TPH Detroit’s Allison Anagyros promoted to Director of Academics
BLOOMFIELD HILLS, MI – Total Package Hockey Chief Academic Officer Bill Simms announced the promotion of Allison Anagyros to the role of Director of Academics on Monday.
Anagyros, who joined TPH Detroit in the summer of 2019, was previously the Success Coach at the Center of Excellence. In that role she was an integral part in navigating a successful finish to the spring semester where the TPH Center of Excellence adjusted seamlessly to a hybrid model. Anagyros’ transition to her new role will be smooth with her familiarity with the student-athletes and her experience with the model.
“I’m extremely excited to have Allison as our new Director of Academics,” said Simms. “She has valuable experience working with student-athletes from her time at Indiana University and has learned a lot from her time as a Success Coach at TPH-Detroit this past year. I feel confident that she’ll will provide great leadership to our students and families on the academic front.”
As a part of the TPH Center of Excellence Detroit team, Anagyros will lead the student-athletes in the classroom ensuring their academic growth as well as ensuring the whole operation can take place in a safe environment.
TPH Detroit Director of Hockey Operations Dwayne Norris endorsed Anagyros saying, “Her forward thinking and fresh ideas will keep pushing the development of our student-athletes through this difficult time of COVID-19 and beyond. Currently, she is actively preparing the classroom to be a safe and healthy learning environment and is taking proper precautions to ensure everything is up the highest standards while following CDC guidelines.”
Prior to TPH Detroit, Anagyros served as an Academic Adviser for Indiana University Division I Football Program and the University of Louisville Athletic Department where she received her Master’s. Additionally, she has taught classes as a Parent Engagement Coordinator for Grand Rapids Public Schools.
“I’m excited to continue working with the TPH in this new role and being a part of the leadership team! It’s been a great opportunity to take my Division I collegiate experience within academics and bring that mentality to TPH,” said Anagyros. “I’m looking forward to working with our student-athletes again and providing them with the best possible support using best practices. We have a great staff in Detroit and there’s a lot to look forward to this new school year!”
The TPH Center of Excellence Detroit is set to start class on September 9th and are still accepting applications as there is limited space still available. Please join us in congratulating Allison on this promotion and we look forward to her providing a phenomenal experience to the student-athletes at the TPH Center of Excellence in Detroit.
Detroit Native Cameron Burt Joins TPH-Detroit Team
BLOOMFIELD HILLS, MI – Total Package Hockey is proud to announce the addition of Cameron Burt to the TPH-Detroit team. Burt will join the Detroit staff as a Player Development Coach / Mentor.
“In speaking with Cameron it is easy to recognize the passion he has for the game and his passion for helping the next generation of hockey players,” said Dwayne Norris, TPH-Detroit Director of Hockey-Operations. “Cam is a competitor and knows from experience what it takes to reach the highest levels of hockey. We are excited for him to bring his knowledge and drive to the Center of Excellence to help our young student-athletes grow both on and off the ice.”
A native of Detroit, Burt grew up playing with the Michigan Ice Dogs before starting his junior career in the former Eastern Junior Hockey League (EJHL). From there, Burt made the jump to the United States Hockey League (USHL) and earned a commitment to Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT). In just his second year at RIT, Burt was awarded the NCAA AHA Tournament MVP and helped RIT claim the Atlantic Hockey championship.
After graduating from RIT, Burt enjoyed a 7 year professional playing career with stops in the ECHL, American Hockey League (AHL) and overseas in Sweden (Allsvenskan), Germany (DEL2), Great Britain (EIHL) and Slovakia.
All of us in TPH join Dwayne Norris and the rest of the TPH-Detroit team in welcoming Cameron to the TPH family.
MHA Expands to West Michigan
Byron Center, MI – The Michigan Hockey Advancement program (MHA) is excited to announce the addition of MHA-West. MHA-West will be fielding 16U and 18U teams. These teams will compete in a series of fall events and host weekly skill development and training sessions to help give our athletes a one of a kind development driven experience prior to the start of the high school season. MHA-West will be located out of Bryon Center, MI and host all tryouts and training sessions at Southside Ice Arena.
For anyone unfamiliar with Michigan Hockey Advancement , MHA provides a fall playing opportunity for dedicated, driven high-school level hockey players to prepare for their club seasons and gain exposure to coaches and scouts at the junior, collegiate and professional levels, while competing in a structured, team environment.
