Beginner “Boards Bumps”

By Dennis Chighisola

A lot of this piece is really about troubleshooting, because it’s such a huge part of what we coaches and parents have to do for the sake of our young players.

Actually, I’m constantly on the lookout for problems in my kids’ games (no matter their age).  And, I’ve mentioned often to you how I’d make either mental notes (or more often, written ones) as I observed my young Mighty Mites at play.

Anyway, over one short stretch early in our season I noticed that those little guys needed more help with their stability.  Oh, they are only 4- to 7-years old, and they are just beginners, so they’re expected to take their spills (even if someone opens a door to allow a gust of wind to knock them down – ).

Still, there are cures for such things.  And, while I was able to fall back on a couple of my old standbys for this problem, I’d have invented something if it had to come to that.

Now, I’m going to save the other drill until I can get some footage to show you.  In the meantime, let me show you an introductory body-checking drill I call Boards Bumps.

To the right you can see my little guys moving very close to the boards.  They are actually coasting along and periodically bumping against the boards.  The idea is to allow them to gain the feel of bumping – or being bumped.  They’ll usually wobble a little with each bump, and they’ll sometimes even fall.  But again, the idea is to give them repetitive opportunities to “feel” the bumps, and to learn how to adjust to each.

A little at a time, they’ll learn to spread their skates slightly (for a wider base), and to sit a little lower (for a lower center of gravity).  We coaches will constantly remind them to do those things as they pass by, and we’ll also constantly remind them to keep two hands on their sticks with their sticks down on the ice.

You should know that there is/was a lead-up drill to the one you’re going to see here.  In that one, each player stood next to the boards, assumed a good strength posture, and then bumped the boards 5-times.  After resting for a few seconds, each player would then turn and bump the boards with his or her other shoulder.  And, on their own, the kids would continue to do that as we coaches moved among them to provide feedback.

As a FYII…  The above drill can be done off-ice and at home, in the event a parent wants to help his or her child behind the scenes.  There’s nothing better than to have your own young one (or older one) being the only player standing after an on-ice collision.

Okay, now that you have the gist of it, the next photo is linked to a video that will open in a new window.  Notice that the kids are just getting the hang of this – actually, all of them are at different levels right now, mainly because they vary so much in age.

Finally, I’d like to remind you again about our need to constantly troubleshoot the problems our kids are having.  And, if ever you have any difficulties solving a problem, well…  That’s why you have me here.

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Please DO add your Comments or questions below!

Speed Skating Versus Hockey Skating

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!

Do NHL Players Tie Skates Differently?

I hate to do this but, I am going to reserve this information for members only, this for a very special reason.  You see, what I’m about to share is a little on the tricky side, and I suspect it could be misapplied if not truly understood.  Moreover, this topic gives me the chance to put yet another one of those so-called hockey wives tale to rest, hopefully, once and for all.

– Dennis Chighisola

Do NHL Players Tie Skates Differently?

This question actually came in an email I received about a week ago.  Unfortunately, the sender didn’t provide a name.  No matter, it is a very good question.

Now, it must have been a good 20-years ago (probably more), when my son returned home from his latest minor pro hockey season, and when he suggested I try something a little different.  What he asked was that I try skating without using the top eyelets in my skate-boots.  In other words, tie the skates normally, but stop the laces and tie the bow at the next-to-last hole.

Quite honestly, I think I showed a big question mark on my face when I heard that, but my son continued, “Try it, dad.  Wait until you feel how much flex you get in your ankles!”

So I did try it, and I quickly became a believer.  In fact, I’ve been tying my skates that way ever since, and I’ve been sharing that bit of advice with my older students and players, too.

Notice that I said “older” students and players there.  For, I really don’t recommend that approach until a player is pretty dawgoned strong, and until a player has TRULY mastered his or her skating.  Hence my reserving this information for those who are into the CoachChic.com way of thinking.  In other words:  everything in time, everything in proper sequence.  Or, as I’ve said countless times within these pages, “Never skip steps!”

As an aside here, going down an eyelet on a good player’s skate tying really does help him or her to achieve better ankle flexibility.  And, with that, I can see my players looking all the more – I don’t know, I guess “stylish” is the word.  From a skating analysis standpoint, the added flexibility allows a player to nicely snap the ankle at the very end of each thrust.

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Of course, my son had gotten that tip from some other guys he was playing a medium level pro with, so this was something that was obviously known within that level (and most likely higher).  So, when that email arrived in reference to NHL players tying their skates a little differently, it should make sense that I’d answer, “It’s pretty likely.”

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Slightly connected…  I know that some years ago I heard that Soviet players were sometimes practicing with their skates virtually untied.  (Whoa, that has to be a challenge!)  The idea in doing that, of course, would be to make practicing (MUCH) more difficult, so that skating in games — with a regular skate tying — would ultimately feel a lot easier.

Okay, so let me briefly switch to another slightly connected topic, that having to do with tying the skates of very young, or much less experienced skaters.  Actually, while this point was raised by one of my Mighty Mite parents the other day, it also gives me the chance to address that wives tale I mentioned earlier.

It seems that the dad’s son had just been called-up to play and practice on a Mite C level team, and the coach of that team recommended that the dad wrap tape around the boy’s ankles (to evidently gain better ankle support).  Hmmmmm, and ugh…

Now, I can be at least a little compassionate towards that youth coach.  After all, he doesn’t have the benefit of knowing the things my members do – about how to analyze a stride, or about the need for ankle flex in the skating movement.  And, he likely doesn’t realize how applying very much tape around the ankles could make a player skate in almost a robot fashion.  In other words, with the feet and lower legs pretty much fused together, it should make sense that the player is going to move rather rigidly.  (As an FYI…  I don’t mind a player making one or two wraps of tape around the top eyelets, this to keep the laces from coming undone.  Any attempt to lay the tape on heavily or very tightly, however, IS going to cause the aforementioned robot-like problem.)

Trust me, that I didn’t leave that Mighty Mite dad hanging.  Instead, I spent a short time observing the boy moving around the ice during our recent pre-game warm-ups.  And, based on my 40-ish years of studying such things, here are the possibilities I considered before even looking at that youngster:

1. I think the first challenge for a beginner skater is in learning to manipulate the thin steel blade that extends-out from each skate-boot.  Please think about what I’m saying here, in that the skater wears the boot snugly tied to his or her foot (which isn’t tough at all), but then he or she has to control the blade in order to really skate.  (Ever hear the expression “edge control”?)  Actually, good control of a skate’s blade takes unbelievable coordination of tiny muscles in the foot, with different combinations being required to glide, cut, stop, move forward, backwards, or whatever.
2. Appreciate that some beginners – and I’m mainly talking about very young kids here – are a little lazy.  I don’t mean this in a harsh way at all.  What I am suggesting is that some 5-year olds might actually try to conquer their wobbly blades, while some others might not really focus well at first, or they don’t totally understand the coach’s instructions or demonstrations — yet.
3. One other possibility also has to do with rather young kids, and especially kids who are hurrying towards some other goal without worrying about what’s happening with their feet.  Far from the lazy type, this kind of player is usually extra aggressive, and just doesn’t have the patience to worry about how he or she will get from Point A to Point B.

As a final note here, one should only skip to the above checklist after ensuring that the player’s skates fit properly, that they are of sufficient quality to support him or her, and that they are tied correctly.  Of course, the above also assumes that there are no serious physical or learning disabilities present.  (On occasion I will notice a youngster doing something rather odd in his or her skating movement.  Presuming there isn’t anything physically wrong, however, I’ve provided the best ideas in the world to solve almost every beginner skating problem in my video on “21 Must-do Beginner Skating Drills”.  I’ve also included more help in separate articles and videos under the General Skills Advice category.

As for my young Mighty Mite, I kinda knew ahead of time that the best way to describe him would be found in Point #3 above.  Sure, he’s still new at skating, so there’s a little of Part #1 involved (with him and all of my little guys).  But, the main problem – if there even is a problem – is that the youngster in question is hell-bent-for-leather.  I mean, he wants the puck, he wants goals, and he is seemingly not caring how he gets to do those things (right now).  So, does it stand to reason that his footwork isn’t going to look very pretty?  You bet.  But, does it seem to have anything to do with his skates?  Absolutely not.

As yet another aside, my preference is for players who are zoned-in on the puck.  (Some of the prettiest skaters in the world can’t play the game, and some of those have been buried at center-ice or implanted into the local rink’s boards.  So, while “pretty” can be good, “effective” is a far more important quality in my book.)

To sum-up all of this (and to add a little more), let me make these points:

• Beginners need all the help they can get, and this includes good quality skates that are fit properly and tied properly.  And, since beginners do need all the help they can get, I’d lace their boots all the way up through all the eyelets.
• My biggest fear is that the parents of an intermediate will (skip steps and) go right straight to the advanced way of skate tying.  I’d much prefer that kids in this category 1) gain the benefits I mentioned in the above point, 2) become REALLY proficient skaters under normal skate-tying conditions, and 3) build-up their ankle strength to the point where they might be ready to perform stressful movements with the top eyelet not tied.
• I actually advise my players and students on an individual basis when it comes to making equipment changes.  So,  it isn’t like I tell all kids at a given age or level to do away with their top lace-holes.  Instead, I usually sense that one player could really benefit from doing this, while another of the same age and level will not.  When I do prescribe this, I will have a player test it in an easy practice setting, and I’ll usually suggest that he or she continue practicing through the long off-season.  Again, it’s rather stressful if one is skating hard with the skates tied in this manner, so I’d prefer my kids get plenty of chances to build-up strength and to get used to the new feel.

Finally, if you want more of my feelings on whether NHL players are tying their skates in the way I’ve described above, I’d be willing to bet that a great many are.  However, a lot of this would have to do with where a player came from, as well as what sort of player he is.  Furthermore, pro athletes can be a superstitious lot, and they are often open to or resistant to change, depending on so many things.  So again, I’d guess many current pros are tying their skates differently, but probably as many will never change the way they’ve always done what they’ve done.

THE Bobby Orr Move

Ya, like there was only one — or “THE” Bobby Orr move. There were probably more like a hundred of them. However, for the sake of helping my NEHI players to add one more move to their offensive bag of tricks, I several years ago dubbed a certain Orr move “The Bobby Orr Move”.

Now, I’m going to soon go into an analysis of that special play. But first, I think it’s time to resurrect Number 4’s memory. Yes, I’m wondering right now if a generation of young players (maybe more) only knows the name. So, for their sake, and also for those who recall how much fun it was to watch him, here’s a little something special borrowed from YouTube.com…

Next, as you perhaps wipe away your own tears, please go back to the 20-second mark of that video and watch the play that follows. That, my dear friends, is what I refer to as…

THE Bobby Orr Move

By Dennis Chighisola

Over the next few minutes you may just want to review that portion of the video again. At the same time, let me explain what I’m seeing there.

Countless times as I watched Orr during his years in Boston, he’d freeze the man covering him by faking a slapshot. Just the sight of Orr raising his stick usually caused the defender to brace-up — as if to block the shot, which then allowed Orr to perform further magic.

In that brief clip of Orr’s special move at the point, he walked around his cover and then fed a teammate cross-ice with a nice pass. At yet other times, I saw Orr take a slapshot as soon as he’d broken free from his check.

Of course, I’m here to tell you that this move — or this string of moves — can actually be learned by a younger player. In fact, if you click on the photo below you’ll see a video of one of my outstanding young Team NEHI Junior HS kids doing a pretty good imitation of the all-time great…

Now, I’ve sometimes mentioned elsewhere in these pages how I break down such a fancy move so that I can teach it to younger players. In fact, that’s how the boy above and many of his teammates learned this play — from my dividing the more complex skills into several easier, fairly do-able steps. Okay, so let’s explore those steps:

Step 1 is the Fake

I’m talking about a real fake here! I mean, if you can appreciate it (and I talk to my players often about this), a defensive player — be he a goaler or a skater — is NOT going to go falling on his face just because an attackers wills it, or prays it. Naw, a deke has to be believable! And, if it is, the defensive player will likely to do what the attacker wants him to do. So again, the whole thing starts with a big, believable slapshot motion.

Step 2 is the Pull

In a way, this is the spinarama move made famous by another offensive great, Denis Savard. In this case, however, I have my players do as Orr did, by only pulling the puck around on the backhand. (My personal belief is that spinning around from the backhand is easier and quicker to execute, it might carry the attacker wider around his man, and it also brings the attacker to a great shooting angle once he’s gotten around the checker. By the way, this is one reason I like to play my defensemen on their “off-wing” side.)

Step 3 is to Go Wide

And, as in Step 1, I really mean that a player has to do this step to his or her max — or to exaggerate it. As I’ll so often say to my kids, any fake is going to only last so long, and then the checker is going to try to recover and get you. (Think about that, if you would… An attacker takes the bait, but that has that “Oh, my God!” moment, at which time he or she desperately lunges back into the play.) So, the wider our attacker swings, the safer he or she is going to be.

Step 4 is to Penetrate

Actually, I’ll ultimately give my attackers all the usual options here. However, as we started practicing Orr’s move, I at first limited my young guys to just quickly getting around the imaginary checker and unleashing a slap on-goal. In due time, I asked my players to read the goaltender — and to shoot if they saw open net, or to move-in if the goaler had come-out on the angle. Down the road, I’m going to add a teammate to the play (probably over on the weakside backdoor), just so the guy doing the Orr move has the third option to pass.

Now, the following snapshots are linked to more action videos (so just click on each). And, in the case of the first one, I hope you get a kick out of our youngest player doing the same move as a righty shooter (because I surely did). In fact, I think he demonstrates the move awesomely!

Here’s a video taken from a front view, just to give you a different perspective (click on the image).

And, the final video is in slow-mo so that you might see the big guy again from the front view (click on the photo below).

Now, from all the above I’m kinda hoping you might come-away with a number of impressions…

1. The greatness of guys like Bobby Orr is that they pioneered some amazing moves. Years later, however, it’s possible for fairly skilled young players to perform those very same moves.
2. Complex moves aren’t quite so complex if we study them and then break them down into easier, do-able steps.
3. In many instances, some of those steps require real emphasis — as in the case of Orr’s move, where it’s extremely important to make a believable fake, and just as important to swing far-out and away from a recovering defender.

Now, I had what I hope you’ll see as an interesting conversation with my assistant coach the other night, this while our kids were practicing this move. For, I mentioned to him that each of the players was going to get something slightly different from what they were doing. Oh, I’m going to bet that two or three of my kids will try that move in a game over the next few weeks. At the same time, a number of my players aren’t quite ready to do that — just yet. So, what’s in it for the latter group? I think that working on such a move is an awesome skill drill for every one of them. Just picture it: They’re working on faking, pulling the puck in a spinarama, learning to swing wide around a defender, and trying to get their shots off as soon as possible. So again, I think inserting something like this into a fairly skilled team’s practice is a very worthwhile endeavor — for all of the players.

Finally, once I’ve given you enough time to put this drill to good use, I’ll then show you another favorite move of mine, this one made famous by the great Guy Lafleur!

Troubleshooting the Tight Turn (or Boston Turn)

Now, this has really been fun!  A number of avid members offered their thoughts on the following problem (begun over at “The Tight Turn (or Boston Turn“), and I got to interact with them (which is always the most fun).

Anyway, to recap things, just in case you’re jumping in late here…  The first photo below shows my young buddy and grandson, Anthony Chic, protecting the puck and making a tight or Boston turn around a defender.  And, although he’s one of the best at this ploy, the camera catches him making one glaring mistake — at least at the moment that photo was taken.

