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And, while the majority of hockey people might feel the fancy dangler is just a natural — or that he or she was born with that ability, I’m here to tell you that I know I can teach it.

Okay, before offering much more, let’s have a look at one “sick” goal by Jarod Palmer.  After that, I’ll catch you on the other side.

– Dennis Chighisola

Puckhandling Is A Mentality!

Jarod Palmer Sick Shootout Goal (July 18 2010)

Okay, I’m a little old to have the word “sick” in my vocabulary — at least in the above context.  But if ever there was a play that deserved some wild adjective, that surely was IT!

About my title theme, though — that puckhandling is a mentality…

Well, as I watched that play a number of times, all I could think about was the creativity that went into arriving at such an idea.  Just think about that yourself.  And, think about the mentality that Palmer (and any other slick puckhandler) has to have in order to think-up at such an idea.  Unbelievable.

By the way, I don’t know if you noticed how believable young Mr Palmer was as he took that fake shot.  And, did you even hear the supposed shot?  Actually, that might be one of the most remarkable things about that play.  Then, although it was difficult to detect, even in slow-motion, I think Palmer also kicked the puck from behind with his left skate.  And he did that without ever looking downward and giving the goaler a hint that he hadn’t really shot.

Of course, I’m all about teaching, as well as sharing with you all that I know about the teaching process.  So, I’m going to suggest these two things for anyone who wants to become a dangler, or anyone who wants to encourage a player to become slick with the puck…

For sure, disciplined drills form the foundation for good puckhandling.  So, a player should absolutely master all the basic moves.

Along with the discipline, however, there has to be some creative time.  In other words, a player should just hot dog with the puck for awhile — just fiddling and diddling, and having some fun.  In my clinics, I’ll usually encourage my students or players to just “Go nuts!”  For, this is where the mentality or the mindset begins.

Again, although that goal by Jarod Palmer surely was sick (LOL), I’m even more fascinated by the creativity that young athlete surely had in devising such a move.

Well, I suspect this might be one of the shortest posts I’ll ever write here (which might make some of you very happy — LOL).

Truthfully, though, while this is going to be brief, I suspect that the subject is as meaningful as it gets.  It’s not going to be about skills or strategies, by the way.  However, if we can all achieve what I’m about to suggest, a youngster is bound to become highly skilled and smart in the end.

Okay, so my little band of Mites and Squirts spent a pretty fast paced 90-minutes doing 16 drills (some of which had several components).  So, I’m talking about them really hopping at something like a new drill every 5-minutes.  (As I frequently do, I joked with several parents at rink-side about there being no extra charge for the kids falling asleep early tonight.)

Oh, I forgot to mention that we’re currently in the off-ice phase of this school, so we’re doing all sorts of skill oriented things — in gym clothes and in in-line gear — at a nearby roller hockey rink.

Anyway, with the fear of another rental group coming on right after our prescribed end-time, I ultimately (about 5-minutes late) announced to the kids that that was it.

Right.    Only a few kids left immediately, and a few more trickled off as their parents pressed them.  Still, a batch remained for quite awhile, and three young ones stayed (about an extra 20-minutes, or) until their parents couldn’t wait any longer.

Ya, those three…  They organized a little game in one zone and around one net, and they were having an absolute ball ’til the very end.

If you haven’t guessed by now, the point I want to make is that just about all of the kids in my current class have to really love the game.  I mean, just think about it, their wanting to keep at it after all I’d put them through.  (Actually, I had to also make that point to the remaining parents, in that they’ll want to nurture that, and try to ensure that their kids remain loving it for years to come.)

Did I have a hand in this?  Aaaaaw, I don’t know.  I do try to use fun and challenging drills, and well as interesting training gadgets.  And I do approach most of my younger kids’ clinics in a really lighthearted manner.  However, I’m guessing the parents of those kids are doing more than their part.  In fact, I’m guessing they have more say in this matter than I ever will.

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As always I look forward to your Comments (down below)!

Such is the case as I ready my High School Prep guys for their coming season.  For, although conditioning has always been a priority when working with them — so they can enter their tryouts skating rings around everyone else, I’ve decided to pick it up a notch (or two or three) as we approach this coming season.

– Dennis Chighisola

Great Hockey Conditioning Ideas - Part 1

Before getting into this subject too deeply, I want to suggest that there are almost always some other lessons to be shared within a given area of training, without these having to necessarily be connected to that training.

Three great “teaching moments”, as I like to call them, arose during the taping of the following video, two of them coincidentally happening when a player faltered with his jump rope.  But, let me explain…

1. At one point, I sensed that a kid was getting kind of frustrated as he got tangled in his rope.  So, wanting to encourage him, I stopped things and took the time to comfort him and the other kids with, “It’s not your fault.” And I went on to explain that, “Your fine motor skills will be the first to abandon you as you tire — things like your eyesight, your stickhandling, your shooting and passing accuracy…  And, yes, even your ability to deal with that rope.”  Of course, I also encouraged him and the others with the thought that everything will be easier as our training takes hold.
2. At yet another time, a different young guy tripped on his rope and paused for awhile.  Hmmmmmm…  So, what better time to address that issue?  I mean, habits are being formed every second of our training, and it was important to convey that to my players.  And, that goes for the way they respond to adversity.  So, I suggested that they wouldn’t want to teach themselves to stop and sulk — even for an instant — should they have a difficulty in their games.  No, we’re talking critical mini-seconds here, as in a player recovering quickly enough to help his (or her) team on the attack or on defense.
3. Then, yet another slight problem arose on a very different drill (I’ll explain in a few days), this providing us another great teaching moment…  You see, my kids were executing repetitive forward rolls, and by the end of each string of tumbles, the player was staggering pretty good (not unlike being spun around numerous times).  Actually, having asked one kid if he felt dizzy, my reply to his nod was, “Good!”    Of course, I explained to him and the group that they actually experience similar conditions in a game.  Oh, maybe not quite so severely, but they do get tangled or spun or tripped-up or stung during their games, and my feeling is that they’ll recover quicker if they can endure even tougher challenges in our practices.

Now, I want this particular topic to be at least a two-parter.  So, I’m going to begin things by telling you only a little about it, I’m going to point you towards that video, and then I’m going to toss a little quiz your way.  (We did this with an earlier post of mine, and it worked well by getting numerous members involved.)  A few days from now, I’ll answer questions, address your Comments or opinions, and I’ll also explain the entire concept of this routine.

Now, the following video shows a couple of my high school kids skipping rope.  A little differently from normal, I’ve asked them to do these things:

• only go for 15-seconds (at which time another player will jump-in for his 15-seconds of work, and so on);
• jump laterally, rather than the customary rope skipping in-place way;
• during your 15-seconds, alternate the intensity, from a slow pace to a really frantic one.

Okay, so take a look at the video, and I’ll then toss a few questions your way…

Not bad, huh?  And, as you might guess, it’s a heck of a workout.

Oh, if you can take a look at that footage again, you might notice that each boy — maybe one more than the other — is having difficulty changing his pace — I mean, from slow to helter-skelter.  And you might want to know that I find too many players having the same difficulty when they’re on the attack and trying to disrupt a defender’s timing of the rush.

Anyway, with that, let me pose a few questions that I hope will prove a good lead-in to the second part of this discussion.  Mainly…

1. Why do you think I’ve asked my kids to rotate (actually, they will be rotating in threes)?
2. Why the specific 15-second timing of this work?
3. Why have I asked the kids to jump laterally?
4. Why have I asked the guys to alternate their pace?

Okay, the ball (errrrrrr… the puck) is in your court.  So, let’s have as many as possible jump-in, and let’s get talking about hockey-specific conditioning!

]]> http://www.coachchic.com/great-hockey-conditioning-ideas/feed/ 11 http://www.coachchic.com/steven-stamkos-incredible-hand-eye-goal/ http://www.coachchic.com/steven-stamkos-incredible-hand-eye-goal/#comments Sat, 10 Jul 2010 22:04:48 +0000 Dennis Chighisola http://www.coachchic.com/?p=5510 I have my grandson to thank for finding this video.  (He loves studying — and then copying — the moves of top players, which makes YouTube.com one of his favorite sites.)  My understanding is that the goal scored in the following clip has been hyped by many as “THE Goal of the Year”.

Now, before I comment further, I’d like you to watch the video (and probably watch the slow-motion part a number of times to really appreciate how the goal was scored).  A little later, I’ll also suggest why I’ve placed this post under the “From The MOTION Lab” category.

– Dennis Chighisola

Steven Stamkos Incredible Hand Eye Goal versus Duck (2009-2010)

Okay, by now you should realize that Stamkos batted that puck out of the air as he was sliding along the ice on his back-side.  Hmmmmm…

Oh, and I want to especially insert here the fact that his goal was no accident — no, far from it.  Just watch the video again to see how deliberate Stamkos was it plucking that little black thing into the open net.

Of course, I’m thrilled that mention is made here about the unbelievable degree of hand and eye coordination that was needed to score that goal.  However, perhaps I ought to explain a little more about what I mean by hand and eye coordination…

Number One, a player’s stick-blade has to be an extension of him (or her), or he has to be nearly as dexterous with that stick as he would be with a pencil or an eating utensil.

Secondly, we have to realize how many things are going on in Stamkos’ world during that 3-second(?) flurry…  I mean, he battled through traffic as he unleashed the initial shot, he fell and slid — most likely with little control in that slide, yet he was able to keep focus on the rebound and ultimately take a successful swipe at it.  Ya, in lots of previous CoachChic.com posts, I and other authors have made mention of that kind of skill — as I call them, “asymmetric” movements.

Okay, so here’s my little bit of input…

Throughout this site, you have access to numerous drills that we (especially Todd Jacobson and I) have created for enhancing our players’ ability to focus amid chaos, and to deal with more than one physical problem at a time.

In the case of our goaltenders, you’ll see them, for example, performing all sorts of physical tasks while they’re juggling.  (More recently, we started having our High School Prep goalies juggling while jumping one of those schoolyard gadgets we know as “skip-its”.)

My skaters are dribbling several balls at once, or they’re doing some sort of footwork challenge (like dealing with a skip-it) while also dribbling a ball.

In each case above, Todd’s or my aim is to create the chaotic conditions like those in our crazy game, and we even try to use our imagination to make the practice sessions more difficult than what our kids will face in their games.

Finally, why have I placed this post under the “From The MOTION Lab” heading?  It’s because I firmly believe a setting such as our Lab — or at least some off-ice setting — is really the only place you can create the wild conditions I just described above.  Honestly, after 40-years of doing what I do, helter-skelter training — especially because of all the extra gadgets required — is far easier to get accomplished away from the ice.

  As a PS here…  As I was readying to press “Publish”, I suddenly thought about the recent exchanges going on here concerning floorball.  And, I know dawgoned well that Craig and Greg or someone else is going to suggest to me that a game such as that will also help create the kind of stick-dexterity I described above.  My answer to them?  Absolutely (and so will lacrosse, field hockey and some other sports).  It’s just that we coaches don’t have as much control during such games, and the kind of repetition I like with a given skill is really only possible in a practice setting.

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Have an opinion or further thoughts on this subject?  I’d love you to add your Comment below!

We are all sportsmen.

Yes, some of us are hockey people, some of us are into baseball.  But, we should all first see ourselves as sportsmen.  And, oh…  If we could all be sportsmen in the mold of an Amando Galarraga.

– Dennis Chighisola

The Perfect Game

By Brady Greco
Performance Coach
The Mental Edge

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One of the finest displays of perspective in all sports was witnessed this past month by Detroit Tiger pitcher Armando Galarraga.  Galarraga had retired 26 of 26 opposing batters without allowing a hit, walk, or hit batsmen.  All he needed was one more out to become only the 21st pitcher ever in Major League history to throw a “perfect game”.  This feat is one of the toughest to accomplish by any athlete in any sport.  It is what Little Leaguer’s stay up at night dreaming about in their beds.

As the 27th batter dug-in to face Galarraga, 30,000 screaming fans were waiting to witness history.  What was to follow in the moments after will be forever remembered as one of sports most all time “botched” calls by an umpire, official, or referee.  The batter hit into a routine grounder in which Galarraga had to cover first-base.  The first baseman flipped Armando Galarraga the ball for the last out of the game, etching in history his “perfect game”.  Unfortunately umpire Jim Joyce saw the play differently and called the batter safe at first, ultimately blowing Galarraga’s “perfect game”.  After one look at the replay, it was evident the runner at first base was out and Joyce had made the wrong call on the field.  Since baseball does not have the luxury of having instant replay, the call on the field stood.

In an instance like this, with so much emotion attached to the situation, anyone in their right mind would have RIPPED umpire Jim Joyce a “new one”!  Nevertheless, Armando Galarraga composed himself and brushed the call off with a “you gotta be kidding me” smirk, and went back to the mound to complete the game.  After the game, a petition was delivered to Bud Selig (commissioner of MLB) to over-rule Joyce’s ‘bogus’ call and to award Galarraga with a “perfect game”.  However, Selig would stand by the call Joyce made on the field that night and did not acknowledge the “perfect game” thrown by Galarraga.

The following game, Galarraga (who was not pitching that day) made it a point to hand deliver the team’s line-up card to Jim Joyce who was umping behind the plate.  Galarraga wanted to make sure that Joyce was okay and to let Joyce know he had no negative feelings towards him.

When Galarraga was questioned about the blown call Joyce made, he simply responded with, “I know myself that I threw a perfect game, and that’s all that matters.”  This type of perspective is what athletes striving to make it to the next level must learn.  Galarraga understands that baseball is bigger than he is.  He understands that humans make mistakes.  He understands that he is lucky and honored to be able to play the sport he loves on a daily basis.  He knows that if he dwelled on the situation, he would end up mentally beating himself up.  Above all else, Armando Galarraga realizes that life is full of wonderful things and baseball is just a fraction of what the entire world has to offer.

The character, integrity, and sportsmanship displayed by Armando Galarraga was much greater to witness than watching ANY other pitcher throw a “perfect game”.

Brady

Like this?  When you’re ready to live life with this kind of perspective, simply email us to get started.

The following was initiated by a conversation I had with one of my long-time advanced students.  That’s as much as I really want to say about him, because to go more into it would likely embarrass many of his teammates.  Of course, that’s not my aim here at CoachChic.com; what my aim IS, though, is to share certain things with my hockey friends that can change their game — A LOT.

– Dennis Chighisola

Underlying Problems in Hockey Passing

Now, I want to re-establish the fact that the above conversation centered around older guys who play an advanced game, or even what most folks would consider an elite level.  <= THAT, I’ll suggest, is going to be an important point for all members to consider as I move along here.

What arose in our brief talk was the fact that a lot of concessions evidently had to be made for my young friend’s numerous teammates who could not catch passes.  Ya, you read that correctly; most of them can’t easily handle a pass so they can quickly get-on to the next thing they have to do (like shoot or whatever).

As an aside, our conversation also included a little about passing — as in most of those guys not being able to thread a firm, flat pass right onto a teammate’s stick-blade.

As that said, I eventually had to add my own two cents worth…  What I need to share — with anyone who will listen — is that there are always underlying reasons for the problems older players experience.

As yet another aside, let me point-out that NHL players have their own skill deficiencies.  That’s why there’s a difference between any pro roster’s top player and the guy or two who is just hanging-on.

In just about every case, the shortcomings of older players have to do with how they were raised in the game.  And that’s what I told my young friend…  In his case, I said that his teammates as far back as in Mites, Squirts and Pee Wees were instructed on the tactical aspects of passing — like, “Don’t hog the puck!” or, “Head-man it as quickly as you can!”

Very seldom do I see youth coaches actually take the time to instruct their players on the “skills of passing and receiving”.  (Actually, the young player I was talking with had to think a bit about that one, because he was fortunate enough to be under my tutelage during those critical skill building years.)

Like so many other individual skills, proper passing and receiving techniques have to be second-nature, or instinctive.  And that means learning them as early as possible, mastering them, and then constantly refreshing them.  (Okay, it might not be as easy as that when it comes to the passing game, because a properly instructed player would best be raised in accordance with the conditions I describe in my Building Blocks Approach to Skills.)

If there’s one huge mistake I see made at our game’s developmental levels, it’s the notion — among parents and coaches, that, “A kid will get it sooner or later.”  And, I’m here (as your trusted adviser?) to tell you it ain’t going to happen.  What will happen is that a player who has had certain skills glossed-over will ultimately learn how to hide the shortcomings.  Oh, sometimes they get him or her cut from a team at some point; sometimes the player just keeps surviving — even at the NHL level.  But, make no mistake about it:  that kind of player IS going to suffer, and he or she is going to spend plenty of frustrating nights out on the ice.  (Come to think of it, so are a lot of teammates going to be frustrated at that player’s lack of skill.)

Okay, so what to do about all this…

- I think we really do need a change in attitude among lower level youth coaches and parents.  Please — from this point forward, know that the little things do matter, and please don’t fall back on that old “A kid will get it sooner or later.”  The chances for that aren’t very good.

- I had thought to make a new video for you on this subject, but I quickly realized I’d already covered most of what needs to be known when it comes to passing and receiving.  So, as soon as you get the chance, I’ll suggest you go here:  Passing & Receiving.  Scroll down to the bottom of that page and work your way upward.  Again, you’ll find a ton of information there — for the player, coach and parent.  And, who knows?  You just might short-circuit the underlying problems in your youngsters’ passing game before it’s too late.

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As always, I love (and rely upon) your Comments!

The reason for my latter statement?  It’s because I’m also very excited to announce at this time that I am soon going to begin offering on-line webinars.  And, for those who don’t totally understand what a webinar is, it’s basically an on-line classroom presentation.  These are popular in the business community.  However, they are also the future when it comes to education.

Of course, because I might be pioneering the use of webinars for the sharing of hockey information, I’ll likely veer considerably from what others (or business types) have done.  Ya, I’m talking more like a hockey classroom, or an on-line coaching seminar.  And, this means I’ll be combining video samples and chalktalk demonstrations in order to ensure my hockey friends totally understand the given topic.

Okay, so what’s the problem with your not being on one of my mailing lists?

1)  As it appears right now that a given free version of each webinar will only be aired on a single date.  So, if you don’t get the word, you’re apt to miss something that might have helped you — maybe even a lot.

2) In advance of a given broadcast, I am going to solicit questions.  So, if you want ensure that I cover a given area, I’ll need to have your question in by a certain date.  (Chasing down the appropriate video samples, for example, could take me a considerable length of time.)

3) The two points above suggest that the best way for me to get the word to you — about webinar dates and times, and about your question deadlines, is for me to email you.  And (according to the new anti-spam laws), I can’t do that unless I have your permission!

***Join one of my email lists NOW (using one of the links below)!

All that said, I think you’re going to want to get on one of the following email lists pretty soon.  (Again, many of you HAVE already joined a list, so you won’t need to join again.  If you’re already receiving the “You Don’t Need Ice!” video series, you know you’re already enrolled.)  Here’s my suggestion for joining the appropriate list:

• Those who live in the Eastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island areas should click the following and SIGN-UP HERE;
• Those who live OUSTSIDE the Eastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island areas should click the following and SIGN-UP HERE;

That said, let me introduce you to one of the very brightest in Twitterland, Dr Mollie Marti.  And, proving she’s a woman who really knows how to take a bite out of life, let me share just some of her extensive experiences:

Mollie is a performance psychologist and founder of BestLifeDesign.com, a life design resource that provides tools, advice, and inspiration in all areas of life design, including health, fitness, relationships, finances, career, spirituality, and success.  Mollie is a successful entrepreneur and coach with a prestigious list of clients, including Olympians and business superstars. She is widely published in academic journals, and also shares her work in numerous peak performance and success books.  As a psychologist, lawyer and trained mediator, Dr. Mollie has years of experience in conflict resolution, negotiation, facilitation, group dynamics, team building and alignment, motivation, performance effectiveness, communication strategies, strategic planning and change management.  With her unique ability to combine the science of success with the art of living well, Mollie is a popular trainer and speaker. She is a frequent resource for local and national media, including Self, Newsweek, Parents Magazine, and the Montel Williams show. She lives with her husband, 3 children, and large family of pets on an apple orchard in scenic northeast Iowa.

Now, besides getting to know her well over the past year or so, I subscribe to her newsletter and – whenever I need a lift or a bit of motivation, I’ll put on my headphones and listen to one of Mollie’s audio recordings.

Does an old hockey coach need that kind of help?  How about a parent?  An athlete?  My answer to all of those is, “You bet!”  As a matter of fact, Here’s an endorsement by another pretty high level coach:

“As a head coach, I am always trying to get the most out of myself, my staff and my team. Mollie has provided tremendous expertise and tools to help each member of our team improve. From goal setting to communication to decision making, she has made a great difference. She has helped our team truly understand that individual success and team success are one in the same. Mollie is our X Factor.”

– Lisa Bluder, Head Coach
University of Iowa Women’s Basketball
2010 Big 10 Coach of the Year

With all that, the following arrived in my inbox today, and I immediately knew I had to share it with my favorite hockey people.  Again, I find Dr Marti’s writings helpful to me, and I suspect the following piece will be appreciated by other coaches, other business types and older players.  Enjoy!

– Dennis Chighisola

Self-Discipline: Paying Yourself Forward!
by Dr. Mollie Marti

“Decide what you want, decide what you are willing to exchange for it.
Establish your priorities and go to work.”

– H. L. Hunt

For many, the word “discipline” sounds like punishment. Who would guess that such a word, when applied to one’s self, actually creates unlimited rewards and freedom?

Self-discipline is the regulation one’s Self.  It is a way of investing in your future – and it is a key factor in helping you achieve all you want in life.

Once upon a time, Americans were all about self-discipline. George Washington made it a personal challenge to rise before the sun did. Benjamin Franklin said, “The person who has self-discipline is very powerful.” Countless colonists read and followed the precepts published in Poor Richard’s Almanac, which was loaded with advice related to the value of self-discipline and which Franklin published every year between 1732 and 1758 (now that’s self-discipline!).  Immigrants who came to and strengthened the fabric of this great country were highly self-disciplined, persevering through immense trials and tribulations.

So what happened since? Maybe things got a little too easy for us and we settled into choosing comfort over discipline. The good news is that I am seeing resurgence in a desire to better oneself and positively impact our world. Now more than ever people want to serve others and leave a strong legacy, and they realize that they need self-discipline to do this.

Self-discipline is a habit anyone can acquire with a little practice. Go easy on yourself as you’re building this success skill.

Here are a few tips to get you started:

1. Self discipline can be best summed up in a single word: UNTIL. You simply do whatever “it” is until it is done.
2. You can BEHAVE your way to success. The key is to focus on one area of improvement at a time.  Pick one target behavior, like getting up one-half hour earlier than you do now to go for a walk or write that book you say you’ll write “some day.” Then do it every day until it becomes second nature – a habit.
3. If you happen to be human, you will mess up. Build this into your expectations. Don’t buy into all-or-nothing thinking, which leads to throwing in the towel. Forgive yourself and start over. Go back to item 1 and begin again.
4. Break down your goals. If you set a single goal of completing a marathon and you only fit in one-half hour of walking each day, you will quickly get discouraged. If you set an initial goal of walking for one-half hour each day, mixed with running for one minute every 10 minutes, you can steadily work up to this level and quickly see results. Stop going for the home run and start working your way around the bases.
5. Stay vigilant. When you find yourself beginning to succeed, you also may find yourself saying, “I wonder if I really need to…”  If so, STOP. Recommit.  Affirm your new habit with emotion. Say it aloud!  “Exercising each day makes me feel great. Off I go!”

Most importantly, don’t quit. You and your dreams are worth fighting for. Keep going and you’ll quickly find that the temporary pain of self-discipline will be more than offset by the pride and pleasure of achieving your long-term goals!

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Now, if that isn’t something every one of us can use.  As a matter of fact, the timing of Dr Marti’s message couldn’t be better for us hockey types.  I mean, I have been suggesting over recent weeks that our off-season is a time when we can catch or pass others.  And Mollie makes two points that will truly help towards that end…

First, focus on a small part of your game and work to bring that to a high level.

Secondly, stick with it.  As a matter of fact, I suggest that a player not even worry about results at first.  Just keep plodding away — with discipline, and see what happens near summer’s end.  I promise you’ll see results.

Finally, as soon as you get a chance, visit Dr Mollie Marti’s website at http://www.BestLifeDesign.com, and get on her newsletter list.  Like me, you’ll be glad you did.

– Dennis Chighisola

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As always, we REALLY enjoy your Comments!

Anyway, I’ve asked for those viewing the series to fire questions my way should they have them.  (Hey, that’s part of my job here – to clarify things, huh?)

With that, the first question to arrive is a really great one, compliments of our friend and roller hockey player, Jerry Z!

– Dennis Chighisola

“Specialize” Hockey Training

Now, here’s that question from Jerry:

“In one of your first episodes of the You Don’t Need Ice series, you said specialization has brought about a generation of pretty good robots. I’m wondering if you can expand on that. When did the generation start. Why and how did it start? Do you see hope for the future on seeing more complete athletes?  Or do you feel that the current generation of robots will raise more robots and it’s an irreversible pattern?”

Did I say that was a great question (or questions)?

To begin, I’m going to suggest that “specialization” is a personal thing.  In other words, I think the choice of participating solely in our sport (to exclude all others) wasn’t some planned plot by the hockey powers that be.  Naw, instead I think individual players (or parents of players) ultimately felt that hockey was their best sport, and they decided at some point to just concentrate on that.

I’ll also suggest that the onset of specialization is regionally based, or that it has been influenced by the hockey climate in a give area.  For example, during the time of my youth, my dad and I probably couldn’t have chosen to only focus on hockey, primarily because there weren’t enough year-round opportunities to play and practice.  (Come to think of it, before the coming of sports domes and the like, there probably wasn’t a prayer of working at soccer or baseball or a number of other sports over an extended period.)  Here in New England, the chance to specialize in ice hockey probably began with the so-called “Bobby Orr Era”, during a time when numerous rinks sprouted-up.  And, with those new rinks came the need for rink owners/managers to fill their facilities with year-round playing and training programs.  Suddenly, kids and parents at least had the option to devote a great deal more time to hockey.  And, a lot of them began doing just that.

Again, I’m suggesting that the decisions were personal.  BUT, players have also been encouraged – and sometimes pushed – to specialize (by well meaning coaches, recruiters, and countless others).  You might imagine the pressures that exist within a hockey hotbed, especially if a young player wants to crack a desirable lineup.  At the same time, a player (or parent) might ultimately believe that he (and today, she) has the best chance of “making it” in hockey, and thusly drops-out of other sports.

Now, before going more into this topic, let me share with you the fact that there is at least some benefit to getting plenty of hockey practice.  Envision, for example, the differences between a very inexperienced player and a very experienced one.  Not to mention all the other skills, I’m sure you can picture how the skating motion is not very comfortable for a beginner, while the long-time skater can usually move around in effortless fashion.  And other parts of the game become instinctive to the accomplished player, as well.

That said, perhaps I should now explain what I mean by the “robot-like player”…  In a way, I guess I’m describing one who can execute all the typical hockey movements – and perhaps fairly well, while at the same time not being able to handle his or her body in a really athletic way.  (That last one IS rather hard to define in print.  But, maybe you can envision a truly acrobatic player twisting his or her body while in full-stride in order to avoid a body-check, or his or her skipping and jumping through and over a maze of bodies and sticks while controlling a puck.)  In a way, I think the reason it’s hard to define the non-robot-like player is because he or she IS non-definable.  I mean, he or she can just do things with his or her body that we can’t predict until there is a need to do something wild or imaginable.

At this point, let me combine the two previous paragraph topics – as in the need for some specializing, and what I (and many others) believe is the danger in specialization.

As an example, many old Eastern Block nations do ultimately offer specialized training to their players.  The difference is that they also include gymnastics work and so many other training areas that help encourage great athleticism.  (As a matter of fact, so do my local players gain the benefit of specialized hockey training mixed with lots of outside-the-box athletic work.)

Here in North American, however, most youth organizations mostly train on the ice (as in specializing).  And, if they do engage in off-ice training, it’s very likely for strength development or dryland exercises of a traditional nature (which pretty much entails more specialization).

Now, one other usual drawback to specialization in North American fashion is the dependency on more games for more ice-time.  I could go on about the fallacy of this but, to mention just a few problems:  players generally sit for two-thirds of their game-time, only the best players usually get to handle the puck and act creatively, and – most importantly — there is absolutely no chance for the repetitive practice of necessary skills.  In fact, I’ll suggest that players only do in games what they feel most comfortable doing, which means they haven’t likely expanded their abilities one iota by game’s end.

European hockey organizations, on the other hand, know the value of a high practice-to-game ratio, and they’re known to stick to something akin to a 3:1 or 4:1 scheme.  They also break a year down into four very distinct types of training, taking special care to do certain things for the weeks right after a season ends, and to do other things during the summer months.  And, although it’s a bit more complicated than this, I can tell you that their players engage in soccer, basketball or other sports during that span, and they also dedicate a large block of time to gymnastics and other means of developing athleticism.

Okay, so what’s a North American kid, parent or coach to do – especially since the typical youth organization doesn’t offer what I’ve just described above?  It’s all mainly explained in my “You Don’t Need Ice!” series – to include some involvement with other sports, plus some experimentation with rope skipping, tumbling and other whole body challenges.  Perhaps best of all, almost everything I suggest in that series can be done for little or no cost.

Finally, I like that Jerry asks about the future – and whether I see hope or not.    Yes, I do see hope, although it’ll always be a battle, maybe even a never ending one.  I sense that going with the youth hockey flow – or giving-in to coach or organizational pressures – is an easy way out, and it’s far too often taken for that very reason.  The well meaning guy sitting next to you in the bleachers can also contribute to this, what with his always saying, “Oh, you just have to bring your kid to such-and-such if you want him (or her) to get better!”  (Maybe that’s good advice, and maybe it isn’t.  But, my advice is to ultimately think for yourself.)  Education – or spreading the word – seems the only way to at least gradually overcome such temptations (and that’s part of the reason I hope to always be here for you).

Phew!  (Jerry sure did make me work hard on this one.  But, you know I’m loving it!)

PS:  For his efforts, Jerry is going to receive a gift I’ve almost completed (“__ Things You Can Do to Improve Your Game”).  And I’ll soon be announcing to everyone how that free gift can be attained.

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We truly hope you’ll join us in this unique challenge.  Live simply, live powerfully!