This environment is made up of positive, knowledgeable, hands-on coaches who seek to foster an atmosphere that mirrors that of the next level, while creating a true sense of “team.” Everyone quickly realizes that personal success and group success go hand in hand.
Taylor Keyworth, MHA Associate Director, will be leading the charge for MHA-West. Keyworth currently serves the Director of Operations for TPH Grand Rapids and as the Head Coach of Byron Center High School.
“Given the connection between TPH Grand Rapids and TPH Detroit, we are excited to work together in expanding the MHA opportunity to West Michigan high school hockey players.” said Keyworth. “We believe strongly in the importance of preparing our players for the next level and helping them gain the exposure to coaches and scouts at that level. MHA West not only gives the players an opportunity to be seen in highly visible events, but also provides weekly local skill development skates.”
Joining Keyworth as part of the MHA-West staff is Mike Slobodnik, TPH Grand Rapids Partner and Grand Rapids Catholic Central High School Head Coach. “Working with TPH Detroit and Rick Gadwa, we have seen the player development and advancement success of the MHA program.” said Slobodnik. “I am happy to be a part of making a program like this more accessible to the Grand Rapids area.”
The MHA-West schedule is as follows:
- July 23-24 – MHA West Tryouts – July 23-24 @ Southside Ice Arena [CLICK HERE TO REGISTER]
- August 21-23 – MHA Exposure Showcase* – August 21-23 @ Farmington Hills Ice Arena
- MHA Showcase – Dates TBD @ Grand Rapids, MI (3 game minimum)
- CCM World Invite Motown Tier I – October 16-18 @ Detroit, MI (4 game minimum)
- CCM World Invite Chicago- Tier I – November 6-8 @ Chicago, IL (5 game minimum)
- Weekly Skill/Player Development Skates
*All players from the MHA West Tryout will be notified by July 25 if they are invited to the MHA Exposure Showcase. This is where MHA- West, MHA Detroit and the Fall Series Teams will be selected.
Any MHA West questions can be directed to tkeyworth@totalpackagehockey.com.
Michigan Hockey Advancement Accepted into NAPHL Fall League
Bloomfield Hills, MI – Total Package Hockey is pleased to announce our Michigan Hockey Advancement (MHA) program has been accepted in the North American Prospects Hockey League’s Fall League.
The MHA program provides a playing opportunity for dedicated, driven high-school level hockey players to prepare for their club seasons and gain exposure to coaches and scouts at the junior, collegiate and professional levels, while competing in a structured, team environment.
The MHA program has grown since its inception and now fields teams at the 18U, 16U, and 15O levels. Running from early September through October, each team plays between 20-25 games. The MHA 18U and 16U teams will be one of the eight teams in their respective age groups joining the NAPHL Fall League.
“From day 1, the MHA was and always will be focused on exposure.” said Rick Gadwa, MHA Program Director. “Acceptance into the NAPHL Fall League is another step taken to improve our players exposure level, educate them on the process of junior and college hockey, and truly give them a great opportunity”.
This newly created NAPHL Fall League is designed to give teams the ability to play in a league within a shortened window of time before the Minnesota, Michigan, and Wisconsin high school seasons begin. The NAPHL Fall League events are designed to maximize exposure for the players and bring together teams for like-minded and enhanced competition. Each NAPHL fall league team will receive two tenders from NAHL teams. Players will also participate in seminars that discuss the NAHL junior hockey experience, the ladder of development, as well as, NCAA compliance seminars.
The schedule for the MHA teams will start July 30th with tryouts. Following tryouts will be the invite only MHA Exposure Showcase on August 21st – 23rd where final selections will be made for each MHA team leading into training camp. The MHA Fall Series is highlighted by three NAPHL Fall League Showcase Weekends which include one weekend in Duluth, MN and two weekends in Blaine, MN where the latter is the NAPHL Playoffs Championships. Additionally, the MHA teams will compete in the MHA Showcase in Grand Rapids, MI.
If you are interested in the Michigan Hockey Advancement program more information can be found at totalpackagehockey.com/mha.