From there, a bunch of my CoachChic.com friends tried to figure what this zany old coach was getting at.  And, while most seemed to be coming kinda close to what I was seeing, no one really hit it dead-on.

With all that, I’m going to do my best below to explain myself.

– Dennis Chighisola

Troubleshooting the Tight Turn (or Boston Turn)

Okay, it’s quite possible that a lot of my great friends here are ultimately going to slap their foreheads and mutter to themselves, “That’s what I meant!”  And, while many of you — especially Jerry Z, Ravi and Ozzy — almost sounded as if you were hinting at what I’ll suggest, I don’t think anyone really said what I was looking for.  (After I’d prepared this piece, Michael G actually came as close to the answer as anyone.)

Anyway, (to the left) let’s start here with the original photo of Tony C fighting off that defender.  I’m showing this again, just so we’ll have a frame of reference.

Next, to give you a sense of how this old coach sees such things, let me show you the same picture (below), but with the defensive player removed…

What I’ll normally suggest (or joke about) to one of my students who strikes a pose like this is that, “If someone opens a door and a little breeze enters the rink, you’re going to fall on your dawgoned ear!”  Can you see it?  Anthony’s skates are both FAR outside his center of gravity.  And in such a posture, he has no strength — or no stability — whatsoever!

Then, I’ve doctored that photo again (below), but this time moving Tony C’s inside foot/leg closer to under his center of gravity.  So, take a look, and see if he just might be a whole lot stronger in that stance.  (Moving parts around within that photo wasn’t easy, and it’s not exactly how I’d like it to look.  But, it still should give you a sense of what I’d be aiming for.)

Now, in reality, I’ve solicited Comments and withheld my thoughts for a time so that I could address some other common issues when it comes to a move like this.

You see, there are a kzillion hockey “wives tales” forever circulating around the rinks — and particularly within youth hockey circles, with a number of them either raised or hinted at in the accumulated Comments.  So, please allow me to tackle some of those, because I think these points will help an awful lot of my friends deal with some of those so-called wives tales:

1. If you have the time, go over to YouTube and watch a few of the highlight reel goals.  I guarantee you’ll find most of your favorite players — from Ovechkin to Crosby to Datsyuk — making big-time plays with one hand on their sticks.  You see, a player can only make very narrow dribbles and dekes with the stick held in both hands.  And, while I’ve picked on Anthony here because I found a flaw at one moment in time, he is actually doing a ton of things right in that play.  For example, notice how he is able to extend his reach with the stick held in one hand, so that the defender doesn’t have a prayer of getting to that puck.  As importantly, Anthony is able to fend-off his man because his other hand is free to do so.  Oh, and by the way…  Because all of my students and former players can do everything both ways, Tony C would be just as comfortable extending the stick far out in his left hand and holding-off his man with the right.
2. I think a lot of the wives tales — or false impressions — stem from players or youth coaches “thinking” they see something they really don’t.  And one thing I sense a lot of folks around the rinks believe is that the skates should be arranged one behind the other when executing a quick cut like this one.  Oh, for sure, the inside skate must lead — a little — in the tight turn.  But, to move with the skates in a straight line also removes strength and stability.
3. I loved that one of my NEHI HS Prep kids jumped in on this conversation.  And I also love the chance it gives me to address something else…  I mean, you will hardly ever hear me say or see me write, “Keep your HEAD up!”  Why?  It’s because the EYES are the important thing when it comes to puckhandling!  Actually, the best attackers in the hockey world look down at the puck; one can’t carry for very long without occasionally checking on it.  That said, can you just imagine a great puckcarrier bobbing his or her head up and down as he or she moves down the ice?  Geeeeeeze…  What a good attacker should really do is hold the head fairly steady, use split vision to see almost everything, and occasionally just move the eyes with quick glances — down, up, etc…
4. I am going to suggest here that our game is one of constant adjustments.  And I’ll further suggest that any given technique might be good at one moment and not so good at another.  As an example, I’ll often joke to my older students that they can skate like figure skaters in open ice, but they’d better drastically change their posture as they enter traffic.  In other words, large and pretty cross-overs or an upright stance might be okay with no one around you; but, you’d better sit low and spread those skates as soon as there’s a chance for body contact.  Said yet another way…  Within just a few seconds, we might see a player in a speedy or graceful posture suddenly shift to a bracing stance; he might go back to an open ice stride, and then quickly return to the strong and stable position.

Oh, and one more thing about those wives tales…  Supposing a young player or youth coach spotted Anthony’s photo and presumed that — since he’s a pretty dangerous attacker — his technique is one to emulate — to a tee.  Well, you and I now know that it’s true in many regards, yet it’s definitely not in at least one other.  If they picked-up on his method of protecting the puck, I’d say they’re on the way to better skills.  However, if they hung their hats on the way he’s been caught in his foot placement…  Well, can you imagine a coach teaching that method for the next 10-years?  And that’s what I’m getting at about a lot of those so-called rink wives tales.  They were based on a wrong assumption in the first place, but nonetheless keep being spread and spread and spread.

Finally, I can’t tell you guys — Jerry, Scott, Ravi, Wilder, Ozzy, Mike and GKelly — how much I appreciate you jumping in here.  Honest to God, I couldn’t have done this piece without your help, and I’m praying I haven’t discouraged you (with a few of my teases) from weighting-in on future conversations.  I love you guys!

Oh, as for a prize…  I was originally thinking about an all-expenses-paid trip to Pluto.  As it turns out, I can’t afford that.  So, I’m hoping Jerry, Ozzy and Mike will settle for a shorter ride — maybe to Jupiter?    (Thanks again, guys; you’re the best!)

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PS:  Anthony Chic recently told me that the defender in that photo actually took a penalty on the play.  So, while I’m suggesting that he could have fallen on his own, an official evidently blamed the ensuing spill on the defensive player.  Ya, there are some advantages to being tricky out there on the ice, including drawing a lot of penalties.  Oh, well…

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No way should the conversation end here.  So, please DO add your Comments below!

The Tight Turn (or Boston Turn)

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)

Resisted Shooting

A couple of things went into my slightly changing the way we’re working on shooting drills at this part of our Team NEHI Junior High School season…

First and foremost, we (players, parents or coaches) shouldn’t ever stay at one progression level of a given skill if at all possible.  (Actually, that’s an important principle of motor learning, and something I’ll have to go a little further into some day.)

Anyway, for an example, when it comes to shooting I still allow my kids to work on their technique while standing close to the boards.  However, it isn’t often they’ll get to stand comfortably and take shots in their games, so we also practice plenty taking them while flying down the ice.  Even that form of practice has outlived its usefulness, though.

Secondly, I’m noticing that my young guys are missing some shots because they’re being disrupted in one way or another by opponents.  And, if you think about it, that’s really how the game is played — I mean, with our attackers trying to make plays as defenders practically maul them.

All that said, it was obviously time to move-on to a new and more difficult kind of shooting practice.

– Dennis Chighisola

Resisted Shooting

Okay, so what I did was to have my players go through their normal shooting progressions at the start of last night’s skills session, and then I gathered them together to explain what we’d do next…

I tried to explain that each player had to do a favor for his partner, by attempting to make it difficult for him to pull-off a shot.  At the same time, I also warned them that I didn’t want to see anyone get hurt.  Actually, my kids are pretty good in understanding such directions.  So again, I let them know that they were really helping their buddies get better if they made it hard for them to shoot, but that they should foul them within reason.

I wasn’t able to garner the best video in the world last night during the brief time I had my camera out.  But, at least you can get a sense of our first attempts at this new drill by clicking on the photo below.  (If you’ll notice, the trailing players still haven’t gotten the handle on their roles in this.  That’s okay, though; that’s why we practice 3-times per week, and why I’ll stay at the following drill for a good long time.)

As I intimated above, I’m not stopping there by a long shot (pardon the pun).  So, I promise to gather more video footage as soon as the kids get more into this form of drilling, and as I likely change some of the ways we’ll do other types of resisted shooting.

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What do you think?  You know I love to see your Comments.

Towel Pulls — for Speed & Form

This is but another entry I’d promised Eric S some time ago, in reference to his question about alternative high speed skating drills.

And, just so Eric and other members know…  Once in awhile it takes me a few days to gather some video footage to show what I’d like to show, and a few more days to put the video and photos together.  And that was the case with the following exercise, in that I had to wait until my next team practice to shoot the following…

– Dennis Chighisola

Towel Pulls — for Speed & Form

Now, this exercise has been used in sprint training for quite awhile (and I’m guessing the drill has probably been known by a number of names).

If you take a look at the nearby photo, you should notice that one of my players gets a chance to work on his running form as a partner supports him (or holds him back a bit).  Quite often that partner holds something like a towel at both ends to support and slightly restrain the runner, and thusly the name, “Towel Pulls”.

I’d need an awful lot of towels (or whatever) to accommodate all my players, so I’ve resorted to having the supporting partner hold the back of his teammate’s jersey — be it in our off-ice or on-ice form of drilling.

In my own adaptation of this exercise, I look for three phases…

Phase One – I ask the back partner to provide some resistance for his partner to work against, and during the first few seconds I’d like the front guy to concentrate on running (or skating) form.

Phase Two – Seconds later the pair start moving, with the runner or skater working faster and faster.

Phase Three – Finally, the back player lets go of the jersey (or towel), whereby the runner or skater usually shoots out like a rocket.

If you click on the last photo (to the right), you’ll see this pair working together in action.  The sprinter doesn’t do badly for one of his first attempts at this exercise.  However, you might notice that his arms and legs could travel in wider ranges of motion.  Still, that IS why we practice, isn’t it? 

PS:  Studies have proven that there is a direct correlation between running speed and skating speed.  So, if I am able to help my players run faster, it makes sense that such speed gains will ultimately transfer to their on-ice game.

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

Help for Beginner Cross-overs

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!

John Carlson OT Goal for Team USA

The “look-away” play — be it a pass or a shot — seems to be a hot topic these past few days…

– Dennis Chighisola

First, Marco Sturm scored the over-time winner in hockey’s 2010 Winter Classic, when Patrice Bergeron “looked away” from his intended target — thusly drawing attention elsewhere, and then fed Sturm with a pass that was almost too easy for him to tap-in.  (Click here to see the Sturm goal from Bergeron.)

Next, Greg K just pointed-out that John Carlson used a similar move to seal the World Junior Championship in OT for Team USA.  The difference in this play was that Carson looked towards a teammate as if he was considering making a pass, this forcing the Team Canada netminder to split his attentions between several attackers.  And, it seems, Carlson caught the Canadian goaler slightly off guard when he finally did pull the trigger.

And, once again thanks to the likes of YouTube, we’re treated to the following video (enjoy)…

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Other members started things with their initial feedback on the Sturm goal.  So, please keep the ball rolling with your further Comments here!

A Difference in Hockey Teaching Levels

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! 

High Intensity Skating Drills – Part 3

Eric S started this ball rolling a few weeks back, as he asked me about some suggestions for high intensity skating drills.  I did the best I could with my first response (Part 1 and Part 2), but I still promised to add a little more here.

Now, for those who might get a bit turned-off with my dryland drill samples, please understand that it’s often easier for me to video-tape during our weekly off-ice sessions.  At the same time, almost everything I show you from those practices can be done on the ice.  So, don’t discount transferring any of these drills to a traditional on-ice practice.

– Dennis Chighisola

High Intensity Skating Drills – Part 3

Now, let me provide a little background to the following exercises.  Thereafter, clicking on each of the thumbnails will show a different way I incorporate jump take-offs in both my off-ice and off-ice practices.

By the way, after having one of my high school students twist an ankle while trying to negotiate a rather rigidly constructed jump, I switched to foam barriers for a lot of exercises.  Actually, the gadget seen in the following videos (and in the photo to the right) is made from a foam “noodle”.  You probably know this as a swimming pool toy.  It’s extreme inexpensive, and it can be discarded after it’s served its purpose.  I formed the 90-degree angle with a wrap of rubber tubing, but I think tape would have just as easily done the trick.

Now, click on any of the thumbnails below to see my Team NEHI kids performing some light jump take-off training.  Again, these exact same drills can be performed on the ice (actually, the first one — done on-ice — was shown in a previous video).

Just as a suggestion (or a safety precaution), I usually limit the amount of intense jumping exercises I do with young players.

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What do you think?  Can you or your player/s benefit from this kind of training?  Please let me know in the Comments box provided below.

A New Mighty Mite Pylon Course

Some new pylon course ideas are soon to be unveiled here at CoachChic.com.  Not that there’s anything new about different configurations, or that it’s unusual to rearrange the pylons to create different kinds of skating or puckhandling patterns.  Still, as I’ll suggest in that entry, various layouts should really be aimed at enhancing specific kinds of skills.

Now, if you go back to my earliest Mighty Mite post (”Our First Mighty Mite Hockey Practice“), you should see that I used a straight row of obstacles as a very simple of way of showing my babies how to go in and out of opposition players.  (In my case, I carry around foam dots instead of pylons.)

Still, while a good many of those youngsters maneuver fairly well through that course now, and while most of them are starting to instinctively use both sides of their stick-blades to change directions, I’ve felt lately that something new was needed to bring these skills to at least a slightly higher level.  So, with that, I changed my dots a little and created the following…

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– Dennis Chighisola

A New Mighty Mite Pylon Course

To begin, there are plenty of good things to be said about using a basic straight-line course, and I’ll continue to use that layout with my Mighty Mites.  At the same time, I wanted something that would cause the kids to cut more sharply, as well as a design that might force them to use both sides of their stick-blades more.  In actuality, I ultimately want my little guys to be able to make sharp cuts with the puck, something like one of my former junior high school team kids is doing in the photo to right.  (Wanna bet those little rascals won’t be able to do that by this coming spring?)

A straight-line course can be made all the more difficult just by moving every other pylon outward a bit.  The photo to the left illustrates that, with the arrows showing how I moved a pair of cones (or foam dots) slightly to the left.  The photo to the right helps show how drastic the cut now has to be (in comparison to a straight-line course).

As I mentioned above, some of my kids still need a lot of work to make handling the puck on their backhands more instinctive.  And you should be able to see that in the video (just click on the above right photo), with some getting it, and others not (at least yet).  But, that IS what teaching and practice are all about, huh?

As an aside here…  You will quite often hear my voice in the background of that video, and you’ll hear either me or other coaches providing constant feedback throughout the videos hosted on this site.  Yup, constant feedback is important, and it’s one of the key elements in an “artful” way of coaching.

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Please share your thoughts on the above.  You know I love hearing from my CoachChic.com friends!

Mighty Mite Team Wide-dribbles

Well, my Mighty Mites suffered the first setback of their season yesterday (hmmm…  actually, the first hockey setback of their young lives).  And, while I always feel a little bit down after a loss (as any passionate coach probably should), there’s one trait that just as probably separates me from lots of others.

You see, I am forever an optimist.  Better yet, I see every season as a marathon.  Or, as a sport psychologist might suggest, “It’s not a good idea to get either too high with a win or too low after a defeat.”  Naw, the best thing to do is to stick to a long-range plan that I/we know will ultimately work.

That said, a return to practice this morning (on the day after) saw me pick-up the training a notch.  In other words, I stuck to “the plan”, and introduced or refined some skills that will benefit the kids hugely in the long-run.  Below, I’ll explain the drill we refined quite a bit this week.  (Within a few days, I’ll let you in on another drill I just added.)

