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GGHA/Rage Alliance

Announcement

March 31, 2025

Hello Greenville Hockey Families,

I am excited to announce that the youth hockey community in the Upstate is coming together for the 2025-2026 season and beyond.  Greenville Hockey, The Carolina Rage, and The Ice Station have agreed to form an alliance to create a unified hockey experience to provide the best opportunities for growth and development for all players wherever they are on their hockey journey.  Through this alliance, Greenville Hockey is adding 30+ hours of ice time per week at The Ice Station on top of the time that will continue to be utilized at the Pavilion.

 

Starting in May 2025, Greenville Hockey will operate all travel teams in the Upstate.  Players from both organizations will participate in a combined travel team tryout at each age group (10u-18u) to build teams that will compete at the A and AA level.  Weekday and weekend model teams will be created and placed into an appropriate league or play as an independent team based on the skill level and team makeup.  To signify this unification of the programs, the travel teams will be named the “Greenville Rage” which will incorporate the logos of both organizations.  

 

Another part of the alliance will include the creation of a Hockey Operations Committee (HOC) which will be tasked with managing hockey specific decisions and direction.  The HOC will be made up of a combination of GGHA and Rage directors and/or coaches.  This group will be leading Greenville Hockey for head coach selections, team/player selection, league affiliation, tournament selection, player development programs, and hockey programming.

 

This alliance will impact the House, Girls, and High School programs as well by providing additional ice time to teams that have traditionally been underserved.  For example, our House Program will be able to increase the number of players at each age group, and the Girls and Palmetto High School programs will be able to have consistent practice schedules throughout the season.  The House teams will continue to use the Jr Swamp Rabbits brand and logo.  The Girls teams will take on the Rage name, and the High School teams will keep the Warriors name.

 

Planning for the 2025-2026 season is already under way and additional details will be shared as soon as they are available.  Keep an eye on our website and stay tuned to our social media accounts for all of the updates.  I know that many of you reading this letter will have lots of questions, so we have created an anticipated list of FAQs below to provide the answers that we have.  If you have additional questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out using this form.

 

All the Best,

Dave Snider

Greenville Hockey President

Frequently Asked Questions

 

  1. What will the travel team fees be?

    • This will be finalized once budgets are created but preliminary budgets range from $3200 to $4500 for a travel season.

    • House budgets will be reviewed and adjusted if necessary

  2. Who will be coaching each travel team?

    • This will be decided by the hockey operation committee via an interview process.  All current coaches in good standing will be considered candidates for head coaching positions.

  3. Will the travel teams be participating in a league?

    • Yes.  The plan is for most travel teams to play in a league.  Which league(s) teams participate in will be determined following tryouts by the hockey operations committee.

  4. How many tournaments will the travel teams participate in?

    • 4-5 tournaments plus states and end of season playoff if qualified

  5. What name will the teams fall under?

    • The travel teams will be named the “Greenville Rage” which will incorporate the logos of both organizations.

  6. Will high school teams be Rage or GGHA?

    • High school teams will continue to be operated by GGHA and participate in the South Carolina High School League. Teams will remain branded as the Greenville Warriors.

  7. Will there be a weekday model or weekend model?

    • Weekday model will be utilized for most other teams, but some teams will be following a weekend-only model.

  8. Why are the organizations creating an alliance?

    • This alliance is for the benefit of the players, to grow the game in the community, and provide a healthy youth hockey program for the Greenville market

  9. Will the people from GGHA and Rage be in the same positions as now?

    • The Greenville Hockey (GGHA) board members will remain in place and operate as normal.  A Hockey Operations Committee will be created to manage hockey decisions and player development.  

  10. Will my kid still be on a travel team after the alliance is created?

    • Tryouts for the Greenville area will be held for each age group.  Players will be selected for the team that best matches their skill level.

  11. Will try-outs be together?

    • Yes.  There will be one organization tryout for each age level.  Tryouts will be held May 17-18, 2025.

  12. How will this affect each organization?

    • The expectation is to provide a stronger organization to benefit the players both on and off the ice. 

  13. Who will manage the teams?

    • Greenville Hockey will operate all of the teams from registration to rostering.  An individual team manager will be selected for each team as both organizations have done in the past.

  14. Who will make hockey decisions?

    • The hockey director and hockey operations committee will make decisions about where teams play league/tournaments/levels, etc.  They will also make decisions on head coach selections, player selections for teams, and building development programs.

  15. What’s different about this relationship compared to previous years?

    • There is more like-minded thinking between the organizations and both groups feel that there is more benefit to operating as one group instead of separately.

  16. What happens if your player makes a travel team and the practice model (weekday vs weekend) doesn’t fit your schedule?

    • This will be handled on a case-by-case basis

  17. Will travel teams be national bound?

    • AA and some A teams that meet the necessary criteria will be national bound for 14u, 16u, and 18u.

  18. What is the plan for distance of travel?

    • A-level teams will stay primarily in the southeast (5-6 hour radius)

    • AA-level teams will play primarily in the southeast but there will be some travel beyond the 6-hour radius

    • Ultimately, the hockey operations committee and coaches will determine which tournaments teams play in.

  19. Does this alliance impact relationships with CHL, ACHC, and/or CAHA?

    • Yes, and we expect the the relationship with all of these groups to improve.

  20. How many travel teams will there be per age division?

    • This will be determined by the number of players at tryouts, but we are planning at least 2 teams at 10u, 12u, and 14u, and 1 team each at 16u and 18u

  21. Are you going to have a girls travel program?

    • Yes, if there is enough interest in building a girls travel team

  22. Will all teams have access to more ice time?

    • Yes. Teams will have access to full ice, split ice, weight room, off-ice, field house, and outdoor rink at the Ice Station in addition to the facilities we utilize at the Pavilion

  23. What costs are going to be the parents’ responsibility with this new brand? 

    • Tuition and uniforms