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Shaun and Dawn

Mental Edge, 12922 196th Lane NW, Elk River, MN 55330, USA

The Truth About Choking

Is all choking created equally? When an athlete is not able to find the internal resources under pressure to be their best, is it always for the same reason? Many would say it is, because they choked, lacked confidence, or they were mentally lacking focus. The problem with all these labels is that they are over used clichés that lack the clarity that could potentially lead to a breakthrough for the athlete or one looking to improve his or her performance.

I recently came across an article by Malcolm Gladwell, an expert thought leader in the world of psychology, describing what often happens under pressure that leads athletes to “fall apart”, choke and panic. He started by talking about how, in the beginning, athletes are extremely deliberate and thoughtful about learning skills.  Most invest a tremendous amount of time and energy to acquire mastery in relevant skills.  The beginning is marked by a focus on deliberate and repetitive practice.

The learning that occurs during this phase is known as “Explicit ” learning. As this learning takes root, another type of learning occurs that allows the athlete to spend less mental energy in detailed deliberate thought. This learning becomes more unconscious and there is more focus placed on the finer points of the task, such as touch and timing. This is known as “Implicit ” learning. Athletes often perform their best when implicit learning has taken root and they are relying on instinct, creativity and flow to guide their performance.

Interestingly enough, as pressure begins to mount, some athletes become more inwardly thoughtful and consequently become more focused on what they were thinking when they were first learning the game. This results in a more deliberate internal focus that appears to turn a creative approach into a self-focused, fear-of-failure approach.  The noticeable change is a more fearful, tentative, and robotic approach which mirrors that of a beginner.

Contrast this with when an athlete starts to panic. Panic is a heightened state of anxiety that often leaves the athlete with no awareness of quality thought at all, resulting in missing some of the most basic aspects of the game. Some of these are so troubling because the athlete may have done them repetitively in the past.  So, on one hand as someone “OVER-THINKS” during a performance, they regress back to when they were a beginner, because of increased, internally focused thinking. When an athlete is panicked,  he or she lacks any connection to thought all together. Many athletes deal with the challenges associated with both conditions.

The skills needed to overcome these challenges are different, and simply telling them to focus, work harder, or be more confident not only does not help but, in some cases, actually make the challenge worse.

If you are dealing with either of these two challenges, let us help you overcome them.  Simply email us to get started!

First, Mike Mahony hosts an awesome site called The Muscle Building Fat Burning Video Blog, where he promises to help regular folks (like you and me) cut through all the information overload we might be getting from all the so-called fitness experts out there today.

Secondly, this post features the star of a previous CoachChic.com entry (“A Different Kind of Hockey Warm-ups“), Maryse Senecal.

Actually, the two, both Maryse and Mike, worked together to put this video together, and I’m extremely grateful that they’ve allowed me to show it to my CoachChic.com members.

– Dennis Chighisola

Guarding Against Obesity

Okay, while obesity might not be a problem for many hockey players, we all know that it surely is within the general population — in Maryse’s native Canada, and across the United States.

So, when I had a chance to see the following video over on Mike’s site, I thought it a good idea to share it with my friends here.

In particular, I really like Maryse’s common sense approach to things.  But, you judge for yourself…

If you get the chance, visit Maryse Senecal‘s site over at Myo-Precision for tons more health tips!

And, get to know Michael Mahony on his site, Fitness Expose for lots more fitness tips.

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Hey, do the old coach a favor, and cheer-on our two contributors, huh — especially Maryse, who still thinks she’s everything but awesome in front of a camera!

A FREE Video Series

“You Don’t Need Ice!”

As always, it’s about the SCIENCES and it’s about getting real RESULTS!

A series of 6 videos aimed at providing players, coaches and parents — from all levels — numerous (and even little known) ideas for jumping ahead of others during the spring and summer months.

This Note from Coach Chic:

I’m going to send you to a sign-up form where I’ll ask a few questions aimed at helping me to get to know you better (hoping you don’t mind).

Thereafter you’ll receive a number of emails — every few days, this so you have plenty of time to digest the videos and other advice.

Hoping you enjoy it,

Dennis Chighisola

Click the puck to sign-up for this awesome special gift!

Now, as far as I’m concerned, there are a lot of lessons to be learned from Crosby’s moves.  But, let’s take a look at the play, compliments of YouTube.com and the NHL…

Now, first I’d like to address the physical side of this play.  For, there’s little doubt that unbelievable skating and puckhandling skills went into Crosby’s ultimately getting a teammate open for the shot…

Long time members might recognize the skating skills demonstrated by Crosby as being very much like those that can be developed in my various “Must-do Skating Drills“, and especially in the games of tags I’m always recommending.

And, the general puckhandling skills are just like those I like to see enhanced through my “Incredible Stickhandling” course, and in games of 1 against 1 keepaway.

Then, I’d like you to do me a favor and watch that video one more time.  This time, however, make note of how many times Crosby extends his reach — so as to really protect the puck — with just one hand on the stick.  No way his man can reach in and get to the puck when he’s doing that.

Upon returning, I hope you’ve noticed the way an advanced puckhandler needs to handle the puck with one hand.  (You might later take a browse through another of my posts, this entitled “Troubleshooting the Tight Turn“, to get a lot more insight into this and other related skills.)

If any of my long time students (or Team NEHI players) have watched Crosby’s play, they’re probably chuckling to themselves, saying, “Hey, I can do all that stuff!”  Ya, my guys practice all of those skills — from the games of tag, to the games of keepaway, to learning to protect the puck, and even dribbling around on one knee, two knees, or on their bellies and butts.

And, the above comment — about my kids feeling they can do all those things — brings me to another part of this play that most coaches and parents will surely overlook…

You know, I always had a suspicion that someone like Wayne Gretzky was lucky to emerge from youth hockey to become the player he ultimately was.  (Did I get your attention with that one?).  My reason for saying that is because an awful lot of kids with superior talents get beaten down at the younger levels — they’re called “puck hogs” or whatever, and they’re subjected to all sorts of jealous attacks (mostly from parents of kids with about half the talent).  The fact is (at least to me), those highly skilled players are the models for which all the others should try to emulate.

Youth coaches also usually want every kid to unload the puck when THEY believe the time is right time.  The ironic thing is that Crosby (like lots of other highly skilled players) most likely had it in his mind all the while that he was going to set-up a teammate — in the end, and when the time was really right.  And, to that, I’ll add that we coaches (and the fans in the stands) have to be a little more trusting with the Crosby types (as the Pens’ coach obviously is).

Now, a 2-years ago, I had a very experienced assistant coach whisper to me his concerns that a certain forward on our junior high school team was creating his own plays during powerplay practice.  My reply, “Listen, we have structure in our powerplay for the sake of teaching, and for the sake of our average players.  And we give them plays just so they have a sense of some possibilities.”  I went on to explain that most teams die for a little guy like we were watching.  That youngster’s mind saw the game in a totally different way than most of his teammates, and he saw things that mere mortals never would.  So, I wasn’t about to squash that kind of creativity.  Oh, I’d still help the kid with his decision making, and encourage him to still be a good team player.  But, I wasn’t doing any of that to the point of turning him into a robot.

As a matter of fact, I’ve written elsewhere here that most teams (or at least most coaches) die to have a game-breaker floating around the ice when the chips are really on the line.  And, that’s what a guy like Crosby represents.  He can — and did — fabricate a scoring opportunity when there probably wasn’t otherwise going to be one.

If you sense what I’ve been REALLY getting at, though, it’s that all things are relative at the given levels of hockey, and that those game breaking kinds of players exist in our midst, from Mites to Midgets.  For sure, we have to help them learn to think the game rightly, and we want them to be good team players.  However, I’ll also suggest that we be careful about tampering with whatever it is that makes them different than most of our other players.  After all, robots and mere mortals are easy to come by; game breakers are quite another thing.

Okay, this area of our site is meant to be fun.  When I created it, I envisioned members sharing their “experiences” in the game.  However, I never did picture an entry quite like the following.

– Dennis Chighisola

Jerry Z versus “The Brute”!

Now, most of you know Jerry as a hard working roller hockey player.  However, when I first introduced him — back in July of 2009, I said, “I’ll tell you a lot more about Jerry Z as time goes along.  As you’ll soon discover he’s a great personality, and you’re going to be pretty impressed with what he does for work.”

Well, all these months later, I’ll say that Jerry surely is an interesting guy.

He mainly works as a writer/composer for the video/movie industry. What you ought to really get a kick out of are a couple of Jerry’s sideline interests (beyond roller hockey).

Jerry and his brother Orrin, who’s an animator, host a site called “Its JerryTime!” from which the The Brute has been taken.  It’s an absolute riot, as are all of his videos, which are about his life.  (Actually, I had my own thoughts on how Jerry might deal with the so-called Brute, but…)

Oh, despite the fun he has in this and other videos, he’s no amateur when it comes to producing winners.  In fact, once you’ve seen the movie (popcorn not included), you can check out the reviews and awards “Its JerryTime” has garnered, including an Emmy Award!  Take a peek there, take a browse at Jerry’s site, and especially enjoy “The Brute!”

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I get asked about the above a lot – I mean, how I perceive the role of a hockey playing centerman, a winger or a defenseman.  Oh, as most CoachChic.com members probably know, I’m hardly ever at a loss for words (or for an answer to any hockey related question).  But, defining those terms presents a real challenge.  And, here’s why…

Until one gets into the real X’s and O’s of our game, he or she might believe that there is some generic way of playing.  In other words, every centerman – Mites to Pros – is asked to do the same things, both offensive and defensively.  And every winger and blueliner also plays close to the same game at every level.  Aaaaah, far from it…  In fact, teams that are well coached might even require players at similar positions to play very different roles.  (In other words, you know your local NHL team has a star forward who is probably given plenty of latitude to “do his thing”.  At the same time, there’s probably a “checking line” forward at the same position who has to perform an extremely different role.)

As an aside here, I recall having one member of the Esposito-Hodge-Cashman line (from Boston Bruins fame) visit my hockey school eons ago.  And, during a discussion session with all our campers, the guy told about how the trio began sharing the load according to what they each did best.  In other words, one guy was extremely good at digging in the corners, another was an awesome playmaker, and another could shoot like crazy.  So, they figured, why have guys worrying too much about their weaknesses, when playing mostly according to their strengths would make them very hard to contend with.

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I tell this story because I noticed a lot of youth teams in those years following suit – or at least trying to, despite the kind of talent they possessed.

Really, I don’t have a problem with a coach teaching very young kids something like I describe in “Implementing a Simple Forecheck – the L”.  As you’ll discover in the video, it’s a little like the way that old Bruin described his line’s distributing of the workload.  There is one exception, however, in that most amateur teams ask their players to share the load a little more evenly.  In other words – and like in my video, roles are filled according to which player can get the job done the quickest.  (Said yet another way, I’m not going to designate my left winger to go into the left offensive corner all the time; after all, sometimes he might be the furthest player from that area, and we just can’t wait for him.)

Now, I don’t mean to send you all over this website chasing different videos.  However, if the above video gave you a sense that THAT forecheck is the only one, take a look at a drastically different scheme I recommend to coaches of older teams…  For, “The 2-1-2 Forecheck” deploys players in totally different ways, and it has totally different objectives from the “L”.

Actually, there are countless forechecking systems, among them ones you’ve probably heard mentioned during NHL game telecasts – like, the “leftwing lock” and the “neutral zone trap”.  I might also mention that every coach on the planet tends to make subtle adjustments to whatever system he or she employs, so that something like Coach Smith’s “2-1-2 Forecheck” works a little (or a lot) differently than the one used by Old Coach Chic.

Then, just so those at the younger levels know, most fairly good high schools and then just about all junior, college and pro teams can use a different system for each game/opponent, or even several different forechecks within a given game.  (Down the road, I’m going to ultimately share a concept with the coaches of older teams, whereby adjustments are even made within each shift, so that decisions are made – according to certain criteria – as to which forecheck should be used.)

Okay, so I’ve mainly talked about forechecking here.  However, teams can also cover enemy rushes in different ways, and they can also assign players differently in their own end of the ice when their opponents control the puck there.  (Actually, if you want to know more about these different playing options, I invite you to go through a series of videos on the subject of team defense, beginning with “Checking – The Real Definition”.)

Now, there’s another reason I told that earlier story about the old Boston Bruins.  Because, for the longest time, it seems that Boston area youth teams also followed suit by slotting kids with certain skills into certain forward positions.  Ya, there always needed to be a sniper (or shooter) on one side, a mucker (or digger) on the other side, and then a fancy, play-making guy in the middle.

In most instances, I think a lot of higher level coaches now look at player roles quite differently.  I, for one, prefer to have a pretty strong guy playing the middle, mainly because he so often joins our defensemen to battle enemy attackers down low in our end.  (In other words, I usually look at my centermen as our third “D” out there.)  And, if you have some speed, I’m most likely going to get your wheels out into the wide open spaces (and make you a winger).

As another aside…  I perceive my purposes with a team mainly aimed at getting them to the next level.  So, I’m looking at a junior high kid and trying to figure how a high school coach will see him.  And, I’m looking at my best high school players and attempting to plot a way for them to continue playing into juniors or college.  Sometimes that requires a position change a kid’s previous coaches didn’t think about.  Again, though, that’s my (actually OUR) job.

Oh, before leaving the forward positions, let me also mention one other thing…  How fair do you think it is to ask a given player to work deep in his (or her) own zone – like helping the “D”, and then require him (or her) to be one of the first players down-ice to pressure the puck in an offensive corner?  Not very, huh?  I appreciate that problem in advance, and sort of expect that my centerman at least might frequently be one of the last guys into the offensive zone.  That’s also why my forechecking systems have forwards filling roles according to how quickly they can do each given job.

Funny that I should build some of this piece around the old “Big, Bad Bruins”.  For, when it comes to talking about defensemen, I think everyone will agree that Bobby Orr totally revolutionized that position.

I can’t argue with the (long-standing?) concept of pairing an offensive-minded defender with a defensive-minder one.  Do note that “minded” part, though.  I mean, some guys (or gals) just have something ticking inside of them that makes them love to lug the puck up-ice, while some tend to be a lot more conservative by nature.  So, pairing two players who might cover for each other seems a pretty smart thing to do.

That said, however, please don’t ever think ANY blueliner can play our game without REALLY good offensive skills.  I’m not necessarily talking about scoring potential here, or shooting ability, although both would be a plus.  What I am getting at is the need for ANY defenseman to be able to handle the puck under pressure – with his or her eyes up, and to be able to avoid enemy checkers, hit open teammates with good passes, or carry the puck up-ice when necessary.

As an aside to the thing about a defenseman’s offensive capabilities…  On a few occasions, I’ve needed to deal with a roster emergency by playing a forward at “D”.  And, much to my surprise, the forward often played as well as (or maybe even better than) some of our experienced defensemen.  Hmmmmm…

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I think one reason is the fact that a lot of young “D” are raised according to some really old (barbaric?) training methods.

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For example, did you know that the Czechs long ago did a study to discover just how often a defenseman skates backwards during a game?  And, while I can’t remember all the stats from that study, I can tell you that the “D” don’t skate backwards all that often.  Truth.  What I will suggest is that a defender mostly skates backwards at critical times.  So, while their lives aren’t spent back-pedaling, they may live or die on being able to handle 1 against 1 attacks pretty well.

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And this brings me back to the idea of a forward oftentimes being able to do very well in a defenseman’s role.  My thinking?  It’s because his puck-toting abilities are often far better than the defense-only-trained kids, and he is forever getting us (or the puck) out of trouble and out of our end of the ice.

Speaking of playing various numerical rushes…  There are and aren’t some generic ways to defend against them.  I say there are, because some time-tested methods suggest handling 1 on 1’s , 2 on 2’s or 3 on 3’s in certain ways.  However, there are really differing opinions on how to cover rushes like 2 on 1’s or 3 on 2’s – due to a coach’s preference, or maybe because an experienced player has a preference.  (I’ve even talked to an NHL defenseman who suggested that certain star opponents would cause him – and teammates – to play a given rush differently than normal.)

One final aside…  If you compared the two forechecks I’ve shown in the videos, you’ve likely noticed that I ask my defensemen to perform drastically different roles from one system to the other.  In the case of my older kids playing the 2-1-2, I’ve intentionally given them that system and encouraged them to pinch a lot.  Again, I’m thinking of the future for these kids, and I know it’s going to be easier for a future coach to rein-in an aggressive “D” as opposed to getting an inhibited kid to open-up and suddenly become aggressive.

Okay, so you stopped by this page for some answers, and all I’ve likely done is dump more questions into your lap.  Sorry ‘bout that.  If you’re a player or parent, what you should have discovered from the above is that the role of a given positional player is pretty much dictated by his or her coach.  Then, if you’re a coach, let me share a few more ideas…

- Within these pages you might see some articles and videos about my ‘09-‘10 Mighty Mites.  These kids had never played prior to coming together last fall, so I have NOT given them any type of “system”.  What I have noticed, however, is that these kids have oftentimes solved problems on their own.  I mean, I’ve watched them learn to spread-out, and I’ve noticed a bunch of the kids gaining their own sense of where the puck might be going next.  (It really has been a learning experience for this old coach to see those things come about.)  On rare occasions, I’ve suggested something to the kids, but we’ve never had the opportunity to practice team-type stuff.  (My kids only practice within the skills session known as my Learn-to-play clinic.)

- I am just completing tryouts for my Bandits AAA Mite Major team, and I’m still wrestling about what I’ll do in the way of a system for them next season.  For sure, I owe them some structure to play within.  So, while I have plenty of time to think further on this, here’s what I’m considering right now…  I will probably make it a requirement that parents and players study that series of “checking” videos together.  I can’t see a better of way for them to all gain a really firm grasp of the game’s basic defensive principles.  From there, I am wrestling between the “L” and the “2-1-2”.  And, I just might have to give you a further update once I’ve decided.

- My NEHI junior high school kids played two different systems this past winter.  The “2-1-2” is sort of a staple for my teams, mainly because most of their high school coaches will use some variation of that.  The other forecheck was an extremely conservative one (my own version of a 1-4) that actually shut-down some really powerful teams.  The only reason I used that, by the way, was so the kids could discover other forechecks exist, and so they also get the chance to think the game a little bit differently.  (A lot of what I call “pond skaters” are going to be going to the same tryouts my kids will, and those pond skaters usually can’t skate and think at the same time.)

- My High School Prep squad likewise used the “2-1-2” (for the reason stated above), and they also used a more conservative “1-2-2”.

- Then, for laughs, I ought to tell you that my last college teams played a system I borrowed from the old Soviets.  The rough idea of that system actually has been — over the past few years — the rage in international play, and dubbed the “Torpedo”.  I don’t have the space to go into that at this time.  But, if we return to the original theme for this article, you can imagine how “un-generic” playing roles must have been if I had only two forwards – a #1-man and a #2-man, two halfbacks, and then a middle (or “stopper”) “D”. 

Ya, let me say it again…  There really is no generic way to play our game.

When you get into the first paragraph of the following article, you’re likely to wonder why I’ve chosen to post it at this time, rather than on New Year’s Day.  Well, as you’re also likely to discover, Justin Johnson’s piece is timeless, in that his suggestions would serve us well at absolutely any time of the year.

That said, I think that NOW is a very critical time in a hockey player’s year.  As many of us CoachChic.com writers suggested last spring, this is a time for reflection, or for taking an account of how we did this past season.  And so is it a time to plan ahead — so that we might improve upon some of our shortcomings, and to build further upon our strengths.

– Dennis Chighisola

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Justin Johnson, Performance Coach

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Pulling Away From the Pack

As many athletes return to school from break and we stare down another year, I wanted to lay down a challenge to all and any youth athletes and non athletes reading this, especially, those contemplating New Year’s resolutions. Whatever your area of activity, be it in school, friends, family, church, or in athletics: Separate Yourself. Be special, dare to be different, lead the pack, go big or go home.  However you would like to say it or phrase it, I ask you to be bold enough to do it.

Few athletes exemplified this mindset more than baseball’s Babe Ruth; he swung for the fences whether it was on the field, at the dinner table or in his life off the field. “I swing big, with everything I’ve got,” Ruth said. “I hit big or I miss big. I like to live as big as I can.” As a result, for many years Ruth held the record for most home runs and for most strikeouts. He saw strikeouts as part of the deal. He actually said, “Every strikeout brings me closer to my next home run.”

By this time you may be asking yourself how can I, little average old me, do such a thing? Here is how you get started. Find one activity you do regularly in your life. School, sports, church and friends are all good venues. Then give more effort, care, time and energy to that activity. Use your time in that activity to do it better and longer than others around you. The result, over time, is that you build a sense of pride and fulfillment within yourself. This feeling will only propel your drive to continue to separate yourself.

There is one other way you will know you have begun to separate yourself. Others will question you and urge you to stop! They may even make fun of you or criticize your increased efforts. This is exactly what you want! You see, there are far too many of us stuck in the center of it all. Risking little, gaining little, and losing little.  Yet this is not the way we were meant to live. Others will feel threatened by your new found feeling of fulfillment and your new status separate from the center, and they will do what they can to urge you back to the pack. Don’t let them! Dare to be special, dare to be great and continue your efforts to do so regardless of what others say.

If you are looking to make some changes this new year, or even capitalize on some momentum built in ’09, then make sure you are willing to be special. Don’t be afraid to separate yourself to go after what you want. I assure you, you deserve it and you won’t regret it.

If you would like help in taking the first step, or when others begin to urge you back to the pack, please call us…we’d love to help you with your success 763-439-5246!

Justin

Justin@MentalEdgeNow.com

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Members might find this interesting…  I’ve written a hockey advice column for “Hockey/USA” magazine for close to 20-years.  And, over that span, I’ve changed the focus of my articles about four or five times.  However, for about a 5-years, the title of that column was “Dare To Be Different!”  Ya, as Justin might say, I was suggesting to my readers that they should separate themselves from the rest of the pack!

I have no doubts that member hockey players and coaches know right now what is needed for them to jump far beyond all their competition next fall.  Following Justin’s advice RIGHT NOW is one sure fire way to get what you want.  There’s a long time between now and the start of next season, you know, and all those months offer you plenty of time to make huge changes in your game.  In so doing, remember one of my favorite lines, in that, “By the inch it’s a synch!”

– Dennis Chighisola

Just a short time ago I critiqued another spectacular (minor league) pro goal in a little more detail.  So, I highly recommend that you take a look at what I titled “Good Offense or Bad Defense?”. I think you’ll find it interesting, and a very good introduction to the things I plan to address here.

As for that Pratrice Bergeron match-up with Chris Pronger, let me begin by stating that both of these guys are among the best in the world.  But, that’s going to be part of my point, in that even the very best slip-up.  (My guess is that some digging would probably uncover another video showing Pronger taking advantage of Bergeron.  Ya, to me, it just tends to work that way.)

That said, let’s get to the video (thanks to YouTube, the National Hockey League and NESN)…

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Now, I’ve said it often here – that great puckhandlers – or real “danglers” — can sometimes mesmerize good defenders.  And, Bergeron versus Pronger – at least in this instance – surely makes that point.  I think it’s pretty obvious that Pronger commits a cardinal sin as a defensive player, as Bergeron (somehow) causes him to look down at the puck.

So, here’s more of what I want to convey at this time…  I’ve known and worked with a lot of pro defensemen through the years, and I can tell you that guys who reach the status of a Chris Pronger are overly aware of their need to focus on their man’s body (their chest, their jersey logo, whatever).  And I can tell you that those guys also constantly work on their 1 on 1’s in practice.  I mean, it’s THAT important for them to make that play correctly in their games, mainly because it’s a huge part of what solid “D” do.

All that said, why is it that I so often get that eyes-glazing-over look as I talk to young defenders about their 1 against 1 skills?  Oh, I have a good hunch here…  It seems to me that young blueliners – as well as young forwards – sincerely believe they can turn it on and turn it off in a game.  Or, despite the fact they’re looking down or lunging at pucks in practice, I think many young players believe they can just change their ways once a game starts.

That’s not true, of course.  There’s little time to think in the heat of battle, so most of what players do happens instinctively.  Or, using the latest coaching terminology, they need to “read” a given play and then instantly “react” in the correct way.

Knowing my stuff when it comes to motor learning and such, I’ll suggest that a player usually reacts in a way that corresponds to whatever he or she has done the most in the past.  In other words, if the defender has been lazy in some practices – and works sometimes rightly, sometimes wrongly, there’s a pretty good chance his or her game play will reflect that.

Returning to Pronger again, let me say that he could play for me — any day.  And I’m guessing most pro GMs feel the same.  Yet, with all Pronger knows, and with all the thousands of times he’s likely practiced the right way to handle an oncoming attacker, we have him caught on video getting pretty much undressed by Bergeron.  Ya, as I said earlier, even an experienced defender can sometimes be mesmerized by a dangler.

And this all brings me to the real reason I’ve written this piece…  My hope is that hockey coaches and parents will show this post to any young defensemen (and even forwards) they have the chance to influence.  Actually, I’m going to do the same for my Team NEHI guys.  Hey, we have to figure that if a guy as good as Pronger can get burned, well…

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Do you have any feelings on the above?  I love your comments, ya know!

There’s usually a history to just about everything I do.  So, here’s the background to the video I’ll show you in just a little while…

A few years ago, a mom who was regularly bringing her two sons to The MOTION Lab happened to mention the fact that one son was having real difficulties on breakaways.  Being well aware of the way I tease shooters who put pucks into a goaltender’s belly, she joked that, “He hits the goalie every time!”

That little guy was a skilled player (even though only 7-years old), so I knew talent wasn’t the issue.  I then promised the mom that I’d think on the problem for awhile, and I’d see if I could arrive at a solution.

– Dennis Chighisola

Scoring on Breakaways or Shootouts

Now, one problem on such a play can be that the skater looks down at the puck too much, thereby preventing him or her from really seeing the options ahead.

The next problem — even if the player does look up while approaching the net, is that he or she might not know what to do if the goaltender acts in one way or another.  And, that “one way or another” thing usually refers to his or her either coming far out of the net to cut-down the shooter’s angle, or backing-up (possibly because he or she isn’t confident about leaving the safety of the net).

As an aside here…  I’ve worked plenty with goal-scorers and goalers from beginners to pros, and I can tell you that some of what I just said changes drastically at the college and professional levels.  There’s a cat and mouse game going on between elite attackers and goaltenders, with the goalies oftentimes even showing an opening and then quickly taking it away as the attacker readies to shoot.

Things are usually quite different at the younger levels.  I mean, just as I said in my video on “Creating the Early Goal-scorer“, the littlest goalies have all they can do to move around in their bulky gear.  And, as that difficulty wanes with age, players up through high school might even fear leaving the safety of their net, or they just might not move very well.

Okay, so I promised that mom from the Lab that I’d arrive at an answer for her son.  And, that I did…

What I did was create a DVD that could be plunked in one of our Lab players for my students to watch.  Actually, that was our first step — having them just watch the video so that they could get a firm grasp of the decision process required in “reading” young goaltenders.  As the following video will explain, a goalie coming far out of his or her net (shown on the left) likely doesn’t show much visible net to shoot at.  On the other hand, a goaler who has backed-up into his or her net (shown to the right) is going to show a lot of open spots to shoot for.  So, the decision is pretty simple:   if the goalie comes-out, the attacker should make a fake to one side and then tuck the puck in on the other side; if the goalie backs far in, the attacker should pick an open corner and nail it with a shot.

Of course, leave it to me to make a drill even more challenging or more realistic.  And, to do this, I had my kids spread-out in an area in front of the DVD player to dribble small balls as they watched the video.  Ya, just picture that, as they dribbled — needing to keep their eyes up — and make the right calls, to either shoot or deke.

Okay, so now you ought to watch that video to get a sense of what it’s about.  I’ll have a few more comments at the bottom.

Now, although there are physical skills involved here (especially if the viewer is dribbling a ball or puck), the above video is really intended as a mental exercise.  In other words, a skater has the opportunity to practice his or her “reads” of a goaltender countless times on his or her own.  And that’s what I’m suggesting, feeling that the player’s ability to ultimately react correctly in these situations will improve with each viewing (or each practice).

I pray that there’s a safe space in front of your computer where a player could do as my students do in The MOTION Lab, dribbling a ball and keeping the eyes up while reading each situation.

Oh, one other thing…  Although a very young player was the inspiration for the above video, I would highly recommend it for those at least up through Pee Wees, as well as for adult players.

Finally, I have a special treat for CoachChic.com members…  The downloadable version of this video is going to be kept available to you in the *Gifts section for the month of March, 2010.  In that way you might save it, burn it to a CD (whatever), and use it on numerous computers long after it’s removed from this site.  (This entry will always remain here, and the downloadable version may be made available periodically in the future.)  Oh, and I’ve added yet another bonus tip over in the members’ section, this about how an attacker should hold the puck on his or her way in towards the net.

Good luck!

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I would REALLY like your feedback on this post, especially after you’ve had a chance to try the video program.

Let’s just call this a gift – from the Mental Edge and CoachChic.com – to YOU.  Good luck, seniors (and this might also be some awesome food for thought to those who will be seniors in the not-too-distant future).

– Dennis Chighisola

Shaun Goodsell, MA – President and CEO of Mental Edge

Championship Time for Seniors

Playoffs for the winter sports season are either happening as I write or about to happen. Teams all begin the playoff run with hopeful expectations, and optimism about their chances for a title. The reality is that more will watch as observers while a few compete for the chance at a title. This article is going to focus on those seniors that will have their seasons, and for some, their careers come to an end. This is always a splash of cold water directly in the face that nobody can really prepare for. For that reason I want to give those that experience this some tips as you grieve the loss of the experience of participating in a sport that you have invested countless hours and sacrificed beyond belief for.

First, take some time and go over your career. Highlight quality moments for yourself. See if you can come up with a couple of your favorite times and carry those with you. In our society we do not take enough time to reflect on periods of time in our lives that provide us stepping-stones for transition and change. I am quite sure that during reflection you will realize that competing has left a mark on you with life lessons and values that will help you create success the rest of your life.

Second, create your sports résumé. If someone were to ask you what your accomplishments were as an athlete be prepared to turn your sports experience into working capital in life. For example, what kind of commitment and work ethic did you bring to your sport? What did you learn about yourself as a leader? How did you respond to adversity and what have you taken away about the value of intentional and focused practice? These are all skills and values that not only translate to success in your sport but in other interests as well.

Third, think about what the next activity or interest you are going to invest in. I believe that investing our time, talent, and passion is important as we dedicate ourselves to learn about ourselves and look to master skills, work cooperatively with others, and set goals for ourselves that challenge us. There is much to be said about reinvesting ourselves.

In life it is important to transition from one thing to another without regret or resentment. Celebrate your successes and use them as springboards to your next stage of life. For all the seniors that have had seasons and possibly careers end this year, thank you for your commitment. I have watched and been inspired by many of you. I wish you well as you move to your next stage of life.