– Dennis Chighisola

Mighty Mite Team Wide-dribbles

Now, at the very start of this season, I made a big deal out of our need to miss rival goalies with shots, and to instead look for all the open space around him or her.  As the photo to the right shows, I used my SMG (or simulated goaler) to remove the luck factor.  In other words, that SMG removes the chance for a great play by a live goalie, or a bit of luck on his or her part.

Almost all of my little guys have grasped this concept by now, and probably about half of the roster has scored goals in games by doing exactly as I just described.

Okay, so it’s time to add yet another skill to their individual attack capabilities.  And, for this, I’ve started teaching the kids to fake towards one side of the goalie before bringing the puck across and tucking it in on the opposite side.  The photo to the left shows one of my older players executing a maneuver that’s intended to tease or distract a rival defender in open-ice.  The photo to the right shows one of my Mighty Mites using the same faking movement — the “wide-dribble” — to set-up the goalie (or SMG).  If you can envision it, this youngster has first drawn the goalie’s attention to the right, and he is now in the act of shifting the puck across to deposit it on the left side and behind the netminder.

Of course, you’d like to see that play in action.  So, just click on the photo below for a video showing several 4-, 5- and 6-year olds performing a wide-dribble move on the SMG.  (They’re doing pretty nicely, if I do say so!  )

Now, I think it’s important for members to know a few other things that are actually going on surrounding this particular move (on the goaltender).

First, most young kids don’t naturally handle the puck on both sides of their stick-blades.  So, this particular skill is being taught or encouraged in several other drills (one of these to be posted shortly).

Secondly, a lot of members might be surprised at my spending so much time on the very end of a play — as in scoring goals.  However, this is a technique I use often in the teaching process (and I especially employ this method when I’m teaching a skill like body-checking).  What I’m trying to do is first establish the end result.  Then, with that, I’ll start showing my students or players how to work their way towards that end.  Still, for fear that I haven’t really explained myself well enough here, I promise to cover this approach in more detail within some future entries.

PS:  The above video just might be useful to a young player for visualization purposes.  In other words, have a youngster (or youngsters) watch it — over and over again — in hopes he or she (or they) might be able to memorize the moves (or internalize them).  Seriously, give that a try; it really works!

By the way…  While I’m teaching these things to kids as young as 4-years old — and they’re getting ‘em, I have to wonder how many 10- or 11-year olds haven’t yet mastered such moves.  Okay, just wondering, but…

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Please let me know if you have any questions or suggestions about my approach here.  You know I love to interact with you guys (and gals)!

Defenseman’s Figure-8

Although I call this a defenseman’s drill — because it does help enhance some blueliner-specific skills, I actually have all of my players work at it.  And, although I’ve placed this in the Puckhandling section, this drill really does help improve skating mobility, mobility with the puck, as well as passing and receiving skills.

– Dennis Chighisola

Defenseman’s Figure-8

While skating and puckhandling… I initially have individual players practice this drill on their own, learning to skate the figure-8 pattern, and to carry a puck with them as they move through that pattern.  (Younger players might attack these skills separately at first, initially learning the skating portion, then later trying to carry a puck along.)  As stated above, this really is an awesome drill for skating mobility and for moving in numerous ways with the puck.

As the above sketch shows, a player places his gloves about 8′ apart, and then moves in a figure-8 pattern around those gloves.  The challenge to this particular drill, however, is that the skater must face one side of the rink at all times, thusly having to execute numerous pivots — from forward to backward to forward, etc. — as he moves around the gloves.

For skating, puckhandling, passing and receiving… I ultimately turn this into a passing drill, positioning two players with their gloves arranged parallel, and the two players facing each other.

One player performs the skating and puckhandling part of the routine first, as his partner rests and gives a target for a pass.  After about 8-seconds, the puckhandler passes the puck to his partner, whereby the two players switch roles.  (To see the drill in action, just click on the photo below.)

Now, I ask you:  Is this a pattern defensemen frequently have to skate (and handle a puck through) in a game?  You bet!

PS:  There is one little technical matter required to make this drill work well…  As players stickhandle around, they must move forward through the middle of their gloves and backward around the outsides.  This makes it a little easier for them to make a pass moving down through the middle and towards their partner.  Oh, and it wouldn’t be a bad idea to have the players change direction each time they do the drill.

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Do you like this drill?  Will it prove helpful to YOU?  Please let me know in the Comments box below.

Some Simple Head-manning Drills

It’s nice that the questions keep coming in.  And, while the most recent one asks for “a” simple head-manning drill, I’m going to try to do a little better than that…

– Dennis Chighisola

Some Simple Head-manning Drills

Now, I never just skip ahead, or presume that every member knows every bit of hockey jargon.  So, let’s begin by discussing the term, “head-manning”.  (Is there anyone out there — like me, who wonders how such words and phrases ever came into being?  Oh, well…)

It should make sense that the puck can be advanced up-ice much faster with a pass than by having a player skate it over the same distance.  In fact, the following principles are pretty widely accepted, as they govern the decisions a puckcarrier should make while moving up the ice and through the neutral zone:

1. Whenever possible, advance the puck quickly over a long distance by passing it to a teammate who is closer to the opposition goal.  (This is what’s referred to as “head-manning” the puck, or passing it ahead to a man up-ice).
2. If there’s no immediate chance to head-man the puck, continue carrying.
3. If at some point the puckcarrier faces a rival defender or defenders, these things should be considered…  A confident attacker might attempt to beat a single defender, 1 on 1.  However, should he or she be confronted by more that one defender, smart hockey principles dictate that the puck be dumped.  (Hey, it’s wiser to gain the opponents’ zone and move the puck ahead some 60-plus feet, rather than risk a turn-over in neutral ice.)
4. There can be a fourth option for the skilled puckhandler, in that he or she might be able to move away from the defenders — or enter the offensive zone far from traffic, and then protect the puck and wait for teammates to arrive.

All that said, I don’t know of a single head-manning drill, but I do try to precede most attacking plays with some sort of pass.  And, many of these would be considered among the head-manning variety.  So, here are three:

Spring the Wing – I just created and started using this drill to accomplish a number of things.  I use it early in our practices as a way of warming our goaltender with some long shots (I had to recently abandon the two drills shown later in favor of this version, because we have had only one goaler at practices).  As you’ll see in the video (click on the adjacent photo), this drill starts with a long pass to a player flying up the wing-boards.  I ask my kids to help their mate keep flying (not to slow him with the pass).  If you’ll also notice, I’m trying to get my young guys to cut quickly while carrying the puck in and out of opponents (in this case a row of small tires).

Long Pass, Long Shot – This is a basic warm-up drill I like to start most practices with (when I have at least 2 goalies).

As in the earlier shown drill, the passing and skating and shooting on-the-go are great for my skaters, while I want them to view the shot as actually helping warm their goalers.

As shown in the photo (to the left) and in the video (click on the photo), skaters with pucks are positioned in two rink corners.  A skater flies towards neutral ice, receives a long, hard pass from the far corner, and then takes a long shot on net from about the blue line. (Obviously, this drill can and should also be run from the opposite corners.)

Now, I especially like drills like this and the next one for developing soft hands on a catch, because the force of a long pass is increased when the skater is moving towards the pass.

Breakaway Passes – This is just a variation on the previous drill, but it probably better satisfies a coach’s desire for a good head-manning drill.  In this one, a skater moves to neutral ice looking for a breakaway pass, catches the long pass from the other end, and then turns to attack the net at his own end.   (Click on the photo to see the video.)

(This drill should also be run from the opposite corners so that skaters get to loop in both directions.)

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Do you have any drills that even better help this member in need?  Just send your idea/s along according to the directions offered under “Drills”.

Starting Your Hockey Year Off Right!

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!

Using Your Down Time!

There’s a point I try to get across to amateur hockey players — of all ages, and it’s closely related to this entry’s title — about using one’s down time.  I happen to think it’s an important topic, yet I’d forgotten to mention it here until I ran across an awesome video by my good friend and fellow CoachChic.com member, Michael Mahony.

Okay, so let’s have a listen at how Mike uses his down time to great advantage (just click his photo), and then I’ll share with you the way I often recommend much the same approach to those in my charge…

– Dennis Chighisola

Using Your Down Time!

As you can see, Michael wisely makes use of time that he’d other wise let go to waste.  And I’m known to do much the same.

For example, my wife would prefer to do the driving on our long treks chasing Anthony Chic’s hockey schedule all over New England.  So, whether you realize it or not, I’ve written a good many of these entries from her Jeep’s passenger seat and on one of my trusty laptops.  Hey, we can still talk as we ride — and I’m not being rude or anything, but I sure can get a lot of writing accomplished in 4- to 6-hours on those boring highways.

But, let me bring this topic closer to the needs of my favorite hockey players…

For, you see, I don’t believe hockey homework has to always be a drudgery.  In fact, I’ll warn parents of very young players that such things should NEVER seem like work to their little ones.

In particular, I think adult players and younger ones who still need work on their basic skills could do something like the following.  (Actually, I put this video together in an entry I did long ago for Megan, a site member.  And, while the skating drills demonstrated at the start of the movie might require exact focus on what a player is doing, I’ll suggest that the last two exercises could easily be done as part of some multi-tasking.)  So, please have a look before I comment further…

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As a follow-up to that video, I’m always suggesting to older players that they could do something like WallSits while watching TV or while doing lots of other things.  And so could any player experiment with a stick and ball — as Anthony Chic is doing at the end of that video, also while watching television.

I have often advised my young teen players to kill a couple of birds with one stone, perhaps keeping a tennis ball stashed somewhere in the rec room, and squeezing it for hand and forearm strength while watching TV.

As Mike Mahony is saying, an athlete can use what might other wise be consider down time to enhance his or her physical abilities.  And what Mike is also suggesting is that certain kinds of down time happen on a regular basis.  And that’s pretty close to what I’m usually pointing-out to my students, team players and local parents.  I mean, if an adult player regularly watches the local news on TV each evening, why not do a simple hockey related exercise at the same time?  Something like the previously mentioned ball-squeezing exercise, sit-ups, push-ups, and other very simple movements could be done by any aged player on a planned basis.  Or, what about just balancing around on one of those air pillows as part of your multi-tasking?  Of course, I could go on here with more ways to improve during regular down times.  However, you probably know more about what you really need, and even more about what you’d enjoy doing.

The real point here — that Mike and I are both trying to make, is that we all tend to waste some time, and I’ll even suggest that we all engage in a lot of activities that are almost mindless.  In either case, there are opportunities within our schedules to get-in some regular work on our game.  And, judging by the players I’ve seen take that advice, there’s an awful lot of fun and satisfaction to be had down the road.

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Have any thoughts on this subject, or some ideas to share with other members?  Just use the Comment box down below.  I love interacting with you guys (and gals)!

Soft "Touch" Passing

For anyone who stopped by here thinking that I’m going to be talking about one-touch passing, naw; that’s a subject for another time.

What I do want to share with you is my feelings on the passes players often make to themselves.

– Dennis Chighisola

Soft “Touch” Passing

Just supposing a player is going to push the puck through a defender’s skates, then go around that defender to retrieve the puck on the other side.  Well, I can’t tell you how often I’ve noticed attackers treating that puck rather roughly as they send it, which usually brings about new problems when they go to retrieve it.

The first thing I usually do in dealing with this is to suggest to my players that they are actually making passes to themselves.  I don’t know, but most of the time this method seems to help in getting them to look at that kind of play a little differently.  Actually, once I get them to realize that it is a pass — and that the pass is to themselves, they tend to pay closer attention to the technique required.

By the way…  Making passes to oneself happens more often than some might think.  It’s required along with nearly all the different dekes or maneuvers players use to get around a defender on 1 against 1’s (as in the drill I described above).  And a pass to oneself is also what’s happening when a player banks a puck off the boards and around a defender.  And so is it a major part of the way I teach breakaways (so see my article and videos on “Proper Breakaway Skills“).

Anyway, once that’s established — that the pass is to oneself, I next try to get my players to appreciate that it takes a certain kind of “feel” or “touch” with the puck to make that pass.  In just about every instance, the attacker wants the “pass” to arrive in a certain location.  And in every instance he or she wants the puck to just sit there, nice and flat (not rolling or wobbling around).  So again, the attacker doesn’t want to treat the puck roughly on that pass ahead, but instead “place it” with a nice soft “touch”.

Of course, talking about the problem only gets us part way in establishing a better touch or feel for that kind of pass.  So, I’ve developed a number of drills to help my kids develop such skills.

Now, as members know by now, I have the luxury of both on-ice and off-ice practices throughout most of the year.  And for that reason I’ve had to create drills that can be done in both venues.

The first photo (on the left) shows a drill I created long ago to enhance a number of qualities in my players.  Tumbling — or any gymnastics — is great for athleticism, and it also puts my kids in a slight, momentary state of confusion, not unlike the frequent collisions they have in games.  The reason I initially created this drill was so that my players could learn to find the puck quickly coming out of a roll.  So — as described elsewhere here at CoachChic.com, I’d have my kids roll and then quickly find a puck that had just been introduced by a coach.  And that drill certainly has helped them in the ways that I’d hoped.

More recently, however, I’ve expanded the drill to help encourage the skill at hand.  So, clicking on that first photo (above) will open a short video I shot at a recent off-ice practice.  It shows players pushing the puck ahead, tumbling, and then having to find the puck so he can perform the next challenge (to either tumble again or shoot).  Go ahead, watch the video before going on.

Hmmmm…  If you don’t mind watching that video again, I just caught the first little rascal doing something I hadn’t noticed before, and it’s something that truly does make my point here.    For, as he comes out of his last tumble, he doesn’t shoot his own puck at all.  No, he fires a different one, because the one he brought down the course wasn’t ultimately placed nicely, or where he really needed it to be!

Now, the second sequence hopefully shows that soft “touch” pass a little better.  (You should know that I purposely spaced the tumbling mats the way I did, just so each player had to be pretty accurate in placing his pass.  For — as you’ll see in the next video, that pass had better fall close to the right location if the player is going to be able to immediately take-on the next challenge.)  So, click on the second photo and see what I mean.

Now, between the lines, I’m kinda hoping that you’ve noticed how I try to make drills simulate the craziness of our game.  Just in the shown drill, for example, I’ve at least slightly recreated the confused state that comes with falls or collisions, and I’ve also tried to recreate the urgency necessary between challenges.

As an aside, I’ve previously joked in other entries about how the little firing mechanisms in my noggin’ tend to make me think of something new as I’m working at another project.  So, don’t you know, I just arrived at a new drill for pass-receiving as I wrote that last paragraph.  I’ll be sure to show you that once I breathe life into it.  However, just as a hint…  It drives me crazy that a lot of my players are too casual about catching passing during drills, and this results in far too many lost pucks during our games.  So, why not insert a give and go between tumbles (or other challenges) as an adaptation to the above drill?  Hmmmmm…

Okay, as for an on-ice application to the above drill…  We don’t often do tumbling on the ice.  So, what I’ll usually do is have by players execute continuous spins down the length of the ice.  In other words, a player will tap the puck ahead, then spin to find and grab it; he’ll tap the puck ahead again, and spin in the opposite direction next, etc.  And, much like the off-ice version of that drill, a player must make his pass with some “feel” in order to have the puck lie where — and in the way — he needs it in order to continue on to the next challenge.

Finally, I hope you also noticed that the two physical challenges featured in the drill examples are drastically different.  With that, I’d like you to appreciate that the rolls or spins (or shots) are purely things that need to be done before or after a pass to oneself.  However, make not mistake about it:  Those passes have to be done with a nice “touch” in order to make the next move possible.