#TPHTrained: Kaliyev Signs Entry-Level Deal with LA Kings
#TPHTrained: Norris voted AHL’s outstanding rookie
Jenkins Signs with New York
TPH Center of Excellence Almun, Blade Jenkins, signed an entry-level NHL contract with the New York Islanders. Jenkins was drafted by the Islanders in the fifth round (134th overall) of the 2018 NHL Entry Draft.
Since his time at the TPH Center of Excellence in Detroit, Jenkins has been quite successful. His junior hockey career began with the USA Hockey National Development Program. Soon after that season he was drafted in the first round of the OHL Entry Draft by the Saginaw Spirit. In his third season, Jenkins was named assistant captain and registered 40 points, compiling 143 points over his three seasons.
We are proud of the accomplishments this young man has achieved. We wish Blade continual success moving forward in his professional career.
One Team… We still got this!
Dear TPH Student-Athletes, Coaches, Volunteers and Parents,
All of us are itching to get back on the ice, in the performance training rooms and back to the game we all love. At TPH we have been spending a lot of time planning for this; what it will look like depending on what state, city and county we are in and how we best ensure it’s as safe as possible for you and our team members. We have been so fortunate to have strong relationships with all of the facilities we work with. We are consistently in touch with them and understanding what their protocol is or will be when they open up. We will adhere to all policy and protocol in each facility. We are so thankful for all the work that they are putting into this preparation, training staff and implementing a new normal for all of us to come back to the rink safely.
We are grateful to the Nashville Predators organization and the entire coaching staff led by John Hynes, Dan Lambert, Dan Muse, Ben Vanderklok, Lawrence Feloney and David Good who spent time with our coaches, sharing insight and providing some continuing education over the course of a few weeks to the group. Our coaches have been using this time to learn, improve and get ready for the upcoming training opportunities, along with how we can maximize training and development this summer and in our TPH Center of Excellence to support the student-athletes if we have a delay in full training and games.
TPH Colorado Director of Hockey Operations Jordan Pietrus created “Shield Our Communities” along with TPH team members and student-athletes raised over $10,000, thanks to a generous match from our partner Maynard’s Industries, to provide face masks for local healthcare providers in Atlanta, Denver, Detroit, Grand Rapids, Huntsville, Indianapolis and Nashville. Mentoring and messaging to our student-athletes that when times get tough, we get tougher and we help those who need help and take care of others. This is deep in the fabric and culture of our game, and is part of what makes hockey so special.
Special thank you to our COO Francis Anzalone and Frank Anzalone, along with the rest of our TPH Team members who quickly built out the TPH Virtual Hockey Development platform so players at our CoEs and across the country could continue to train and put the necessary work in at home. We are now prepared for any future potential closures or pauses that may come up when school starts back this fall, to ensure our student-athletes can continue their development and be mentored at home.
We have seen an increase in parent participation at home and support on academics and virtual training which is great. Thank you for your patience, many of you have sent in emails of encouragement and support for coaches, academic leaders and we really appreciate your positive notes.
We have experienced some unique support from many friends in the NHL. Several positive role models have taken time via Zoom calls with our CoE student-athletes including Quinn and Jack Hughes, Brady Tkachuk, Josh Norris, Aaron Volpatti, Scott Laughton, Brandon Naurato, Angelo Ricci, Eric Lacroix, Colton Parayko and Torey Krug. We are so grateful for their time and what an amazing opportunity for our aspiring elite student-athletes to learn from each of them.
Finally, a HUGE thank you to our Academic Directors and additional education team members who never missed a beat supporting and holding the student-athletes accountable over the past 2 months. Just over 70% of TPH Student-Athletes will have all A’s and B’s, as the Edmentum platform allowed them to quickly transition from the classroom to home without interruption. Although our physical CoE locations have been closed, our academic progress, mentorship and off ice training never missed a beat. Our 5th grade class in Nashville finished up two weeks early and graduated into middle school and we have seen a number of students finish their studies for the semester 2-6 weeks early. We are so grateful for the incredible support from EdOptions Academy, Michigan International Prep School, Brighton Area Schools, GlobalEd, Mount Vernon, Athens Renaissance School, McNairy County Schools and especially our academic partner Edmentum who have provided the platform and support team to keep our student-athletes on track and able to successfully complete the semester and school year during this crisis with no interruption. Lastly, we want to congratulate the TPH CoE senior class of 2020 as we celebrate the graduation of 41 student-athletes across all 7 CoEs as they take their next step in their academic and hockey marathon!