If we can help you take your sports experience and turn it into success in life let us know, 763-439-5246. It is true that success leaves a trail.

Shaun

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Please DO add your Comment below (I honestly think this article warrants it).

Well, I find it pretty interesting how the Olympic Games spur extra interest in the various winter sports.  For sure, I’ll bet the excitement surrounding the ice hockey tournament has attracted a lot of viewers who probably don’t normally watch NHL games (live or on TV), and it will also likely bring a lot of young parents to all of a sudden look into skating or hockey lessons for their kids.

Hockey isn’t alone in benefiting from increased exposure, of course, and I’m sure sports like skiing, snowboarding, curling, figure skating and speed skating will also see a rise in new fans and new participants.

Oh, yes, speed skating…  I’ve noticed quite a boost in searches for information about that sport, and I’ve also noticed some of those searches link both speed skating and hockey skating.  As a matter of fact, here are a few questions I’ve seen in recent days:

• Why don’t speed skaters use their arms?
• Why do speed skaters pump with one arm?
• Are speed skaters faster than hockey players?
• Could speed skating training help a hockey player?

Of course, I’m not supposed to be an expert on speed skating.  However, I used to employ a speed skating coach to work in my summer hockey schools, and we spent quite a bit of time exchanging teaching and training ideas.  Oh, and our common student, Eric Flaim, ultimately made a name for himself in the long-blade sport, winning a Silver Medal in the ‘88 Olympics held in Calgary.  So, I will at least take a stab at those speed skating related questions.

– Dennis Chighisola

Speed Skating Versus Hockey Skating

Let me start by trying to get those first few questions out of the way…

1) I don’t know what games a questioner was watching if he or she thought figure skaters DON’T use their arms.  They surely do, but let me handle the rest of that in the next section.

2) Those who posed forms of the second question got it pretty much rightly, in that we’ll most often see speed skaters pumping just one arm (I’ll deal with no pumping a little later).

Now, I’ll have to ask my CoachChic.com friends if they’ve ever noticed that speed skaters pump a specific arm, not just any one.  I mean, they don’t pump the left arm because they’re left handed, whatever.  No, they mostly pump the outside arm – which is always the right one, this to aid in their mostly counterclockwise skating pattern.

I said “mostly” – in reference to the arm pumps, because there are times when they use both arms, and there are times when they don’t pump either.  And, I said they “mostly” skate counterclockwise because only the outdoor version of the sport has fairly long straight-aways, while the so-called short track event includes almost all turns to the skater’s left.  (In other words, the track is so short, that there are hardly any straight-aways.)

As an aside here, know that I really don’t get a chance to watch a lot of the various events.  However, there seem to be some huge (but perhaps not obvious) differences between the outdoor and indoor versions of this sport.

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In a way, I see the outdoor event on the huge track as an all-out sprint against the clock.  Skaters are staggered for most of the race and separated in their own lanes, so the only thing that makes sense to me is for a contestant to race at 100% against that clock.

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In contrast, it appears to me that an awful lot of strategy goes into the short track event.  I mean, skaters aren’t confined to lanes, and they consequently don’t always skate all-out as they attempt to outwit and out-maneuver their opponents.  My guess is that the lack of arm pumping – after the take-off – is due to the short-tracker’s need for more control and even greater streamlining than is required in the long track events.

Then, one more thing about the use of a skater’s arms (actually, those who study the biomechanics of skating would say that skaters use their shoulders in that motion)…  If you get the chance, please review the video I made for you about “Analyzing the Forward Stride”; there’s quite a bit explained there about arm (or shoulder) actions, as well as about the body’s need to stay in balance for the sake of energy efficiency and momentum.

When it comes to the take-off, I’ve said that there is hardly a difference when running or skating – with a brisk forward and backward pumping of the arms aiding greatly in getting either a hockey player or speed skater (or sprinter) quickly off the mark.  Once under way, however – or once we get beyond the take-off (within just a few steps), we shift to a “skating mode”, in which the skates push outward and the arms need to travel through a side-to-side motion to balance everything.

4) Okay, now for another question, as in, Will speed skating training help a hockey player?  Well, before tackling that, let’s take a look at an awesome YouTube.com video featuring TIME’s Sean Gregory as he learns how Apolo Ohno prepared for Vancouver (by the way, something like the “turnbuckle” or belt arrangement shown in the start of the video has been a staple in The MOTION Lab for a good 6- or 7-years, and I’m soon going to make these fairly inexpensive contraptions available to you in the CoachChic.com Hockey Store)…

So, do you want my honest opinion when it comes to the training shown in that video (of course, minus the specific short track on-ice stuff)?

I’d say that everything – from the belt training to the stairs workouts — would be awesome for a hockey player.  Actually, we use almost all of those methods with our hockey players in The MOTION Lab.

That said, I do need to add one caveat…  Don’t ever forget that our sport is not based solely upon a pretty, powerful stride.  No, hockey players need to shift gears, react in all directions, and oftentimes handle a puck as they’re moving.  Come to think of it, they also have to skate for their lives with opponents oftentimes trying to run over them!

3) Which brings me to the question I obviously avoided early-on.  For, I would be willing to bet on a speed skater if he or she was matched against a hockey player in a straight-ahead race, or a sprint in one direction around the rink.  Drop a puck, however, and all bets are off.  Ya, everything a speed skater does — from training to dressing — has to do with those two kinds of races.  As soon as lateral movements and stops, starts or cuts are required, my money is on the hockey player.

But again, much shown in that video would be good for an ice hockey player.

Finally, remember that I don’t see myself as an expert on speed skating.  So, I surely would appreciate hearing from those who might know a lot more about both versions of that sport.

PS:  TIME’s Sean Gregory actually has a series of videos available over on YouTube, and I’d highly recommend you view them.  And, if he has a great collection of those up-close studies for sale, I’d love to own them.

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Please give me your feedback on this one, huh?  And I’d like to hear from both hockey and speed skating folks!

I happened to look up to my studio wall the other night to spot something I need as a constant reminder.  A Creed for REAL Teaching is what I dubbed it long ago, that 8.5″ x 11″ poster which acts as a reminder of the way my young charges (and all humans) learn.

Immediately I thought to myself, “Gee, every CoachChic.com member — or at least every coach and parent — should have their own copy.  And with that, I present a gift down below from me to you.

– Dennis Chighisola

A Creed for REAL Teaching (or Coaching)

Sometime down the road I’m going to transfer a VHS video I once sold to numerous coaches and hockey school directors around North America.  The title of that program was “A Total Mastery System“.

In it was contained all the principles of motor learning, as well as what I’ll now described.

Shown to the right is a small copy of a poster that actually adorns my downtown office wall, my next door studio, as well as the little alcove I use at my house as a home office.  Ya, I want that thing everywhere, reminding me of how thoroughly I should do my job.

Now, as if it needs any explaining…

- Addressing line one, I think we’ll all agree that there’s a likelihood anyone will eventually forget just about anything we spend only seconds telling them about.  It’s just the nature of us human beasts, what with all the information we’re constantly swamped with.

- The second line, of course, suggests that the combination of explaining a certain principle or drill along with some sort of demonstration will do the job far better.  Agreed?

- Finally, a very wise Chinese philosopher had to really know his stuff to appreciate that involving a student in the learning process will get the job done best.  In fact, it’s the combination of all three points — and maybe even more — that will likely make the information stick.

As for that “maybe even more” part…  Today we know that the more senses involved in a given presentation, the better it’s going to be absorbed, and the longer it is likely to be retained.  So, while it probably isn’t going to very often make sense to have our players taste or smell a given playing principle or skill, we WOULD be wise to touch their senses of hearing, seeing and discussing that information.

All that said, you can do as you wish with the following download, and you might even post it somewhere (or everywhere) as The Old Coach does.  I know I certainly need the constant reminder.

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A Creed for REAL Teaching

Simply right click the link above and Save As to your desktop or wherever.  And, while you can ultimately print it, I actually used several pieces of colored card stock in my copy machine to create more durable and more attractive posters.

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Let me know if you like these sorts of downloads, huh?  And, I’d surely like to hear your feedback about the principles involved here!

Ever since my Soviet studies long ago, I’ve kept an eagle-eye out for unique training methods, particularly those done by international competitors.  There’s usually a ton of science behind the training methods used by those athletes.  And, with that, nothing satisfies my thirst for new ideas as much as the Olympic TV broadcasts.

– Dennis Chighisola

Use the Olympics as a Learning Experience

Now, the video below features the Russian National Team prepping for their 2008 World Cup appearance.  But, you get a pretty good idea of what I’m talking about — I mean, the way we can learn just from getting a glimpse here and there of what a team of that caliber might be doing to ready for world class competition…

Ya, for sure, the pros also apply all the science known to man in the training of their athletes – be it in hockey, baseball, football, basketball and numerous other sports.  And I’m sometimes lucky enough to be privy to their methods.  However, the Olympics (and some World Cup broadcasts) tend to prove awesome for fans (as well as to yours truly).

What I’m really getting at are those up-close-and-personal kinds of segments whereby the television crew shows clips of an athlete training at home or behind the scenes.

And, I’m not just talking about the times they focus on ice hockey players.  In most instances, there are a lot of things done by athletes in other sports that we can learn from, and a lot of training techniques are used in most sports, including ice hockey.

By the way…  CoachChic.com members are probably going to get a kick out of seeing Olympic athletes doing some of the things I’ve shown in From The MOTION Lab or in video clips on my teams’ off-ice practices.  And, my Team NEHI players are probably going to say numerous times over the next week or so, “Hey, we do that all the time!”

Anyway, keep your eyes open for those close-ups of all the athletes, and perhaps watch them through the different kind of perspective you should have gained as a member here.  Also, since my coaching schedule is going to prevent me from watching a lot of telecasts this year, I’d love to learn from your observations.

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Use the Comment box to fill me in on what you see, huh?

By Justin Johnson
Performance Coach, Mental Edge

This past fall I traveled across the state of Minnesota conducting goalie coaching clinics for youth hockey associations. During the two-hour sessions I consulted with coaches about ways they can increase the likelihood of their goaltenders having a positive experience in the game of hockey. What I discovered is there are many coaches who are on the right track with their goalies and their development. There are also a few who have trouble communicating with their goalies. Even more struggle with how they should orchestrate practices and games in a way that encourages goaltender development.

In an effort to shed some light on how coaches can set their goalies up for success, I have included four common pitfalls to avoid. My aim is to inform coaches about the ways they harm their goaltenders’ mental development, oftentimes without even knowing it!

1.)  Not sure what to say, so say nothing
Issue:
Historically head coaches and their staff have struggled with how to coach, challenge and develop the goaltenders on their team. Many coaches haven’t played the position, so they feel paralyzed when trying to address technical information and fundamentals. This lack of goalie know-how, typically leads to frustrating conversations or even an avoidance of conversations because it doesn’t land in the coaches’ comfort zone.
Advice:
I encourage coaches to make an effort to positively impact every player on the team, including goaltenders. Rather than keep quiet, sit down with your goaltender(s) to learn about what they need to be successful. Many goaltenders, even as young as squirts, know what should have been done differently on goals they gave up. As a coach, ask them what you can do to make practices better to address the situations you are seeing in games. Goalies need to feel a part of the team and process – ignoring them because of your ignorance can shake their trust, confidence and ultimately negatively impact on their experience.

2.)  Pulling the goalie without giving explanation
Issue:
Eventually a game will get out of hand or an off-night will come around where it is in either the team’s or the goaltender’s best interest to pull him or her from the game. I believe that the pulling of a goalie is a necessary part of the game and one that if done correctly builds character and a winning spirit in an individual. If done incorrectly you may have a disruptive issue that lasts all season, and negatively impacts the mindset of your goaltenders for quite some time. I have witnessed and even been a participant in many ugly pullings, where coaches yell at the goalie on the way to the bench or display incredibly poor body language that sends the wrong message to all watching.
Advice:
When you decide to pull your goaltender, doing so correctly comes down to two items:

1. Conduct yourself in a calm and professional manner, including body language, by continuing to coach your team in a positive way.

You must not let that goaltender leave the arena without knowing why you pulled him or her and/or how you intend to help them have a better outing next time. (As a side note, I feel it is acceptable to tell the goalie on the bench why you pulled him if it was done to help change team momentum. If it was simply a rough night for the goalie, it is better to discuss that in private after the game.)

3.)  Shouting instructions from the bench
Issue:
Rarely have I seen great coaching advice that makes an immediate impact on a goalie’s performance by being yelled from the bench for all to see and hear. Other than encouragement or to signal the goalie to come to the bench, coaches should never yell to a goaltender. The repercussions of yelling include embarrassment, confusion, frustration, and a fear of making mistakes, all of which deter a quality mindset and performances. In other words, whatever gem of advice you may have and result you get, it will be eroded by a mindset that requires the goaltender to play for you rather than themselves and their instinct.
Advice:
If a persistent issue is occurring, there are a number of ways to communicate more effectively. You can wait until there is an intermission, relay the message to a mature player you feel will communicate it to your goalie with the correct tone and message intended, or call a time-out.

4.)  Waiting right before the game to designate the starter
Issue:
Perhaps the most common mistake coaches make without knowing it is waiting to decide or inform which goalie will play. Coaches fail to understand that goaltending is a position that requires a significant amount of preparation. If a goalie does not know, that preparation is undermined, resulting in a less than prepared, less confident goaltender. Coaches have stated they use this tactic to judge who looks best in warm-ups or to make sure both goalies are ready. Both of these tactics are mentally counterproductive and will create negative effects, not only for your goaltenders but also for the rest of the team.
Advice:
I suggest coaches give notice to BOTH goaltenders as to who will be playing a night in advance, if possible, or the morning of the game, at the latest. This should provide plenty of time for your goaltenders to prepare, giving your team the best chance of a quality performance. This is a simple request and one that will be greatly appreciated by your goaltenders.

Remember, if you are good to your goalies they will likely be good to you and your team!

For more information, contact Justin@MentalEdgeNow.com

Again, feel free to email this article to a coach who might benefit from it’s great advice.

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And, as always, we REALLY appreciate your Comments!

Contributor: Dennis Chighisola – Whitman, MA, USA

Drill Category: Skating, Passing, Pass Receiving, Attacking, Screening, Deflecting, Rebounding and Goaltending

Please first see the basic set-up of this drill as described under the free Drills section.  For, from that basic format, some really awesome offensive and defensive variations have already been shown.  (Click here for the basic drill, “Russian Circle Passing“.)

– Dennis Chighisola

Russian Circle Passing – Variations #6

Drill Description:

Comments:

Just about any of the previously shown setups can be used and then enhanced by just one little change.

What I am about to propose is that the last player to attack from a line can stop at the net and then prepare to screen and deflect (and pounce on a rebound) for the next attacker to come.  That process continues, with an attacker shooting, and then going to the net to setup a screen.

PS:  I do this often with many other shooting drills, merely having the shooter eventually going to the net.

Benefits:  Obviously, players should become adept at all three skills – as in screening the goaltender, deflecting shots, and then reacting to possible rebounds.  However, I think the addition of this component to any attacking/shooting drill also gets players in the habit of following-up their shots and going to the net.

Running the drill:  Before this drill begins, I will usually place a screener/deflecter out in front of the net.  Once the drill gets underway, the last shooter replaces the player at the net.

No video is available for this drill.

Just Click HERE to go to

“Coach Chic’s Hockey Diary”!

This post could really be entitled “What’s Wrong with this Picture?“, because that’s exactly what I’m going to ask you.

This photo happens to show my young buddy and grandson, Anthony Chic.  And, while he is really one of the best at protecting the puck in these types of plays, he’s making one glaring mistake — at least at the moment this photo was taken.

So, here’s the deal…  I’m not going to complete this post until a number of members have weighed-in, or offered their opinions or guesses.  Once I do receive a number of Comments (down below), I’ll share with you all I know about tight turns (or so-called Boston Turns).

– Dennis Chighisola

The Tight Turn (or Boston Turn)

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Shaun Goodsell, MA

President and CEO of Mental Edge

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Imagination

imag·i·na·tion  i-ˌma-jə-ˈnā-shən  1 : the act or power of forming a mental image of something not present to the senses or never before wholly perceived in reality 2 a : creative ability b : ability to confront and deal with a problem c : the thinking or active mind  3 : a creation of the mind

What has happened to the imagination of our youth athletes? Many hit a roadblock and it not only seems to stop them in their tracks…it appears to stifle and paralyze them for a long time.

Recently, I was talking with a young player that has been experiencing some personal challenges with his team. He is performing at a high level and enjoying some of his greatest success. When I asked him if he was having fun he replied, “Not really”. I immediately felt sad for this young person. I thought to myself, “What skill would help him overcome his lack of enjoyment and allow him to experience fulfillment and accomplishment for the all hard work he’s put into his sport?”

At this point it occurred to me that he would need to utilize his power of choice to craft and create new meanings from the events that were getting him down. He was stuck in his current negative and pessimistic meanings, which lead him to despair, to live in a constant state of disappointment and a lack of personal power. How does one do this?

This is done through imagination. Imagination is the ability to creatively bring into being something that has yet to be formed.  Every change that one makes occurs because of the ability to gain a vision for a different reality. When we can imagine a different response and meaning to events that, in the past, have resulted in unempowered responses we reacquire control of the quality of our lives. The inability to be imaginative costs many their sense of well-being, quality relationships, improved performance, and most significantly a sense of personal power.

Becoming imaginative and creative grants us incredible power to shape and create the quality of life we want regardless of the events that might be taking place around us. In becoming imaginative we become people of possibility rather then pessimism.  This is not to say there are not events that are difficult and realities that should not be dealt with.  But many people underestimate the capacity they have to utilize their imagination to navigate and manage the journey of sport and life.

If you would like help sparking your imagination, give us a call today 763-439-5246!

Until next time, here’s to your possibilities!

Shaun

Shaun@MentalEdgeNow.com

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This note from Coach Chic…  Although Shaun and his staff do an unbelievable job of talking to our playing members, I’d like to suggest that coaches like me also need to heed their advice.  Hey, with the long hours we put in, and with the challenges we so often face (alone?), we coaches surely do need the kind of positive advice offered above.

Then, since I am into such stuff, I’d like to paraphrase an appropriate saying (that I’ve heard attributed to a number of great thinkers), in that..

“No great idea ever materializes unless it is first conceived in the mind.”

Actually, what happened is that I finished replying to Nicky, and I next saw the heading for a recent post entitled Resisted Shooting.  From there, I’ve mentioned before about how the fireworks go-off in my brain, with one thing making me think of something else.  (I’ll leave it to you to decide whether that’s a good thing or not — !)

Well, what I got to thinking about was the fact that member goalers (and those who work with goalers) shouldn’t just stay within the Goalies section, or discount all the things available to them in all the other various categories.

Take, for example, that Resisted Shooting idea…  Is it necessary for modern day goaltenders to handle the puck — and even shoot it up-ice?  You bet!  And, in their attempts to fire the puck up-ice, is it possible they’re going to at the same time be mauled by opposing players?  You can bet on that one, too!  So, a drill such as Restricted Shooting would be just as useful for netminders as it is for defensemen and forwards.

And, come to think of it, so would almost all the skills that are covered here help a goalie,  so would the strength training ideas, and so would a good many of the tips offered under Thinking The Game!

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So, what do you think?  You know I love to see your Comments!

I’m asked to do a lot of these kinds of things.  And, hey, they’re good for my business, and they often allow me to share some important ideas.

Anyway, I was just interviewed for the IslesNation Blog, and I truly believe there’s something to be learned from this, especially if one is serious about coaching.  Just click the logo below to read that article…

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As always, you KNOW I appreciate your Comments!

As always, I warn folks involved at our game’s higher levels not to take something like the following too lightly — I mean, just because my examples happen to involve some young players.  As I’ll ultimately suggest, learning should never stop, no matter the age or experience level.

With that…  I can’t believe I (at least in a way) missed jotting this note during yesterday’s Mighty Mite hockey game.  It’s not like a big deal wasn’t made out of it.  Thankfully, though, good friend Michael G reminded me in an email this morning.  Yes, one of my little guys broke his stick in yesterday’s game, and I’m now going to explain to my friends here why I think it’s necessary for hockey coaches AND PARENTS to make note of such events.

– Dennis Chighisola

The Broken Hockey Stick (and More)

Team NEHI Bull Session

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Now, I’ve mentioned elsewhere here about our need to spot so-called “teaching moments”.  And, to me, such moments usually involve some important event that doesn’t happen often enough to get covered in practices.  Let me give you an example, though…

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When my buddy Anthony Chic was a Mite B, his team played in an exciting holiday tournament at a nearby rink.  A critical point in one of the earliest tourney games was when one of Tony C’s teammates closed his hand on a puck in their crease, with this resulting in a penalty shot for the opponents.  Okay, no big deal, right?

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Well, maybe you saw this coming, but…  A few days later, in the game which was to decide the team’s chance to move-on in tournament play, the very same thing happened.  I mean, a different defenseman on Anthony’s team once again smothered a puck in the crease, and the deciding goal was scored on the ensuing penalty shot.  (Ugh!)

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Hmmmmmm…  Now, one might think that all of the kids who witnessed the penalty days earlier would have remembered the consequences.  Ya, one might think.  But, the fact of the matter is, not all 6- and 7-year olds are noticing — or totally understanding — what’s going on at such a time.

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The rest of that “Hmmmmmm-thing” is that we now know our team’s coach did not use that earlier event as a wonderful teaching opportunity.  (Worse yet, I have to wonder if he ever used the second occurrence to explain what happened to his kids.  ???)

Okay, so yesterday we had that youngster break his stick during the game action.  In a panic, he rushed to the bench, both portions of the stick still in hand.  Since we’re allowed to be on the ice during these Instructional League games, an assistant coach and I both rushed to tell him, “Drop it!  Drop it!”

With that, we might have been able to convey to a few kids the message about it (playing with a broken stick) being a penalty.  But, how many kids really understood that in the craziness of the game?  And, I’d be willing to bet that most of the kids who were involved in the action at that time didn’t even witness what took place.

So, here’s the big deal, as far as I’m concerned…  There were 20-ish kids involved our game yesterday, and probably 30-something playing in those long ago tournament games.  And, since two great teaching moments were missed for the sake of quite a few kids, I’m going to suggest that those kids are (or were) left in jeopardy of committing the same rule infractions sometime down the road, maybe even during a very critical game situation.  And, is it going to make some young player feel pretty badly if he or she gets nailed for such a violation?  I’m thinking that’s so.

Now, at the higher levels I’m going to suggest that the consequences are all the greater.  I’ve seen players benched by their high school or college coach for taking needless penalties.  As a matter of fact, many higher level associations have officials visit member schools during the pre-season, just to talk to the players (and coaches) about recent rule changes.  Ya, they think it’s that important.

Okay, so what should we parents and coaches do about all this?

For sure, I and my fellow coaches have to grab those teaching moments and make the most of them.  A long winter schedule usually provides us a number of these, no matter our level of competition.  In each instance, we want to pick a time or method when every single player can be in on the conversation (which means the team bench is hardly the place to handle these things).  As for me, I think I’m going to compose an email that will direct my Mighty Mite parents to this article, and I’ll also put a link on our team website.

As an aside here…  There will always be a difference in the ways we each communicate with our teams.  When it comes to my two older groups (ages about 12- to 18-years), I can usually present the information directly to my players.  However, if we’re talking about very young kids, it might not be a bad idea to share our advice with both the players and their parents.

Then, as for the beauty of Mike G’s email…  He did something very much like I’ve always done for my son or grandson, in that he took advantage of that teaching moment as a parent.  I was absolutely sure Anthony Chic wasn’t going to close his glove on a puck in the crease immediately after we saw it happen the first time.  And Mike did the same for his little guy.  As he explained it to me, he’d read some bedtime stories to his son last night.  Then, as Mike wrote, “I started to talk briefly about the fun we had skating today…”  Of course, the broken stick issue arose during their conversation, with his little 4-year old actually telling dad exactly what he should do if he breaks a stick. 

This final aside has to do with my sneaking suspicions about why such a young player was/is so sharp…  Oh, I’m sure it helps that Mike played a lot, and that he still plays.  I’m guessing the little tyke has already seen his share of games — watching his dad, or those on TV (yes, a “hockey house” probably has games on the tube more than most others).  Yet, I suspect that the most impactful thing is that they talked often about the game already.  And this causes me to further surmise that numerous little bull sessions have encouraged him — even at 4-years old — to think the game.  So, while Mike ended his email by saying his son “sometimes can surprise me…”, I’m going to suggest that perhaps his growing hockey smarts shouldn’t be so surprising at all!

Now, those parents who haven’t played much (or any) hockey can take heart in the fact that you can still help your very young one with his or her game.  All you have to do, I’ll suggest, is to just stay a hair ahead of him or her in your hockey knowledge.  There’s certainly plenty of information available at your local library and on the Internet.  And, I happen to know that’s why a number of folks spend a lot of time here at CoachChic.com.  And remember, you can always ask for my help whenever you need it.

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You know how much I enjoy your feedback.  So, please DO add a Comment below!

A few days ago, member Scott Thurston chimed-in on my article about “A Difference in Hockey Teaching Levels“.  As Scott said, “I find a lot of truth here”, in reference to some of the nervousness experienced by adult level beginners as they try new things.

Scott went on to say that he has “several mental blocks”, these primarily having to do with forward and backward cross-overs.

Then, shortly after I’d let Scott know that I’d prepare something to help him with his game, I received a very similar question from another member, Jamie Lockwood.

In Jamie’s case, he’s helping with his young son’s Mite C team, and he’s hoping I might offer some thoughts to help his son and other kids on the team become more comfortable using their outside edges.  As he describes it, many of them “are dragging their inside foot/toe on turns rather than leaning with them on the outside edge.”   (I’ll deal with Jamie’s other question in a separate post.)

Finally (and sorta laughing at myself here), after having said in that earlier article about how differently I normally have to approach the unique age groups, I find that Scott’s and Jamie’s kids’ problems can be handled very similarly. 

– Dennis Chghisola

Help for Beginner Cross-overs

To begin, although Scott (and almost everyone else I know) describes a cross-over problem as being with the skate or leg that is swinging over, the real problem is with the insecurity of bearing one’s weight on the other skate.  In other words, if one feels a little unsteady crossing the left skate over the right, it’s because that player is uncomfortable with putting all of his or her weight on the right skate.  (By the way, this left over right thing is the most common among beginners — of any age.)

I can also picture exactly what Jamie is saying about his young kids…  And, I’d be willing to bet that most of the ones who are dragging a skate on their turns are doing so mostly as they cut towards their right.  Why so?  It’s for the very same reason Scott feels unsteady, as in not trusting carrying the weight on the right skate.

As an aside here, I’m not sure if this is or isn’t a cultural thing.  If you think about it, we all learn to run the bases in baseball while circling towards our left.  So, if you’re from a baseball playing nation, just envision the discomfort of running the bases in the opposite direction, or mostly bearing our weight on the outside edge of our right cleat.  (Laughing at myself again…  I’d mentioned in a recent post about my high school football exploits.  So, let me tell you that, while I scored a number touchdowns or had long runs sweeping towards the right, I absolutely hated if the quarterback called a play sending me out and cutting in the other direction.)  Again, I don’t know if it’s a cultural thing, but more new skaters do have difficulty placing their weight on the right skate for any length of time.

Now, the key phrase in that last paragraph — and the key to changing things for the better — is that part about “placing their weight on the right skate for any length of time“.  Ya, most of us can stand on the left skate, and even rock from edge to edge for a spell.  But, it’s balancing on the right skate “for any length of time” that gives us an uncomfortable feeling.

I will say that there’s a benefit to the fact that an adult player can at least understanding this, and eventually do something about it.  So, while Scott might struggle (due to the voices I joked about in that earlier piece), he probably can make a more concerted effort to solving the problem than can Jamie’s little ones.  In Jamie’s case, I wouldn’t even mention this stuff to the players; instead just get them to do certain things certain ways.

Okay, thanks to one of my great young Team NEHI players, Alex B, I was able to shoot some quick video last night before our Junior High School Team practice.  First, however, I’d like you to note the poses in the two adjacent photos.  For, in the beginning, I have new skaters just stand with their feet crossed — right over left for about 10-seconds, then left over right for an equal length of time.  While holding a given pose, I want the players to rock from side to side a bit, thusly shifting the weight from skate to skate.  As you can imagine, this forces a little bearing of body-weight on each skate, but in the least threatening way.

Next, I ask a player to just slowly cross in place, right over and then left over.  Just click on the photo below to see Alex demonstrate that for us.

You may have noticed that the previous drill caused just a slight use of each outside edge.  But, I’d like to step that up some by having a player do large, exaggerated cross-overs.  The idea is for the player to really go slowly and far up with a leg, this so he or she is spending a longer amount of time on the other skate, and a little more time on that skate’s outside edge.  (I’ve just uploaded a late video showing this, so please click on the photo below to see that.  Also, I’ve included some slo-mo footage so you might see my player leaning a little more on his outside edges from time to time.)

I’ll usually move to a slower version of my “2-step Drill” next.  Actually, this is an advanced movement my older players do often on the ice — in place, moving forward and while skating backward.  For beginners, this drill has the most benefit right at the transition point.  In other words, as you watch the video below (just click on the photo), notice that Alex has to push-off with an outside edge as he comes out of a stop and tries to cross in the new direction.

Now, there are two other areas of CoachChic.com that should help you both immensely…  I have quite a stretch of cross-over and change-of-direction drills included in the “24 Must-do Intermediate Skating Drills” video (and you might also find some help within the other two (Advanced and Beginner) videos.  The other area that could help a lot is the one where we follow adult in-line skater, Jerry Z, as I help him along the way.  (Start at the very beginning of those entries.)  Don’t let the in-line part of that area bother you; Jerry’ problems are very similar to what early ice skaters go through.

Also, don’t discount the use of the skates on a rink’s rubber mats (Jamie), or somewhere safe at home (Scott), like on a small carpet square.  Trust me, there is a great deal of skill transfer from the off-ice practice to on-ice capabilities.

By the way, crossing-over is crossing-over, when we’re talking about beginner skating challenges.  In other words, all the in place exercises I’ve shown you are at the same time going to make it easier for a player to do the exact same thing when moving to the ice.  Those drills can also be done when moving slowly forward on the ice.  And, once a player is comfortable doing the crosses that way, it shouldn’t be too difficult for him or her to do them slowly while going backwards.  Then, from that point onward, the speed of the drills should be based on how well a player (or players) can keep their discipline.  In other words, there’s no sense in a player trying to go faster if he or she suddenly avoids doing the crossing movements properly.