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A Beginner Hockey Player’s Skating Speed

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.

Proper Breakaway Skills

For sure, breakaways are among hockey’s most exciting plays.  That being the case, I’m really surprised at how often I notice these — and related skills — being taught wrongly.  Anyway, hear me out, huh?  I think what is to follow should make sense.

– Dennis Chighisola

Proper Breakaway Skills

Every time I approach this subject with my students or players, I begin by having them envision us holding footraces out in the rink’s parking lot.  That picture planted in their minds, I’ll then ask which runner they’d like to be — the one with his hands in his pocket, or the one allowed to use his hands as he runs.

Of course, it doesn’t take but a few seconds for everyone to agree, that anyone can run faster if he’s able to pump his hands and arms while sprinting.

The reason I raise this point is because I frequently see coaches teaching their kids to hold a puck on their sticks as they race down the ice on a practice breakaway.  The adjacent photo shows what I mean…  The sample player holds his stick in one hand with the puck kept right on his stick-blade, which means that he can really only pump one hand.  If you click on the photo you’ll see a slow-mo video of that youngster in action.  Oh, by the way, I sense that he’s initially doing things the way he’s been taught elsewhere; but, he ultimately starts doing things a little differently when I yell to him.

Again, did you notice that he could initially only pump his left arm, but then he eventually shifted to my way of doing things (I guess you can tell at which point I yelled, huh)?

Now, the next photo pretty much shows what I recommend…  First, I want my players to achieve maximum speed by having both hands free to pump — almost as if they don’t even have a puck (’cause they don’t).  Secondly, my guys don’t really need to control the puck on their way down the ice.  In fact, I’ll suggest to them that, “You and (most likely) a chaser are going to have a footrace to a point just inside the offensive zone, and all you have to do is beat him there and have the puck!”  In other words, there’s absolutely no reason to stickhandle or make dekes on the way down ice; all one needs to do is go straight and have the puck in the end.

And that brings me to the suggestion that a player tap the puck far ahead, and then use both arms to speed towards the puck.  Actually, I’ve studied numerous of my top students — high school players to pros, and I’ve found that the best of them only need to touch the puck three times from about the top of a defensive face-off circle to about the middle of the offensive zone.  In other words, they tap the puck straight towards the net, fly up to it, tap it straight ahead again, fly up to it, and then grab the puck in readiness to attack the goal.  Nothing fancy in between, but everything just aimed at being speedy on a straight line.  Okay, so click on the photo up above to get a sense of what I’ve been saying (and decide for yourself if this isn’t the fastest way to get down-ice).

This next player is a pretty good one, and he’s awfully quick down the ice.  He had a problem on the rush I video-taped, however, which gives me a chance to show you something that often goes wrong on these plays…

Once you (click on the photo to the right and) watch the video, notice that near the end of his rush — after he’s done pretty nicely, this youngster finds the puck almost in his feet.  Purposely, I’ve really slowed the video at the end, just so you can see that my guy is nearly upright.  And, you know he can’t be going at full speed in that posture.  So, the lesson to be learned from this?  A player needs to gain a certain “feel” for tapping that puck ahead — not so far that he can’t get to it, but not so short that it’s going to break his stride.  Again, about three touches of the puck seems to do it, in order to cover the distance I’ve described.

Next, let’s deal with grabbing the puck and attacking the goal…

The photo to the left shows my guy just after he’s picked-up the puck about mid-zone.  Now, I can appreciate both sides of the argument — for carrying the puck the rest of the way out in front of the body or off to the forehand side.  For a lot of years I’d taught the latter, but more recently I think a player can hide his or her intentions better with the puck held out-front.  Again, though, both arguments make some sense, and I think the best answer is that the attacker have an idea of what he or she wants to do in the end.

My final bit of advice is to suggest that a player NOT move his or her body left and right in order to make the goaltender move.  Sure, a player can make head and shoulder fakes, but I don’t advise skating side to side.  For, I believe that the stick (with puck in-tow) can travel faster and farther, and the goaler has to respect that as much as if the attacker moved his body (after all, netminders line-up on the puck, and nothing else).  In other words, if the attacker is able to move the goaltender towards one side with just a wide deke, he or she should be able to move the puck quicker across to the other side than the goalie can react back.

Finally, while I’ve covered a lot here, the one thing I want to emphasize is that long dash towards the far end NOT being slowed by much handling of the puck.  Tap it ahead, fly, tap it ahead, fly…

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Have any questions or arguments with what might be some controversial territory?  You know I really appreciate your Comments!

Coach Kelly’s Hockey Shooting Drill

This won’t likely be the last post on this subject…  Naw, I have the feeling my search for “finishing skills” around the net will be a season-long thing for me (with both my Mighty Mites and my Jr High School Team).

Coach Kelly did kind of get the ball (errrrr… puck) rolling awhile back, however, with his own suggestions.  As Greg offered, “How about pairing up the kids about 1-2 feet from the boards. One of the kids drops 3 pucks in front of the shooter. If they stay close to the boards the pucks won’t travel as far. Of course they can take turns shooting and dropping.

I know you’ve done a similar drill in Lakeville (at the off-ice facility) by lining up three pucks horizontally, equally spaced and close to the boards. But by dropping the pucks instead of having them in-place should make the kids react quickly to the pucks bouncing in all directions.”

I countered with the fact that that was a pretty good idea.

If I have a difficulty with some forms of drilling, it usually revolves around the administrative side of it.  In other words, if it’s difficult to run a drill, not as much gets done in the allotted time, and I tend to cringe at using it very often.

I went on to tell Greg that — like his idea of dropping the pucks, “… we have to find a way to create urgency (like in a game).”

Anyway, I thought I’d show members what I’ve so far done with Greg’s idea.  (FYI…  And this is only a “so far” proposition.  I guarantee the below drills will evolve, perhaps as early as in this week’s practices.)

– Dennis Chighisola

Coach Kelly’s Hockey Shooting Drill

Actually, I believe I’ve shown the drill in this first  clip elsewhere, because it’s one I’ve used a lot through the years.  Mainly, I give the kids a small handful of pucks (no more than about 5, so they don’t lose concentration), and then I ask them to move their hands as quickly as possible in flicking each puck towards an imaginary net.

Practicing out of the way, you’ll hear me in the next video ask the kids if they’re ready for a little competition.   With this, they’ll compete against each other to see which one can shoot all of their pucks the quickest.  So, if you’ll click on the next photo (below), you’ll see a pair racing to get rid of their pucks.

In this third adaptation of what is really the same kind of drilling, I ask a pair of players to ready an odd number of pucks for another competition.  We need that odd puck, because the goal of this game is to see who can get rid of the most pucks, and that single, remaining puck is almost always sort of the tie-breaker.  So again, click on the nearby photo to see how this competition goes.  Oh, by the way…  This pair wanted to arrange their pucks neatly, with the odd puck sitting in the middle of the others.  However, I ultimately suggested that all the pairs of kids just toss their pucks out there in random fashion.  Either way is okay, though.

Oh, and have you noticed that the kids really work when there are some bragging rights on the line?  That’s my fascination with competitive drills like these; the players almost always work harder (or quicker) to beat their buddies. 

Finally — as I mentioned earlier, we expect this form of drilling to evolve in some ways (although I might not yet know how).  It seems to me that both of my current teams are missing-out on a lot of scores because they’re not quick enough around the goal mouth.  So, I’ll suggest that getting more from our efforts is a very worthwhile endeavor.

On Sale: Hockey Skates & Sticks!

ON SALE!

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.

High Intensity Skating Drills – Part 2

As promised (at least to Eric S), here are some video clips of the speed oriented drills I described in the earlier entry (High Intensity Skating Drills).

– Dennis Chighisola

High Intensity Skating Drills – Part 2

In the initial one, my kids work on their forward take-offs by first moving backwards.  As you should notice when watching the video (click on the nearby photo), a shift in upper body momentum is needed in order to start the forward motion.  Also know that I’ve dictated which way the kids should stop — with their skates in a vee, with the right skate or with the left skate.

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The second video happens to show one of my quickest young skaters (an 8th grader).  His technique is first shown in slow-motion, but you can really see how quickly he shifts his weight and moves his feet in the second part shown at normal speed.  (Please click on the second photo to see that video.)

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As noted in my earlier post, I oftentimes allow my players to work on their own when they’re practicing their take-offs.  Yes, I like races at most times, to get the kids really working hard.  At the same time, I’ve found they sometimes cheat in order to win races, and in this sort of drilling that likely means they’d avoid concentrating on technique.  Anyway, clicking on the third photo will show some of my junior high school kids leaping while going backwards, and then immediately (or as best they can) taking-off forward as they land.

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Photo four (and the linked video) isolates another 8th grader executing the latter exercise.  And, as I also said in the previous article, I feel there’s a slight plyometric component to this form of drilling.

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By the way, I go easily with — or limit — jumping exercises like these when it comes to my junior high school kids (or younger ones).  So, at most, such a group will do something like this only once per week.

Finally, I just shot some additional video at our weekly off-ice practice, but that still needs to be edited and doctored for posting here.  I promise to do that soon (as Part 3), because it shows some awesome twists to the above exercises, and I’ll also show you the way my kids work on that earlier noted “towel drill”.

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In-season Hockey Strength Training

I’ve had the chance to grow-up through many generations of training approaches, and it’s amazing how things have changed over my 50-ish years as both an athlete and a coach.

I’m actually shaking my head at the atmosphere and thinking that dominated my youth — mainly through the 1950’s and 1960’s.  Back then it was believed that work with weights would slow a skilled athlete.  (Ha!)

Even years later — when elite athletes began seriously training for strength during their off-seasons, a prevailing belief was that the weights should be abandoned as athletes played and practiced during their regular seasons.  Ya, that was the case until some studies were done (within the NFL, I believe) that showed most players “de-trained” or lost body strength during their playing seasons.

With that, most pro sports teams (and other elite athletes) have shifted to “maintenance programs”, or programs aimed at maintaining strength levels over the course of a long regular season.

Then, I love the point Scott Umberger makes below, in that an in-season program will help an athlete take-off from a much higher level once he or she ends the season and heads into the off-season.  So, have a read, ’cause I have a sense this is going to put you far ahead of what most other amateur hockey players know.

– Dennis Chighisola

In-season Hockey Strength Training

Scott Umberger
Umberger Performance LLC

So you have busted your butt to get into shape for camp. You were “jacked” and strong when the season started and you end the season smooth and all sucked out. Maintaining your strength levels are vital to your post season training as well. If your strength levels are down it will take 4-6 weeks to get ready to train hard. If you are “familiar with the bar” by having trained all season, that time can be cut in half.

Here are my thoughts on keeping your weight up and trying to maintain your strength levels throughout the season:

• At minimum you must continue to squat, press (bench, dumbbells, etc), and clean or snatch. I prefer box squatting closer to games (2-3 days before a game) over back squatting, due to the potential soreness from squatting.
• Keep reps on the lower end with these lifts. I’ve slowly dropped the hang clean and squatting reps for my hockey players. We are performing around 5-6 sets for 2-3 reps depending on their game schedules. This will eventually drop to single reps.
• If you feel great on an off week you can go over 75-80% of your pre season maxes. Don’t go crazy here, you aren’t maxing out. I’m simply saying that if you have on off week and you feel great, it’s ok to go a little heavier.
• Don’t start incorporating new exercises that you haven’t done in a while and get out of control with them. If you haven’t lunged in a while, take it easy on the weight and volume (sets and reps) for the first week. The new movement alone will get you sore and you don’t want to be to sore during the season.
• Always perform a dynamic warm up before practices and games. These warm ups really help keep the body working like it should. Let’s face it, skating isn’t a natural movement.
• Make sure that you continue to perform assistance or accessory exercises that maintain wrist/grip strength, ankle mobility and strength, hip mobility, and shoulder mobility and stability.
• Buy and use a foam roller.

This insert is courtesy of Dennis.  Scott and I knew you might not be all that familiar with the foam roller, so I found a few videos on YouTube that should prove helpful…

Although Scott and I can’t necessarily endorse a given foam roller, Scott prefers the shorter one over the longer, because he feels it easily fits into your hockey bag for weekend tournaments, etc.  Anyway, Dennis has done a little of the work for you…  The image on the left (below) is linked to a popular model, while the image on the right takes you to the results I received from a Google search.  (Neither Scott or I have any commercial interest in a certain roller brand, and we even suggest you comparison shop after looking at these)…

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• Do workouts to recover from long weekends. My guys hate life when they walk into Umberger Performance after playing 4-5 games at a weekend showcase. After a complete dynamic warm up they feel a little better. I’ll have them perform a few sets of a barbell complex and they’ll feel much better and on the road to recovery. A barbell complex can be many things…. A typical complex can be a dead lift, Romanian dead lift, push ups on the bar, bent over row, push press, and back/front squat. You can also add some Olympic movements if you prefer. Perform all of the movements until you have gone through every exercise. Perform 5-10 reps for 2-5 sets in a workout. They are tough but they won’t kill you.
• Don’t forget to eat the right food at the right time. Post practice and post game meals are very, very important. Shakes are a great and convenient way to maintain vital nutrients and calories during the long hockey season.

I know the season is long and it’s very hard to stay on top of the things that I’ve just outlined. If you can stay disciplined and maintain a training and eating schedule you will finish the season the strongest and healthiest that you have ever been. Remember that players get “paid” for consistency. Point a game is great production in any league. However, it’s hard to be consistent if you loose 70% of your strength and 10 pounds over the course of the season.

Good luck and shoot me an email if you have any questions,

scott@umbergerperformance.com

Best Regards,
Scott Umberger
Umberger Performance LLC
www.umbergerperformance.com
412-523-0060

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Whole Body Vibration Strength Training

One of the things I’ve promised you, my valued member, is that I’ll do all the long, exhausting research, and then pass my findings on to you.

That said, the following excerpt explains a little side project I’ve been into for about the past 5 or so years.  It’s from an article entitled “History of Whole Body Vibration Technology” (from the website History of Whole Body Vibration Technology).  I’d like you to have a read, because it should introduce you to something that I find absolutely fascinating:

“There’s nothing new about the benefits of whole body vibration technology; it’s been around for over 47 years.  The world first saw its effectiveness when the Russians started winning all the Gold at the Olympic Games in 1960.  Then, they started keeping their cosmonauts in space longer and longer — eventually, over a year longer than we could.   However, the Russians kept the technology of whole body vibration a secret until after the Berlin Wall came down in November 1989.  Therefore, the world didn’t learn the secret to the Russian’s superiority at the Olympic Games or in outer space for 30 long years.  It was one of Russia’s key sports scientists, Dr. Vladimir Nazarov, by experimenting with a vibration system, who began the research of this technology.   Nazarov was an active sportsman, a member of the Soviet gymnastics team and occupied a chair for sports biomechanics at the State College in Minsk.  Finding his experiment a success, he introduced this technology to competitive sports, ballet, and medicine in the former USSR.  The Russian Space Program continues to use the technology — while the cosmonauts are in space — as physical therapy to help the cosmonauts overcome the considerable decrease of bone mass and muscle tone that they risk during extended periods of weightlessness.  After the fall of the Soviet Union, Nazarov’s research on whole body vibration made its way to Europe in the early 1990’s…”

Now, the following YouTube video starts out a little corny, but the guest really knows his stuff about WBV benefits and methods.  So give him a minute, and the be prepared to have your eyes opened to what Whole Body Vibration technology promises do…

If you’re interested, here are the final two videos in that Youtube series…

I actually stumbled across this rather new (to the Western world) strength training approach long ago, from an unrelated Internet search.  And as I soon discovered, all sorts of Whole Body Vibration (WBV) machines are currently available.  Professional models can go for well over $10,000, these made for heavy duty use in busy sport clubs, etc.  I actually managed to eventually find and purchase a smaller, far less expensive type more suited to individual or small group use.

