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NiceRink FireCracker Sale
I wanted to let everyone know about NiceRink’s FireCracker Sale. I’m sure most of you already know about NiceRink, but if you don’t, they make backyard ice rinks and have just about everything when it comes to personal hockey stuff…nets, pucks, safety netting (for your garage in the summers), plus all the backyard rink stuff you could ever need. If you know what you’re looking for, act now and you can save 15% – pretty sweet deal. Just click the banner below for the details.
Penalty Kill Handout (User Submission)
Harry from Kingston was kind enough to share a recent penalty killing handout he distributed to his Peewee team. Click the link below to download the PDF version of his handout:
Perspective
I thought this was an interesting video to share. Amazing how ordering can change our perspective. Enjoy
10,000 Pucks Contest Update
As the first month of the contest draws to a close, we’ve seen a record 740,000 + shots logged in the contest from over 480 participants across the world (yes, we even have some over-seas participants). It’s great to see everyone so dedicated to improving themselves.
Coaching to Develop Players
Minnesota Hockey puts out a great newsletter every month with lots of great resources. In the most recent article, they put out a brief article on Coaching to Develop Players, and the importance of stressing fundamentals. I wanted to share the link with everyone: Minnesota Hockey’s “Coaching to Develop Players” (PDF) Let me know what you think about this article by leaving a comment below.
Simple Penalty Kill Forecheck
Killing off a penalty can be one of the most critical turning points of a game. Your team finally ices the puck, and you get a fresh set of legs on the ice to go pressure the opposing team while they’re setting up their breakout….now what? If you’re dealing with older players, it is important your players know their responsibilities and the lanes they’re defending.
Over-Speed Training
Over-speed training is a buzz term often associated having “quick feet” during a drill. Simply put, over-speed training involves the execution of a skill at a higher tempo than the player is comfortable with. Most players go on the ice and “practice” their skills at a pace they’re comfortable with – this “comfort zone” is one of the biggest obstacles when it comes to developing as an athlete and player. By staying within the player’s comfort zone, there is a much slower progression of skills. Over-speed training is a critical component of proper training, but must be used appropriately. Properly phased over-speed training should look something like the following: 1) Learn the basics of the skill you’re performing: become proficient (technically) in the skill you’re working on. This is the part where you spend hours honing your craft. Don’t overlook this phase, because poor techniques at the beginning will lead to poor techniques long-term. Develop good habits, and practice the fundamentals. 2) Perform the skill at a pace outside your comfort zone: increase the tempo of your performance without a puck. Begin executing the drills at a pace where you’re outside your comfort zone. Falling in this phase is OK – players must understand falling is part of their progression in this phase. By spending a lot of time training at the increased tempo, players will eventually learn to control the bodies and skates to they’re able to execute the skill naturally at a higher pace. 3) Perform the skill with a puck at your new level: adding the puck adds in additional challenges. As players begin to become comfortable performing the techniques, adding the puck will force them to adjust other aspects of their skill to adapt to the new pace. Emphasize to players it is OK to lose the puck or fall in this phase. By consistently forcing players outside their comfort zone, their speed and level of play will continue to climb. I would recommend making over-speed training part of every practice – you will be amazed at how much it will help your players improve!
Learn from the Pros – Week 9
Another exciting NHL season has come to a close – this year with one of the original six teams bringing home the Stanley Cup. Although the finish was a bit strange, it’s safe to say it was an exciting final game. In this week’s Learn from the Pros segment, we’ll take a look at the last two goals of the 2009-10 NHL season.
20 Stickhandling Drill Videos
Sometimes some of the best content on the web is hard to dig up. While looking for some off-ice stickhandling drills, I came across a 20-part video series offered free online by USA Hockey. This series is part of their National Team Development Program training. The videos do a nice job of explaining the drills and showing the execution. The videos can be found at the following link: http://www.usahockey.com/Template_Usahockey.aspx?NAV=CO&id=19434 Older Posts » |
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Pins & Needles
Tags: commentary, juniors, tryouts
Some may have been wondering where I’ve been for the past few weeks, and why the post consistency has decreased. I’ve been heavily involved in taking the ice down and re-installing it at our local rink. This weekend I’m actually up in Minnesota watching an NAHL tryout. As I sit in the lobby observing about a hundred kids coming in (some I’ve coached, some I’ve coached against), one thing is very apparent….everyone is on pins & needles. This is the final tryout camp for one of the teams in the North American Hockey League. Players enter with the hopes of making a high-level US-based junior team. Parents wait nervously in the stands and lobby, sometimes pacing back and forth, chain smoking, or just sitting there fidgeting. It’s fun hockey to watch because every player on the ice is competing. There are some obvious cuts and some obvious returning players, but the rest remains very close in talent. Many perceptions of junior hockey tryouts are they serve primarily as a fundraiser for the organization. I suppose if you broke it down, it’s easy to see how that would be an easy conclusion to jump to. Just for fun, here are the numbers of the camp I’m watching:
100 players (approximately) x $250 each player = $25,000
Ice expense of approximately 25 hours at $150/hr = $5,250
Total approximate profit: $19,750 – not bad for a weekend’s work! No matter what the dollar amount equals out to, my main hope is the players attending are being treated honestly and fairly. Let me make it clear by saying I am NOT saying they aren’t being treated fairly/honestly. I hope that when players attend ANY junior tryout (or any other level tryout for that matter), the coaching staff is having a completely honest conversation with the players as opposed to stringing them along to get more money out of them. Good luck to all the skaters on the ice this weekend!
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