Lastly, I know exactly what Jamie is talking about when he says that his young players drag a skate as they make a cut.  That would be an inside skate (maybe closest to a pylon), and usually the right skating while cutting towards the right for most kids.  Why?  For the same reason noted above, in that it can be uncomfortable bearing weight on a certain skate.  Ironically, I found some footage of Jerry Z performing this movement in one of our earliest sessions together.  He’s far better at this now, but if you’ll notice in the video (click on the photo below), Jerry’s turning and crossing problems are the exact opposite of most new skaters, in that he had difficulty turning towards his left.  By the way, this skating maneuver is often referred to as the Boston Turn.

Now, other members might like to know that Jamie and his son skated with me last winter in my Learn-to-play clinic.  And I’m kinda hoping that he remembers a drill I did with the kids that is similar to the one an in-line player is demonstrating in the following video.  (Oh, by the way…  I just dug-up this old clip from someone else’s website — go figure. Well, I guess it’s nice to be popular.  )  Please click on the photo below to see that video.

Then, a tip to both of you…  There’s no way around the fact that “practice makes perfect”.  So, don’t look for quick fixes, but long-term gains instead.  In other words, practice those shortcomings as often as you can (hey, the pros still practice theirs).  Oh, and good luck!

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PS to Jamie:  As promised, I’ve answered your question about backward speed in a new post.

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Just so other members know, I’m loving it when guys like Scott and Jamie toss me questions or post Comments here.  So, please do the same when you get the chance!

This happens often, so I guess I shouldn’t always think it’s so ironic that I have very similarly themed conversations with different hockey folks within a matter of minutes or hours.

That’s actually what happened from yesterday morning to later in the afternoon, and then just now in an email exchange.  That email exchange, by the way, was with our in-lining hockey friend, Jerry Z.

So, let’s explore Jerry’s question, and also relate that to my earlier conversations…

– Dennis Chighisola

A Difference in Hockey Teaching Levels

To begin, I consider myself extremely fortunate to be able to work with players at all the different levels of our game.  Some might think this is a negative, in that I might be a Jack of All Trades but Master of None.  Ya, you might think.

However, it’s worked-out to be a huge plus for me, and here’s how…

One example might be a former pro player (and current pro coach) I worked with for a good many years.  You see, despite the levels he ultimately reached, he had a skating flaw that was virtually impossible to correct or override by the time he became an adult.  I suspect that flaw crept in during his very first times on the ice, and he just reinforced it and reinforced it over about the next 20-plus years of skating.  The huge benefit for me — and to the hundreds (if not thousands) of beginners I’ve had in subsequent years — was that I knew that problem was possible — but preventable — if I did certain kinds of drills with my Learn-to-skate kids.

The above, of course, is just one example of how going back and forth between levels has benefited me and my students or players.  And I can tell you that it’s worked in both directions — from elite player traits helping younger kids to the experiences with young players helping my oldest guys.

Okay, so now, about that email from Jerry…  We’ve gotten in the habit of communicating about once per week, especially if we haven’t had the chance to work together for awhile.  Anyway, within his most recent report to me, he included the following:

“A friend made an interesting observation about my last video (posted on the CoachChic.com site), the one where I’m skating with the old skates and stick. He said I skate as if I’m afraid to fall. I thought that was an interesting observation and am looking into falling more on purpose so I know what to do when I’m careening out of control…”

With that, I need to mention here that I have for years conducted beginner hockey sessions — for toddlers, and for adults.  And, while our game’s basic skills are obviously the same, I actually run those clinics in drastically different fashions.

A conversation with one of my Learn-to-play parents at rink-side Sunday morning helps explain part of this…  And he totally agreed and understood as I explained my reasons for having my little ones roll on the ice, do bellyflops and backslides, and initially jog their way across the rink.

I really got into this a great deal more when I bumped into a high level figure skating coach outside a local store hours later…  We’re birds of similar feathers, that young lady and I, both of us thinking and looking far, far outside the proverbial box when it comes to helping the skaters in our charge.  Anyway, when the conversation turned toward our creating outgoing or flamboyant “personalities” in our athletes, I described the way I try to create little daredevils in my Learn-to kids’ very first times on the ice.  Ya, I’m talking about the diving and rolling and flops again, and the way I give the kids high-fives when they do a crazy fall.

Okay, so I’m presuming you have the gist of how I approach my “baby groups”.  And you have to be thinking I’m just going to walk into a beginner adult class and run a carbon copy of the little ones’ lesson plan.  Huh, hardly.

Number One, adults know too much.  I mean, my babies will flop around with absolutely no thoughts or fears of hurting themselves (and that mentality usually stays with them for all their years in the game).  My adult guys and gals, on the other hand, are thinking to themselves, “Hey, I’d better go easily here…  I could break a leg or somethin’!”  Probably even more often, they’re thinking, “Hey, I have to go to work in the morning!”

Ya, adults know too much, and they are almost always holding back quite a bit — or a lot, if we’re comparing them to their toddling counterparts.

And this brings us back to Jerry’s friend’s observation, in that he looks in that video as if he’s afraid to fall.  Ya, our buddy just turned 50-years old the other day (Happy Birthday, JZ!).  And, while it doesn’t have to be a conscious thing on his part, there is definitely a conversation going on in his head — as in, “Hey, I could get hurt here!”

Having dealt with probably a thousand or so adult beginners, I’ve found most of them — including Jerry — to be willing workers.  Only rarely have I had a student who totally held back (which caused me to wonder why the heck they were even on the ice).  Yes, Jerry and most others do really try, and they usually try pretty hard.  Still, with each slight wobble or near fall, I don’t think he or many other adult beginners can resist that ever present internal voice which warns them, “Hey, I have to get up and go to work tomorrow morning!”

All that said, I’ve noticed that confidence grows as adults master given skills.  So, while there’s a point in the early going where Jerry or another beginner might turn pale in the middle of a very basic movement, it’s pretty likely that he and others will eventually whistle and not worry doing the very same thing a month or so later.  Sure, there is probably always going to be something new that rattles them, at least a bit.  But, even those fears can probably be overcome with time.

Oh, that Jerry suggests in his email that he might try “falling more on purpose”?  I sense that is a good thing.  I highly recommend it (just not when I’m around, and not when my liability policy is on the line — LOL).

Then, one final reflection, this having to do with age…  A lot of the adult groups I’ve worked with over the years have been teams, and they’ve been a mixture of guys and/or gals, some in their 20′s and some much older.  And it should make sense to the reader that the 20-somethings quite frequently take to the ice in hell-bent-for-leather fashion.  Those young people are probably also playing street hockey, basketball or flag football with buddies, and they’re still acting — and especially thinking — like kids, with not much concern for their physical well being.  At the other end of the spectrum — and, at 50, Jerry surely is far at the other end, well, the older guys know too much, and the voices are likely screaming at them! 

Contributor: Dennis Chighisola — Whitman, Massachusetts, USA

Drill Category: Skating and Puckhandling

Comments: Every coach uses pylons (or other kinds of obstacles) from time to time.  However, I wonder how many coaches have considered the following…

Benefits:
For sure, there are huge benefits to be gained by using pylons or other barriers in various patterns.

At the very youngest levels, an obstacle course forces players to weave as they might need to do in their games.  As importantly, having to frequently turn left and right as they move through a course gives us a chance to teach them how to use both sides of their stick-blades.

I even find various courses beneficial for older players, but with some reservations…

Those Reservations:
When I use pylons (tires or my foam dots) with older players, I warn them that slow meandering through the course isn’t going to help them with their game; in fact, it might hurt them to practice in a way that isn’t related to the way they want to play.

I even take the time to compare the typical course to computer based games — you know, the kinds that can be approached at different levels or at different speeds.  And I’ll go on to explain that a game is usually easy when the twists and turns come at you slowly, while the real challenge lies in having the winding road or obstacles really flying at you.  That established, I constantly remind my guys that they have to supply the challenges.  In other words, if they move at breakneck speed through the course, the obstacles come at them at a pace that will actually help them with their game.

Of course, there also comes a time — when kids get older — when the real-life pylons are trying to kill them (or at least put a pretty good hurt on them).    And this is all the more reason for older players to approach any given course as quickly as they would rival checkers during a game.

If you click on the nearby photo you’ll see a video I previously posted in an entry about passing.  Yes, part of the drill was aimed at helping my NEHI Jr HS kids connect on passes.  But, I also incorporated a straight line of tires that had my young guys executing some pretty sharp cuts with a puck.  So, have a look before going on.

Now, one last point before showing you a few of the course designs I’ve used over the years.  You see, I think whatever kind of a course we use, it ought to fit a certain purpose, with our players understanding exactly what that purpose is.

For example, using a straight course for young players would be worthwhile for them if we first explained how the obstacles represent the “other team’s players” we want to go in and out of, and that it’s important that we use both sides of the stick to accomplish this.  Later on we might want to have them start using cross-overs to move themselves from side to side.

At the other end of the spectrum might be the kids you just saw in the above video…  Ya, most of those kids are attacking the tires as if they’re attempting to perform a highlight reel goal in an over-time game.

All that said, the following are some pylon course layouts I’ve used fairly regularly:

1)  The most obvious and most used course consists of just a straight line of obstacles.  Again, as noted above, that course is what you make of it.

2) Over recent years, this pattern has been one of my favorites.  I talk in terms of speed and highlight reel moves as the kids ready for this course, and I really push and prod them to attack it as fast as they can possibly go.

3) With an even number of pylons, a coach can pull every other one out so that players have to zig-zag and cup the puck with each cut.  Speed in this simple course can be adjusted according to the age and caliber of skater.

4) This can be a fairly advanced course, owning to the fact that players have to make very sharp cuts — with their skates and with a puck.  And again, speed should be adjusted per the level of our players.

Finally, such courses really are what we make of them.  And so do our players reap benefits according to the way they negotiate them.

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Have questions or suggestions concerning this entry?  Please leave a Comment below.

Contributor: Dennis Chighisola — Whitman, Massachusetts, USA

Drill Category: Skating, Passing, Pass Receiving, Attacking and Defending

Drill Description:

Comments: This is perhaps one of the most versatile drills I have ever used.  In it’s basic form, Russian Circle Passing is a great up-tempo drill that includes fast skating, great puck movement, and any form of attack on net a coach chooses.  Better yet, CoachChic.com members will be treated to numerous variations of this drill that include all sorts of offensive and defensive match-ups (please see the link to drill variations down below).

Benefits:
Again, this is a great up-tempo drill that incorporates fast skating, the need to provide good stick targets, and the need to connect on passes as receivers move through circular patterns.

Running the drill:

- In the basic set-up, skaters are lined-up along the boards and behind a blue line on both sides of the ice.

- The drill begins with one player skating (without a puck) around the center face-off circle and providing a good stick-target for the first player in the other line.

- The first player in the other line hits the circling player with a pass, and the pass receiver then continues on to attack the goal in any way the coach prescribes (either shooting or deking the goaltender).

- Upon making a pass, a player leaves his or her line to circle and receive a pass from the other line.

Obviously, this drill should be run so that the players circle to the left (as shown), and then to the right (by just moving the lines to the opposite side boards).

Click image below to see a short video on the basic drill. (CoachChic.com members may click on this link for numerous other Variations on Russian Circle Passing.)

Todd Jacobson is still off with his women’s team at Notre Dame Academy for the next few months.  Of course, that won’t prevent him from occasionally sending us updates, ideas or further insight into goalie training.

In the meantime, my Team NEHI kids keep practicing and playing, and I’m still here to show you a little of what we’re doing.  And, picking-up from where we left-off in Part 3 of this series, I’m going to show you another step in those 2-puck Drill progressions.

– Dennis Chighisola

Creative Training Ideas for Goalers! Part 4

If you haven’t already, please take a quick run through the earlier post on this topic.  (It would be a good idea if you view the previous “Creative Training Ideas for Goalers” entries, just so you have an idea of how the next drill evolved.)

Now that our goalies can tumble and find one ball with pretty good regularity, it’s time to move them on towards a REAL challenge.

I mean, we all thought that 2-puck Drill was pretty difficult, huh?  Well, wait until you get a look at this one…

Here a netminder is tumbling, but he’s confronted with having to find and catch two balls at the same time!  Not easy folks, but it’s awesome to help a goalie deal with all the craziness that happens around him, and with the need to find a puck amid chaos.

So, have a look at the video (just click on the photo below)…

Well, to date that’s it for progressions along this line.  But, I’m still thinking, and I’m hoping you are, too.

Actually, maybe you can help with some new ideas.  Todd and I would love your Comments or suggestions!

As a postscript, I’m posting a link to this video from the Highlight Reel Skills section, mainly because the young goalie in this video demonstrates something I want all of my players to have.  I mean, did you notice his reaction when he failed one time?  Sure, I think he felt a little embarrassed.  At the same time, however, I think he was laughing at himself, knowing full well that he can eventually lick that challenge.  So again, that’s an awesome training attitude to have, the ability to laugh at oneself as you try new challenges.  And it’s something I always noticed about the kids I had who went on to make a name for themselves in the game.

– Dennis Chighisola

It isn’t often that I’ll ask skaters to take a look at a goalie training segment.  Naw, you guys and gals USUALLY have enough on your minds without worrying about another position.  This time, however, what I’m about to suggest to you might just make all the difference in the world as you approach a new year.

Now, before reading further, I’m going to ask that you click on the photo below and watch the very short video of a Team NEHI goaltender doing a VERY difficult drill.  Please don’t read on until you’ve done that, and then I’ll see you below.

– Dennis Chighisola

Starting Your Hockey Year Off Right!

Ah, gotta love those kinds of guys…

Okay, now I hope you noticed my young goalie friend making a mistake and missing the balls one time in the middle of that video.  But, more importantly, I hope you noticed his reaction.  Just take a look again at the photo above for a hint at what I’m getting at.

Sure, I’ll bet he was a little bit embarrassed to muff the drill.  But, did you also notice he was laughing at himself?

Now, most members know that I’ve been doing what I do for about 40-years, and that I’ve taught thousands upon thousands of young players, with quite a few of them making a name for themselves in our game.

Want to know a common trait I’ve seen in all the best of them, though?  Well, it’s the same one demonstrated by the goaler in that video.  Yup, the best have always seemed to be able to laugh at themselves — or just shrug-off a mistake, and keep going right back at the challenge (again and again and again).

There are countless examples of this in sports lore, one story having to do with the great home run hitter, Babe Ruth.  Yes, the Sultan of Swat for a very long time held the record for the most homers hit in a career.  Yet, did you know that The Babe also held the record for the most career strikeouts?  That didn’t seem to get him down, though.  No, he just kept coming back, swinging and swinging and swinging.

And did you also ever consider that the top baseball hitters — hitting around .300 — actually make outs more than two out of three times they go to bat?  None of those guys would skip another try in the batter’s box, however.  Again, like Ruth, you can be sure they looked forward to yet more swings.

So, this is my New Years gift to all my CoachChic.com friends…  If you’re a player, learn to inwardly laugh at your mistakes, and keep coming back for more swings.  I promise you’ll ultimately get it, when lots of others got discouraged and dropped by the wayside.  And, if you’re a parent or coach, try to encourage this very worthwhile trait with those in your charge.

Happy New Year!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

From my family to yours…

– Dennis Chighisola

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And please remember…  This is YOUR HOCKEY RESOURCE SITE, and all you need to do is ask for help, advice or direction and I promise to deliver it promptly!  So, let’s make 2010 awesome — together!

Contributor: Dennis Chighisola — Whitman, MA USA

Drill Category: Forward & Backward Skating, Passing and Receiving

Drill Description:

Please see the Straight Line Cycling Drill for details on the initial set-up.

As for the variation…

• The drill runs exactly like the basic one, with this exception…  The passer carries the puck to mid-ice, then begins skating backwards.
• About half the distance back to his starting place, that player initiates a pass cross-ice while still skating backwards.

Objective of the Drill:

Backward skating and puckhandling are involved in this variation.

Better yet, the most difficult pass to make in hockey is one done while moving backwards, so this drill forces players to work on that skill numerous times within just a few minutes.  (A player doesn’t have the chance to use his or her full body to generate force in this kind of pass.)

Running the drill:
Please watch the video linked below to see the variation in progress.

Click image below to see a short video.

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Have questions or suggestions concerning this drill?  Please leave a Comment below.

Contributor: Dennis Chighisola — Whitman, MA USA

Drill Category: Skating, Puckhandling, Passing and Receiving

Drill Description:

Groups of threes perform this drills across the ice.

All players can (and should) participate in this kind of drilling, from forwards to defensemen to goaltenders.

• Two players assume start positions on one side of the ice, with one of these players having a puck
• A third player begins at the other side boards.
• The player with the puck carries it to mid-ice, and then fires a firm, flat pass onto the stick-target of the man on the other side of the ice.
• The passer follows his pass and takes the place of the pass receiver.
• The pass receiver now carries the puck to mid-ice and makes a good pass to the man on the other side boards.

(The sketches shows the layout of players, while the video below accomplishes more than I could do in words.)

Objective of the Drill:

It’s a sound practice for players to follow their passes.

So is it helpful for players to work on their passing skills while moving.

This drill makes it necessary for the passer to be extra accurate when sending the puck, since his or her target is in a stationary posture.

As an added benefit…  I find that with the passer moving towards his or her target, a fairly firm pass requires the receiver to have really soft hands in executing the catch.

FYI…  We do our weekly individual skills session on a mini-rink (shown in the video below), so the short distance across the ice dictates less skating and quicker passes than when we do the same drill later in the week on a regulation sized ice surface.

Running the drill:
Please see the video below to see how the drill looks in progress.

Click image below to see a short video.

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Have questions or suggestions concerning this drill?  Please leave a Comment below.

PS: Watch for a variation on this drill within a day or so.

Now, this entry was inspired by a coach asking for some guidance when it comes to changing on-the-fly.  More specifically, he was wondering if there is a certain age or level when players can be expected to learn this.  So, let me give that a whirl, and let me add as much as I can about making those kinds of changes…

– Dennis Chighisola

Hockey Line Changes

Getting right to that coach’s main question here, my feeling is that the time to teach changes on-the-fly has an awful lot to do with a team’s overall game awareness.  Said yet another way, I’ll suggest that youngsters who have their basic skills under control, and those who are able to understand basic positioning should also be able to learn how to make exchanges while the game is in progress.  So, I’m guessing that decent Squirt or Atom players should be able to learn it.

As an aside…  I asked for some input on this subject, and I received a couple of good suggestions — about things I’d want to be sure to include here.  And first to arrive in my inbox was the suggestion from Mike M, who said, “Do them quickly and often to win games.”

Ya, quickly and often, which brings me to the timing of our shifts.

Now, I have to chuckle a bit as I think about how the earliest levels of our game frequently start-out by playing 2-minute buzzer-hockey.  The reason I’m laughing to myself is that an awful lot of kids, parents and even coaches believe that sort of timing should continue through later years, with the players staying out there on the ice for several minutes at a whack.

Of course, watching just one pro or college hockey game should change that impression.  For, teams at the highest levels probably play something closer to 30- or 40-second shifts.  Yup, go out, bust your buns, and then get-off!

When it comes to the timing of shifts, I’d like to insert this personal feeling, as well…  You see, while most folks are (rightly) concerned about the length of time players are out on the ice working, I’m as concerned for the players who are sitting.  This is a three-pronged thing with me…

• First, players who are sitting for any length of time are physically cooling-off, and I think this gets worse with the length of time they’re off their skates.  So, while there’s definitely a need for players to rest and catch their breath, I believe there is a point where time away from the ice becomes a negative.  (Is there a greater chance for injury as players sit for long stretches?  I don’t know, but I think this ought to at least be considered.)
• Secondly — and this is probably something most members haven’t thought about before…  I honestly believe that a player can get mentally out of the game if he or she is away from the action for very long.  In other words, I think there’s the real danger that a player can lose his or her focus and intensity during a long stretch away from the ice.  Consequently, I think a coach can keep his or her players more alert by quickly getting them back out there — quickly and often, as Mike M says.
• Then, maybe my third point is really a combination of the previous two.  For, I know that players like to stay in a certain kind of rhythm over the course of a period — especially my good players, and it’s hard for them to do this unless there’s a reasonable sort of rhythm to their shifts.

So again, as Mike M might say, “Do them quickly and often!”

As another sidebar when it comes to keeping my players in the flow of things…  It’s always driven me crazy when my team has suddenly taken a string of penalties.  All the above points come into play when that happens, with a number of my guys sitting and getting cold, getting themselves out of the game, mentally, and also getting out of that proverbial rhythm.

Oh, I might add one more thing to the timing of shifts…  I usually like to keep the earliest shifts in a period a little on the short side.  I want to get everybody a quick taste of the action, and I also want to delay the build-up of lactic acid as best I can.  I might lengthen the shifts just a tad in the middle of a period, and then go back to shorter ones as the period winds down.  This approach is really just a personal thing with me, but I’ve sensed through the years that my players have benefited from it.

Now, as for going about the teaching of line changes, I recommend that members next watch my brief video on “Dumping the Puck“.  As you’ll see there, the right kinds of dump-ins provide units the “time” to make changes without getting caught shorthanded.

I also believe bench decorum plays a big part in effectively getting changes on-the-fly.  So, I highly suggest these things…

• During each period, all defensemen should sit on the defensive end of the bench, while all the forwards sit on the offensive end.  Getting our guys (or gals) even closer to their end of the ice, the next defense pair will sit closest to the defensive zone, and my next forward line sits closest to the offensive zone.
• I make it a rule that players who are going out next should keep a very close eye on the man they’ll replace.  In other words, the instant a centerman enters the play, the next centerman must keep focus on him (or her).  Why so soon?  The idea is for us to never get caught shorthanded — should a player limp to the bench with an injury, should he discover an equipment problem, whatever.  The point is, unforeseen things can happen seconds into a shift, and the next player up has to immediately notice if or when he’s needed.

Then, there’s the matter of the actual exchange of personnel…

As much as I like having players go over the boards as they enter the ice, we coaches must take into consideration the height of the boards in comparison to our players.  Under normal circumstances, this probably suggests that those at least below Pee Wees aren’t going to be able to make the climb.  However — and believe it or not, I’ve actually coached at a few rinks where even high school players weren’t able to get over the unusually high boards.  That in mind, I think all players should learn to properly enter and exit through the bench doors.  And for more help in this area, I suggest that members refer to my article on “Buzzer Hockey Line Changes“.  (Don’t let the title fool you; there’s valuable information there about older players changing on-the-fly.)

Next, there’s the matter of when to change.  And for this, I have the following suggestions…

• You’d think that growing-up amid farms would have provided a great atmosphere for a young boy to hone his whistling skills.  Or, perhaps, that the powers that be could have had a course on whistling in my long ago Phys Ed studies.    The truth is, I can’t whistle a lick.  If I could, I’d use that as a signal for my guys to change.  Instead, though, I’ve had to resort to calling-out loudly, “Get a change!  Get a change!”  (Oh, well…)
• Now, the lengths of shifts can’t be totally dictated by the timing we’d like.  No, conditions for a successful change aren’t going to fall exactly every 35-seconds or so.  That said, I’ll usually opt for less than the desired time if it looks like going any longer is going to trap my guys out there.  For example, I have to know there’s the possibility that a unit heading down-ice on the attack is going to ultimately have to backcheck, and then breakout again in order to get a change on-the-fly.  And, presuming they’re not going to have the juice to accomplish all that, I’ll probably call for the early change.
• I might also call for an early change if a unit has been bogged-down in their own end for an extended period of time.  Hey, it’s just better to get fresh legs (and minds) out there, and to give the unit coming-off a little time to regroup.
• Of utmost importance is the need for the players on the ice to be absolutely sure the puck is safe before they turn and head-off. I mean, even though they see the puck being dumped, they mustn’t head to the bench until they’re absolutely sure that it is going to safely get through rival players and land deep in their opponents’ end.

Now, despite the fact that the next players up are supposed to be watching the man they’ll replace, I also like my players yelling their positions as they come-off.  In other words, as the left winger comes to our bench, he yells, “Left wing!  Left wing!”  I don’t know; it’s just a safety measure that makes me feel good.

Then, Deb K inspired the next suggestion…  You see, she’s not only a youth hockey parent and coach, but she’s also a referee.  So it should make sense that she’d joke a bit and offer, “Tell coaches about the changes so refs aren’t having to educate from the ice “

Deb’s comment in mind, this biggie…  From my perspective most of the “too many men on the ice” penalties are caused by the players who should be coming-off the ice, and these usually come about because the man coming-off either changes his mind or he fools the player who is supposed to replace him.  In other words, the guy coming to the bench gives every indication that he’s coming, the new player hops over the boards and onto the ice, and then the player who is supposed to come-off doesn’t.  (I don’t know of any way to actually practice this key communication, but I surely do beat it to death in conversations with my players.  I mean, I make it a very big deal that guys coming-off shouldn’t fool their replacements or change their minds at the last second.)

Finally, if a hockey coach feels that line changes are an important part of his or her team’s game, then it should make sense to practice these as often as other plays.  And, once established, it wouldn’t hurt to review them on occasion, and to also frequently talk about the principles involved.

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A lot of things go into proper line changes, and I almost fear I’ve forgotten a few.  If you think I have, please add a Comment so that this topic is eventually covered as thoroughly as possible!

Although I had my share of notoriety and recognition as a young football player, I’ll tell you — right up front — that I wasn’t all that hot.  However, I did have great hands (from my baseball background), and I could run like a deer (from honest to goodness great genes)! 

That said, I always was kind of a “thinker”, even as a kid, and even as a football player.  Oh, by the way, I also had one of the region’s best high school football coaches — far ahead of his time, I think he was, and he later went on to coach a string of championship semi-pro teams before settling in as a game film rater for the New England Patriots.

Anyway, the reason I mention all this is so that I can introduce the topic at hand.  For, one day during a defensive segment of a team practice, my old high school head coach described that “angle of pursuit” thing to his players.

You don’t have to totally understand this, because I’ll explain it better and show you later how this relates to our game.  But for now, what my coach was suggesting had to do with defenders needing to watch a ball carrier’s route — or anticipate where that route would take him, and then meet him at some point along that route.  Again, I’ll explain that far better in a minute.  However, just so you know, I was playing The Thinker again that day, inwardly shaking my head, and wondering to myself, “Does anyone really have to be told this?”  Oh, well…

– Dennis Chighisola

The Angle of Pursuit

Now, the answer to my question actually came by way of a video I watched just a few years ago, this from the Centre for Hockey Excellence in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.  For, in that video, former Canadian National Team coach, Dave King, took quite a bit of time explaining that very concept, and almost in the same way my old high school football coach had.

Okay, so here’s the gist of it, as it relates to our game…  If you click on the adjacent photo, you’ll see one player dump a puck that is destined to go around the boards and arrive near the opposite corner.  What you’ll also see is a skater from the other team chasing the puck in the wrong manner.  Go ahead, and watch that short video before you read on.

Confounding me, but giving validity to Dave King and my old football coach, I’ve come to realize that some athletes actually do follow behind in the pursuit of a puck or opposition player.

That out of the way, I’m sure my late-coach would appreciate the animation I’ve just created to show a little smarter way to pursue that same puck.  So, please click on the (left) photo to watch that video.

Now, it has been a long time since I viewed that piece by Dave King.  But, I recall him suggesting that we (hockey) coaches can run drills to show the merits of pursuing the puck rightly.  So, my next video shows two players taking different routes as they race for the loose puck (click on the photo below to view that).

You’re probably wondering what caused me to raise this “angle of pursuit” issue tonight.  Well, as I’ve been standing back and watching my young Mighty Mites team, attempting to drink-in as much as I can — about their specific needs, and about the way they learn.  And, I’ve been fascinated by a number of things…

- In one instance I watched a little 4-year old race back out of our offensive zone for a puck that had been tossed out to neutral ice.  The little tyke was skating right towards where I stood on the bench that afternoon, so I had a great view of what was to happen.  For, as he began to approach the puck, I saw him turn his head about halfway, this so he could see if anyone was nearby.  He next snatched the puck and made his exit in the direction opposite from the nearest rival.  Unbelievable or what?  The truth is, I actually run drills to ingrain that looking-over-their-shoulder thing in my older players, and most of them take quite awhile to make it a regular part of their game.  ???

- On a number of occasions I’ve seen members of that Mighty Mite team gain the puck along the side boards in their offensive end, and somehow realize they weren’t on the greatest shooting angle.  With that, they kept moving towards mid-ice with the puck, finally sending it on-goal once they reached a better angle.  And again, I felt this to be really good thinking for little guys who had only played a handful of games.

- Then, that old angle of pursuit thing…  I shot the following video really only as an example of how the game action looks in that instructional league.  I’m not sure you can pick-up anything special in this brief clip, but I’m going to suggest that some kids are moving laterally at times, just to keep themselves in the path of a rival puckcarrier, or — as if they knew enough to anticipate it — right in the path of a possible pass up-ice.  Go ahead; click on the photo (below), just so you can see some of their game action (my kids are in black, with our opponents in dark blue).

Now, I’ve written this entry for a number of reasons…

• First, if you never had cause to think about or teach the correct angle of pursuit, perhaps I’ve armed you with some valuable knowledge.
• Secondly, I hope the observations I’m sharing about my youngest team members awakens you (as it has me) to the fact that all of our players are growing organisms.  And, as such, we coaches and parents have the awesome responsibility of guiding them in that growth.
• Then, from what I learned on that long ago football practice field, it’s important to appreciate that some players do certain things instinctively (or seemingly so), while those same things evidently don’t come naturally to others.  And, while it might be easier to coach the gifted ones, I believe the true measure of a “teaching coach” is in our ability to help the players who really need it.  (Come to think of it, it’s only since I’ve grown older that I realized my old high school football coach dealt with us in that way.  So, God bless, Coach, and thanks so much.)

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You know how much I appreciate your feedback.  So, please do add your Comments here!

This is about a note I took as I watched our beginner (or Mighty Mites) team play in one of their earliest games a few weeks back…

Let me start by stating that my kids seemed as though they already skated faster than most opponents.  What caused me to jot that note, however, was that I knew my little guys could be much faster, and that I’d want them to be far, far faster as we got deeper into our season.