Now, I’m not really here to promote this form of training; again, I find it fascinating, and I love the workouts I get from my machine.  However, there are as many studies out there downplaying the benefits of WBV as there are supporting it (so it’s up to you to decide if it’s right for you or your player/s).  Also, while I personally think there’s a huge difference — in the way exposure can be governed and in the way settings can be controlled, we’re all likely aware of the potential for injuries from overexposure to driving heavy equipment or operating some vibrating machines.

So, why have I posted this particular entry — if I’m not really promoting it?  It’s because I needed a way to set the groundwork for my own invention.  For, as you’ll soon discover, my “WakeBoard” came about because of an interest in Whole Body Vibration technology.

Look for that article and related videos to appear here very shortly.

"Bunting" the Hockey Puck

Okay, by now you probably know I like to be descriptive — or maybe colorful — when it comes to hockey technique.  That’s the teacher in me, really.

I’ve done that with the following skill because I want my players to picture a given kind of movement as they practice.  But then, you’ll see…

– Dennis Chighisola

“Bunting” the Hockey Puck

From the first photo you can probably already guess that I’m talking about my players learning to tap the puck out of the air and into the goal.  And, you might also guess that I use the “bunting” tag because I want the kids to think of the movement as a rather short rap at the puck, not a wild swing.

Also, you might notice from the way I set-up this drill (and numerous others) that I like to have control.  In other words, players needn’t be moving all around or dealing with pucks that aren’t placed right in a good area to practice with.  In fact, the way I arrange this and a lot of other drills ensures my kids get far more repetitions than do players I see in other practice formats.

The Basic Drill……….From the picture you should see how I like to organize this drilling…  Pairs of players are very close to the boards, with one partner kneeling and holding about 3 or 4 pucks.  That “feeder” must take care to lob the puck –  between waist-high and chest-high, so that the “bunter” can practice tapping the puck towards an imaginary net.

Now, you can click on the photo to see a short video of that pair in action.  These are actually two pretty good young players, yet the one doing the bunting is achieving so-so results.  You might also notice that he needs reminding to shorten the stroke, and to be sure to keep his stick down.

Batting the puck out of the air (or a regular basis and with some accuracy) really is a skill.  And, as such, it should be practiced often.  Also, I’ll suggest that all the tricks players do with a ball or puck — like keeping it balanced in the air for a good length of time — will also help with stick dexterity.

A More Game Related Drill……….The set-up in the next drill is exactly the same as the previous one.  This time, however, I’m going to have the bunter jog in place as he attempts to bat pucks towards an imaginary goal.  The purpose is to get my players moving and to cause their hands and eyes to bounce a little, thereby making the focus and contact with the puck a little more difficult.  I say this form of drilling is more game related because — in a game — players only get a quick glimpse at the puck and only an instant to swipe at it, and they don’t get any time to really focus their eyes are pretty their posture.

That said, you can click on the second photo to see some players jogging in place and attempting to bat (or bunt) the puck out of the air.  (By the way, we could create similar game-like conditions by having a player step back and forth over a low obstacle, or by having him or her spin a different way just prior to each toss.)

Now, having seen the two videos, I’ll bet you know how you’d have corrected the youngsters who appeared in them.  I give them credit for just starting to learn that skill.  However, I think we can see where they made some nice “bunts” or where they swung a little too wildly, and we can both likely recognize when they needed to carry their stick a little lower.

Finally, and as I suggested previously, this really is a skill.  And, as such, it requires lots of practice.

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Error Recognition & Awareness

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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When coaching athletes in drills and lifts, one key point that I try to get the individual to understand is the difference between just recognizing their technical error and truly becoming aware of the error. In his book “The Inner Athlete” Dan Millman describes this difference very eloquently:

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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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High Intensity Skating Drills – Part 1

The following question was submitted by member Eric S.  It’s a good one, but it can be difficult answering long distance (or without being able to actually see where his players are at a given time).

Nonetheless, I do know that Eric works with a fairly talented teen group, so I’ll approach things from that perspective.

– Dennis Chighisola

High Intensity Skating Drills

Q: Eric states that, “We always spend the first 7-10 minutes on the ice having our boys run some high intensity skating drills without pucks. Currently we have them run overspeed circles, once forward, once backward and once transitioning @ the hash marks. Then they do two sets of iron crosses and then one other high intensity start/stop drill that we developed. They have been doing these for about 3 weeks and we want to replace one of the drills with a new one every few weeks to keep things fresh. Can you suggest a few other drills of this nature that we could incorporate?
Thanks, Eric”

A: First, Eric, when you say that you do these rather intense exercises in the first minutes of a practice, I’m trusting that effective (and long enough) warm-ups are done prior to the hard skating.  As you’ll read in some of what Scott Umberger and I have said, (other than the obvious injury prevention) more growth is gained from a workout if the muscles are properly warmed.

Continuing on that first point for a moment…  Members might like to know that I begin most skill oriented practices with drills that need to be done slowly, and ones that tend to enhance skating technique.  So, instead of using specific warm-up exercises on the ice, I kill two birds with one stone by having my guys do useful drills at a gradually building intensity.

Now, as for some drill suggestions, I’ll first remind Eric to refer occasionally to my video on “29 Must-do Advanced Skating Drills“.  A goodly number of the exercises shown there would likely suit your needs.  You might also check the few entries I’ve done in reference to speed training or over-speed training for some really good tips.

Then, a couple of things come to mind for specific drill ideas…

- It sounds like you’re attempting to satisfy my first suggestion.  I mean, remembering that players need to be able to go quickly in four different directions (forward, backward, and in both lateral directions).  My “2-step Drill” (shown in the above linked video) is a great one for lateral work.

- What I like to do with those directional drills is to also incorporate quick changes in direction.  For example, if I want my players to work at quick, short forward bursts, I’ll begin the drill with the players first skating backwards, then breaking and shifting their weight to go forward.  Sometimes we coaches will run races and oversee the drill with whistles or voice commands.  However, a lot of the time I’ll let my older players work on their own.  In other words, I’ll tell them what to do, and then I’ll allow them to do the drill in their own area (which frees me and the other coaches to move among them and to offer tips or feedback).  Again, these can be done in all four directions, with the players beginning with a movement in the opposite direction.

- Now, I only do this next one with my older guys (because it’s pretty stressful).  Actually, it’s the same kind of drilling I’ve just described, but with a plyometrics component added.  For example, adapting the drill I just explained…  My players will start skating backwards, but then they’ll jump in the air and immediately dash forward upon landing.  Again, it’s pretty stressful, but it’s also pretty effective.  And it can be adapted to use in all directions.  (I’ll try to get some video of this form of training later this week and attempt to update this entry — or do a follow-up one — as soon as I can.)

Oh, by the way…  When left to their own devices, most players will turn towards a favorite side to do their stop and take-off.  Knowing this, I dictate ahead of time how they will stop — with a vee, turned to the right or turned to the left.

- Oops, one more great one just came to mind…  By now, I’m sure you know how I like to adapt ideas from other sports.  Such is the case with a sprinting exercise called “The Towel Drill”.  In the gym or on a track, one sprinter has a towel around his or her waste, while a partner holds the ends of the towel to provide resistance against a short run.  Part way through that brief but intense sprint, the partner lets go of one towel end, thereby letting the runner really burst out.  (I tend to think there’s an over-speed component to going from lots of resistance to no resistance.  ???)  I like to use this drill both off-ice and on.  And, when we’re on the ice, I have my guys hold their mates’ jersey-tails instead of using towels.

Come to think of it, the above drill could be adapted to accomplish a little striding technique work as Jerry Z is shown doing (using a bungee rope) in a recent video (click here).

Finally, Eric, I like the fact that you are attempting to rotate drills (much like I’ve also described elsewhere, or a lot like strength trainers use in “periodization”).  Hopefully these few tips get you started.  However, if there’s anything more specific you’d like me to deal with — or a drill you might want me to invent for you, please don’t hesitate to ask.  Good luck!  (Oh, I just remembered to ask:  When are you going to send me some video footage of that “high intensity start/stop drill” that you developed?  I know I’d love to see it, and I’ll bet others would, too!)

This PS to my members:  Something evidently has (at least on occasion) gone wrong with the submission of questions.  I mean, they sometimes aren’t immediately relayed to me as they should be.  So, if you don’t see your question dealt with in a day or so (and I should answer that quickly), please email me.  I really want those questions, and I especially don’t want anyone to think that I’m not responsive due to some technical snafu.

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One Way to Improve Your Hockey Skating at Home

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)!“ 

*

Your Comments are truly welcomed here!

Quickening the Slapshot Setup – Part 2

By Dennis Chighisola

The last post in this section (”Quickening the Slapshot Setup“) showed my Team NEHI guys working on this drill while in an off-ice setting.  And, since I said back then that the same exact drill could be used on the ice, I thought I’d gather some video footage of that just as soon as I could.

Actually, the kids I was able to capture on camera are all pretty skilled players, and they make awesome demonstrators.  So, have a look (by clicking the photo below), and notice the footwork required to set-up quickly for a slapshot.

Having seen that (and hoping you’ve seen Part 1), do you have a sense of why that skill was better taught off-ice first?  I do that as often as I can, taking time to demo and explain a new skill away from the ice, initially.  I just find it a lot easier and quicker if my guys have gotten the feel for something new (and perhaps fairly challenging) before they take to the more costly ice-time.

Your Comments are truly welcomed here!

Defenseman’s Point Decisions

Please see Drill Submission Rules and Help below.

Contributor: Dennis Chighisola — Whitman, MA USA

Drill Category: Point shooting, decision-making, passing, reading and reacting, point coverage

Drill Description:

Comments: This is one of my all-time favorite drills, and I sense that my players love it as well.  Really, the video below probably shows it best.  However, I’ll attempt to describe it here:

• Two Point Defensemen:  Once a pass is made to them, the pair attempt to shuttle the puck back and forth for an open shot (versus a forward covering them).
• Defensive Forward/Point Cover:  A forward from one corner goes and covers the two point men as soon as a pass is made out to them.  This checker keeps working until a shot is made or until he or she prevents a shot.
• Offensive Forward:  A forward from a corner passes to either point man, then breaks for the net to screen, deflect or rebound a shot from the point.

Objective of the Drill:

I find that defensemen very quickly learn to draw the checker, thusly getting their partner open for a clear shot.  This drill also encourages quick handling of the puck — under real game-like pressure.

I’ve noticed that slightly experienced D also make good use of flip passes and dekes while challenged by this drill.

Running the drill:
The Offensive Forward in the corner basically runs the drill, starting it with a pass soon after the previous shot is taken.  Forwards switch roles/corners after they work on one side.

An Extra Benefit: Over the past few seasons I’ve also employed three defensemen in this drill, this to simulate our Umbrella powerplay formation.

Click image below to see a short video.

MY Kind of Agility Ladder

By Dennis Chighisola

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!

I Need to Quicken My Players’ Shots!

Although I’ll show you some of my Team NEHI guys working at the drill I eventually created, the inspiration for that drill came from watching my babies (or my little Mighty Mite team).

Oh, you know how I am about taking notes — especially during games.  Well, I’m doing the same at our weekly instructional league contests, and I’m going to gradually fill you in on the things I’ve observed there.

That said, here’s the first problem I noted…

– Dennis Chighisola

I Need to Quicken My Players’ Shots!

My little guys came-out smoking in our very first game, with plenty of action around the opponents’ net.  If there was a problem, they didn’t score nearly enough goals for all the swipes they had at loose pucks.

I wrestled for quite awhile trying to solve that, and one version I arrived at will be shown in the accompanying video.  What I’d like to do beforehand, though, is give you a little insight into what I was thinking…

I’m sure you’ll appreciate how chaotic it can be out in front of the net:  Oops, there’s a puck; oops, then it’s gone!  Ya, one second a player has the chance to bat the puck home, the next second that opportunity has vanished.  And it’s recreating typical game situations (like that) that makes a drill worthwhile (or not).  So, how could I make my players feel that kind of urgency?

Actually, I’m experimenting with a couple of variations right now, and I’ll soon let you know how I feel about each approach.  For the time being, however, here’s what I’m experimenting with:

1. The drill shown in the accompanying video (click on the above photo to watch) has three players in a nearby line each tossing a puck softly to the slot.  As you can see, the forward in front of the net attempts to pull the trigger — three times — as quickly as possible.  If you’ll notice something wrong in this video, my hope was that the pucks would all arrive at close to the same time — to make the forward out front really scramble.  Didn’t happen.    (Honestly, I think I can do better than that drill.)
2. I tried something differently with my little Mighty Mites, this time having a coach drop three pucks from his hand and into the crease area.  This is a little harder to administer, but I think it comes a lot closer to the problem I was seeing in our games.
3. I tried yet another version of that second drill, this time have two offensive players battle to see which could score the most goals from the number dumped into the crease area.  Again, trying to keep a supply of pucks on hand to keep the drill going was a pain.  But, I think this drill comes a lot closer to recreating the urgency of a game.

Now, while I always enjoy your Comments to a post, this time I’m hoping some members might even have a better idea than mine!  (Ya, help!!!)

Jerry Z’s New Stick

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!

Quickening the Slapshot Setup

As I’ve mentioned elsewhere, practicing the slapshot in a stationary pose is okay.  In fact, I think it’s necessary to do this as one attempts to polish his or her technique.  Of course, the other side of the argument is that one hardly gets to stand still for very long during serious game action.  And, the higher the level of play, the less time a player has to get-off a shot.

All that in mind, I noticed a few years ago that a number of my younger players were being smothered by defenders as they raised their sticks to shoot.  With that, I decided to create a few drills that would help lessen the amount of time my kids needed to set-up for their slapshots.

– Dennis Chighisola

Quickening the Slapshot Setup

You should know that all my big ideas don’t necessarily end-up working so well. 

Actually, the first drill I created to solve the above noted problem calls for spreading 30 or so pucks high in an end zone, and then having two players at a time race to get three quick shots on goal.  That drill is okay, and I still do use it once in awhile, 1) because my players seem to like the competition, and 2) because it just seems to be a decent change of pace from all the other shooting drills we use more often.  Really, though, administration of the drill is a pain, and it also bothers me that too many players are left standing around while only a pair of players are active.

So, I ultimately arrived at a drill that’s far more efficient, and one that seems to far better meet my players’ needs (to set-up quicker).

As the accompanying photo shows, a player has spaced three pucks in a straight line leading away from the target shooting area.  (Know that all of my other players also have three pucks, and they’ve staked claim to their own shooting area, which means that all of my guys should be improving at the same time.)

Now, the main idea of this drill is for a player to work on his footwork and body positioning prior to each shot.  In a way, it’s a lot like a golfer “addressing” his ball in anticipation of a shot (with the obvious difference being the very short amount of time a hockey player has).

As a side note…  Most drills have to include a time of concentration or effort and then a time for resting (both the mind and the body).  And, make no mistake about it, in that it’s as important for a player to rest briefly if we want him or her to apply all of his or her intensity or focus for a given period of time.  If you think about, a player who shoots more than a few quick shots is going to start losing focus (or tire), and that’s when poor technique starts to creep-in.  So…

I have my guys start slowly on this drill, at least until they’ve gotten the feel for a good set-up.  Over time, however, I want them to speed things to something closer to a game-like pace.  I do NOT want my guys to hurry the actual shot; what I do want quickened is the time it takes to move and set-up between shots.  Then (as suggested in the above note), my guys use the time it takes to put the pucks back in place to rest and gather their thoughts for another go-round.

