives.

Zach has experience in youth hockey, junior hockey, NCAA hockey, and professional hockey, as both a player and coach. That experience has provided him with an understanding of what it takes to progress through the different levels of the game—and, just as importantly, what the transition from one level to the next really looks like.

His experience includes working with players and families at the youth and AAA levels, experience within junior hockey, coaching at the NCAA level, and exposure to the professional hockey environment.

That perspective allows Zach to look beyond simply finding your player a team for the next season.

The goal is to help build a path.

A player's hockey journey doesn't always follow a straight line.

Sometimes the best decision is moving up.

Sometimes the best decision is staying at the same level and developing.

Sometimes the right opportunity is a different league, school, or organization entirely.

Having someone who understands those decisions can help families avoid making choices based solely on rankings, reputation, promises, or what another family is doing.

Zach's approach is simple:

Know the player.
Understand the options.
Use the network.
Be honest about the fit.
Build the right plan.

With the hockey landscape and NCAA rules continuing to change, families need someone who can help them navigate the process rather than simply react to it.

Zach's experience across youth, junior, NCAA, and professional hockey allows EDGE Hockey Skills to provide families with a broader perspective when making these important decisions.

We aren't here to sell you on a particular path. We're here to help you find the right one.

EXPERIENCE.

NETWORK.

HONESTY.

At EDGE Hockey Skills, we believe families deserve someone in their corner who understands the game and isn't afraid to tell them the truth.

Our coaches and ownership have extensive experience playing, coaching, recruiting, and working within hockey at multiple levels.

We have relationships throughout the hockey community and can help put players in front of the right people and the right programs.

But just as importantly, we believe in being transparent with families.

We aren't going to tell you that every player belongs at a certain level just to sell you on an opportunity.

We will give you our honest opinion about:

• Where your player fits

• What they need to improve

• What opportunities make sense

• What programs may be a good fit

• What programs may not be a good fit

• What the next step should be

We work for the family.

Our goal is to help you make educated decisions, not pressure you into a particular team, school, or league.

YOUR HOCKEY JOURNEY SHOULD HAVE A PLAN

One of the biggest mistakes families can make is simply moving from one team to the next without a long-term plan.

Your player's hockey development should be connected to their academic goals, personal development, and long-term aspirations.

As an EDGE Hockey Skills advisory client, we can help you develop a plan that considers:

HOCKEY

• Appropriate level of play

• Team and league selection

• Development opportunities

• Exposure opportunities

• Junior and college pathways

• Recruiting strategy

ACADEMICS

• School selection

• Academic expectations

• Standardized testing

• Academic support

• Balancing hockey and school

RECRUITING

• When to begin the process

• Understanding the recruiting landscape

• Identifying appropriate schools and programs

• Communication with coaches

• Preparing for showcases and recruiting events

• Helping families understand their options

YOUR PLAYER IS MORE THAN A HOCKEY PLAYER

The "best" hockey opportunity isn't necessarily the team with the biggest logo, the highest ranking, or the most impressive sales pitch.

The right opportunity is the one that makes sense for your player.

That means considering:

Hockey + Academics + Development + Location + Culture + Coaching + Future Opportunities

We want to help families find the environment where their son or daughter can develop, compete, succeed academically, and enjoy the game.

OUR NETWORK CAN OPEN DOORS

One of the biggest advantages of working with an experienced advisor is access to relationships.

Sometimes the difference between a player being overlooked and getting an opportunity is simply getting in front of the right coach at the right time.

Through our coaching and hockey network, EDGE Hockey Skills can help make introductions, provide recommendations, and put players in front of programs that may be appropriate for them.

We can't promise a roster spot, scholarship, or college commitment.

What we can promise is that we'll work to help you understand your options and get your player in front of the right people.

WE'LL BE HONEST WITH YOU

There are a lot of people in hockey who will tell families what they want to hear.

That's not what we want to be.

If we believe your player is ready for the next level, we'll tell you.

If we believe your player needs another year of development, we'll tell you.

If we believe a particular program isn't the right fit, we'll tell you.

If we think there is a better path for your son or daughter, we'll tell you.

And if we believe you are being treated unfairly or that an opportunity isn't what it was presented to be, we'll tell you that too.

Our responsibility is to the player and the family.

We want to help you make the right decision—not simply the easiest decision.

WHAT MAKES EDGE HOCKEY SKILLS DIFFERENT?

We aren't simply an advisor who makes introductions.

We are a hockey development organization.

That means we can look at the entire picture of a player's development and future.

Your advisor understands the player because we can work with them on the ice, evaluate their development, understand their strengths and weaknesses, and then help connect that information to the next step in their hockey journey.

Development + Advising + Network

We develop the player.

We understand the player.

We help identify the right opportunities.

We use our network to help open doors.

And we help the family navigate the process.

READY TO BUILD YOUR PLAYER'S PLAN?

If you're trying to figure out what comes next for your son or daughter, let's have a conversation.

Whether your player is just beginning to explore higher-level hockey or is already navigating the prep, junior, or college recruiting process, EDGE Hockey Skills can help you understand your options and develop a plan.

CONTACT ZACH LEBOWITZ

EDGE Hockey Skills
Hockey & Family Advisory Services

📧 zach@edgehockeyskills.com
📱 978-490-9262

Let's talk about your player's goals, where they are today, and where they want to go.

EDGE Hockey Skills — Develop the Player. Navigate the Path. Find the Right Opportunity.