As an aside here, I think this might be a way of conveying how helpful note-taking can be — for a coach like me, for a player, or for a parent.  I mean, in this case I’m aiming at a long-term goal, and not one that’s going to be a one or two practice deal.  Probably making this point even better, I recently watched one of my teenaged guys play in a scrimmage with his high school squad, and I noticed an area of his game that still needs some work.  The fact that I recorded that in my diary when I arrived at home doesn’t help him now, since I won’t get to work with him again until next spring.  What will help him is the fact that I placed it among my March of 2010 notes, with it then acting as a reminder to design some things that will help him (and other like skaters) with that problem.  In the case of my Mighty Mites, my notes went under the next several Sundays, since that’s when we’ll be practicing.

Anyway, here are a couple of things I’m now doing for the sake of their skating speed.

– Dennis Chighisola

A Beginner Hockey Player’s Skating Speed

I hope you appreciate that skating speed can’t be solved by just one drill.  As a matter of fact, beginners tend to move around the ice better and better just from gaining more and more experience on their blades.  That said, there are a few things I feel I can do to hasten their development in this area.

If you haven’t done so already, I suggest you review two earlier posted videos (“21 Must-do Skating Drills for Beginners” and “24 Must-do Skating Drills for Intermediates”) as prerequisites to what I’m about to cover…

Going back to their earliest times on the ice for a moment, understand that most first-time skaters walk rather than skate, and they usually do this by inching their way along on the “flats of their skates”.  In other words, they don’t immediately thrust with one blade and glide on the sharp edge of the other.  No, again, they basically march or walk around the ice.

So, do you want to know what will ultimately encourage the desired push-offs or thrusts?  The answer is to introduce some form of resistance against the skater’s movement down the ice.  And, for beginners, I find their attempting to push a similarly sized partner down the ice on a chair works awesomely.

What you should know is that this kind of exercise almost adapts itself to the various player levels — or, should I say, the players from each level tend to use the exercise differently, and we can also coach it a little differently according to the players.

In the case of my Mighty Mites, I now view them as intermediates.  Ya, while they’re still very young, my little guys get around the ice really well at this point.  So I kinda push and prod them a little (not meanly or anything, but still trying to get them to work harder and faster), and I look for increasingly more speed with each repetition, and with each week that passes.  (Some footage of this drill in action can be found near the middle of my video on “24 Must-do Skating Drills for Intermediates”.)

For this next one, it would be extremely helpful if you review my video on “Analyzing the Forward Stride“.  For, in that analysis, you’ll see that a player’s arm — or shoulder — motions can help a great deal in adding rhythm, power and efficiency to his or her forward movement.  And, this all translates to better forward skating speed.

Anyway, over the past month I’ve had my kids regularly practicing pumping their arms (without sticks) — while standing in place and while moving down one side of the ice.  In the beginning we can expect a real forced, uncoordinated movement.  But, over time, even the youngest ones will ultimately put things together.  And again, when they do, you can expect that they’ll skate far faster than when their arms and legs were out of sync.  (Click on the adjacent photo to see my kids in their earliest attempts at coordinating the arm/shoulder pumps with their skating push-offs.)

I hope you appreciate how much getting the sticks out of this drill really helps the kids concentrate on their arm and shoulder swings.  As as matter of fact, I have my older guys practice their striding without sticks on a fairly regular basis.  (Oh, as you’ll also notice, some of these little ones are already getting it.  Actually, I just watched that video again, I thought to myself, “Aren’t they cute!!!”  Ya, I things in perspective:  These kids are adorable, but they also want to be taught to be successful.)

I’ve also added a second video from that group (click on the snapshot to the left), this one in slow-motion, so you can see how much of a difference the arm-swing makes in a young skater’s forward movement.

Finally, I can’t say enough about the benefits of holding competitions when working on skills that will ultimately require some urgency in a game.  For example, the group we’re studying now frequently engages in races for loose pucks, with the winner getting a chance to continue on towards the goal for a shot.  (If you click on this link you’ll see an example of that from an earlier post on “Loose Puck Races“.)

By the way, I also have these little guys do other sorts of races, sometimes with a little trick required in the middle.  In one such competition, I find it very appropriate for kids at this particular level to race down the ice, do a belly-flop at mid-course, and then recover as quickly as possible to sprint for an end-mark.

Currently, however, I’m adding a competition to the arm swing thing.  In other words, my kids are engaging in short races — again without sticks — while also needing to pump those arms.

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PS: As always, I love to know what you think. Please comment and even share this article with your friends.

Like a lot of adult members, I wear many hats.

For sure, I’m thinking hockey nearly 24/7; that’s what I love, and that’s what I love to immerse myself in.  At the same time, I’m a businessman.  And, whether I like it or not, I can’t keep doing what I really love to do unless I keep succeeding in that area, too.  Then, if there’s something that really keeps me on my toes, it’s the fact that so many hockey people rely on The Old Coach for guidance.

All that said, you might appreciate my need to devour books, manuals, videos and audio programs of all types.  Ya, even when I’m working on a hockey project, there’s a good chance I have a recording of some kind running in the background.  (Multi-tasking is my middle name.)

Of course, the New England Hockey Institute library is something most hockey folks would die for.  I mean, it’s just loaded with all sorts of training manuals and videos I’ve gathered over 40-ish years.  (Actually, a member has recently requested I share with others a list of my favorite hockey books and videos, and I’ve promised to do that here pretty shortly.)

What might surprise you, however, is that I’ve delved as much into the life stories of greats from outside hockey, or even from outside the sports world.  For, there’s something to be said for understanding the likes of famous statesmen, military leaders or businessmen (and women).  In fact, if they’re leaders in just about any field, I want to know how they think and how they function.

And there’s also something to be said for getting a daily spiritual boost — from my well worn Bible, as well as from a myriad of motivational speakers.  Yup, nothing picks me up and gets me going quicker than some good, honest positive talk.

And this all brings me to the subject at hand…  About a year ago I began following a pretty interesting guy on Twitter.  Billy Cox is his name, and his bio describes him as “…one of the most dynamic and entertaining authors and speakers in the world.”  And, as Billy says, his “Goal is to Energize People to Action and Inspire Positive Change!”

Anyway, today I needed a little energizing and inspiration, so I looked-up Mr Cox.  And, once I got into his presentation, I realized how much his words could help a good many of my CoachChic.com friends.  So, borrowed here from YouTube.com is what I think is an awesome video…

– Dennis Chighisola

Reacting to Adversity

( Billy Cox’s video title is “PERFORM BETTER“)

As a final preface to this video, I’m going to suggest that every one of us gets down at one time or another — I mean, it happens to everyone, from business people to parents to coaches to athletes.  And, as I so often share with my grandson, “I think the measure of any great person (or player) is seen in the way he or she reacts in tough times, or in times of adversity.”  (More to say on this at the very end!)

Okay, here’s that Billy Cox video.  And, while he’s obviously talking to a room full of business people here, this speech just as easily could have been staged in your team’s lockerroom or mine….

(If you visit YouTube.com, you’ll find a number of other similarly themed Billy Cox videos.)

Okay, so how do those Three P’s relate to our game of hockey?  Well, here’s my humble opinion:

1. Preparedness – Practice!  Practice!  Practice!  You know, I’m an incessant long-range planner, and I’m always asking those in my charge to look ahead.  Right now, for instance, you likely know about an important tryout that’s coming-up.  Or, there’s something you’d like to achieve by this season’s end.  In either case, you should have a feel for what needs to be done, and you also know exactly how much time you have to accomplish that.  From there, it’s a matter of attacking the long-range goal in small increments.  Ya, just lop those intermediate steps off, or…  Practice!  Practice!  Practice!
2. Persistence – I’ll tell you a funny story…  By the time I was an older teen, I’d failed at countless strength programs.  Ugh.  Then, one day, like out of the blue, I told myself that I was going to stick with a program just to see if all that I’d read really worked.  In other words, I’d read that after about 90-days I was guaranteed results.  So…  Hmmmm…  So, I stuck with that program — six days per week, and I never missed a session no matter what.  I also did all the other things rightly — this time, including sticking to a special diet.  So, what happened?  One night — not even 90-days into that lifting program, another teen spotted me with my shirt off in the gym lockerroom, and he asked me, “What do you do to get such a big chest?”  (Huh?  Is he talking to me?)  Shortly after, while out riding with a bunch of friends, the two guys on either side of me started complaining that my shoulders were taking up the whole back seat!  Ya, I’d realized by then that I’d gotten big — huge, in fact.  So, how did my earlier attempts at strength building differ from the one that worked?  It surely wasn’t the difference in the routines.  No, the reason my earlier tries failed was because I looked for quick gains, and I was too easily discouraged when they didn’t come.  And, the reason the last one worked was because I gave it an honest to goodness chance.  Man was I persistent — and faithful, to the max.
3. Playing the numbers – I like Cox’s stories about Ruth, Edison and Colonel Sanders, each suggesting that those men couldn’t be totally discouraged by setbacks.  So, another quick story…  I attended a special lecture one time when I was in college, this on the art of job hunting.  The guest speaker, a famous author on the subject, made one point clear enough that I still remember it to this day, suggesting to the audience that, a certain number of turn-downs should be expected before we’d likely hear that first, “Yes!”  In the end, he rationalized (and I paraphrase), “Why not get all those turn-downs out of the way so you can hurry to the answer you’re really looking for?”    Just think about that one for a sec…  After all, that’s the way Edison and The Colonel handled such matters!

So, in closing…  If you’re not currently getting the results you want, prepare yourself even better for future tries, be persistent, and play the numbers (as in getting all the setbacks out of the way so you can get on to the good stuff)!

Oh, and speaking of learning about how some of the great minds think, here’s an appropriate quote from General George Patton:

“I don’t measure a man’s success by how high he climbs but how high he bounces when he hits bottom.”

Finally — and since there’s the likelihood we’ll all feel a little discouraged from time to time, why not save this page among your favorites?  I know I’m going to be revisiting that video often.

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If you liked this — or even if you didn’t, I’d love to hear your feedback or Comments!

Ya, that’s pretty much what the pitchman said on the radio this morning…

– Dennis Chighisola

On Sale:  Hockey Skates & Sticks!

  The reason I’ve decided to comment on this particular advertisement is because I immediately thought of our buddy, Jerry Z, as I heard it!

Actually, the sponsor was a well known hockey equipment super store, but the message wasn’t really for us serious hockey players, coaches or parents.  Naw, what they were peddling was “pond hockey gear”!  I mean that, and that’s exactly the expression the announcer used: “pond hockey”.  And, as best I can recall, that equipment was/is selling for $40 to $60, or thereabouts.

Now, why did I choose to raise this issue here?  It’s because Jerry owns two pairs of in-lines skates, with one pair being of pretty good quality and the other pair being rather questionable.  (You can go back and see about our previous exchange on Jerry’s sticks and skates by clicking here.)

Okay, I know that sophisticated members usually know exactly what they want when they enter an equipment shop or store.  But I can’t blame any new hockey player or parent from being confused when he or she sees the wide array of products carried by some merchants.  (I suspect that’s what happened to Jerry his first time around.  In fact, why would a new skater even realize that some of the stuff made by a reputable company could be junk?)

Anyway, that’s the point of this article, to help save anyone who might be fairly new to such things.  And, if I had to advise new players or parents of new players, here are a couple of things that come to mind immediately…

1) Even though a company might be known for their high quality gear, there’s the likelihood that they also produce low quality equipment for recreational type players.

2) Most of the pro shops (or those located inside local rinks) primarily carry gear that is more suitable to competitive players.  They may have some lower priced articles for real young players or adult rec skaters, but even that gear should meet player needs for a time.

3) It should make sense for a customer to ask plenty of questions wherever he or she does shop.  Armed with the above information (and loads of other equipment advice distributed here at CoachChic.com), he or she ought to have a better sense of what’s needed before even arriving at the store.

4) All that said, I’m going to share one more thing I’ve noticed…  A lot of the so-called super stores hire athletes to wait on their customers.  That’s the good part.  Perhaps the not-so-good part might be if a family is trying to get “expert hockey help” from a tennis player or swimmer.  This again probably suggests going to a rink pro shop when you need advice.  They’re almost always manned by current or former players, and usually by people who really like what they do.

Man, where has this article — or this line of thinking — been all my coaching life?

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Now, I’m going to bite my tongue (for as long as I can stand it), and let you read this unbelievable piece by Mental Edge’s Shaun Goodsell.  Thereafter, you know I’m going to have LOTS to say!

– Dennis Chighisola

Shaun Goodsell, MA

President and CEO of Mental Edge

Blinded by Winning

As the winter sports kick-off I am preparing for the many questions I will field as teams and individual athletes seek to chase their ideal success.  Athletes, coaches and parents will invest enormous resources of time, energy and money to climb that ladder of whatever they are chasing that defines success. Some will determine success by wins and losses; others will use a post-season appearance or a championship and still others will dig deep to frame success in ways that cannot be defined in visible ways. However each team or individual defines success, there is no doubt there will be ups and downs along the way.  The small successes and disappointments experienced on the journey are significant in dictating the overall success at the end of the season.

Recently, I have been looking for a mental paradigm that can help people look at their season in a way that helps to prepare them and their teams to play better at the end of the season than at the beginning. Here is the challenge as I see it:

For years I have been hearing that each time a team or player sets out to perform they should be their best. Coaches talk about bringing your best game day in and day out. Parents go watch in the hopes of seeing a quality performance and a win. There is no doubt that watching a winning performance is fun and exciting. However, winning can at times blind us to what makes us vulnerable as an athlete and as a team. It is as though chasing the Win becomes the goal instead of seeking to use the contest as a learning opportunity to reveal to us what requires work to make us most invincible at the end of the season. Wins, although important, often blind teams and individuals to vital points of development that if not fixed sabotage teams and individuals from the ultimate goal they may be chasing. What might be true is that a well timed loss or short term disappointment may be more critical leading to success of the team because of the focus it creates on what makes a individual and team vulnerable later on in the season.

We need to value the learning that can occur through points of defeat and disappointment. To do this requires us to lessen our focus on winning and increase our emphasis on learning. Every athlete and team should ask themselves after a win or loss, “What did we learn about ourselves and our team?” Subsequently, “What do we need to do in order to get better in that aspect of the game?” Becoming seduced by the short-term success of a win can alter our ability to learn crucial lessons about ourselves that can be bridges to long-term success. Every moment needs to be seen as part of a bigger picture. Doing this allows learning to be a viable goal each time we perform.

This season consider learning from disappointments and team losses and resolve to use them to improve yourself and your team. You will find that you will elevate your game with this mindset when in the past you had become frustrated and disappointed and missed those vital points of learning that kept you stuck.

At Mental Edge we desire to challenge people to experience breakthrough in their lives by establishing new thinking skills and thought patterns leading to a renewed energy for their lives and what is possible. If you are ready to make breakthrough changes in your life, please call Dawn to take the first step at 763.439.5246!

Until next time, here’s to your possibilities!

Shaun

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Okay, let me begin by saying that a “young Coach Chic” would have taken the “W” over anything else.  Thank God I changed my ways by the time I started working with my second generation of players!

Now, let me tell you a few things that should help validate Shaun’s comparison of wins versus losses (or learning experiences:

1. I started using video-tape back in 1979.  And, back in those days, I had a great dad who followed my high school hockey teams, and he was also really into video.  So, we arranged that he’d tape all the games he could attend, while I spent countless hours studying those tapes.  A funny thing happened very early-on, however.  I discovered that games in which we won big were of almost no value to me.  I mean, it seemed as if only tough opponents really exposed our weaknesses or showed me the things I had to do to help my kids back at practice.
2. By now, members know my penchant for note-taking.  In fact, there’s an entire category here that allows me to share some of the things I record.  Anyway, much like what I discovered from the study of videos, I’ve come to realize that my notepad is nearly blank after an easy win, and it is crammed full whenever we suffer a setback.  Ya, again, it takes a stronger opponent to expose the things we really need to work on.
3. Next, I need to say that a combination of things have helped me become a better coach…  Number One — and what I see as a main part of Shaun’s article — is that This Old Coach has had to be open to learning.  Secondly, and as you should have gathered from the first two points, I’ve needed to face some tougher opponents each season in order to learn or to grow.  (In actuality, I don’t think I’ve have ever arrived at some of my training inventions or training manuals unless I first found I was failing at something.  Ya, think about that one, if you would.)
4. Lastly, I know my players are better today than they were on opening night, mainly because of the very “mindset” Shaun describes.  Thankfully, I have managed to convince my players and (most of) their parents (as well as myself) that “Development comes first.”  If you think about it, “winning at all costs” usually requires shortcuts, or shortchanging players.  You know what I mean:  a coach only skates certain kids in a tight game, he or she arranges lines or defense pairs solely for the sake of winning, or a coach pays more attention to the best players during the practices because they’re the ones who spell “W-I-N-S” for him or her.  On the other hand, I can’t tell you what a relief it is to put development first…  With that, I probably pay a hair more attention to the kids who need to catch-up with the rest of our roster; our practices are mainly dictated by what the kids need for the long-term; I spread my talent evenly over all the lines so that kids are learning from each other; and — until the last minute or so of a close game, I just keep rolling my lines with no regard for the “W”.  (FYI…  I do one thing each week that might seem like it’s for the sake of winning, in that we do have a set powerplay unit for each game.  However, that’s actually used as a reward for practice attendance!)

Finally, as for my comment about “where has this article been all my life?”  Well, I’ve lost a few hockey families through years, mostly due to the fact that I couldn’t convince them that long-term gains were far more important than stats, championships or trophies.  And, while I wish I had Shaun’s article to help sway them back then, I plan on using it to save some future folks in need.

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Double-dare you to argue this one in our Comments area! 

One of our outstanding strength coaches and good friend, Jason Price, wrote this piece for Athletes Equation, and it does have a slant towards strength training.  However, I’d like players, parents and coaches to look at it more from a “player’s” perspective — in other words, as this same line of thinking might apply to correcting hockey skill-type errors.  So, give it a try, huh?  I think you’ll see what I mean…

– Dennis Chighisola

The Difference between Error Recognition & Awareness for Athletes & Coaches

Jason Price, MS, CSCS, ATC, CPT, USAW Club Coach

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“There is a great difference between recognizing an error.. and accepting an error as an error — an acceptance that implies full responsibility for correcting that error. Full awareness implies willingness to change, and we may not be ready to do that.”

As a coach I can’t make an athlete correct an error. I can only direct them towards making the correction. It is easy for an athlete to say they understand or recognize an error taking place. But, it isn’t until they are fully aware of the error that they can correct it.

So, why is understanding this difference between recognizing errors and becoming aware of errors important for coaches and athletes? It is because ultimately it is up to the athlete to make the correction, not the coach. The coach can only teach proper technique or how to do a skill; they cannot “make” the athlete do it correctly. Making errors and mistakes is what athletes must do to learn, grow and improve. But the athlete must want to understand their body and what they are asking it to do.

An example of this is one of the simplest drills in the weight room. The Romanian Deadlift (or stiff legged deadlift) is a simple exercise which requires only movement at the hip while stabilizing the other joints involved. Seems simple, but wait, because it is actually one of the more difficult exercises to coach. Simply, it’s because many individuals are not aware of what their body is doing. They think they are doing one thing and then they do something completely different.

This is where understanding the difference between error recognition and awareness comes into play. Coaches mostly recognize errors and flaws in what is being asked of the individual. That is what we do. But, how many coaches try to teach awareness?

Now this may not be appropriate for all levels of coaching. For the personal trainer, strength coach, athletic trainer, physical therapist and some sport coaches this is exactly what is missing from their instruction on some drills. If an athlete just doesn’t seem to get it and you are hammering home the same points, change it up. Put it on their shoulders to truly become aware of what they are doing. If the athlete or individual doesn’t understand they are making an error, they can’t become aware. Again, using the Romanian Deadlift example, my goal as a coach is to try to make the person aware when they don’t move at the hip or don’t fully stabilize. I can tell them all I want what they did wrong. However, unless they are aware they won’t make the correction.

So next time you are coaching a drill or exercise, instead of focusing on telling individuals what they are doing wrong and how to correct it, ask them what they are aware of, or that they are doing. Ask them how it feels for them try to make the correction without you having to tell them or position them over and over. Yes, this may take a little longer at first, but it will save you time in the long run.  For, as the trainee or athlete learns this skill, they will be ready to be aware of what they are doing as they are learning any new skill.

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Be a friend:  EVERY worthwhile Comment really helps Coach Chic!

As you might recall, a big part of the reason I took-on Jerry Z (as sort of a private project) was that I felt this would greatly help you.  Of course, Jerry has said that our work together has also helped him plenty.

My reason for raising that point again is that the following should give you further insight into the ways I study a player (or players), as well as how I tend to arrive at given solutions.  Ya, I think it should help both beginners and advanced folks if you can follow this old coach’s thought processes.

– Dennis Chighisola

Improving Your Hockey Skating at Home

Now, I’d like to begin by showing you a fairly recent clip of our friend moving around the roller hockey floor.  (Understand that there’s virtually no difference in the way I view an in-line skater versus an ice hockey player.)  So, please click on the first photo (to the left) and watch that video before going on.

From my viewpoint, Jerry is miles from where he was when we first met.  He actually doesn’t do badly moving around that floor nowadays.  Still, my old but experienced eyes tell me there’s more that can be done to enhance his movements.  And, in this case, I’d like you to watch that video again — this time concentrating on the slo-mo part at the end, to see if you can notice how his arms and legs are still just a little bit out of sync.

With that hopefully established, there’s something else at play here, and it’s something I think should help other skaters even more.  You see, between our conflicting schedules (that make it hard for us to meet often) and the onset of winter here in New England (which undermines his outdoor training), Jerry is going to have to lean more and more on practicing indoors, at home, and in fairly small areas.  So, as I just suggested, there might be some things you can borrow from what we’re now doing.

Okay, as we get into my trying to help sync Jerry’s movements, please click on the next photo (below) and keep referring to this video for awhile…

It begins with him working with my Skater’s Rhythm-bar in The MOTION Lab.  (Even better than video, the large mirror he’s using throughout this clip should give Jerry instant feedback.)

Now, over time, the R-bar will help loosen a skater and bring him or her into sync.  So, that’s the point of my sticking with that form of training, as well as incorporating some of the things shown in the next parts of that clip.

Actually, as I was shooting that segment with the Rhythm-bar, I noticed that Jerry was still too tight or too rigid.  So, I had him set aside the bar, and I asked him to just try to relax (be kind of “loosey-goosey” is how I put it).  If you can appreciate it, any tenseness is going to rob Jerry — or any skater — of valuable energy.  Oh, for sure a player has to do some things forcefully as he or she skates.  At the same time, clenching the hands or tightening the upper body for no reason is definitely not good.

Lastly in the above video is a clip that shows Jerry wearing a weighted vest and jumping laterally for a short distance.  Of course, skating isn’t just about the legs, and it isn’t just about pumping the arms or shoulders.  No, skating is a full body motion  (or at least it is if one wants power and maximum efficiency).  And that’s what we’re attempting to work on with Jerry doing that jumping exercise.  If you’ll notice, he didn’t really put it all together in his first trip down the floor.  However, I think my giving him a mental picture — telling him to “really coil-up” — helped him look really good on his next attempt.

So, that’s about where we were early last week when Jerry visited the Lab again.  And, still looking to pull everything together for him, I adapted a drill I normally use with my fairly advanced players, this incorporating the bungee cord I described in a recent post (“New England Hockey Recycles!“). Now, if you click on the photo to the right, you’ll see Jerry doing that lateral jumping movement again, but this time supported by the bungee.  In reality, I’ve asked him to jump for a point just a little ahead, this to create some tension in the rope.

For your sake (and so Jerry can see), I’ve also included a slow-motion version of the above video.  Clicking on the final photo you should notice how the rope’s supporting him is probably helping to sync the movements (or it’s probably making it easier for him to move in the right way).  That said, there’s one more point…  Like all relatively new skaters (and some more experienced ones), a good knee bend is a problem.  I mean, I’ve probably sounded like a broken record to Jerry through these past months, constantly reminding him to sit low, or bend his knees.  However — and maybe it’s because he’s working against a little resistance, but it surely looks to me as if he IS bending his knees a little more in that video!

Finally, that bungee skating approach truly is effective — for working on mechanics or form, and it can be adapted to enhance strength and/or conditioning for more advanced skaters.  As I’ve explained in the earlier linked article, it’s really easy to make your own training device, and the materials can usually be obtained at no cost.  Of course, as with all training devices, safety should be your first concern.

Now, I’m always worried that a more sophisticated member might discount things like I’ve noted above.  That in mind, let me tell you about something that came to mind as I was writing this piece…

Years ago I used to frequently cross paths with local NHL scouts.  Back in that time, I happened to read about a young tough guy who was borderline in making the jump from a minor league roster to the big club.  The knock on him:  His skating wasn’t up to NHL caliber.

Actually, I’d seen that player skate a few times, and I knew that his problems weren’t unlike those I’ve described above.  Sure, that guy was only one notch away from the big time.  But, that’s the point I’m trying to make here, in that very experienced skaters can have similar problems to near beginners.  And, I can tell you that that out-of-sync thing is exactly what was holding the young pro back.

Well, to finish the story…  I called the scout associated with that kid’s team, and I offered to square away his skating stride.  The scout answered, “That would be great, but we just traded him (to wherever)!“ 

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Your Comments are truly welcomed here!

Now, before coaches of older players see the below photo and think this is all about beginner hockey, I want you to know that I have some very important tidbits to share with advanced folks at the end of this piece. And, while the early part of this IS about teaching little ones, I think those who work with Mites through at least Pee Wees ought to seriously consider slight adaptations to what I’ll offer here…

– Dennis Chighisola

Off-ice Hockey Tactical Practice

If you don’t know by now — that I’m a huge fan of off-ice training, I guess you never will. I especially like to teach a lot of my playing system away from costly ice-time… I mean, I could talk about things like slot coverage or a given breakout move for a good 20-minutes, and that doesn’t require ice.

Actually, I can be a little flip when I hear a coach complain about his lack of practice ice-time, quite frequently answering with, “I’d like to think I could get the job done in a dawgoned closet!”

Okay, maybe not in a closet. But, I surely can teach in a parking lot, in the rink runway, or even in a tiny lockerroom.

Take, for example, my recent need to teach face-off positioning to my very young Mighty Mite team. These kids had never played a game before this past month. So, I encouraged our team parents to have their youngsters watch the “Learn Hockey – with Coach Chic & Chomper” video (a kzillion times).

I next took the team to a lockerroom where a face-off circle had already been drawn on the floor (see the adjacent photo). I’ve previously mentioned how water-based spray paint can be used on the ice for special marking, while large sticks of chalk prove awesome for marking on the rink’s dark colored rubber mats.

Now, please click on the second photo (below) to see a short video of my kids learning to line-up for face-offs. I’d like you to do that now, so you’ll have a better sense of what I’m about to explain or describe.

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Okay, I’m guessing that this is about our 4th time holding such an off-ice session. In the first few it took awhile for the kids to locate the five face-off spots.

Until the day this video was shot, we didn’t pay any mind to the names of the positions. (Hey, one small thing at a time.) However, now that it’s time to identify those spots, I’ve decided to stick to just one per week. And – just like I’m doing in the video, I’ll be hammering and hammering at just one (actually two terms on this day, “center” and “center-man”). The kids need that, you know –- my repeating the term and their having to constantly say it.  For, only in that way will it become a regular part of their hockey vocabulary.

Notice how I’m also able to slip-in some applicable rules – like only the center being allowed inside the circle, as well as the one about “hash marks” separating opponents.  (The kids learned that from Chomper and me — LOL!)

By the way… You might be startled by my seeming yelling at/to the kids. But, they’ve learned to giggle when I do that, and not take the gruff voice seriously at all.

As for the future…

Next week I’m going to keep reviewing the center position, and introduce two “wings”. Ya, I’ve thought about that for awhile, and few of these kids know their left from their right. So, I asked our parents to have the kids watch that movie more (that helps with the left/right issue), and to also see if they can teach their kids at home. As I explained to them, “Knowing left from right is going alleviate lots of future frustrations.”

So again, I’m just going to ask kids to identify the two wing (or “winger”) spots without them having to tell left from right right now. The next week they should be ready to learn where two “defensemen” line-up.

Oh, by the way… Notice our young goaltender in the background of that photo (in a gold jersey). He’s positioned there to orient our kids. Knowing he’s there, skaters can also tell me that we’re attempting to score on an imaginary net located at the opposite end of the ice (or room).

Believe it or not, shortly after the camera was turned-off, I moved the goalie to the other end of the room. Oh, I saw a few blank stares with that — at first. However, within a minute or so the kids were able to line-up facing in the other direction. (Gotta love it, huh?)

FYI… Notice who else is learning the game here. I mean, when we’re dealing with very young players, doesn’t it make sense that their parents know at least as much about the game as the kids do? You bet!

I hope to later show you some video of the way I teach off-sides to first-time players. My kids don’t need to know that for the first few months of their season, but they will need to know down the line. Anyway, what I’ll do is draw one line on the floor (per coach), and then have a coach walk with a ball or off-ice puck while a little guy approaches the line with the coach. The coach might delay crossing the line at times, which requires the player to also hold back. At other times the coach will quickly get the ball on-side, allowing the player to enter the imaginary zone.

I’m sure I’ll arrive at other ways to teach the game in that dressingroom. So, stand by for more as the weeks go by.

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Okay, I promised to mention how I’ve used this method with older kids. Sooooo…

- A few years back I was coaching a springtime Squirt-aged team that received no practice ice. I needed to teach those youngsters some semblance of a team system, so I used my trustworthy chalk and the lockerroom floor to do this. I had the room represent our offensive zone for a few weeks so I could teach a simple forecheck, I used it later to teach defensive zone coverage, and I drew circles to show the kids some basic face-off plays and coverages.

- Another time I was coaching a Pee Wee aged group, and I used a large area outside our pre-game lockerroom to teach my way of covering defensive face-offs. Again, it was on a big circle I’d drawn with chalk.

- Then, believe it or not, I pulled that chalk out countless times when I was coaching in college, mainly to show some adjustments I wanted to make between periods. Oh, I suppose my greaseboard would have satisfied our needs. At the same time, there is something extra beneficial to a player (or players) actually moving through a given play.

Have you done something similarly, or do you have an idea that might expand on the above concepts? We’d all love to hear about them in a Comment!

As much as I work on it (and harp on it during games), my older (even high school-aged) players still end-up waltzing with a partner or two in the bench doorway as they change on the fly. I mean, the kids coming off the ice think that’s as important as the fresher kids coming on, so they often get stuck and entangled, and they quite often delay us in getting fresh legs onto the ice.