Now, click-on one of the thumbnails below to see a video of guys working at this drill.

Then, if you click-on the next thumbnail that video shows a closer look at my guy’s footwork between shots.

Two final points…

Make not mistake about it:  This drill is all about the kind of footwork you see in the above videos.  Most of my guys can shoot the puck pretty well.  It’s the set-up that now needs to be perfected, and that set-up mostly involves footwork.

Don’t be thrown-off by the fact that these clips were taken at a recent off-ice practice; we do the same exact drill on the ice at least once more per week.  And, I assure you the footwork you’ve seen here is exactly the same in the on-ice application.  Yes, this form of practice easily transfers to quickening on-ice slapshot set-ups.

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

Eyes-up Puckhandling (or Not?)

Our friend Jerry visited The MOTION Lab tonight.  And, while he warmed to do some new stickhandling tricks, something struck me — that I needed to share with him, and also with you…

– Dennis Chighisola

Eyes-up Puckhandling (or Not?)

As Jerry did a little light dribbling in anticipation of learning some new puckhandling tricks, I noticed that he was trying to keep his eyes-up.  Aaaaah, good for him — that he remembers to work on that often.

At the same time, I mentioned to him that I usually have to emphasize or de-emphasize that stuff, depending on what I’m having a player (or players) do.  And that usually depends on where we are with a given puckhandling skill.

For example, if we’re working on the beginning level of any given skill, that usually requires total attention.  And my feeling is that a player usually has enough to worry about without taking his or her eyes off the puck or ball.

Of course, the time ultimately comes when I feel a player has pretty much mastered that skill.  And, it’s at that time I believe he or she has to start doing it without looking downward.

(Just click-on the photo above to see Jerry working on his ball dribbling while doing a pretty good job of looking out and around.)

Be a friend:  Your worthwhile Comment helps Coach Chic!

The Nature of Our Game

Dennis Chighisola here, with what I feel is one of the most important posts I’ll ever make within these pages.

To begin, despite my inclination to frequently think outside the proverbial box, I’d like members to know that I don’t make hockey related decisions without a lot of serious thought. In fact, over my forty-ish years in coaching, I’ve mostly relied upon a set of standards I’ve come to call…

The Nature of Our Game

“Hmmmmmm,” you say. “The nature of our game?”

Well, I’m sure you’ll agree that playing ice hockey is very unlike trying your hand at the likes of chess, sumo wrestling, or cricket. And, although we might share some similarities with other games — like basketball, soccer, and the other skating sports, there are probably far more differences.

Yes, every game has its very own nature. Factors like unique rules, a special playing surface and the specific aims for each game make this so.

That said, I’ve always felt that the ability to analyze a given game or sport — to understand the true challenges and demands on its participants — is critical to preparation. For, with this we can go to work on developing the proper traits needed to excel in that specific sport.

Now, I feel the need to add this side note, since I’m famous for borrowing lots of training ideas from other sports. I mean, I incorporate sprint training in my teams’ off-ice practices, I use lots of football-type agility drills and ideas for explosiveness, and the list of training methods I’ve obtained from other sports goes on and on. As I said in the opening, though, I don’t take such decisions lightly. No, I’m more often than not asking myself the simple (or sometimes not so simple) question, “Does this really relate to the challenges my players face out there in the game action?”

If you think about it, training time is extremely limited — especially for amateur players. So, to go off on tangents that have little to do with our game isn’t such a good idea. Moreover, to incorporate training methods that don’t fit with the nature of our game just might hinder a player.

Now, I probably could write a book on this topic. However, to give you the gist of that nature thing, let me at least briefly touch upon the determining factors I noted earlier.

To begin, consider the surface we play on…  The rink is surrounded by boards and glass, these aiding a player in trapping an opponent or banking the puck around or over defenders. And, while basketball players might be able to scale a ball the length of their playing surface, our rink’s lines and related rules influence quite a different approach.

Actually, those rink lines deserve more consideration here, in that hockey teams use them for the development of strategies and tactics. I mean — a lot like military tacticians, teams work hard to defend each line as their opponents attempt to attack, while attacking teams work just as hard to gain each zone on their way up-ice. (Thus we also have forechecking schemes, breakouts, defensive zone coverage, etc.)

While we’re on the subject of our playing surface, consider this… Supposing our game was played on a rink measuring about 20′ by 60′, but still included 5-skaters and a goalie per side. How much fast skating and stickhandling would take place? Not much, huh? In fact, we’d probably recruit sumo-sized guys, and develop plays that look more like rugby scrums. On the other hand, what if we played on a rink the size of a football field? Ha, there would hardly be any physical contact, and the star players would likely be fast skaters and great puck-movers. Of course, our game is played on a surface somewhere between those two extremes, suggesting that the most desirable players should probably be both quick and strong.

Also appreciate the fact that soccer, basketball, lacrosse, field hockey and our game are considered so-called “transition sports”. In other words — and in contrast to games like baseball and football, the ball or puck is constantly up for grabs. And, this kind of continuous action puts a premium on players who can quickly switch roles, from offense to defense to offense to defense, and so on.

Even something like a roster size influences the nature of our game. For, given a certain number of players, coaches deploy them in waves, with traditional set-ups (for the sake of discussion) using three forward lines and two to three pairs of defensemen. Oh, some might take this lightly. However, that kind of player rotation is where the prescribed work-to-rest ratio comes from — as in a player typically practicing so he or she can efficiently work for x-seconds, and rest for twice that time. (In other words, a unit goes out for a brief shift, then rests while two other units do their thing.)

Now, I’ll bet I wrote and lectured on the following at least 30-years ago, although it’s been only recently that I’ve seen it documented in some scientific studies. What I’m getting at is that the typical on-ice shift is really a series of alternating bursts and coasts. In fact, some of the studies I’ve read lately state that the better players cruise with both skates on the ice for a great deal of they’re time out there. Of course, how well one coasts is not the measure of a hockey player. However, that coasting phase is important, allowing him or her to briefly rest in anticipation of going all-out. And, make no mistake about it: the most consequential plays — either offensively or defensively — are carried out in a matter of seconds, during those brief spurts.

The latter two paragraphs should give us fairly good guidelines for conditioning a hockey player… Yes, he or she should be aerobically (long distance) fit. But, I’ll suggest, not to the point of robbing the anaerobic (explosiveness, quickness) system. Remember: It’s the brief, all-out confrontations that usually spell a player’s — and a team’s — success.

Of course, our sport includes its fair share of collisions and incidental contact (whether we’re playing in a body-checking league or not). So, besides the areas of strength development that aid in skills like skating and shooting, the nature of our game suggests that a player be very stable on the skates, as well as be able to safely deliver or withstand heavy hits.

That said — about the need for strength in our sport, I’ll suggest that there’s a tricky balance required — between the want for strength, speed, agility and smooth, efficient movements. Just being strong doesn’t make one an effective player, nor does just being fast, just being pretty, just being…

Even our decisions about hockey equipment should be influenced by the nature of our game. For, as I just suggested, a solid player needs to possess a number of different physical qualities. And it’s important that the gear helps. Quite obviously, the first consideration is that it should protect the player. However, equipment has to also be light enough to aid quickness, as well as allow for smooth movements.

Then, while I’m hoping all the above noted physical traits make sense to you, a study of our game wouldn’t be complete without considering the mental aspects. For, an ice hockey player surely does have to be able to think and skate at the same time. And, if our game is a “read and react” sport, it’s important for a player to instinctively know what to do in each unique confrontation. Moreover, smart players can follow a game plan, and they have awareness when it comes to the game-clock and the score. And, while some might feel otherwise, I happen to believe thinking skills CAN be taught — IF players are helped early enough. (Actually, I’ve developed several drill formats to help enhance this area in my players.)

Then, just briefly let me suggest that training for other important game skills — like puckhandling, passing, receiving and shooting — should also pass that nature of our game test. And, here are two of my observations… First, all of those skills have to be accomplished in combination with other skills (or amid lots of problem solving). Secondly, the best players are able to execute all of those skills in unbalanced postures (with defenders draped all over them, whatever).

Finally, the above is a combination of science, personal observation and experiences; so take it for what it’s worth. Still, I think it should be helpful that players, parents and coaches have some frame of reference when it comes to the daunting number of choices we have to make. So, hey, maybe this is one of those pieces you’ll want to clip and save!

Be a friend:  Your worthwhile Comment helps Coach Chic!

Evaluating Roller Hockey Gear

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.

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Our First "Mighty Mite" Hockey Practice

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!)

(A Different Kind of) Hockey Warm-ups

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

Coming: A New Section About Stretching for Ice Hockey

A new section debuts in late-October of 2009, this aimed at advising members on the very latest known about stretching and warming-up in preparation for hockey practices and games.

2 Ideas We Can Borrow from Ovechkin

For those who may have just joined (or just happened by this entry), I strongly urge you to view the YouTube video I dubbed “Studying Alexander Ovechkin“.  I’ve asked members to run (and re-run) goals #4 and #2 there, just to get a sense of how the The Great OV oftentimes balances on one skate as he readies to unleash a shot.

Oh, and as an FYI…  I doubt Ovechkin is the only player to demonstrate the following skills.  I just happened to use him as an example because I tend to spend so much time studying his moves.

– Dennis Chighisola

1) The Skate Wiggle

As I hinted at in my previous notes, I long ago noticed Ovechkin wiggling his left skate as he readied to shoot from the right side of his body.  And as I also noted, I think this can be a huge distraction to a goaltender.

Just think about it:  The goaler attempts to focus on the puck, but there is this extra movement going on (in the corner of his eye) that must be awfully hard to ignore.  How distracting is it?  I’m not sure (and I’d love for some experienced goalie-types to weigh-in on this).  However, aren’t we all looking for an edge — no matter how slight?

Now, I actually had more than one motive when I decided to have my team players learn this.  For, as I’ve noted in numerous other entries when I’ve talked about shooting, it’s a good idea for players to learn how to pull the trigger in all sorts of off balance postures.  So, while the drills I’m going to show in the following videos will likely help some of my better players add something new to their bag of puckhandling and shooting tricks, I’m going to suggest that every one of my kids has enhanced his skills just from practicing so often on one skate.  (I’ll have a little more to say on this topic a little later.)

Okay, I’ve provided the sketch to the lower right just so you might see the basic posture…  The idea is for the shooter to balance on one skate while slightly wiggling the other.

As an aside here…  Last season, when I first introduced this skill, I had my players wiggle the skate opposite their stick (just as I’d seen Ovechkin do).  As I noted above, I felt this was going to cause the most distraction for the goaltender.  However, because I was adding another skill this season, I had my guys try that wiggle with the skate closest to their stick.  You’ll see why in awhile, though.

I’d like to share a few more tips here, beyond the actual shooting tricks…  For example, I find certain settings better for my Jr HS and HS Prep players to try new skills.  So, as you’ll notice in the videos linked to many of the following photos, we work off-ice a lot (even in The MOTION Lab), and the players also work on their own firing at the side boards (my guys probably get 20-shots to every one they’d have had if they were standing in long lines).  Neither do I allow them to initially shoot on a goaltender when I really want them concentrating on a given skill technique.  (Just click on a photo to see the video.)

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2) The Kick

In the previous post I promised to show you something even more challenging for the goaltender.  So, here goes…

The accompany sketch shows a player’s stick going forward as the leg opposite his stick moves backward.

Now, think “equal and opposite reactions” here — as when a sprinter’s arms pump forward and backward to aid his leg actions, or when a skater moves the hands, arms and shoulders side to side to help the outward thrust of each skate.

In other words, as the shooter pushes his stick forward, he has to simultaneously kick rearward in order to add some extra umph to that forward stick action.  (Click on the photos below to see some of my guys executing what I’ve come to call “The Ovechkin Kick”.)

By the way…  I noticed in putting together the second video that the young lefty shooter is slightly off in timing his kick with his shot.  Can you see it?  The kick appears to be a little too early to really help his shot.  Knowing the player, though, he will get it with a little more work.

Does the direction of that backward kick matter?  You bet!  As a matter of fact, that’s probably been the most difficult thing to convey to my kids.  That kick has to be as close to 180-degrees to the direction of the shot as possible; otherwise a great deal of the force will be lost.

Actually, I’ve started talking to my guys in terms of feeling the extra power, and I’m often heard to ask them, “Can you feel it?” as I move up and down the line of shooters.

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3) Combining the Movements

I initially introduced the above two skills separately, and I had players practice them separately.  Ultimately, though — after probably a good month or more of separate drilling, I had the guys combine the moves.

The videos below show my players putting the two tricks together.

By the way…  You’ll notice that the kids are usually doing a wiggle first, switching skates and then performing their kicks with the other skate.  That kind of order is just for practice purposes, however.  In reality, I’ll want them to do whatever comes naturally once they’re in a game.  I also know how an athlete’s mind works, and I can assure you that each player will grasp for whatever does come naturally in the heat of battle.  Some will actually dare to string the two moves together, some will want to get the shot-off quicker by going to just the kick, some will wiggle a skate and fire, while some won’t dare do anything other than just pull the trigger as fast as they can.  But, for more on this topic, please consider my closing remarks…

*

In summary, I want to re-affirm something I just hinted at, in that individuals will tend to get differing results from an unusual type of skills training.

Over 40-years of working with thousands of athletes, I can tell you that a few special ones will put that new skill into their game almost immediately.  It’s just the nature of those very unique beasts.  At the other end of the spectrum, there will always be a few players who will never dare to do anything new in a game setting.

All that said, I’m going to suggest that just working at new skills — like those described above — is going to affect some positive change in every single player.  So, even though those in the lower half of a roster might not dare to purposely pull-off moves like I’ve just showed, they are going to frequently find themselves balanced on one skate or the other in a game, and they’re going be confident about handling the puck or even letting it fly from that posture.

– Dennis Chighisola

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!

Coach Chic’s (Pretty Famous) Puck-course!

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

The Skater’s Tow-trainer (or Sled)

If you’ve ventured-off into training for other sports, you’ve likely come across sled-like devices that are used for adding resistance against the running motion.  In fact, such a gadget is usually called a “sled”, and I’ve seen them used by sprinters, football players and rugby players, and I’m sure they’re being used by athletes in lots of other running sports.

So, why couldn’t such a training aid be used to add resistance against the skating motion?  Well, the difficulty is that the metal “runners” seen on most sleds are made to be used grass or pavement, and they just wouldn’t work well on the ice.

Thankfully, about a dozen years ago, I saw a demonstration by a Swedish hockey player using something like the gadget shown in the photo below…

Of course, I couldn’t have run out to a local store and purchased such a thing.  So, I took the next best step and built four of my own.  Ya, I built more than one of what I dubbed a “Tow-trainer” because I frequently work with groups of players — in a hockey school, in a clinic environment or with a team.  Oh, and by the way…  As you’ll soon discover, the material at the bottom of my training aids allows them to be used on the ice as well as on pavement, on grass, or on a roller hockey floor.

There’s actually a reason my Tow-trainer is the subject of an article and videos right now.  You see, as I’ve been working with Jerry Z, I’ve noticed that the next step in his development is to get him leaning forward and driving forward.  Members who have been following Jerry’s progress should appreciate what I’m doing here, in that we’ve already solved a number of basic shortcomings in his game to this point, so it’s time for me to look for the next “grossest” problem.  And that forward drive is it.

