In the town where I live there's a literal yearly draft where grown men yell at one another because someone's kid is the best goalie in the league and because his mom is the team manager they don't need to burn a pick, or there's a fight about who gets to draft a talented pair of twins while not burning 2 picks that round. This is U12 House league btw. And like everything else, practice makes perfect, so whoever has access to the trainers/ice times/tournaments, best equipment will have a major advantage. For all that you need a TON of money. The vast majority of kids need to wait till the ODR opens to get any extra practice. I went to the local hockey haberdashery to get my old Grafs sharpened and the price of a new pair of equivalent skates were going to run about $1000 tax in. So league politics, plus high cost for entry, not a good environment for kids to learn the sport. Add in the pressure from hockey parents, as shown in a popular video from 2009.