Now, I’m thinking that the mob-scene-at-the-door thing is a learned trait, and one that’s been ingrained over an older kid’s decade or so of playing the game (without my kind of discipline). So, when it came time for me to organize my new Mighty Mite team (of first-time players), I thought I’d start them rightly…

– Dennis Chighisola

Buzzer Hockey Line Changes

Actually, the above didn’t strike me until I heard the buzzer that ended the first shift of our very first Mighty Mite game. On the spot, though, it hit me that I could start my little guys off on the right foot by getting them into a really good habit.

This was my thinking…

For changes on the fly, I like my older guys to come and hug the boards in front of our bench until the replacement skaters have hit the ice. That’s all that’s required for a legal change like this – for my guys to be “at the bench”. And, with them against the boards and away from the doorway, fresh guys can jump quickly into the play.

Of course, there’s no changing on the fly in buzzer hockey (instead there are timed 2-minutes shifts in my little guys’ league). But, these kids DO have to switch roles – one 5-player unit leaving the ice with another 5-players coming on to replace them. So, I decided to get my kids in the habit of doing as is shown in the accompanying photo – with the kids coming off the ice lining-up in front of our bench until replacements have entered the ice.

If you click on that photo (above) you’ll see a brief video of our player exchange. And, while I sense this action isn’t quite automatic to them yet, I suspect that within a few more weeks it will be. Again, I’m talking about habit here, and I’m hoping this small group of players will ultimately have this ingrained in them. Better yet, perhaps I’ll suggest that the organization these kids are headed to in future years might help reinforce this in their next few age groups (maybe through Mites and into Squirts).

Any thoughts on the above?  Your Comments really help me!

A lot of years ago a young coach wrote me to ask about making his own agility ladder. For sure, these are available through sporting goods stores and on-line. But, that young coach was asking about building one for a very good reason.

You see, he’d watched a video showing my teams training with the ladders, and he noticed a couple of things that made mine a little different than the store-bought kind.

First, I actually like to use my ladders on the ice at times, or on a rink’s runway mats with my kids wearing their skates. And for this, my ladders had to have rungs that wouldn’t be damaged by skates, or that wouldn’t do damage to the players’ skates. So, I made the rungs out of strips of heavy rubber, with these strung along very heavy ropes.

Secondly, I wanted to add a little twist to the ladders my hockey players use… My thinking was that their footwork has to be in answer to all the obstacles they encounter in the game action. And that footwork is NOT in a set (18”) cadence as the normal ladders would have them do. So, if you’ll notice in the adjacent photo, the rungs in my ladders are spaced at various distances apart. (Actually, I made my rungs movable, so that I could adjust those distances as I wish.)

If you click on that photo you’ll see a brief video showing the rubber rungs and rope, as well as the odd spacing of the rungs.

Oh, and by the way… Most of my guys do a pretty good job of hitting the open spaces. As for those who don’t? Well, that’s just one of the reasons agility ladder training is a regular part of our training!

Might you have any ideas or questions on this?  Your Comments really help me!

Okay, while I’m certainly celebrating Jerry finally investing in a better, lighter stick, I can appreciate how you wouldn’t necessarily jump for joy at that.

Still, some of the discussions he and I have had surrounding his new stick — and his change in skates — should provide some interesting food for thought for members at all levels of the game.

– Dennis Chighisola

Jerry Z’s New Stick

For sure it’s taken some time to convince Jerry that a new stick would make a difference in his ball handling (remember, he’s a roller hockey and deck hockey player). So, he finally took the plunge, and here’s an excerpt from his first email back to me:

“I had a game on Thursday night. It was the first time I used the composite stick. Even though the stick is too long — I haven’t cut it down to size yet– I can feel the difference. You woulda laughed… I had a goal where I pushed the ball between the defender’s feet and got it on the other side, then shot high — hit the goalie’s shoulder pads and in. Later I had a pass I sent a guy from pretty much one face-off circle to the other one and he one-timed it in for a goal. The stick is light and allows me to do things I haven’t been able to do before.”

Geeeeeze, Jerry, I’ve been telling you that for weeks!

Days later my good friend wrote me with this:

“I cut the new stick down to a smaller size than I’m used to, so it’s lighter and I can stickhandle with it better. It also forces me to bend the knees while skating. I don’t think my shots go any faster than with a wooden stick, maybe slightly slower? And with a puck it seemed like I didn’t get solid contact at all, especially on one-timers. I need more experience with it.

Okay, some very good observations from Jerry, and ones that are worthy of discussion here.

• Although a lighter stick might ultimately whip quicker into a puck or ball on the slap shot, a shorter stick does usually result in a slightly slower shot. If you can envision it, Jerry’s lever arm — which is the stick-shaft — is slightly shorter, and thusly creates slightly less force than a longer one. Here’s the trade-off, though… Most poor puckhandlers just don’t get-off that many shots (they’re just too slow getting open and tee-ing the puck). So, what I advise players to do is to use a short stick until puckhandling becomes a strength. With that, the player can trade-off a little of that skill — by going to a slightly longer stick, in order to get a little harder shot.
• As for Jerry’s difficulty in contacting a puck, I’ll suggest that the ball is easier to drive than a puck. Thusly, he probably notices more the fact that he isn’t making perfect contact with the puck.

Then, because he is still trying to get some outdoor practices in — and, because he’s still experimenting back and forth between two different pairs of in-line skates, Jerry added this to his most recent email:

“I’m using the (enter brand name) skates that we decided to banish from the games. (If member will recall, I found one pair of his skates to be of nice quality, the other pair real cheapies!) These seem slow and loose in comparison. Do you think I’m hurting myself practicing with these clodhoppers? I’m upset at (enter brand name) for these.

Okay, a couple of things needed addressing here…

• I wrote back to suggest that Jerry stay with the good quality skates whenever he can. I figure he’s going to be able to do more — and improve more — in those. If there’s a problem here, outdoor use will ultimately wear the wheels and require earlier than normal replacement. Still, wheels are relatively inexpensive.
• I told him not to be upset with that skate maker. Most companies make quality skates for competitive players and not so good ones for purely recreational use.
• I also suggested that his stumbling upon poor quality skates was the result of his initially shopping at places other than a pro shop where other, more serious skaters shop. Let’s face it, department stores are going to stock their shelves with cheaper, rec type gear, while pro shops generally deal in quality.
• I usually suggest the latter approach to new hockey players and parents, as well, especially if they need help of advice on selection or fitting. Once a shopper gains experience, he or she can likely find some deals at yard sales!

In closing, I’m hoping members are finding it interesting as I attempt to help Jerry improve upon his game. After all, he asks great questions and makes some interesting observations. And, as many of you might be discovering, he and I are forced to do some of the same kinds of troubleshooting so many hockey players, parents and coaches face.

Can you help me by posting a Comment or question here? And thanks — a bunch!

Talk about getting goose bumps…  That’s exactly what I told my young friend, John Galluzzo, when I read the following article.  Never mind that his brief recap of the Miracle at Placid really touched me, but I know (or knew) many of the characters John mentions here.  Actually, the author’s dad worked with me as an assistant high school hockey coach eons ago, and a young John skated in a few of my clinics way back when.  Then, I worked with Bobby Sheehan, Ed Taylor and Peter Breen, and I even had the chance to watch a young teen named David Silk in his youth hockey days at the old Cohasset Winter Gardens and Pilgrim Arena (where my NEHI Teams still practice).

No matter how you connect with the following, however, I doubt anyone forgets where he or she was the day Al Michaels spouted those magic words (through a snowy, pre-cable broadcast?).

Many thanks to John for sharing this…

– Dennis Chighisola

Olympic Hockey

As originally published in South Shore Living

By John Galluzzo   johnjgalluzzo@hotmail.com

Broadcaster Al Michaels’ final call of the astonishingly unexpected wrestling of the Olympic Gold Medal for hockey away from the juggernaut Soviet Union team by the United States in Lake Placid, New York, in February 1980 still echoes in the minds of hockey fans across the country. “Do you believe in miracles? YES!”

While the victory itself was one for the United States as a whole, and one which had obvious political overtones during the strenuous days of the Cold War, the story of the accomplishment ultimately grew from early morning skating drills and hockey practices in only four states: Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin and right here in Massachusetts.

We may never fully understand the effect that Boston Bruins defenseman Bobby Orr had on the development of that 1980 team. Much like the Tiger Woods craze of the late 1990s is responsible for the overabundance of golf courses today in the U.S., the urge to be like Bobby drove kids in the Boston area to beg their parents for skates, pucks and sticks in the early 1970s. Their wishes spurred the construction of ice rinks all over the region which were soon filled to their rafters with town teams of “mites, squirts, peewees and bantams,” sometimes two and three levels deep, organized into leagues that kept the lights burning from pre-dawn until post sunset.

The South Shore already had a love of the game, played until the mid-sixties outdoors on frozen ponds, and more formally in places like the Hingham Skating Club, where a small wooden hut with a wood-burning stove gave players a place to lace up before hitting the pond. “There has always been a strong hockey tradition down here,” said Richard Johnson, curator of the Sports Museum at the TD Garden. “In the late 60′s and early 70′s no less a team than the Montreal Canadiens signed both Larry Pleau [of Lynn] and Bobby Sheehan of Weymouth at a time when you could count the number of Americans in the NHL on the fingers of one hand.” In Pembroke, Hingham, Rockland, Cohasset and elsewhere, indoor rinks became the schooling grounds for the boys whom Johnson calls “the sons of Bobby Orr.”

One of the local South Shore rinks frequented by the likes of Dave Silk and Bobby Sheehan

“Dave Silk started skating at the Winter Gardens at a very young age, 7 or 8 years old,” said Peter Breen, former owner of the Cohasset Winter Gardens, which sat on what is now the site of the Cohasset commuter rail stop on Route 3A. “He skated a lot with Ed Taylor, in his hours,” he remembered. Taylor, a champion of South Shore youth hockey, founded the Scituate Braves program in 1968, coaching, managing and even driving his team from home to the rinks and back. Young Silk, who had just lost his father, found “a surrogate father” in Taylor, he told the Boston Globe years later. And so the road to the Olympics began for the Scituate youngster.

Thayer Academy called first, and Silk answered with an astounding 85 points (goals plus assists) in his freshman year. Boston University’s attention was gained. In his first year there, 1976-77, Silk broke freshman records for goals, assists and points, earning New England rookie of the year honors. In 1978, he and his teammates earned a national collegiate championship, and the National Hockey League’s New York Rangers could wait no longer. They drafted him that year.

But Silk had one final item on his hockey agenda before giving up his amateur status, which, in 1980, was still required to participate in Olympic sports. He skated for the national hockey program through 1979 and into 1980, alongside a final squad composed of twelve Minnesotans, two skaters from Wisconsin, one from Michigan, and three of his Boston University teammates: Mike Eruzione of Winthrop, Jack O’Callahan of Charlestown and goalie Jim Craig of North Easton.

Their story has been told repeatedly through nearly thirty years, most recently notably through the Disney movie Miracle. Silk netted 48 points in international competition, climaxing with two assists in the 4-3 victory over the Soviet Union on February 22, 1980, the penultimate game on the road to gold medal, but, to all true fans of the sport, the gold medal game (the United States beat the Fins two days later 4-2 to officially claim the medal).

As the final seconds ticked off, Al Michaels began his call, giving Scituate and the rest of the South Shore youth hockey community – the coaches, the rink owners, the teammates, the Zamboni drivers, the fans, the pro shop skate sharpeners, the moms and dads who sacrificed early morning sleep to help their kids follow their dreams – a moment they would never forget: “Eleven seconds, you’ve got ten seconds, the countdown going on right now! Morrow, up to Silk. Five seconds left in the game. Do you believe in miracles?”
“YES!”

What is Consistency?

By Brady Greco, Performance Coach — The Mental Edge

A common performance concept that is rarely taught but always referred to by coaches is playing a more consistent game.  You hear coaches all the time say, “play with more consistency day in and day out.”  There is no problem if a coach makes this statement and communicates to the team about what needs to take place in order to become more consistent.  However, the majority of coaches fail to explain in detail what consistency even entails, making it impossible for a player to understand how to become more consistent in their play.

Consistency can be described in the sport’s world as a level of quality play over an extended period of time.  Every competitive athlete has experienced a game where they performed very well. In turn, every athlete has encountered what it feels like to perform poorly, making the concept of consistency very tricky.  Here is a checklist of five keys to focus on as an athlete that will help maintain consistency throughout your personal journey as an athlete:

1. Awareness: Reflect on your performance and determine what areas you did well in and what areas you need to improve upon.
2. Good Habits: Practice good habits throughout the athletic season.  This means staying disciplined and remembering to do the ‘little’ things both on and off the athletic field or arena.
3. Pre-game Routine: For an athlete to become mentally prepared for a game/practice, they must take the proper procedures.  This means an athlete must find a comfortable and effective personal routine they go through on days of games/practice.  Establishing a good pre-game routine will enable an athlete to be prepared mentally which will create a better chance of optimal performance.  Don’t be afraid to ‘mess around’ with your routine if you feel something is not working.
4. Imagery: Imagine yourself accomplishing the task at hand.  Picture yourself already playing the game and making the right plays in every situation.
5. Positive Self-Talk: Don’t be afraid to talk to yourself.  Tell yourself ‘I am the best, I am the best’.  This will create encouraging thoughts to flow through your mind to remain positive.

At the Mental Edge, we can teach you mental toughness skills like these to empower you on your journey as an athlete.  Simply call Dawn to start at 763-439-5246.

Brady

Contributor: Dennis Chighisola — Whitman, MA USA

Drill Category: Team Defense, Backchecking

Drill Description:

Comments: I’ve only used 3 pairs of players per drill because it’s easier to keep an eye on and inspect the efforts of a few at a time.  Also, all positional players — both forwards and defensemen — take part in both offensive and defensive roles.

• Backcheckers:  Lie facing away from attackers so that no plans can be made ahead of time on which defender will cover which attacker.
• Attackers:  Begin the drill by lying face down; on command, circle the back obstacle in order to make it more difficult for the backcheckers to sort whom they’ll cover.  (With younger players, or to initially teach the drill concepts, I might not have the attackers circle an obstacle, but instead have them go on the attack on the command.)
• Coach:  Holds a puck at side boards and ultimately (maybe after about 3- to 5-seconds) feeds to an open attacker.

Objective of the Drill:

The attackers attempt to get open for passes (from the coach and then from open teammates) to attack the net, while all defenders attempt to cover their men so tightly that passes can’t be made to them.

As an extra benefit, the attackers tend to work extra hard to get themselves open for passes or scoring opportunities.

Running the drill:
Usually the drill lasts about 10-seconds, or until the coach is satisfied that the backcheckers completed their tasks (or didn’t).

Click image below to see a short video.

Although I’m a little late in making this special entry, I’d like members to know that I’ve been evaluating Jerry’s roller hockey gear from Day One. If you can appreciate it, one can’t learn to move around the roller court (or the ice) if the skates aren’t right; nor can a player dribble or pass or shoot very well if the hockey stick and surrounding protective gear are holding him or her back.

What’s delayed things to this point is that my observations have been ongoing, and because one piece of gear, in particular, has been a sticking point for me. But, let me explain that in a little more depth…

– Dennis Chighisola

Evaluating Roller Hockey Gear

As it turns out, Jerry Z dresses like most guys who play roller hockey recreationaly. I mean, he dresses on the light side as far as gear goes, wearing most the bare necessities.

As an aside here, it might not be a bad idea for the reader to view some of what I’ve written or shown in some videos when it comes to “over-speed training”. To give you a shortcut version, though, let me point-out that:

1. heavy or bulky gear is going to slow a movement (or movements); and,
2. however we practice a movement (be it slow or fast) is going to be the way we ultimately do it.

That in mind I watched Jerry as he moved around the floor in our first few sessions together, and I noted that nothing really obvious was either slowing or inhibiting his movements. (For the most part — and I’m sure Jerry would agree, his early struggles had mostly to do with inexperience.)

Now, I mentioned earlier that my assessment of hockey equipment is an ongoing thing, and this is true no matter the atmosphere or the player. Younger players outgrow gear quickly, or they replace pieces without letting us coaches know.

Then there’s another reason I keep re-evaluating Jerry — or any other fast improving player… What I mean is that certain things might not matter when a player is at one level, but they could suddenly have a great impact as a given player improves. And, such has been the case with Jerry over more recent weeks.

Okay, I have to chuckle a bit as I type this, because my roller hockey buddy has driven me a little crazy ever since he started feeling better about himself in his Thursday night games. Oh, I mean that in a nice way, but he did start telling me about some of his offensive and defensive plays, and he’s also recently begun asking me some questions about the game’s X’s and O’s.

The reason I raise this point, however, is to suggest that I soon felt the need to help Jerry with his puckhandling and a few other areas of his game. And, while I’ll have no problem showing him the right things to do to improve in this area, something now has to be done about that log of a stick I’ve let him get by with for a time. Ya, it’s a full-grown sequoia, and I’m often heard to mutter something about maybe hurting myself when I chance to hold that thing. Right now he’s resisting me on a move to something lighter. But, real positive change is not going to take place until Jerry’s stick allows his hands to move much, much quicker. (For great advice in this area, please see my video on “YOUR Hockey Stick“.

Now, I mean to tell you that Jerry has really come a long way in his skating. In fact, I started giving him some greater challenges about a month or so into our work together. And, here again, some gear that was okay in the beginning suddenly looked like it was holding him back.

What I’m talking about are Jerry’s in-line skates. You see, in the early going I think Jerry had enough to worry about just striding around the rink. The most we’d done beyond that in the earliest sessions was some very basic crossing-over and a little bit of cutting towards the left and towards the right. Suddenly, however, his skates — or should I say the configuration of his wheels — began seemingly holding him back.

In this aside, I need to say that I pretty much pioneered the use of in-lines for the training of ice hockey players as soon as they became available to the masses. Long-time members know how much I value off-ice training (ever since my 1979 studies in Moscow of the old USSR). But, as much as I love using dryland to enhance a player’s game, imagine my excitement at my students ultimately being able to skate away from costly ice-time. Yes!

My son actually owned the first pair of in-lines in our house, these having an old Erector Set kind of arrangement that held the wheels under a real hockey boot. My first pair weren’t quite as nice. In fact, I felt like a beginner in them, which caused me to seek the help of an old friend and former student, Olympic speed skating Silver medalist, Eric Flaim. Eric owned a pro shop in Boston at the time, and he knew tons about in-lines, having used them as part of his speed skating training.

The difficulty I was having with department store in-lines had to do with a flat configuration of the wheels. So, Eric made for me a special frame that allowed the four wheels to be raised and lowered. And, with that, I could come very close to simulating the rocker — or radius — shape of my on-ice skates.

By the way… Since my students didn’t have the kind chassis Eric introduced me to, I suggested they simulate the radius of their ice blades by putting slightly larger diameter wheels in the middle and slightly worn or smaller ones on the back and front.

Back to troubleshooting Jerry’s problems, I was noticing that he had difficulty making really sharp cuts. And he really struggled in his attempts to pivot on either skate — from forward to backward to forward.

Now, understand that various ice skate blades are designed to meet the unique demands of their sport. (For lots more on this, please see my article on “Comparing Hockey, Figure Skating and Speed Skating“.) I’m sure you already realize that speed skates are long and flat to accommodate most long, straight ahead skating with minimal turning; while figure skating blades make it easier for athletes in that sport to spin and cut. Hockey skate blades, on the other hand, are shaped almost like the figures blades, but just a little flatter to facilitate more straight ahead speed.

I mention all that so you might appreciate what I thought I was seeing as Jerry attempted to spin. For, once I noticed his difficulties in that area, I got down on my hands and knees to inspect the way his wheels contacted the roller hockey floor. And, sure enough, all four wheels on each skate were touching. In effect, he was trying to perform figures or hockey moves with the equivalent of speed skates. Or, as I’ve said to Jerry, it’s like he’s trying to do sports car moves while driving a tractor trailer.

It’s nice to have friends in high places (as with Eric Flaim). So this time I touched base with an old friend I consider “The Man” when it comes to in-line hockey equipment. And Mike W confirmed my suspicions, along with adding a ton of additional advice. As it pertains to the problem at hand, though, Mike suggested the kind of chassis arrangement that has bigger wheels in the back and smaller ones towards the front.

New problem: Jerry had that exact so-called Hi-Lo configuration. Hmmmmmm…

Interestingly, a group of really good in-line players followed us onto the court one Saturday. And, man, could those guys skate. So, chancing to ask a couple of the better players, they told me they had no problems with the Hi-Lo arrangement. So again, hmmmmmmmm…

Back to working with Jerry, something else struck me: My older Team NEHI players move just as nicely as the guys I just mentioned, and they do it with store-bought skates (or without having to make the adjustments I used to recommend). So, could it be that experience matters? I mean, others are doing awesomely while Jerry surely isn’t.

Then, Jerry mentioned that he had another pair of in-lines — his “back-ups” he called them, IF I’d like to see those. Geeeeze, would I ever!

As it turns out, what Jerry referred to as back-ups were really, really nice skates. Better yet, I discovered that only one or two wheels touched as I ran them across a flat surface. Bingo!

Then, one thing I’ll share with you that I also mentioned to Jerry, in that the less blade or wheel touching the ice or floor, the less glide. In other words, there’s a trade-off. With only a small area to spin on, he should have a lot more mobility. At the same time, he’ll lose just a little straight ahead speed. And, considering the (small) size of the floor he usually plays on, I’m thinking this is a very, very worthwhile trade.

As a final aside here… Jerry’s two pairs of skates are made by the same company, and one noted for great roller hockey gear. Still, the skates I like look a lot better than the others in more ways than just the chassis. Ya, my guess is that the ones I like are the real thing, while the others may have been made for less serious — hobble with your girlfriend for a stroll — skaters.

Okay, so that’s it for now… Jerry and I have a lot more work to do together. And, I’ll be sure to keep you posted on his equipment escapades and lots more.

Be a friend: EVERY worthwhile Comment helps Coach Chic in the search engines!

Over the coming months (and seasons) I’m hoping to share with members what I’m doing in my various Team NEHI programs.  And a lot of the time I’ll also want to let you in on my thinking as I prepare for each of those.  Let’s face it, you’re not going to get a real handle on things if I just tell you, “Do this!”  Naw, I think I’d serve you best by letting you know the whys and the wherefores of a given practice.

As an aside here, I’m chuckling to myself as I think about my latest undertaking.  I mean, I had a number of minor league pro coaching and GM interviews, I head coached in high school and college, and for about the past decade I’ve run teams for junior and senior high school players.  But, don’t you know, I just couldn’t resist an invitation to coach a team of beginners from my Learn-to-skate/Learn-to-play clinics.  Ya, “Mighty Mites” we’ve dubbed them, ranging in ages from 4- to 8-years old.  And, don’t you know, I’m already loving it!

Anyway, I wrote earlier about our first get-together (Teaching the Beginner Hockey Player) , or our so-called tryout.  But the following will describe our first real practice, as well as my thinking behind each drill.  (Oh, and click on the thumbnail photos below for a brief video showing a given drill in progress.)

– Dennis Chighisola

Our First “Mighty Mite” Hockey Practice

As I’ve said countless times within these pages, “It’s important to know where one is!”  And by that I mean that we coaches — AND PARENTS — have to adjust everything we do according to the ages and experience levels of our players.  In my case, for example, the game changes drastically from my college-playing grandson to my high school guys to my junior high kids and now to my “babies”.  And so do the challenges they each face.

1- I did a little brainstorming based on that thinking, and my wife actually helped me arrive at the first drill (as well as some others)…  She’s raised two players to pretty high levels, so she knew what she was talking about when she discovered I was headed to an instructional level practice.  “Oh, that’s the funnest age!” she beamed, adding that, “I love it when they all fall down!”  (Grrrrrrrr…  Not my little Weebles!  As a matter of fact, take a look at the video below — just click on the photo — to see that my kids actually learned to stop in our clinic, and I can call them together without anyone getting hurt!)  Of course, she was still right — on both counts.  So I decided to start things with a basic body-checking drill that had the kids bumping the boards with their shoulders, and a little later bumping a partner’s shoulder.  The idea is for the kids to gain a sense of what it takes to be stable, and what it takes to resist the occasional bump during game action.  And, make no mistake about it:  although body-checking isn’t allowed in instructional hockey, collisions take place in absolutely every level of hockey.

2- Hockey skating, in general, is a lot like playing one against one tag.  So we did that in pairs, sending several sets of twos at a time into an end zone.  We limited their time on these to about 8- or 10-seconds.  (Sorry, no video of this drill.)

3- Next, I dumped a bag full of weighted pucks for the kids to experiment with.  First, I had pairs passing those heavy things as far as they could, and I also suggested they try spinning the pucks so they’d stay flat on rough ice.  The concept is explained more in Passing Basics in Hockey , but what I was trying to do is give my kids a sense of what it took to get a firm grip on the puck and to generate decent power through their sticks.  (Really, the idea is much like the boards bumping drill, in that I wanted my kids to search for their strength.)

4- I then had my youngsters try to fire those weighted pucks off the side boards.  Standing only about 6′ off, I asked if they could make the loud booming noise demonstrated by a few of us coaches.

5- From there we switched to the blue, lightweight pucks used by all younger USA Hockey teams.  Now, to me puckhandling is about experimentation.  So I gave the kids a brief demonstration of side-to-side dribbling and then sent them on their way around our half of the rink.

6- Having already said that skating in the little guys’ and gals’ game is a lot like playing tag, I next went to games of pairs keepaway.  Yes, that’s basically what the puckhandling game will be like for them — trying to keep that biscuit away from their opponents.  So we sent the kids into a zone again in twos, this time having each player attempt to keep the puck away from his partner for as long as possible.  (Click on the thumbnail to see a brief video.)

As an aside…  When I ultimately intend to put together a number of skill drills, I begin by teaching each segment separately (usually starting with the end skill, then working backwards).  I did that in the following series of drills that begin with us beating a defender of some sort and end with us attacking the goal.  But, let me explain that further…

7- The end result of many later attack drills was going to be for our kids to shoot on a simulated goalie.  In this case, I borrowed a mini-net from the rink to place (backwards) inside the larger net (see the photo to the right).  We gathered around the goal for a time, as I explained the difference between hitting the goaler — and making him look good, or hitting an opening to get the goal (see Creating the Early Goal-scorer for great help in this area).  And, as you can hear (by clicking on the following thumbnail), I’d asked the coaches to make a REALLY big deal out of whether a kid scored or not.  After all, that’s what it will be like in a game.  S0, why not make things exciting right here in the practices?

8- We then took the puckhandling to a typical pylon course, except that I used large foam dots to represent what my kids hear me refer to as “the bad guys” (LOL).  If you might notice (click on the thumbnail to see a brief video), and thanks to our weekly Learn-to clinic, my little ones are starting to get the hang of using both sides of their sticks as they do this one.

9- Now, I had in mind using some different training devices in place of rival defenders.  But I had to first show the kids what those devices represented.  So (as shown in the thumbnail and the next video) a coach stood stationary to act as an “open triangle” the kids could attack.  This is a typical Mite level play, as the attacker tosses the puck through the defender’s legs and then retrieves it on the other side.  You might also hear us coaches correcting the kids on the forcefulness of their passes, since this play calls for just a soft tap ahead so the puck ends-up sitting right where the attacker needs it to be.

10-  I eventually brought a metal device out (see the thumbnail below) and placed it in front of a coach, this so the kids could appreciate that the device’s legs would now simulate those of the coach.  In this way, the coaches were freed to do what they do best:  coach.

As another aside…  At one point I teased a very experienced helper about (not) stationing himself at the front of a line.  My point in that brief exchange was that he was far more valuable getting out and among the players.  And, while I had only a little luck with teaching these really young ones my way of dealing with lines, I suggested to each that, “A coach won’t tell you when to go for now on.  Instead, take your turn when the player in front of you gets to such-and-such an area.”  Oh, they’ll get this over time.  And when they do, our practices will run all the better.

11- Ultimately we put things together, having the kids beat a given obstacle, then move-on to score against the simulated goaltender (click on the photo to see a video).

12- The practice ended with pairs of players racing for a loose puck, with the winner scurrying to the net for a shot on-goal.  This also simulates what happens in the little one’s game, in that races to loose pucks determine a lot, as does scoring under at least a little pressure.  (Click on the photo to see a brief video.)

Now, I’m betting a lot of readers are going to be a little surprised at how many drills I fit-in during an hour of ice-time, or how much we got accomplished with those little rascals.  That’s my (our) job, though, to get as much accomplished as possible on a kzillion dollars worth of ice-time!

Oh, and you might also be surprised to see (or hear) how animated I am with the kids.  Well, that too I think is super important to my work.

– Dennis Chighisola

Special thanks to Andy L. for taking the videos! 

Did you know your Comments really help me?  So, please get involved.  Just use the box below to offer your thoughts, questions or suggestions.  (And thanks — a bunch!)

I was psyched to receive the following article — about hockey warm-ups, and I was even more excited to see the awesome videos Maryse Senecal produced for us!

To be perfectly honest, though — and as much as I learned from the following, I ended-up having a ton of questions (let’s face it, a lot of this stuff is quite different from what most of us coaches have been doing).  And my guess is that a lot members will similarly want to know more.  That pretty surely being the case, please see my note at the end once you’ve gotten a grasp of what Maryse is showing us.

– Dennis Chighisola

(A Different Kind of) Hockey Warm-ups

By Maryse Senecal

As an orthotherapist, I see many athletic injuries. A few weeks ago, I received a 13 year old athlete in my clinic. She had sprained her lumbar spinal region during the pre-game warm up.  (During a warm up?)  As I treated her with heat, massage and mobilisations, I asked the questions:

How do you warm up?

How much time is allotted for warm up?

What is the warm up routine?

True to all thirteen year olds, the answers were vague.  So I decided to go see for myself.  I should have stayed home, because what I saw made my skin crawl.  I strongly believe that the coaches who take on that position at that level should be commended for their dedication and their time.  Without them, we wouldn’t have organized sports, and let’s face it, it’s all volunteer work.  What amazes me is that there is very little training for these coaches.  One weekend certification program is all they get.  They love the game, they love the kids, but..  They only know what they know.

I decided there and then to give of my time and expertise to the local hockey and ringette associations to help their coaches build stronger programs for their young athletes, keeping in mind the therapeutic limitations to training young bodies.  These athletes are still growing, we are dealing with loose ligaments to support the joints and uncalcified epiphesial plates (growth plates).

Click on a thumbnail image to see the video.

Here’s what I suggested to them:

1 – Activation

Always start the warm up with activation.  It doesn’t have to be long or too hard, just a few laps around the arena or the parking lot, or jumping jacks for example, a few slow lunges –- get the heart rate elevated and ready for work.