Now, Deb K — in a drill she calls Chariot Races — suggests that to apply resistance to the skating motion aids in two ways:  1) a player is almost forced to lean forward to gain momentum, and 2) a player is forced to turn the skates outward in order to achieve a decent grip on the ice (or pavement or floor).  I totally agree with Deb on those benefits, and you should be able to see them actually happening in the videos to follow.

If you click on either of the  two photos below a video will open for you in a new window.

Notice in the first video that Jerry Z must wrestle more than a little to get the Tow-trainer going.  Yes, trying to get momentum at the start is difficult — with the device, and with the extra weight he’s added to it.  (The bus sighted at the end of the second clip will be featured in a new agility drill to be shown later!    )

Members ought to know that I loaned that Tow-trainer to Jerry after a recent session in The MOTION Lab.  So I could only give him some rough suggestions on its use.  The reason I mention this is because I’d have made some adjustments to the ways he used that device had I been at his first workout with it.

For one, I’d probably lessen — by about half — the amount of weight he put in there.  As you can see, the load he used caused a motion that really wasn’t natural.  Oh, it might be good for his leg strength, but not for our intended aims.

I would also likely use only a part of the hill he’s on, or that part that isn’t drastically steep.  Ya, a slight incline would probably be good, but not too much.

I would also ask Jerry to shorten the distance for that drill.  As I mention when it comes to using something like a slideboard, I prefer that serious skaters not work on their stride for longer than a period in which they can really focus on mechanics.  For, once the concentration wanes, the skater starts to practice the wrong techniques.

Safety Suggestions

Oh, and here are some serious safety tips I’ve learned from experience…

Be extra careful with a Tow-trainer’s use on a slick surface — such as on ice or on a SportCourt-like roller hockey floor.

Once a skater gets momentum, the sled will keep going after he or she has stopped.

I also now avoid having a skater do turns or cross-overs unless I can really control the training area.  For, the device is going to really whip outward during such movements.

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Now, those members who are here during the month of October, 2009 are fortunate to find directions for making your own Tow-trainer/s very easily and VERY inexpensively.  You’ll find those directions in the *Gifts category.  However, if you missed them, I plan to rerun past gift offerings at later dates.  Promise.

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Ya know, as I add content to this site, I truly wonder if any of these kinds of advice, drills or training devices can be found anywhere else on the Internet.  I don’t know; what do YOU think?  I’d really like to know — in the Comments below — if you’ve found anything here you don’t believe you’d have ever found elsewhere.

Thanks a ton!

– Dennis Chighisola

Teaching the Beginner Hockey Player

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!

Periodization for Hockey

Okay, “periodization” sure seems like a mouthful.  However, if you can endure a little bit of technical jargon in the following article, our strength training specialist, Scott Umberger, is going to put you far ahead of most people in your hockey circle.  This truly IS awesome stuff.

– Dennis Chighisola

Periodization for Hockey

By Scott Umberger

This might be one of the “heaviest” topics that I could discuss, particularly to the general population versus a group of academics who live and die for the argument of science.  You, I know, want a simple explanation and a simple answer to “Scott, how should I coach or train?”  Keep in mind that the following could entail a 50-100 page college thesis.  But I will attempt to KIS it for you (or keep it simple).

Periodization is the timing of training. This applies to all training, on and off the ice. The big question is how and when to space the work and rest intervals, and how to sequence the drills or exercises to experience optimal results.  That’s a lot of stuff.  What should you be doing, how long, and what rest intervals should you be utilizing?

The principles of periodization revolve around the idea of rotating exercises and rest intervals to keep the body adapting or guessing. The controversy falls into what and when. There are many theory’s that exist in both the Eastern and Western parts of the world. I will say this, a Russian Hockey Coach once stood up at a Canadian hockey clinic and said something like, “North America, you have more ice and more skaters than we do (in Europe).  However, we consistently produce more highly skilled players than you.”  He is exactly right. Russian drills are performed at a much higher pace (more game specific), and the rest intervals are much shorts than we typically employ here. This results in more quality repetitions over the course of a season and a career.

The English version

Here’s the deal, guys.  You need to rotate exercises and drills that you use with each athlete. The science that I’ve laid out above covers that.  Additionally the athletes need a change.  (Who wants to work at a job that does the same thing everyday? Not me. Not your players.)

I suggest that you rotate exact exercises every 4 weeks.  If you want to modify the original exercises, by all means go ahead. Just make sure that there’s something different about them. If you are doing stickhandling drills, perhaps make your players close their eyes.  Variety is the spice of life.

The human body is tremendous, and the Russians classified it as an organism.  You need to train that constantly adapting organism by keeping things fresh, both physically and mentally.

The art of periodization is timing the set up so that the training effects/skills build upon one another and peak at competition time.

Tools

I would also like to state that what is done on Monday will not help on Saturday.

This is why I like the exercise bike for in-season work and not for out of season work. The bike does a great job of flushing the legs during the season after a game or practice. It’s also a way to “get a sweat in” for a player who is beat up. During the season, the muscles of the “hip flexor” and “groin” need to be rested because of the stresses of skating (literally everyday).

Out of season, the slide board plays a tremendous role in training these muscles under the weight of ones own body. Nothing can replicate the stress of the season, but properly programming a slide board workout can come pretty close. The stress on the hips are also much less than skating on ice or on a treadmill.

These are tools, and they should be used as such.  And, as I’ve pointed out elsewhere, nothing works all of the time.

Ideas for Developing a Cycle

Things become slowly more complex when conditioning, skills, and strength training are placed into any cycle. There is truly an art in this — in knowing the athlete, the sport coach, and the athlete’s ability to recover.  (I sometimes get frustrated seeing less than qualified people trying to pull this off.  And if you find yourself needing help with this, that’s one of my specialities.)

Generally, my advice is to pick exercises or drills that would improve the weaknesses of your athletes.  Rotate those over 4 weeks, making sure that your athletes master each exercise or skill.

Some Science for Those Who Care to Know a Little More

Personally, I have begun converting from the Russian Conjugate Sequence System to the Block Training Methodology. This methodology is outlined in structural units:

Block Training Unit

• A single training session
• Microcycle – several training days. A weekend showcase could last 3-4 days, so the training preparation should be adjusted accordingly.
• Mesocycle – several microcycles in the range of 2-4 weeks, typically 3-4, depending on the timing of the yearly cycle (in season vs out of season).
• Macrocycle – includes a complete competitive season (pre-season, in-season, and post-season periods). With hockey, it’s pretty simple, referring to annual cycles. As a 14 to 15 year old with a goal to play Juniors at 16,17, or 18, these Macrocycle’s would be 2,3, and 4 years, respectively.

Types of Mesocycles

• Accumulation – the aim is to improve conditioning (General Physical Preparedness- GPP) as well as sport technique. GPP is conditioning in order to be able to train at an adequate level. If one needs to rest 5 minutes in between sets, then they are not in shape and won’t reap the benefits of the training session. In regards to hockey skills, you could work on not allowing the puck to settle on your stick before you shoot. You don’t master this skill during the season.
• Transmutative – the idea is to transform the nonspecific GPP into Sports Specific Preparedness. An example is to polish up the hockey skills that you have been practicing. The conditioning becomes more specific to the position and sport instead GPP which is preparing the athlete to train in general.
• Realization – having everything come together. This phase focuses on applying the new skills and preparedness in a competitive environment.

I would love to give specific recommendations here. I simply can’t because that kind of advice would have to be specific — for the athlete’s age, competitive level (A, AA, AAA, Jr, Major Jr, professional, etc), and his or her training experience.

*

As if Scott hasn’t done an awesome job already, I sometimes like to help things stick with some short stories.  So…

Anyone who has ever trained at a sport that involves measurement — like lifting for poundage, jumping for distances or racing for times — has most likely experienced something known as a “plateau”.  In other words, after long periods of training, you reached a “sticking point” where it was difficult to add much weight to a lift, add an inch to a jump, or cut even a millisecond off your time.  Back in my youth, a lifter countered each plateau by changing his routine, most often using exercises that worked the same muscles but in slightly different ways.  If you can picture it, the new exercises were refreshing — both physically and mentally, and they usually managed to shock the body (and mind?) past that plateau.  That said, what if instead of waiting for the inevitable sticking point to rear its ugly head, one “periodically” altered his or her training routine ahead of time?  Well, I might be oversimplifying things a bit here, but that’s close to what Scott has described here.  (By the way…  All athletes can experience sticking points in their progress; I’ve just used the above examples because they are easily noticeable or measurable.)

I like to also tell a personal story when it comes to this area, this one on the slightly humorous side.  You see, I hate my wife because she swims like a fish while I can be likened to a dawgoned rock in the water.  So, just envision a comparison here, with my wife needing to swim for a fairly long time in order to break a sweat, while I, on the other hand, would be out of gas in a matter of seconds.  Of course, when it comes to a skating contest, I could probably cruise the rink forever without tiring.  My point:   Once the body becomes fairly familiar with a given movement, that movement isn’t as apt to pose a real challenge.  And that’s just another reason why constant change is necessary for further growth.

Finally, perhaps a lot like you, I’m dealing mostly with amateur players who have lots of other commitments.  For that reason, it might be difficult for us to install a program as in depth as Scott might do in his gym.  Still, we can rotate things like tools, exercises and drills as Scott suggests.  The main idea is avoid plateaus and to keep the athlete growing.  And, while we might not be able to do everything as Scott and other professional strength coaches do, I believe that applying just some of the principles mentioned above is going to put a CoachChic.com player, parent or coach far ahead of others.

– Dennis Chighisola

You probably have a lot of questions about this topic.  So, let’s go back and forth through the Comments area below, huh?

The Most Important Factors in Hockey Shooting

Jerry Z — yes, THAT Jerry Z of CoachChic.com in-line fame — submitted a VERY good question the other day.  As a matter of fact, it might be one of the best ones I’ve fielded to date.   You see, I quite often raise the points noted below as I talk to my Team NEHI hockey players.  And I especially get into this stuff when their offensive efforts are failing.  So, here’s what Jerry asked…

– Dennis Chighisola

Q: What do you consider the most important factor is in shooting?  Whether it’s to be accurate?  Hard?  Quick? (I assume each shooter is different, but how would you prioritize practicing?)

A: Really, I have a very short answer for Jerry.  Before I get to that, however, I’d like to share some information that should help players of all levels, including elite guys and gals.

First, although every player IS different, I probably wouldn’t change the basic advice I’ll be sharing here.  Oh, I do talk to forwards and point-shooters a little differently (which is a topic for another time).  But, no matter what position a player plays, he or she really should be aware of the following…

Now, to really make my point with (head strong?) young players, I’ll use a couple of very familiar subjects — namely, the NHL’s top scorers’ list, and a popular segment of the NHL’s skills competition.

Most often I’ll begin this kind of discussion by asking my guys if they recall who the top scorers are in the NHL.  Once things have settled down, and once they’ve tossed more than enough names my way, I’ll move-on to ask them which guys had the hardest shots in the most recent NHL slapshot competition.  Once again, kids will usually get a little rowdy and argue amongst themselves (I like when they get into it like that), but we ultimately do boil the list down to a couple of really strong shooters.

In a way, my players have played into my hands here.  I mean, I believe they can envision at this point the top scorers and the hardest shooters.  And they’re usually ripe by this time to answer a few of my planned questions.

The first thing I’ll put to them is whether any of the NHL’s extra hard shooters are near the top of the league in scoring.  I’m usually looking at a bunch of open mouths by now, and a whole bunch of players who really want to know what’s coming next.

What’s next?  It’s that most of the guys found near the top in scoring — probably in any league — are those who have moves and put their shots on-goal quickly.

Now, before someone offers the fact that there have been many great shooters at or near the top in NHL scoring, I’m going to say that is absolutely the case.  In fact, all of the guys who tally a lot of points can fire the puck.  But, that’s not my point.

My point IS that top scorers shoot quickly.  Seldom are they one dimensional (with just a big shot).  Again, they have moves — or dekes, and they can usually launch the puck with lightening speed from any spot or any posture.

Before going further let me share some of the keys from another brief conversation I often have with my students and players, this having to do with a match-up between an attacker and the goaltender…

• Please consider that the goaler probably desires two things in such a confrontation.
• He’d like to be able to see the puck (which suggests that screens must prove very frustrating to him).
• A goalie needs time.  I mean, most goaltenders own the best equipment their money can buy, and they spend a lot of their practice time learning how to place that expensive gear in the right place relative to the puck’s location.  And, given enough time to put that gear in the right spot, I’m betting that the hardest shot in the world isn’t going to find its way to the back of the net.

And that, my friends, is the basis upon which I answer most questions having to do with shooting.

That shooting quickness and shooting power belong at opposite extremes should be easy for me to now argue.  Accuracy, on the other hand, will take a little more explaining.

From what I’ve said about the goaler’s needs, you should understand why I see a quick trigger as the most important shooting trait.  It should make sense that the ultra-quick shot has the best chance of catching the netminder out of position.

Now, don’t get me wrong on this next one, because I believe it’s awesome to have a powerful shot, and I work with my guys plenty to develop their hand, forearm, shoulder and core strength.  At the same time, the most powerful shots usually take time to uncork, and that’s often exactly what a goaltender needs to get himself or herself in the right position.  And that’s why power takes a backseat to shooting quickness in my book.

Shooting accuracy is a tricky one…  Frankly, every shot should be on-goal.  (What is it I’ve heard some coaches say?  “You can’t score on 100% of the shots that miss the net!”?)

This short story…  A lot of years ago I read an article about a pro team that had just played our local NHL entry.  The visitors had beaten our guys, and their coach in a post-game interview gave a lot of credit to his point-shooters.  As he described the situation, his team hadn’t been generating much offense from the blue line, so they decided to make a one-game pact.  All the defensemen agreed to not take any slapshots, but to instead just throw pucks on net as quickly as they could.  The result?  Three goals originated from the point.  My assessment?  Those kinds of shots got on-goal fast, there was a better chance they’d be accurate, and the combination of quickness and the screens that took place in front of the locals’ net took-away the two things the home team goaler wanted — as in sight of the puck and time to get in position.

Still, for all I’ve said to this point, Jerry is really asking about how much time HE should devote to each of those shooting skills.  So, my honest answer to that one?  I think he — and all players — should work on all three areas.  As a relative beginner, however, I might suggest that Jerry give his shooting strength a slight priority at first.  Once he’s able to rip some pucks (or balls) fairly well, shooting quickness would come next.  All along, though, he should try to practice hitting spots, and he should always try to put his shots on-goal.

Don’t forget, you really help me — in a lot of ways — when you leave a comment.

A Different Approach to Hockey Strength Training

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!

Comparing Hockey, Figure Skating and Speed Skating

I’ve always promised to respond to my members’ needs.  It gives me a great deal of satisfaction when I’m able to do so.  I hope to accomplish that here, responding to a long-time member’s question.

As he explains it, Ravi is considering taking some figure skating lessons in an attempt to improve his hockey play.  Before he does, however, he thought to ask this old coach about the merits of such.

Then, because there are more than two skating sports, please allow me to discuss this topic on a slightly broader scale.

– Dennis Chighisola

It’s probably been close to 20-years since I attended a hockey coaching symposium that included a lecture on skating by former NHL coach Pierre Page’.  As I recall, Page’s college Masters thesis involved a study of the hockey skating motion (actually, I believe it aimed to also determine the factors that make some skaters faster than others).