We still have a long road ahead of us, but it is key we focus on the positives, celebrate the wins, even when they are not back up on the scoreboard yet. It’s been awesome to see so many people, programs, teams and players from all across the country step up in their own way to contribute to staying positive, the hockey community is ONE team and we still got this!
Enjoy your memorial day weekend, please take a moment to remember all our service men and women who gave their lives while serving and please thank those that have served and are currently protecting our freedom.
Take care,
Nathan Bowen
Chief Executive Officer
Total Package Hockey, LLC
Goal Achieved.
Total Package Hockey is excited to announce, with the support of 75 donations, we achieved our goal of $10,000 to Shield Our Communities. In surpassing our goal, Maynard’s will be providing their promised match of $2,000 and the bonus of $5000. Combined we reached a total of $12,570 which will be utilize to produce and ship face shields from Sparx Hockey. The order has been placed and Sparx Hockey will completing production of over 1,000 masks to be evenly distributed and shipped to the following locations:
- Atlanta | Emory University Department of Public Safety
- Colorado | Elizabeth Fire Station 271
- Detroit | Dearborn Heights Police Department
- Grand Rapids | Emergency Care Specialists and Life EMS
- Huntsville | Huntsville Hospital System
- Indianapolis | Eskenzie Health of Indianapolis
- Nashville | Metro Nashville Office of Emergency Management
We would like to thank Sparx for this partnership and Maynard’s for their generous match. Most of all we would like to that those who shared this campaign and donated to help support front line workers in our local communities. Thank you to the following donors:
Tom Winkler
Tony Diganci
Jeffrey Peterson
Jordan Pietrus
Sergio Gasperoni
Aaron Stewardson
R Scott Jentz
Tph Nationwide Family
Sheldon Wolitski
Mario Mazzuca
Taso Sofikitis
Chris And Mandy Lipsett
Karen Pease
Seven Cooper
Sunsea W.
Martin Kubaliak
Tr Mason
Indy Center Of Excellence
Alan Loewenstein
Mike Suzuki
Francis Kearney
Emily Bourgeois
Jeff Miller
John Coots
Judi Kremer
Steven Mattes
Thomas Elsensohn
Tara Shaikh
Mike Mcintosh
Candice Neisen
Dominic Vincent
Randy B
Jay Henry
Scott Truchan
Nichelle Simon
Adam House
Tom Stenglein
Devin Timberlake
Scott Van Der Linden
Tamme Mellenthin
Finn Kilbride
Heather Lambert
Henry Wineman
Michael O’neil
Sheina Dixon
Larena Burnett
Cassie Ramsay
Cameron Shaw
L’kita Smith
Dyron Givens
Emily Keller
Kristin Nabozny
Nicole Koring
Tiernan Keith Grandmother
Anthony Golio
Jared Bussard
Jordan Pietrus
Rich Mackanos
Denise Schmidt
Tiernan Keith
Phyllis Long
Annie Malafa
Audrey Forman
Dean Gartelos
Michael Mcever Family
Max Lacroix
Taylor Keyworth
Jamie Lynn Frank
Leah S
Paul Evans
Hanna Hill
Mac And Bailey Bowen
Tiffany Silverberg
Shield Our Communities goes into Overtime
We are excited to say that we are over a quarter of the way to our Shield Our Communities goal. With the support of our many donations as well as the match from Maynards we have a current total of $2,643.
Our lofty goal of $10,000 dollars would supply 1,500 face shields, provided by Sparx, to front line workers in our local communities and we are not there yet. There is still time to donate. We recognize the importance of distributing these shield in a timely manner and we will be closing donations on Friday May 15th at 11:59 p.m. EST.
Help us send shields, distributed evenly, to the following local organizations:
- Atlanta | Emory University Department of Public Safety
- Colorado | Elizabeth Fire Station 271
- Detroit | Dearborn Heights Police Department
- Grand Rapids | Emergency Care Specialists and Life EMS
- Huntsville | Huntsville Hospital System
- Indianapolis | Eskenzie Health of Indianapolis
- Nashville | Metro Nashville Office of Emergency Management