2 – Body Connection

This is by far the most important aspect when coaching children.  Remember that these young bodies change almost weekly.  Their arms and legs get ganglier, the joints get looser, then they tighten up to start over again.  It may seem a little odd, the kids lose perspective of their bio-mechanics.  Sure, the big stuff is easy, like walking or running.  But those internal stabilizers that guide and protect the skeletal mass get off kilter.

I suggest a stretch yoga style.  I know, I’ve researched the arguments, we shouldn’t stretch before the game, it takes away from the performance. I agree!  I wouldn’t suggest just a slow deep stretch; that just serves to calm the body. What I prefer to see are activated yoga poses:

• a) the warrior – hold the position, let gravity take over to deepen that lunge, activating the hip…

• b) the triangle – this will help warm up the torso…

• c) upward and downward dog – connects core strength and engages the body as a whole…

• d) here, all the exercises are shown strung together…

Remember that the athletes will reactivate strongly once on the ice.  This is a great time to talk the athletes through a little focus time.  Without realizing it, they start to connect with their body, engaging the muscle chains in synergy.  As the body prepares for the upcoming work-play load, the excitement will slowly build with focus.

So I was asked:  What about the adults who play the game?  It’s all the same!  It works for all athletes.  The reason I have targeted the young is because they are at risk of injury due to their continuous growth.

Work hard, play hard, prepare your athletes by being prepared!

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I hope you found that all as interesting as I did.  But then again, those questions…

Yes, I must have emailed Maryse about 5 or 6 times as I was preparing to post this to our site.  Finally (despite my thinking I was the Head Coach here), she thought we ought to carry-on our discussion in the Comments section “… so members get to see those questions and answers!”

Okay, so — besides being a great personality in front of the camera, Maryse is a pretty smart lady.  And we’re going to do just as she has suggested.  Just drink-in what you can from the above, watch for our exchange over coming days, and be sure to join-in with us!

– Dennis Chighisola

My Facebook friend (and CoachChic.com member), Kathy C, couldn’t have posed a more timely question.  For, it’s mid-October, beginner hockey players are flocking to learn-to-play type clinics all over North America, and a lot of new hockey parents are scratching their heads as they attempt to outfit their youngsters.

More specifically, Kathy jokes that I get to settle an ongoing debate — between her, her husband and the local pro shop guys — in determining which way her 4-year old son should hold a hockey stick.

Fortunately for Kathy (and any other new hockey parents), I’ve been dealing with this issue for a good 30-years or more.  So, with that, here goes…

– Dennis Chighisola

How Should a Beginner Hold a Hockey Stick?

Up front, I’ll suggest that there is an easy way out of this dilemma, that being to purchase a stick that has a flat blade, and then let the chips fall where they may.  This, however, is not my personal preference.  Over recent years I haven’t seen a decently constructed flat bladed stick, with most of them being hunks of tree limbs that are far too heavy for kids in the toddler to 5-year old range.  Moreover, a slight curve in a stick’s blade encourages my young students to carry the puck just as I’d like them to — between the blade’s midsection and its heel.  Oh, and there’s something else I like about most curved sticks that I’ve held, in that they have a nice (but perhaps undefinable) “feel” to them.

That out of the way, here are two tidbits of background information that really are meant just as FYIs:

1. Quite often, one holds a hockey stick just as he or she might hold a broom or a shovel.
2. Quite often, one will feel more comfortable with the dominant hand holding the top of the stick.  (I get a kick out of new parents who scratch their heads at their kids being right handed while holding the stick to their left side.  But that would be natural, as you see, with the dominant hand used to steer the stick-actions from the top of the shaft.)

Still, notice that I said “quite often” in both instances.  For, although these are relatively common occurrences, THEY ARE NOT RULES.  Every player still needs to seek his or her own comfort in handling a hockey stick.

Now, I actually chuckled to myself as Kathy said something to the effect that one shouldn’t ask her son which way he shoots.  She is right-on about that, since asking a young one how he or she shoots is going to cause him or her to think too much.

That said, I think we have two different situations when it comes to the which-way-should-he-shoot question…

In Kathy’s case, I know that her little guy has been playing around the house with a flat bladed stick for some time now.  So, I’d suggest that she and her husband just quietly observe the boy as he bats at a ball (or whatever).  Whatever he’s doing during that time — not knowing he’s being watched — is pretty likely to be natural.

On the other hand, there are those who find themselves at a local pro shop and suddenly faced with the need to buy a stick.  Hmmmmm…  What I’ll often suggest in that situation is that the parent roll-up a piece of paper into a ball, and then encourage the youngster to shoot it around the shop for awhile.  Then, doing just as I’ve suggested to Kathy and her husband, the parent can step back and quietly observe his or her youngster doing whatever comes naturally.

Finally, although the purchase of a youngster’s first hockey stick seems traumatic, consider the fact that he or she will probably ultimately own dozens upon dozens of sticks through the years.  So, while my suggestions still only give a first-time hockey parent a 50/50 chance at being right, beginner sticks are inexpensive enough that re-thinking things a few months down the road isn’t going to be too painful.

Just so new members appreciate what I’m trying to do here…  Kathy sent me that question this morning and I had an answer posted a few hours later.  I want to do that for my members (and friends), providing you answers when you need them!

Did you know your Comments really help me?  So, please get involved.  Just use the box below to offer your thoughts, questions or suggestions.  (And thanks — a bunch!)

Carol, a new Twitter friend and a Manager for her youth program’s Atom Division, posed a REALLY tough question for this old coach.

As she put it, “What are the three top principles an Atom minor hockey coach should follow?”

Of course, it would have been easier to troubleshoot a hockey skill problem, or to suggest a solution for some area of team play.  Offering what I might consider to be top principles is yet another challenge.  Not only that but, my guess is that Carol would likely get lots of very different suggestions had she polled other experienced coaches.

That said, I took the better part of today — thinking long and hard — to arrive at what is to follow.

(Oh, by the way, for those who aren’t familiar with the Canadian age level known as “Atom”, it’s basically the same as the “Squirt” designation used in USA Hockey.)

– Dennis Chighisola

3 Principles Atom Minor Hockey Coaches Should Follow

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1) Give every player a reason to look forward to the team’s next get-together

I’m not so naive as to think there aren’t a lot of things that go wrong in a typical hockey practice or game.  In fact, I can’t blame coaches of losing teams for feeling plenty of frustration, and I can also appreciate how difficult it can be to stay positive under such circumstances.

Still, there is a time for everything.

For sure, players need to be pushed and prodded.  And when it comes to younger players, I’ve even pretended to be mad at the lot of them.

That out of the way, I choose my parting words VERY wisely.  I mean, I actually delay entering my team’s post-game or post-practice lockerroom for about 5-minutes.  During that time my kids get to partially undress and I get to gather my thoughts.  Oh, there might be nights when I’d like to blast them, and there are surely a lot of nights when I’d like to go into a 20-minute talk — on why we should have done this and how we could have done that.  In reality, though, what’s done is done, and the only thing that’s important at this point is our next game or our next practice.  So, it seems the most productive thing I can do as I send the kids on their way is to give every player a reason to look forward to our next get-together.

2) Continually look for “teaching moments”

Over 40-years of coaching, I have a pretty good outline — or checklist — for readying a team.  My season’s plan is pretty detailed, and my practices are planned to the minute.

Yet, unusual things happen all the time — during practices, and especially during games.  Sometimes it’s a rare circumstance that crops-up during a game, sometimes it comes from a great question posed by a player, sometimes it comes about because of a difficulty experienced by a player, and sometimes it stems from an outstanding play.

No matter, I call these “teaching moments”, and I think they’re worthy of holding a good old fashion bull session.  Actually, I sense that my players (young or old) have enjoyed these.  Better yet, I sense these kinds of discussions stick with a player for many, many years.

3) Think long-term

No doubt we’d all gain a great deal of satisfaction from seeing some of our players go on to do well at the game’s higher levels.  That said, coaches dealing with the youngest players have to realize just how significant their contribution really is to that cause.

On the negative side of things, my work as a skills analyst has me spotting numerous older guys who struggle just because they weren’t helped when they were young.  Not knowing their history, it’s often hard to know exactly what went wrong.  But my educated guess is that some of their earlier coaches either skipped steps in certain teaching progressions, or they didn’t establish in their players a certain kind of discipline or mentality when it came to skill work.

This brief aside…  A lot of years ago I attended a coaching symposium that included a roundtable discussion on skill development.  (If it wasn’t so sad it would have been laughable.  But…)  An NHL executive started by pointing to the other members, suggesting that they had to get the skill development accomplished because his guys couldn’t practice often enough, what with all their games and heavy travel schedule.  The Major Junior coach obviously took exception to that, complaining that he had to concern himself with winning games or he’d lose his job.  And so the buck-passing went, all the way down the line, with each level offering its own excuse and asking the same basic question as the others:  Why don’t you guys down below send me skilled players?

I tell that story because I too often hear coaches at the youngest levels make their own excuses — as in, “Oh, my players will get that when they move-up to the next level.”  Not so, of course, at least from what those guys at the roundtable had to say.

To my way of thinking, the seeds for great skills and playing smarts should be planted early.  And so should the lead-up skills be taught so that players can later skate like the wind, handle a puck wildly, thread perfect passes and fire absolute bullets.  Having your players eagerly looking forward to their next team event will help towards that end.  Finding plenty of “teaching moments” is going to help young players think the game better.  And, thinking long-term tends to help us coaches resolve that age-old win-at-all-costs versus development-first issue.

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Did you know your Comments really help me?  So, please get involved.  Just use the box below to offer your thoughts, questions or suggestions.  And thanks — a bunch!

In fairness to Todd, his very interesting article is based on a quick question I shot his way as we were recently talking — in the dark — outside The MOTION Lab.  In a way, though, I’m glad he didn’t have all the info, because the route he takes in trying to solve the problem at hand is exactly what every other coach and parent likely faces in their search for answers.

So again, I find the following a very interesting read.  Better yet, I think you’re probably going to (as I surely did) associate with some of the frustrations Todd experienced in his search for answers.

– Dennis Chighisola

Can Goalies Improve Without A Coach?

By Todd Jacobson

Coach Chic mentioned to me recently that a dad had posed a question to him, this having to do with a dad not being happy because his goaltender son probably wasn’t going to improve much this coming year.  As I understand it, the real problem is that the boy doesn’t have anyone within his current team’s coaching staff helping him with goalie specific training.

I initially thought this would be a pretty easy topic to tackle. Well, I was wrong. This is a great concern for this dad and his son, and the more I thought about it the more concerned I became. So I figured I would attack this article much differently than I have most others.

Like many other hockey coaches, I have a stubborn side (to be successful you have to be at least a little bit stubborn), and every once in a while I try to fight that urge. This time I fought it and won!

I instantly went to my favorite search engine, Yahoo (I’ll be waiting for my royalty check from them for the advertisement), and I typed in the question, “Can a goalie improve without a coach?”  The results were pretty interesting.

The first page that came up was one that had an interview with a Finnish goalie coach named Jukka Ropponen.  And while the interview was interesting and informative, it really didn’t shed any light on the problem at hand. Coach Ropponen did use a quote in which I think many coaches can relate to: “You can’t win without good goaltending.”

The next page I opened was an article from goaltending coach Steve Carroll of the Carroll Goalie School.  And while he didn’t quite answer the question, the title of the article was very telling, and the info inside was such that every coach at every level should read it. The article was titled, “Goalies should not be shut out from coaching”.  To sum it up, Carroll speaks to coaches who don’t really work with the goalies, and he suggests they really should spend some time training them instead of just using them as practice targets. Coach Carroll dives deeply into the fact that so many coaches out there don’t really know the details of the position, so they typically spend most of their time working with the skaters (while giving hardly any time their goalies).

I thought about this for a long time, and I know it to be true. When I was a young 19 year old looking to get into the coaching ranks there weren’t a lot of open positions. I had to find a way to get my foot in the door.  And what area was the most neglected?  You guessed it, it was providing help for goaltenders. I had a little inside edge here, with my father being a long time goalie coach (and I’d played the position if only for a very short time). I knew that if I really learned the position I could be an asset to a coaching staff somewhere, and I’d also have an easier time landing a coaching job. I again was correct.

As time went on, the majority of my younger coaching years were spent as a goalie coach.  And as the game changed, so did that position, including the areas of emphasis, as well as the way training should be conducted.

Going back to that second article, it still didn’t answer the specific problem, so I continued to look further.  The third page I opened (I think by Mitch Korn) had some absolutely innovative and creative training aids for goalies. Most were very large and bulky however, and I could see that being an issue for a coach, lugging those things around to numerous rinks.  Worse yet, within the typical 1 hour practice, maybe a goalie would get the chance to use one of those for 15 minutes or so.  Still, these training tools were fabulous (I know Coach Chic has come up with some similar training tools, and he’d have gotten kick out of seeing these).  Yet another unfortunate part is that you really can’t use these items by yourself (they need to be used in a team or multiple player type setting). So again I didn’t get the answer I was looking for within that third web site.

All in all, I waded through many more web pages, many of them containing a lot of great info on goalie training.  But the question posed by that dad never was really answered.

So, after all that searching, I really didn’t want to write another article about working independently and being creative, because that has been the theme of so many of my past writings.  In the end however, that seems to be the only answer.

I would suggest that the dad who raised that question speak with his son’s coach (or coaches) on a professional level. Be courteous and just plant the seed — that he’d really like to see his son get some one on one coaching. I also would suggest he go back to some of my past articles.  There are a lot of great ideas to help a goalie work on his or her own, as well as how to make and use some inexpensive devices.

On a final note, it might not be a bad idea to seek out a goaltending coach to work with on the side (maybe that dad will get lucky and find a young, eager man or woman looking to get into this unique area of coaching, just as I had done so many years ago).  I know it could possibly be costly to send your boy to a professional goalie coach or a weekly clinic.  Still, when you really think about it, every season lost due to a lack of growth can be even more costly.

Yours in Hockey, Coach J.

Now, even Todd doesn’t know (until he reads this) that I actually took a different route in search of an answer, and still arrived at exactly the same conclusion he did.  Of course, I had the benefit of knowing the CoachChic.com member who first tossed the problem our way, and I also knew a little more of the background. With that, I have a feeling Todd’s and my combined ideas should prove extremely helpful…

One thing I knew was that my friend’s son had a seemingly great goaler coach back with his old team.  The dad and boy evidently liked and trusted that guy, and I also sensed through some discussions that the previous coach was kind of a forward-looking type.  (In other words, it seemed he wasn’t locked in the dark ages, and he was open to new and creative ideas.)

So, what I proposed was that the dad and the former coach find a small space they could use (or rent?) for supplemental off-ice training.  In effect, I was suggesting they put together a mini-version of The MOTION Lab, but this one designed just for helping goalies.  I even hinted at the thought that they could make that facility pay for itself — and their labors, but advertising it to other goalies in similar need for help.

Hey, take a moment to think about what I just said…  Todd scoured the Internet and basically found one consistent fact, in that goaltenders mostly get ignored during typical youth practices.  So, does that suggest to my friend — and to every other reader — that there’s a dawgone market for goalie help?

And while I’m on the subject of business, let me introduce some economics here…  You see, I can run about 40-skaters through a skills type session, and I can give them a heck of a workout while also easily paying for the ice-time and my time.  Try to do that with goalers, though.  No, it’s had to pay for an hour of costly ice-time unless you can find a way to get a pretty high number of players out there.

Small group sessions are what work best for netminders, and that’s why I’ve suggested some sort of off-ice facility for their supplemental training.

As for training ideas?  I wouldn’t just limit them to those currently offered by Todd.  Oh, they’re awesome, and there are plenty of them.  However, I’d also recommend taking a read through Craig Shaw’s articles, because those are loaded with great exercises.  And so are many of my pieces listed under several different skill oriented categories.

Then, presuming the goalies training in the Lab-type venue are seeing all the shots they need during regular on-ice practices and games, I’d reserve the off-ice work to “movement” exercises of all sorts.  To me, the ideas are really endless, to include quickness work, footwork, hand-eye coordination, core strength work, and I could go on.  (As you might see from the photos I’ve chosen to include, not a lot of space is required to enhance a ton of important goaler qualities.)

So, I borrow this bit of advice from a well worn slogan:  “There’s nothing to it but to do it!”

Finally, I got to doing some serious thinking as I read Todd’s article and then added my own two cents worth…  You see, I’ve had a lot of little visions within the main one for CoachChic.com.  In other words, although my primary aim has been to put together a hockey resource area that will ultimately be the most thorough in the world, I can now also see it as a place for those with individual needs to do some really serious research.  If you think about it, Todd spent considerable time chasing through that rabbit hole known as an Internet search.  And all the while there was probably more buried within our site’s pages than he (or anyone else) could find elsewhere.

Ya, hmmmmmm…

Did you know your Comments really help Todd and me?  So, please get involved.  Just use the box below to offer your thoughts, questions or suggestions.  (And thanks — a bunch!)

Just a note — in case you’re local to me and Pilgrim Arena in Hingham, MA…

My new Puckhandling Course starts on Monday night (10/05/09), and it’ll run throughout the winter.  It’s at 7:15pm, in Rink B.

If there’s one thing I’m famous for, it’s that all of my long-time players and students can REALLY handle that biscuit!!!  And, to me having really good puck-skills is a huge confidence booster!

– Dennis Chighisola

Contributor: Deb K. — Boulder, CO

Drill Category: Fun, Conditioning (oh, boy!), Skating

Drill Description:

All kids start at the goal line and skate to center ice, they leave their sticks there, next skate to the far blue line, touch up, skate to center ice again, leave a glove, skate to the near blue line, touch up, skate to center ice, leave the other glove, then to the blue line, touch up and retrieve all equipment in the order in which they dropped it, then race to the goal line.

This note from Dennis Chighisola…  Coach K seems to have a knack for fun oriented drills.  Ya, her approach to the game always seems to make me smile, and I can just imagine that her players look forward to what she might have planned next.

My take on such drills?  I firmly believe we can have a balance when it comes to strict teaching drills and fun ones.  As a matter of fact, I think at least one of these would be good for somwhere near the end of a practice (hey, why not have your players leave the ice laughing?).

I might also add that a drill like the above one isn’t only suitable to younger players.  I mean, think about it…  Even a high school or college coach could use it, but with something at stake, or something that results in bragging rights, whatever.  Again, picture it, with older guys absolutely killing themselves while also laughing their heads off.  No, not a bad way to end a practice at all.

Sorry, no video for this drill.  Actually, Coach Chic found it dizzying trying to create one (LOL)!

I have to apologize here, but there are going to be a few drills that won’t make it into this free section.  Such will be the case for those deemed to be “the best drill I know for _______”.  Again, sorry, but membership does have some special privileges.

If you are a member, however, just click here Defenseman’s Slot Coverage Drill to gain immediate access.

– Dennis Chighisola

Contributor: Coach Chic – Whitman, MA

Drill Category: Skating, Strength

Drill Description:

Comments: This drill is really a variation of Deb K’s Chariot Races, but perhaps with some added benefits and uses.

Benefits:
Perhaps the major difference between this drill and Deb’s is that the player on the ice represents a whole lot more resistance because he has far more of his body creating friction against the ice (whereby the player’s shinguards in Deb’s drill makes it a little easier for the player to be towed).

Variations:

- I use this drill at times like Deb does, aiming to help players with their forward body leans, and with helping them learn to get a good grab with their skate edges.  To do this — or to emphasize technique, I keep the length of the drill relatively short, say across ice or between the blue lines.

- I also sometimes use this as a “finisher” near the end of a practice with older players.  And as a finisher, I mean the kind of drill that is sure to have my players leaving most of their energy out on the ice.  For this effect, I might lengthen the course players will work along, perhaps even from goal line to goal line.

By the way…  Although it’s certainly easier to be dragged rather than to do the dragging, there IS some effort required of the player on the ice and holding onto those sticks.

Running the drill:
In either application, one partner pulls the length of the course, and they switch roles to return back to the starting point.  When it comes to the finisher-type of drilling, I’m on my players to make quick exchanges in roles so there’s little lag time during the drill.

Click image below to see a short video.

Okay, I have to start with a huge smile here, because I’ve just finished what I’ll call — for the lack of a better name — a “tryout” for a new 5- and 6-year old team coming from my winter Learn-to-skate/Learn-to-play program.  Ya, they were an adorable lot, with a 4-year old even being one of our better little guys.  Anyway, for the sake of those who might be forming a similar kind of team right now, I thought I’d share some of my thoughts here, as well as some of the “drills” we started with today…

– Dennis Chighisola

Now, it shouldn’t surprise you at all that almost all of what I’ll share here can already be found elsewhere within the CoachChic.com site.  The reason is that I really DO practice what I preach.  I mean, if I’ve said, “This is how we should teach _______,” it’s because that’s what I’ve found over 40-ish years will really work.  And I don’t care if it has to do with beginners or elite level players; that’s how I’d do it.

As far as “my babies” go, I told a few of their parents beforehand that it wouldn’t take more than a few minutes to get a sense of whether a youngster belongs on that team.  In a way — and not much different from older kids, most of us can usually spot a hockey player as he or she comes out the door.  There’s just something about the way he or she carries himself or herself.

Of course, it might take a drill or two more to gain a sense of whether a very young one is ready to take a few instructions.  Understand that I was only going to start planting the seeds in this first gathering.  In a way, I wanted to get a head start on some things I’ll want the kids to ultimately learn.  But I also knew that those kinds of drills would actually give me an idea of whether the kids — at their young ages — could focus and understand some verbal instructions and brief demonstrations.

Now, here’s what guided me in my drill selection…

• The younger players are, the more malleable they are, and the more a really good “teacher” can influence them.
• Defensive play may be a factor in the kids’ success down the road.  Sure, there might eventually be a time when youngsters can start appreciating a forechecking scheme, different kinds of coverages, etc.
• But, right now the only thing that will really capture these little guys’ attention and enthusiasm — and probably the only thing they can really understand — is offense, as in scoring goals.

That in mind, I grabbed a number of ideas from my “Creating the Early Goal-scorer” video (and you might also scan “ The Idea(s) Behind Those Goal-scoring Gadgets“).

Of course, my current youngsters are true beginners at the game, which makes them slightly less experienced than the players I was really aiming to help in that video.  So, while I did try a few of the ideas demonstrated there, I had to use another important teaching technique I’ve mentioned a few times elsewhere.  I mean, what I had to do was create some even easier to do lead-up progressions to start easing my new kids towards the more difficult skills.

Remember:  Really young ones aren’t into too much structure or discipline.  So I started things by just tossing pucks out onto the ice and encouraging the kids to just have some fun.

Also remember:  Since these ARE really young ones, it’s not right for me to immediately talk to them like older players.  So, I quite often during this session called them into a little group by announcing, “Okay, kids, let’s have a really important meeting here.”  And, getting them on their knees and focused (for about the 20-seconds their attention spans will allow), I’d frequently start with some kind of question — maybe about the row of pylons we were going to attack, or about the “simulated goaltender” sitting in the net-crease.

I also loosely applied the Whole: Part Method of structuring drills…  For example, each little guy got to attack the make believe goalie in one drill, we had 2-player races towards that goalie — this to encourage more speed in their attack, we practiced going in and out of pylons (which I referred to as “the bad guys”), and at one point we played a simple game of keepaway with a puck.  At the end of the morning session, I put a couple of the earlier practiced “parts” together by having them — one boy at a time — weave in and out of the pylons at a decent speed, and end by scoring on that simulated netminder.

Oh, and you know my penchant for taking notes…  So, at one point during that session I made a note to myself to bring some weights to use for strengthening their stick grips, passes and shots.  (What I plan on doing can be found in the “Passing Basics in Hockey“ video, in the section on “Discovering Stick-strength”.)

Finally, at one point during our session — while the kids were playing keepaway, I mentioned something important to two dads who were out on the ice helping…  Both dads had themselves played to pretty high levels, so I thought it a good idea to share the distinctions I see.  Or, as I said while we watched the keepaway going on, “That’s really what THEIR game is all about, you know.”  And I went on to suggest that it’s not about the leftwing lock, defensive zone coverage or a powerplay.  No, THEIR game is about getting the puck and keeping it away from their opponents.  It’s about weaving in and out of those “bad guys”, and it’s about beating a little goalie who is usually no more agile than the plastic one we’ll use at our practices.  And, as I’ve also said at numerous times in these pages, our jobs — as parents and coaches — is to help our youngsters be successful at THEIR level.

Now, before ending I have to say that there’s yet another reason I was smiling — or even chuckling — as I reflected on this morning’s tryout session.  As I noted above, these “babies” are as malleable as players can be, and they can be changed rather quickly under the guidance of a really good teaching coach.  And while I have a strong belief in my own abilities, I also know I can almost triple our teaching efforts by helping my assistants to be nearly as effective.  Oh, my reason for chuckling?  It’s because I can only imagine what our games are going to be like when every single young member on our team is able to stickhandle through their opponents and cooly tuck the puck into their opponents’ nets.  Oh, boy…  I suspect we’re going to be creating some hockey monsters this coming winter!

If you like this article, or if you have any questions about it, please do Coach Chic a favor and add a Comment below.  Thanks!

I know this is going to be a rather touchy subject.  Yet, I want you to hear-out a couple of extremely qualified guys.

In the following audio presentation, Lisa Cohn interviews Dr Patrick Cohn and noted baseball coach, Tommy Weber, on that very topic — about the possibility that parents should back-off when it comes to their youngster’s hockey training.

Again, I’d like you to hear Coach Weber’s side of this argument, then I’d like to add a few of my own comments a little later.

– Dennis Chighisola

Why Sports Parents Should Back-off

with Patrick J. Cohn, Ph.D. and Tommy Weber

Click the arrow below to play:

Okay, so you should have gotten a pretty good sense of how one very experienced sport coach and a noted sport psychologist feel on this subject.  And, I’d have to agree with all that’s been said in that interview.   At the same time, we hockey folks have a slightly greater challenge than families in most other sports…

For one thing, ice hockey rinks are usually built in pretty remote locations.  So, it isn’t like our youngsters can just hang their gear over the handlebars of a bike and head-off to practice on their own.  In other words, parents must help transport their kids and all that heavy gear, and it just makes sense that they’re going to hang around for the hour or so of practice time.

And, while it’s not necessarily an excuse for hanging around for practices, hockey families do invest an awful lot more money in their youngsters’ practice time than those in most other sports.

I might add my own reason for staying for a practice, in that I’ve always really enjoyed watching my guys have fun — as they played or as they practiced.  (Actually, that’s one of the things I miss so much today, since my son has long retired and my grandson now practices far away at college.)

Okay, so I’ve given my hockey brethren plenty of reasons to ATTEND their youngsters’ practices.  However, I don’t think it’s the attending practices that Dr Cohn and Coach Weber are really getting at.

No, as a matter of fact, I think it’s more a matter of us parents needing to give our kids — and their coaches — some space that’s really at issue.

I actually addressed that subject in an earlier video (in “Up The Boards, Johnny!“) with a message I really want my friends here to appreciate.  I mean, it is not possible for your son or daughter to serve more than one master at a time.

Please think about that one again…  Nothing but confusion comes from a youngster needing to please both the coach and his or her parents (not to mention teammates).  In fact, I firmly believe a lot of the fun can be taken out of the playing experience if a youngster is forced to please too many.

Then, a personal note…  On rides home from games, my young guy would almost always ask me, “Well, what did you think?”  I simply answered that with several questions of my own, as in “I don’t know; what do you think?” or “What did your coach have to say?”.  You have to understand — and I wanted my guy to also understand — that it didn’t really matter what I thought.  Hey, only one guy (or gal) gets to name the next group of players to go over the boards and onto the ice, and that’s the coach.

– Dennis Chighisola

Click here for more great audios like this one!

Youth Sports Psychology by Peak Performance Sports

407-909-1700/888-742-7225

Although Jason Price has in mind those athletes who will be enduring the likes of some pretty tough outdoor activities under the hot summer and fall sun, I’m going to suggest that the following represents an extremely timely collection of advice for hockey players.  Sure, we play and practice in cooler — often very cold — environs.  But that’s misleading.  Actually, hockey players should have a number of the concerns Jason raises here.  (This article was written last month.  But, it’ll remain timely for hockey players from now until next spring.)

– Dennis Chighisola

Heat Illness and Hydration Tips

By Jason Price – MS, CSCS, ATC, LAT, CPT, USAW Club Coach

Athletes Equation

jason.price@athletesequation.com

Most athletes prepare for the season working out in hot conditions and this gives them a false sense of security when approaching preseason practice. They feel they are acclimatized to the conditions but facts are facts. Most athletes may train at the most 2 hours a day and if they go everyday that is impressive. Most are taking days off in between training sessions.

Now look at the facts of the preseason. Multiple hours of multiple training sessions a day, increased stress of fighting to make the team or earn a position, and practices strung together for days at a time. That is a recipe for disaster for an athlete if they do not take the right approach into the preseason.

Heat Illness is one of the only injuries that is 100% preventable. All it takes is awareness, it is that simple. Awareness from the coaching staff, athletic trainer and athlete, and all it takes is one of those people to be ignorant to the dangers of training in heat to cause a potentially tragic situation. The book “Junction Boys”, about the preseason camp run by Paul Bryant at Texas A&M, does a great job of describing how heat illness can ravage a team because of ignorance towards it.

First, let’s discuss heat illness and what can happen from it. There are three heat related conditions of primary concern for coaches, athletic trainers, and athletes. In order by how dangerous the condition is, they are

3- Exercise-Associated Muscle Cramps

2 – Heat Exhaustion

1 – Heat Stroke.

Again these three conditions are 100% preventable. Symptoms of the three conditions can overlap and often one condition will move on to the more serious one. So, athletes who start having exercise-associated cramps will often ultimately put themselves into a condition of heat exhaustion and then even heat stroke.

Failure to treat these conditions can cause serious dehydration and the complications that come with that (even possible death)!

Now, I am not saying athletes should not train in the heat. Most Athletes have no choice.  All it takes to avoid problems is being aware of the dangers and knowing how to keep oneself protected.

So, how can you tell if someone is suffering from heat illness? They will demonstrate signs of thirst, fatigue, lethargy, flushed skin, headache, and visual disturbances. Anyone showing signs of heat illness should be treated as a medical emergency.  For, if the proper treatment isn’t given them, they are in a potential life threatening situation. Again, Heat Illness is 100% preventable.  If someone shows signs of heat illness, and if they are treated appropriately, they have an excellent prognosis for full recovery.

The table below outlines how you can differentiate between heat exhaustion and heat stroke. Heat stroke is by far the more serious condition, it’s potentially life threatening, and the individual should be transported to the nearest medical facility for treatment.

Who is at risk of heat injury? Healthy individuals, children, elderly, those with excessive muscle mass, the obese, those with low body fat, the poorly acclimatized or poorly conditioned, those with a previous history of heat illness, anyone who is dehydrated, one who is sleep deprived or those with acute illnesses (flu, allergies, colds, etc). Obviously, this includes a good many individuals.

So, how can you prevent the risk of heat related conditions? First and for most, stay hydrated. Hydration is key. If you wait until you are thirsty to drink then it is too late and you are highly at risk. If you wait until practice to hydrate, then you are highly at risk. So, here is the best strategy to fight heat illness:

• Drink 8-12 8oz of fluid at least 24 hours prior to an event
• Drink at least 16oz of fluid 2 hours prior to exercise and again 20 min before exercise
• Have fluid available during training and practices (unlimited water breaks should be given; if an athlete says he or she needs water, let them get it).
• When exercising for more than an hour, drink at least 5-10 oz of fluid every 15-20 minutes.
• Drink cool fluids containing less than 8% carbohydrate.
• Use individual water bottles to monitor fluid consumption.
• Check Urine color for hydration status (see Urine Color Gauge)
• Take weights prior to and after practice to measure loss of fluid in the body.
• Replenish lost fluid with at least 24 oz of fluid for every pound of body weight lost due to exercise.
• Avoid caffeine, alcohol, and carbonated beverages.
• Allow 10-14 days to get acclimatized
• Reduce intensity of prolonged exercise

*By fluid I am inferring to water or a watered down sports drink. Fruit Juices, energy drinks, and other beverages are not good fluids to hydrate with.

So, with this knowledge of heat illness and a strategy and how to prevent it, you are prepared for taking on the heat as you prepare for the fall sports season.

Reference:   Anderson, Marcia; Hall, Susan; Martin, Malissa. Foundations of Athletic Training. New York: Lippincott Williams & Wilkens. 2005.

*

As a wrap-up here, hockey players, their parents and their coaches at least seem not to be as concerned about hydration issues as they should.  No, we don’t usually practice and play under extremely hot conditions.  And, no, we’re probably not in danger of the most severe heat related illnesses.  At the same time, hockey players are very much in danger of reduced performance if they don’t hydrate properly.  After all, while environmental temperatures surely are a factor in water loss, so is exertion, as well as stress.  So again, hydration — or frequent water intake — is important to a hockey player.

Finally, I’d like to emphasize one point Jason made, in that once a player gets thirsty, the fluids he or she takes-in at that point won’t help for a considerable length of time.  That’s the reason he suggests starting the hydration process long before the practice or game.  In other words, stay ahead.

– Dennis Chighisola

Be a friend:  EVERY worthwhile Comment really helps Coach Chic!

Actually, the above statement would be true if we were talking about academics, our chosen field of work, a hobby, you name it.

– Dennis Chighisola

In fairness, I have to begin by saying that this topic was brought about by an email I just received this morning from a CoachChic.com member.  I’m thankful this guy is with us, because he comments often and thusly provides me a lot of food for thought.

In that email, my friend was saying how his youngster had felt really good about himself upon leaving the rink each time over recent weeks, and that this excited him so much that he wanted to do more hockey related things back home.  That’s not so hard to understand, is it?  After all, we humans avoid pain as best we can, and we gravitate towards things that make us feel good about ourselves.  Again, there shouldn’t be any big surprises about that.

Ironically, I’ve been working on several projects recently…  I have an on-ice puckhandling course starting locally in a few weeks, my Learn-to-skate/Learn-to-play clinics begin in early October, and I’m also working on a new video that will appear on this site’s new sales page (ya, I hate that “Oops, you’re not a member?” page — LOL).

The irony comes with the fact that all I really want to talk to customers about is confidence — be it for my clinics or in the promotion of this site.  I mean, that is absolutely everything.  Every guru who has ever lived has said it in one way or another, and that’s also a key principle in The Bible, in The Secret and in The Law of Attraction.

As this relates to my clinics — and even that new sales page…  I hope long-time members have gotten the sense that the drills and slow, deliberate progressions I offer here are all about confidence.  A player does a given skill progression to the point of mastering it, and he or she is sure to feel good about taking-on the next challenge.  And so it should go, from beginner all the way up to elite execution.

Okay, but now back to my main premise…  My CoachChic.com friend said that his young guy left the rink psyched.  With that, the boy went home to seemingly find ways to continue that feeling.  That’s gonna happen, you know.  The player who is loving the game finds a stick and ball at home and experiments, maybe even reliving some of the recent rink excitement.  In the case of my friend’s boy, he also found a way to spend plenty of time on his in-lines.

This in mind, here are a few suggestions for member parents and coaches…

First and foremost, appreciate that YOU have the most say in whether your kids have either good or bad experiences at the rink.

For example, I know some parents get hung-up on a team’s designation (like it sounds better to the guys at work if you tell ‘em your kid plays on a AAA team).  However, I’ll suggest that the player who is going to be in the lower two-thirds of that high level roster is NOT going to be able to truly execute many of the things he or she would like.  In fact, a lot of kids on any given team will play in what I call “panic mode”, because nearly everything they attempt to do is rushed by the superior talent around them.  Many, in fact, won’t be able to skate 2′ without coughing-up the puck or throwing it away in a panic.  Oh, I know, I’m being a bit rough on some of you by saying this.  But, I feel my lot in life is to offer you the best advice I can.  So, I’m just suggesting that some serious thought has to be given to where a youngster plays for close to 9-months out of the year.

For my next point, let me take you to a rink lobby some 15-ish years ago…  I’m walking into the rink to teach a clinic, and I’m greeted by a whole bunch of my former Learn-to-play students as they’re leaving their game ice.  The kids are smiling and waving to me, and I had to believe they’d just done pretty well.  Once the kids disappeared to their lockerroom, however, I discovered a very different story from the group’s parents and coaches.  Those little guys had actually been beaten by a score of about 17-0, with the grown-ups looking and sounding all down in the dumps.  Again, the kids — not yet influenced by the adults, are laughing and seemingly excited at having just played.  The reason I tell this story?  It’s because some of those youngsters were likely allowed to continue feeling good about that hockey experience on the ride home and thereafter, while others were probably going to be told how badly things went.  My personal answer to this is to suggest that I’m a better “spin doctor” than all those professional politicians you see on TV.  I see a little guy take a tumble in one of my clinics and I rush to tell him, “Awesome fall!” — just as he’s deciding whether to cry or not.  And I can usually think of something positive to say to my team, even when they’ve had bad night.  Hey, I want them eagerly coming to practice in a few days, so there appears no other choice but to give them a reason to do that.  And that’s what I’m suggesting here:  Be a spin doctor yourself, and give your own player or players reasons to feel good about the last hockey experience.

Now here’s the best reason for doing some of the things I’ve suggest here…  No matter how a youngster feels about himself or herself, there’s going to be what I refer to as a snowballing effect — with the enthused kid improving all the more between trips to the rink, and the less excited kid likely going backward.  And it keeps rolling that way, with the gaps often widening over time.  As a matter of fact, that’s what I meant in the title up top, in that “hockey success breeds more hockey success”!

Please don’t forget to help The Old Coach by leaving a Comment (below)!

CoachChic.com members may get tired of hearing it, but I’ll never tire of saying that I’ve met some of the world’s best and brightest through social media sites.  And I count among that special group my new Twitter friend, Maryse Senecal.

Now, not so surprisingly, most entries in the Strength Training for Hockey Players section have come from those with Physical Education backgrounds.  That should make sense, owing to the special studies required in that discipline.  I take notice, however, when I get to learn from someone with the kind of specialized skills possessed by the likes of Maryse.  So, I hope everyone pays attention here, as she shares with us a different approach to hockey strength training.  (FYI…  If you’ll notice in her introduction, Maryse echoes some of the same shortcomings in ice hockey players that Scott Umberger has noticed and previously shared with us.)

Oh, by the way…  Maryse’s original title to the following piece was “Training the Athlete”.  I just renamed it above for our members’ sake, just so you could find it among the many special articles on strength training.

– Dennis Chighisola

Training the Athlete

By Maryse Senecal
myo-precision

I am an orthotherapist by trade. My specialties lay in the study of myology and bio-mechanics. It was only a natural progression to find myself in the personal training world. In that evolution, I was fortunate to do my internship with the Lead Master Trainer in Ottawa. His specialty is his work with pro athletes. He was interested enough in my field of study to give me a voice when planning his athletes’ dryland programs.

I suggested that we start their off-season training by first addressing their range of motion. These athletes are strong, no doubt there, but they have often sacrificed flexibility and core strength for pure unilateral strength, disallowing the opportunity to pull from their hip, core and flexibility to maximize their power in their performance.

We began rewriting their programs, breaking their program into 4 phases. As I trained them, I was often used as their demonstrator and then their pacer. All this while I was approaching my 40’s! What kept the athletes’ focused on me was the fact that I had no problem keeping up with them, rather, they had to keep up with me. What allowed me to do this consistently was the connection between hip/core strength and flexibility.

And so we began…

1 – Phase 1 – week 1 to 3 – Intense Yoga

We found that the guys’ range of motion was absolutely shameful! So, yoga for stretch and core stability. Intense, as in everyday. Then, because they are performance and strength driven, we would move the yoga gradually into strong power yoga. We would add weights to their sessions, more often than not in an ‘off balance” environment… again, to increase spine and core stability. Note that the boys hated this phase of the training… but they went through it anyway.. in that time, we would work very hard with them in the nutritional environment as well…

2 – Phase 2 – week 4 – 8 – Strength

This phase of the training involves a lot of weight load to increase the strength component of their regimen. Because we believe that training should incorporate a body synergy, core strength and stability was always incorporated with their strength moves. Training to avoid injury. Off balance, or unilateral moves, core strength and stability along with the weight load. I have to admit that the boys were not getting as strong as they would have in a pure strength environment, but for their chosen sport, it really was best. Who cares what you can squat if you can’t bring that strength into your sport? The athletes would train in strength on days 1-3-5, supplemented by yoga on days 2-4.

3 – Phase 3 – week 8- 16 – Power

This was by far the best part of the training. Power… strong plyometrics, off balance plyos, quick foot drills, interval cardio training, strong power moves… really the best part of the training. This is where the boys would start seeing the gains made in the slower parts of their workout phases.

4 – Phase 4 – Training Camps

Once the boys started their training camps, we would pull it back. We would incorporate all of the above components in a circuit format where all aspects of their training would come together. We would also pull back the frequency of their session so that they could concentrate on their performance for camp.

The success they experienced in the training camps was extraordinary. While some were getting injured, or over winded.. our athletes were holding their own. Not as strong, true, yet much faster and more endurance. Because the hip was being shaped and strengthened all through their time with us, pathologies like groin pulls were almost non-existent. I say almost because some came in with that problem, and rehab set their workouts back.

Although different sports demand different bio-mechanics, the phases of this training program can and should be adapted to any chosen sport. The key is to keep it interesting with variety and keep it strong by challenging balance and core strength.

*

This note from Dennis Chighisola…

In ending, I’d like to mention a technique I often use as I sort through tons of great research — in that I tend to borrow a little bit from every expert.  Sure, there are some areas of our game where there’s seemingly just one right way to do something.  Yet, we all live different lifestyles and have differing free time to devote to training, we all have slightly different body-types and other unique physical traits, as well as very different goals.  And that’s where borrowing bits and pieces of what the experts suggest tends to help.

Allow me to add one more thing here, in that the above also explains why I feel compelled to offer so many different training approaches here within the pages of CoachChic.com.  Actually, I think it’s the right way to do things, giving you options, I mean.

Finally, I know Maryse would enjoy your feedback and questions, and she invites you to email her.

Be a friend:  EVERY worthwhile Comment helps Coach Chic in the search engines!

This special note from Coach Chic…

If your son, daughter or team is at the stage where they need to learn hockey’s basic rules and positioning, this is the video for them.  No, it’s not for grown-ups, as I’ll soon explain.  But it’s been written and produced in a way that seems to really work for 5- to 7-years old.  And, as you’ll see, it’s awesome for helping very young kids learn about off-sides, icing and where to line-up for face-offs.

Now, I’ve coached all levels of our game — up through high school and college, and I even had several minor league pro interviews.  I’ve also helped a number of students reach the NHL or other elite levels.

That said, perhaps one of the things I’m best at is in knowing where I am at a given time.  I mean, I don’t treat high school guys like kindergardeners, and I don’t talk over the heads of my littlest students.  No, in fact, I go into what I jokingly refer to as my “Mr Rogers impression” when I teach my Learn-to-skate and Learn-to-play clinics.

And that’s what I felt the need to do as I prepared to write the script for the following video.  As I said already, I wasn’t writing it for you, the parent or coach.  (Actually — and I’m chuckling at myself a bit here, because I felt pretty stupid doing some of the audio.  But, I knew “baby talk” and a lot of bells and whistles were necessary if I was to keep the attention of little ones.

If you’ll notice, this video was created a number of years ago (it still has my old CoachChic.com introduction).  Actually, I produced it as a gift to a number of students I had in a summer hockey school back then, sort of as a supplement — or home study program — for the things we were working on on the ice.

Frankly, I held my breath as I waited for feedback from my camp parents.  But, every single follow-up comment was unbelievably positive.  In fact, a number of parents told me that their kids practically wore-out the CD I’d given them.  And, some told me their youngsters knew the video by heart.

Okay, so why don’t I let you take a peek at it right now.  Then, once you’ve had a chance to view it, I’ll add a number of further comments and some advice down below (there seems to be something slightly off with the timing of audio and video when face-offs are covered — it’s hardly noticeable; but I promise to fix that as soon as possible)…

Okay, is it silly?  Yes.   But, does it work?  Absolutely — because it’s just what a young player needs!  And, as I suggested in the video, countless viewings are going to prove a whole lot more effective than just a few.

As I also suggest, a parent can enhance the learning experience by asking questions of the youngster, perhaps testing him or her in a fun way (and even using a little tool I’ll make available here pretty shortly).

For both parents and coaches, I think you ought to also consider that kids aren’t ever going to truly understand their playing positions without first knowing their left from their right sides.  So, I would make it a point to frequently quiz or otherwise help your youngster/s in this area.

As for coaches of very young teams…  I have done a simple drill — off-ice and on the ice — that really reinforces the off-sides rule.  So, here goes…

• Either mark a line (with chalk) on the lockerroom floor or out in the runway, or use a section of the blue line on the ice.
• Have a coach be a partner for one kid at a time as they both approach the offensive blue line.  In this way, the coach gets to totally control over the drill.
• The coach will want to alternate his her approach to this drill.  In other words, sometimes you might move at a slow, sure pace, and put the puck on-side ahead of your young partner.  At yet other times, the coach should pretend to have difficulty advancing the puck, at which time the young skater must know enough to delay until he or she sees the puck cross the line.

Oh, by the way, parents could easily run that drill at home.  Just be creative about locating a mock blue line.

Then, here’s a little insight into my reason for solving the problems dealt with in that video…  When my grandson was a 6-year old Mite C in the local youth program, I used to cringe at the amount of ice-time that was wasted in his games.  I mean, kids would mill around for what seemed an eternity, searching for where they should line-up for a face-off.  Worse yet, few of the little guys understood the rules of off-side or icing, which meant there were countless more face-offs than there should have been.  So, if there is a very good reason for solving these problems — or for having your youngster or team watch the video countless times, it’s to give them more real playing time within an hour of ice, and to thusly make the game more fun for them.

Finally, here’s our deal, and a good reason why I’m currently making this video available to non-members:

I NEED YOUR FEEDBACK!

Down below is a box for “Feel free to leave a comment… “.

What I’d really like to know is if the video seemed to work — with an individual, or with a team.  And, while it would be nice to have a commenter’s name and organization, I would at least like to know the age of the youngster/s using the program, as well as your position (as a parent or coach).

Oh, and yes you can share this page and video with teammates or friends.  Just send them a link to the CoachChic.com home page (that works best), and tell them to scan the free stuff for “Learning Hockey — with Coach Chic & Chomper“.

Thanks for stopping by.  And, I look forward to helping you further as your little one grows in the game.

– Dennis Chighisola

An introductory note from Coach Chic…

Well, after a long off-season of training, my two NEHI teams have been gearing-up recently for the starts of their new playing seasons.  As a matter of fact, my HS Prep guys opened tonight with a pretty convincing 12-2 win.

So, you’d think I’d be thrilled, huh?  Well, so you’d think…

Actually, I believe it’s good for my guys that I’m seldom satisfied with any game, no matter the outcome.  And I’m almost always able to find a number of things that need fixing, or that need at least a little more work.

Now, I’m likely to later cover a lot of the following in far greater detail.  (In other words, if it’s a skating problem I’m mentioning here, for example, I’m probably going to show you in the Skating section how I ultimately solved that.)  For now, however, I’d at least like to touch upon the things I think need addressing with my older team.  I don’t doubt member coaches, parents and older players will find a few things that’ll also help them (sorta like some food for thought)…

The purpose of my High School Prep team is to ready 17 young guys for their respective high school seasons.  All my kids are headed to different schools, and they range in needs from trying to make their school team to wanting to really excel wherever they’re going.

In Massachusetts, school hockey doesn’t begin until the Monday after our US Thanksgiving.  So, that’s my goal — to have the kids ready on that big day.  And I try to convince them (and sometimes their parents) that our common goal is to have everyone totally ready on November 30 of this year.

What I’m getting at is that nothing but development matters to me until that day arrives.  And, in a way, this takes a great deal of pressure off me and my players.  Oh, I’m intense when it comes to my kids working and learning.  But we should all know that they can’t take their autumn game scores or stats with them when they head to tryouts.

So, I started by sharing this philosophy just so you understand the rather patient approach I’m going to be taking with the following topics.

*

I have my own to-do list as I prepare for games.  And the first game of each new season has a longer list than most others.

I print-up a batch of nice roster sheets so that I don’t have to waste time scratching them out for each new game.  That’s on a smart drive, too, just in case I have to make roster changes at any point during the season.

A one-time deal has me bringing new game socks and our game jerseys to the first game.  (Thank God I have a family who will care for the jerseys from now until season’s end!)

I tote a small plastic bucket (adorned with our logo), this carrying about 20 special pucks meant just for our pre-game warm-ups.  Each year I paint these a little differently, with this season’s pucks remaining black around the sides, but sprayed silver on tops and bottoms.  The goalies hate these (LOL), but those pucks sure do make them focus.  Inside that bucket are also a few tennis balls for my goalers to juggle and do other pre-game work with.

I carry a large loose-leaf book that contains my rosters, official papers, emergency telephone lists and then small items — like chalk, pencils, clear tape, notepaper, small sticky-pads for my game notes, and the likes.

Inside the above book is my team’s lockerroom door sign (as described in the Coaches’ Corner).

Then, there’s what I refer to as my “Murphy’s Law Kit”!  Ya, “stuff” happens when we least expect it, so I’ve collected a ton of odds and ends to bail my kids — if they forget a neckguard, if they strip an edge, if they lose a helmet screw, etc.  Oh, and all the typical first aid items are also in the box.

So, how did yours truly do on HIS opening night prep?  Geeeeeeeze, I left the dawgoned game socks back in the office.  (Grrrrrrr…)

*

I asked the guys to report a little early for this first game.  Unbeknownst to the players, I wanted them to relax as they readied for the first game, and I also wanted some extra time to go over a few important things…

After having a quick administrative discussion — like how the jerseys should be collected at game’s end, how we’d operate in the lockerroom, etc., I went into bench decorum.

• Of course, my defensemen sit on the defensive end of the bench, with our forwards stationed closer to the offensive zone.
• I also pointed-out that I want the next guy up at a given position ALWAYS keeping an eye on the man he’ll replace.
• The kids and I next established in a brief discussion which player might be the most important on line changes — the one leaving the ice, or the one entering the play.  From there, I told my guys that they must clear the way for those trying to get onto the ice.  Ya, if you can just picture players getting tangled in a doorway while a team plays shorthanded…  Ugh.
• I told my guys that I wanted them to only concentrate on a few parts of their game.  I think things come together better when we do it this way.  So, I asked them to mainly focus on our primary forecheck, and to also try to make effective dump-ins.  Hey, if you think about it, solving just those two things over the first few weeks will make it easier for us to gradually add other key elements of our system.

*

We have a neatly timed pre-game warm-up routine I’ll also tell you more about soon.  Of course, things looked pretty ugly and were poorly timed during our first real try at it.  Perhaps more importantly, I sensed my guys had lost their focus on one drill, and poor focus means the kids are learning and reinforcing poor techniques rather than the right ones.

*

During this game, a new situation arose that needed dealing with…  A penalty killer should have what’s referred to as a “strong stick” in his or her own zone.  In other words, if my players get their stick-blade on a puck back in our defensive zone, the puck has to be sent out of the zone (and hopefully HARD down the ice).  Actually, I tell my guys I want pucks to hit the far-end boards.

*

Early in the game, a number of my guys came-off the ice with our opponents lugging the puck towards our net.  (Ha.  Oh no you don’t!)  The time to change-up is when the puck is buried safely in the offensive zone.

*

I thought our goaler played well on this night.  At the same time, I think a few of his difficulties weren’t his fault; they’re mine.  And I have to help him fix them.  So, in one instance I wrote a note to myself that I want to create a drill that forces the boy to fight for pucks in scrambles around the crease.  (A lot like the new guys who hadn’t learned with their former teams how to change properly, I think my goalie had been let-down by his past coaches, since he seemingly never learned to really handle the puck — either passing it, setting-up dump-ins for teammates, or tying-up loose pucks.  Oh, our goaltending coach and I have helped him with these things during the off-season.  But, there’s still lots more work to do — for his sake.)

*

Then, there was one awesome play I just have to discuss with all of my guys as soon as I get the chance…  One of my defensemen was coming back towards our end with an enemy puckcarrier close by, and with another attacker trailing not far behind (sort of a 2 on 1).  A lot of backchecking forwards would have wrongly headed towards the puckcarrier, figuring that’s how they could best help their teammate.  My backchecker, however, immediately grabbed the open trailer, which allowed my D to confidently handle the puckcarrier.  Aaaaah, awesome.

*

In closing, know that the game bench is a crazy place, in that there are lots of things for players and coaches to deal with.  Add to that the fact that players are coming and going — on line changes, and it’s virtually impossible for a coach to truly discuss many of the above points with all of his or her players.  For those reasons, I hold a once-per-week “discussion session” where we’re able to really relax and study the notes I’ve taken at the last game.  There’s no screaming or yelling or embarrassing players in these sessions.  Instead, for example, I might begin this coming week’s get-together with something like, “What do you guys think might be the best time to change-up?”  As I hope you’ll appreciate, I’m encouraging at least a two-way discussion here (and hoping a bunch of kids will chime-in), mainly because I think the information sticks better when players help solve a given problem.

As you should notice, there won’t be a shortage of things to work on during our next three practices.  Actually, a lot of the difficulties we had tonight might even spawn a few new drills.

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President and CEO of Mental Edge

Shaun@MentalEdgeNow.com

For years I have wondered what part innate talent plays in the success of athletes. Growing up aspiring to be a pro athlete I thought on many occasions, “I wish I were talented enough to be as good as others.”  In fact as I have progressed in business I have also believed that success is a by product of the genes you get and some are lucky while the rest of us are scrapping and clawing to rise to the success of others.  While attending the PGA Championship last month I started thinking about the pathway these athletes took to get to where they are. Could there be more to it than simply genes?

Recently, I came across a book that challenges the significance of innate talent in the success of athletes, musicians, and business leaders. Geoff Colvin has written a book titled “Talent is Overrated: What Really Separates World Class Performers from Everybody Else”. Colvin makes a compelling case that THE ART OF DELIBERATE PRACTICE is what differentiates world-class performance from others.  He then goes on to describe this compelling concept:

“People who engage in intensive deliberate practice push themselves slightly beyond their current limitations physically and mentally.”

Doing this leads to greater perception, greater knowledge, and greater memory of what they know.  Practicing in this manner over a long period of time leads to the brain and body literally changing. When one learns to perceive more they are able to focus in on vital information that is significant when looking to creatively chart a course of success. For example, being aware of facial expressions in young athletes gives clues as to how they are receiving certain points of teaching. Often times a young athlete’s ability to be coached is closely connected to the closeness they feel to their coach. If a coach is not picking up on these subtle cues they miss information that is vital to their ability to influence a young life. In the same manner, learning to read important cues during a competitive situation gives athletes an advantage on their competition. It is this information that many athletes seem to miss.

Intensive deliberate practice not only improves an athlete’s level of perception but also increases their “working’ knowledge within their sport. It is as though an athlete’s knowledge base grows with each opportunity to play and practice in this manner. This dove tails with other performance coaches who encourage athletes to make sure they are always in the process of learning with each situation. Increasing their data base helps to inform them as to how to predict and approach different situations with greater mastery.  With this increased knowledge making decisions becomes easier and confidence in that process is increased.

Lastly, intensive deliberate practice improves an athlete’s memory of what they have learned in past performances. When they intentionally go into situations with this mindset their memories of the working knowledge they have acquired increases and they draw on this to acquire an edge on their competition.

It turns out the mental aspect of performance is vitally important and learning to approach our performance opportunities with a deliberate intensive approach gives us the secret many champions use to create the Mental Edge!

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I needed some time to sorta sit back and get a sense of where he was — personally, as well as in comparison to the guys he regularly plays with.  But, I’ll explain that more a little later.

I also had to get a sense of how much Jerry could do between our sessions together.  (I’m chuckling to myself right now, but I recall giving some homework assignments to a young lady who lived in a 2nd floor apartment, and man did her downstairs neighbor scream at the pounding from above.  Oh, well…)  Thankfully, Jerry was able to do the things I prescribed as homework, and he even had access to some outdoor venues — including a nearby tennis court and a local high school track.

Anyway, let’s get on to the video I’d done about Jerry.  After you’ve seen that, I’ll have a few more comments to add…

Now that you’ve seen the video, allow me to back-up a bit…

You see, I’d like this to be a learning experience for a broader audience than just in-liners.  So, I’m going to share some of the problem-solving techniques I commonly use with players — be they roller or ice hockey participants.

As I mentioned in the video, overcoming his greatest overall problem is going to make the most impact on Jerry’s playing ability. So, that was my major concern when we met for the first time.

As an aside in this area, I can’t tell you how many folks I see inspecting beginners and immediately fixating on some little, picky thing that has hardly any bearing on that experience level.  In other words, it doesn’t make sense to look for a minute mechanical flaw when a player is suffering from a much more basic one.  In fact, if you want to really frustrate an inexperienced player, force him or her to worry about the angle of this or that, his or her weight distribution, or the likes.

With that, my assessment was that Jerry mainly lacked time on his wheels, and along with that the comfort and energy efficiency seen in more experienced skaters.  Of course, I could have told him to just skate more, and send him on his way.  However, there was still some solid advice I could provide him, including how to move through a pattern similar to what he’d experience in a game.

For sure, that pattern had to include changes in direction.  So, parts of our next few sessions included me helping Jerry with pivots, sharp cuts and cross-overs (and you might notice his improvement in those areas as the above video progressed).  I also showed him how to stop in in-lines.

Now, had a glaring equipment problem jumped out at me in the very first meeting, I’d have dealt with it immediately.  However, it wasn’t until Jerry tried doing some fairly sophisticated moves that a stick and a skate problem came to light.  (I want to go into a little depth on those topics, so I plan on addressing them soon in another post.)

In closing — for now, I hope you noticed Jerry’s progress from the first sessions to the last.  I surely did, and it’s been even more noticeable up close and in person.  As a matter of fact, as I watched the end of that video, I realized Jerry had new needs.  Oh, he’ll still benefit from doing some of the basic drills.  However, I have a couple of new gadgets I want to tell you about shortly, these aimed at bringing Jerry’s game to yet a higher level.  So, stay tuned…

Be a friend:  Your worthwhile Comment helps Coach Chic in the search engines!

Be a friend:  Your worthwhile Comment helps Coach Chic in the search engines!

Amazingly, it contains “…all players ever to play in the National Hockey League! It currently contains more than 7000 players. It will be updated as the final rosters for the 2009-2010 NHL season are announced.”

So, click on the NHL Digest logo below, enjoy the calendar, and even share it with friends!  Again, enjoy…

CLICK THE LOGO TO GO TO THE CALENDAR

Follow Tyler on Twitter for great hockey updates…  @NHLDigest

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Contributor: Cameron F. — Niverville, Manitoba, Canada

Drill Category: Fun, Offense, Goaltending

Drill Description:

Comments: Many drills require nearly a full team to execute during a practice. This is a drill I like to use when we are short players. The drill itself needs 3-5 players plus a goalie and does not take up a lot of room on the ice surface.

Benefits:
FUN!
Forwards: This drill brings into focus nearly every aspect of goal scoring: accurate shooting, fast hands, quick decisions, and shot selection.
Goalies: This drill is designed to work on fast twitch muscles, balance, and recovery while under pressure.

Set up with shooter in the middle of the ice, at the hash marks with pucks. Other players are lined up towards the net, on both sides, in line with the edge of the crease.

Goalies must stay inside the crease for the first shot. As an added challenge, have the goalies start within 6 inches of the goal line.

Objective of game:
Players – score – 1 point
Goalie     – cover puck – 1 point
- puck goes behind the goal line – 1 point
- puck goes outside the blue line – 1 point
- puck touches side boards – 1 point

Running the drill:
P1 shoots the puck, G makes save and attempts to cover or direct rebound away from players.
After initial shot, players are allowed 1 pass before shooting. Progress to one-touch passes and one-timer shots to best simulate game situations.

After point is awarded, set up the drill and run again. Play to seven points (suggested).

Click image below to see a short video.

Contributor: Deb K. — Boulder, CO

Drill Category: Fun, Conditioning, Skating

Drill Description:

All the kids line up in pairs on the goal line. One kid remains standing, the other is on his knees. The standing player holds the blade end of both sticks, while the kneeling player holds the butt-end. On my cue, the standing players race, pulling their teammate down the ice. We try this with forward skating and backward skating and of course we switch the players around at each end of the ice so they both get the fun of being dragged In this drill, the kids really have to dig in, so they eventually figure out keeping the skates forward (I call it running man style) doesn’t allow them the propulsion they need, and they start turning their skates out to really dig in.

Click image below to see a short video.

Contributor: Cameron F. — Niverville, Manitoba, Canada

Drill Category: Fun, Offense, goaltending

Drill Desc