Pretty obviously, this kind of lecture was scientifically based.  And, all these years later, I notice that numerous other biomechanics experts agree with the points made by Page’.

All that said, he made a comment that day that really struck a chord with me.  Apologizing in advance, that lecture was a very long time ago, and I’m probably not going to get it exactly word for word.  However, the gist of what Page’ said was that, “Some skaters find it easy to make quick movements, while others are better at moving smoothly.”

I think Page’ suggested that the numbers are probably close to evenly split within any group, with about half tending to be quick by nature, the other half tending to be smooth.  (Ironically, I could envision my own players back home as Page’ spoke, and I could immediately identify those two type of players within my own roster.)

Still, what was to come next was something even more profound, and even more appropriate to this discussion…

What Page’ pointed-out — and what I’ve found to be true, is that a player with one strength tends to have difficulty with the other.  In other words, a naturally quick skater quite often has problems with smoothness, and the smooth skater frequently struggles to make quick foot actions.

Now, I have a gut feeling on this subject…  For, what I’ll suggest is that the naturally quick skater is loaded with fast-twitch fibers.  That’s what makes him or her quick.  And, at the other end of the spectrum, the nice, smooth skater is probably dealing with mostly slow-twitch fibers, thus his or her struggle to execute really quick movements.

Are there players who fall in the middle of these two extremes?  I don’t recall Page’ addressing that.  However, I’d answer that in the affirmative.  It just makes sense.  In fact, I’ll suggest we could plot all of a team’s members on a Bell Curve, with small numbers of skaters falling at the two extreme ends, the majority falling in the middle.  The group would still be split on the two sides of the bell — half being smooth and half being quick, but there would likely be only a small number of players who were extremely quick or extremely smooth.

Next, allow me to insert a brief but related personal experience…  Going back to my earliest days of running hockey skills clinics, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen figure skating instructors salivating at the rink’s side boards as they watched my kids fly around the ice.  Inevitably, they seek me out after the class, offering something like, “Wow, would I love to get such-and-such-a-player into figure skating!”

I usually — as politely as I can — shake my head and laugh.  And then I usually follow with, “Little wonder.  You guys start your skaters moving around the ice like little statues, worrying about their form from the very the beginning.  Then, years later, it bothers you that your skaters are boring!”

Quite differently from their approach, my first aim is to create little daredevils in my Learn-to-skate and Learn-to-play clinics.  I’ve always figured it would be easier in later years to tone them down a bit, rather than to do as most figure skating coaches do, later attempting to light a fire under their (robot-like?) kids.

This all brings me to a subject I frequently write about and speak about, or what I call “The Nature of Our Game”.  In general, this study includes our ultimate arrival at what it’s really like for a participant to engage in a given game — be it hockey, figure skating, checkers or Monopoly.

Oh, I could go on for quite some time with this topic.  However, let me cut to the chase…  Hockey, of course, is a game of transition (meaning players must continuously switch between defensive and offensive roles), and it’s quite often referred to as a game of constant reading and reacting.  Figure skating and speed skating, on the other hand, are more like planned events.  In the case of figure skating, a participant usually performs a predetermined routine, with that routine being rehearsed hundreds of times.  Nor are there many surprises in the sport of speed skating.  Skaters in that sport know their always-counter-clockwise route beforehand, as well as the distance they have to travel.

Okay, let’s now return to the earlier line of thinking — in that some players are naturally quick, and some are by nature smooth in their movements.  Let’s next consider the needs of each kind of player.  For, doesn’t it make sense that a slow footed skater could use plenty of work on his or her quickness?  And, does it make just as much sense that the quick but not so coordinated player could use help with his or her smoothness?

Those things in mind, I’m going to suggest that the quick but rough-around-the-edges player would likely benefit from a little work at body and blade control — or the things a figure skating instructor might be able to help with.  As for the hockey player who is already smooth but lacks quickness, I’ll suggest that a figure skating kind of practice would only reinforce the slowness.

Don’t get me wrong here…  The skating segments of my clinics and team practices include a little of everything — from figures-type work to some speed skating drills to exercises borrowed from quickness and agility kinds of sports.  (I even borrow some skate sharpening techniques from speed skaters, but that’s a story for another time.)  My reasoning:  Quite obviously, players within my group have numerous and varied needs, which means that I have to cover all the bases.

Finally, I hope members soon come to know that I like to answer most questions in the way I’ve just done for Ravi.  Oh sure, if I watched him take one twirl around the ice I’d likely know exactly how to advise him.  However, I’d much prefer to arm him and my other CoachChic.com friends with as much information as possible.  In that way, every different type of skater should be able to troubleshoot his or her own needs.

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Catching-up with Jerry Z

Well, it’s been some time since I first introduced our new buddy, Jerry z.  Actually, about a month.  But, he and I have needed that time together.

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…

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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…

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This New Category Coming for September

Yes, it struck me that we were missing something, and that would be hockey specific conditioning.  So, beginning this month — September of ‘09, I’ll start adding some very usable stuff to help players go longer, harder and faster in their games!

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Big Ball Keepaway for a Mental Distraction

Some time ago I discovered the benefits to just slightly changing any given drill to shock my players’ concentration.  Substituting another object in place of the puck can do this.  And, I’ve more recently tried — with some success — the use of big balls, like those used in basketball or soccer.

– Dennis Chighisola

Okay, I know the above claim needs a whole lot more explaining, so here goes…

Let me start by reminding my CoachChic.com friends that “repetition (surely is) the best teacher”.  However, “boredom is the greatest threat to effective teaching”.  In other words, doing the same exact drill, over and over again, IS great for creating muscle memory.  Still, that’s only good to a point, since overdoing the same drill is likely to eventually cause our players’ eyes to glaze-over.  I mean, at some point, our players will start just going through the motions in zombie-like fashion.  And this is when poor technique and poor decision-making — along with the wrong kind of muscle memory — start creeping in.

Let me also remind you that it’s at a time like this when there’s a need to get a little creative, or “artful”.  (If there’s a caveat here, it’s that we have to continue reinforcing proper techniques, and not just go to another form of drilling for the sake of change.  In other words, while players have to feel a drill is new, parents and coaches have to be careful in choosing a substitute drill.)

Now, one of the earliest posts I contributed to this site had to do with using a small ball for teaching passing techniques.  As I described in that one, pairs of players move while passing the ball back and forth to each other.  As I also suggested, proper passing and receiving fundamentals can be reinforced while this drill runs.  The receiver can be reminded to give a good target, and we coaches can reinforce a need for the passer to lead his or her teammate and to put the pass right on-target.

If you get where I’m going with this, you might also sense, as I do, that players usually won’t see the above described drill as being anything like the same old, same old ones we’ve done so many times before.  In fact, I often see my players refreshed by this approach, and they tend to give more of themselves just because the drill does seem new to them.

As another example…  Late last winter I started to get the impression that my junior high school team kids were just going through the motions during our breakout drills.  (Actually, things were getting pretty ugly.)  How could I blame them, though.  We must have done those same old drills hundreds of times over the long season.  So, I decided to bring a soccer ball to our next off-ice practice session.  And, it did the trick.  Suddenly the kids seemed to brighten-up, and they were suddenly focusing again, too.  Their concentration was back, and they once again began attempting to place passes right to their teammates’ hands.

Now, once I see something works, I salt that idea away for future reference.  Ya, switching to small ball passing (as described earlier) probably crept into my drill repertoire some 15-years ago, and it’s always been there for me to fall back on as the need arose.  So has the big ball idea been available for me since late last season.

That said, I want to insert here another thought…  In strength training circles there is a relatively new approach referred to as periodization.  And, for all the science that might be used to describe that mouthful, my oversimplification of that term is this:

While sticking with a given training routine for a considerable length of time will produce positive results, there will ultimately come a time when progress either slows or almost stops.  (This is often referred to as “plateau-ing”.)  So, the idea of periodization is to avoid plateaus — in advance — by periodically changing an athlete’s routine.  In other words, we know a routine is ultimately going to lose its effectiveness.  So, why not switch to some alternate exercises beforehand?

So, does this line of thinking sound anything like my idea of using alternative drills in our hockey practices?  I definitely think so.  And, borrowing from the idea of periodization, I’ve even begun inserting substitute drills BEFORE the traditional ones start losing their effectiveness.

As an aside here, and as a way of introducing a few new drill ideas for you…  I don’t think we should get stuck on any given type of substitute for a puck.  At certain times small balls work; at others times I’ve found it wiser to use a big ball, because it slightly slows the action, or because it in some other way makes a drill run better or safer.  And, I don’t doubt that either you or I might arrive at something even better to use sometime down the road (I don’t know; frisbee, anybody?).

Now, late this summer I felt the need to reinforce offensive 2 on 1 principles with my Team NEHI guys.  I think players tend to like games of keepaway, probably because there’s competition involved, and also because these contests aren’t very different from real game action.  Of course, I like keepaway games because they force real game decision-making, proper passing and receiving skills, and because they can be performed in a small, easily observed area.  In other words, it’s pretty easy for participants and coaches to see if choices and skills have been performed successfully.

Shown to the right are my guys playing games of 2 on 1 keepaway (roughly) within the end face-off circles.  (If you click on the photo you’ll see a video of my guys in action.)  Actually, we played these games on-ice during the week with pucks, then used a soccer ball in our weekly off-ice practice.  If you can appreciate it, the same principles and techniques were reinforced in both venues, while the kids reaped the benefits of seemingly different drills.  In the video you might notice the kids laughing a bit, or being fairly animated (suggesting they’re enjoying the competition).  Also, notice the two young kids (our junior high school goalies) in the second group, as they actually try to get open and they also use some eye fakes to fool the checker.  And, done enough, I’ll suggest that these things will gradually transfer into their game play.

Shown in the second photo are some of my NEHI HS Prep guys doing the same drill.  (Click on the photo to see that drill in action.)  You’ll notice I’ve added a little incentive (or consequences) to their success or failure in the game.  Hey, there are consequences if we lose the puck in a real game, so — on an honor system — kids who cause a turn-over quickly do 5 push-ups.

This brief sidebar…  I tell my guys ahead of time that I don’t want the push-ups to be seen as a real punishment.  The reason I’m only asking them to perform five quick ones is so that they’ll at least associate a small amount of pain(?) or embarrassment(?) with losing the puck or ball.  (If you think about it, most of the drills we coaches run during our practices don’t have the same kind of results-oriented consequences as our games.)

The final photo shows some of my kids working on their offensive zone man-advantage plays.  I’ll get plenty into powerplay tactics down the road.  But, for now let me say that an effective powerplay can often be the great equalizer when/if our team is struggling in other areas.  Also, if you think about it, powerplay skills and principles tend to trickle-over into many areas of a team’s 5 on 5 play.  I say all this to let you know that we spend a pretty good amount of time working on man-advantage situations.  Understandably then, we REALLY need alternative forms of practice to avoid all the issues associated with boredom.

(Click the photo to see action drilling on our powerplay.)  This clip was taken early in the kids’ learning my version of the umbrella formation.  So, while they certainly haven’t yet gotten to the point of executing plays in this video, they are quickly learning to recognize where teammates should be, where opponents likely are, and where their passing options might be.  Again, though — aside from the teaching aspects, this form of drilling makes it possible for me to practice powerplay tactics — A LOT.

In closing, I hope players, parents and coaches appreciate my concerns for practicing plenty while also trying to keep focus or concentration.  I’ll suggest there’s a delicate balance required in our drill selections — between traditional ones and alternatives.  The use of small and big balls can help towards this aim.  But, they’re by no means our only options.

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Good and Bad Pain in Strength Training

You can put my good friend Michael Mahony near the top of the list of those I’m constantly referring to as the best and brightest on Twitter.

For those who don’t know, Michael posts frequently in “The Muscle Building Fat Burning Video Blog“.  It’s an interesting place to visit, in that he’s talking to readers (and video viewers) about his personal fitness quest.  (Mike’s videos can also be found on YouTube).

Now, when I saw Mike Mahony’s latest post — concerning pain, I thought to myself that CoachChic.com members just have to consider this stuff.  So, have a read, and I’ll add my own comments a little later.

– Dennis Chighisola

What about pain?
By Michael Mahony

What’s on my mind today?
I’ve been doing some thinking lately and have come up with a few interesting conclusions regarding pain.  I am not talking about the debilitating, unable to walk type of pain.  I am talking about the type of pain you get from an intense workout or how your lungs burn during an extreme cardio workout.

How long?
When you walk barefoot in your house and stub your toe, how long does the pain last?  Generally it passes rather quickly.  You might be left with a bruised toe, but the pain itself subsides as fast as it started.  It is the same way with the pain you get during a lift.  Yes, it hurts to push yourself past the burn, but that pain subsides.  It goes away quickly.

How much?
You obviously need to pay attention to the intensity of the pain you are feeling.  There is the pain of going past the burn during a lift and there is the pain of an injury.  Both are different kinds of pain and they are obvious as to which is which.  Pay attention to pain from an injury because it is an indicator that you need to stop what you are doing.  However, the pain you get while taking a lift to failure is something you want to go beyond.  Push yourself hard and you will see gains.

How often?
Each time you do a lift you are going to feel pain if it is done correctly.  Your job is to push beyond that pain.  Working at this level of intensity is required to get good, consistent gains.  Yes, you are going to be sore after pushing your body this hard, but the results should be worth it to you.  If they are not, maybe this isn’t the right thing for you to be doing?

What is failure?
Finally, you are trying to take the set to failure.  What is failure anyway?  I strongly believe the point of failure is completely influenced by your mental attitude.  Yes, the muscle has a point where it will be unable to move the weight another repetition, but is that where you quit every time?  I am suggesting that most of us quit sooner than we should.  We let our brain stop us before our body does.  Do me a favor.  The next time you are in the gym, do not pick a stopping point (ie. 8 repetitions).  Just pick a weight and do the exercise until you can’t move the weight any more.  I call this “doing all the repetitions.”  That’s right, do them all.  Don’t stop until you can’t move the weight another repetition.  Don’t let your brain stop you, let your body stop you.  You will have to be ready to go beyond the pain that you feel, but it will be worth it.  Give me this favor for the entire workout and then let me know what you think.

Mike mentions some VERY interesting things within his piece…

I have a huge sign posted in The MOTION Lab that states, “No pain, no gain!”  You might find it interesting, however, that I whisper to parents that it’s only partially so; I mainly put that up for the sake of some teenagers who seem to have a need for such stuff. 

As Michael suggests, there’s a good pain and a not-very-good pain, and it’s important for athletes (or those responsible for athletes) to recognize the difference.  In fact, if one of my players or students complains that something hurts, I’ll usually question him until I get to understand which sort of pain he might be talking about.  Hey, it surely is going to make a difference in how we’ll approach the next drill, the next practice or the next game.  And, with a little bit of experience, it might also provide us a pretty good indication about whether the player should seek some medical attention.  (Obviously, it’s best to err on the safe side.)

Now, I can’t for the life of me exactly remember the quote, but…  In a Jerry Kramer book about Vince Lombardi, the late, great Green Bay Packers coach pushed his players with the belief that, “The lesser conditioned player will always quit first!” (or words to that effect).  My interpretation is that Lombardi was really talking about pain — or, a player’s ability to endure it.  Just think about that, if you will:  Two players do battle, and one just finds it easier to quit.  We might also be talking about “mental toughness” here, in that the one able to endure a little (of the right kind of) pain is likely to have more staying power than someone who can’t.

Then, I’ll bet most non-athletes reading all this have still experienced both the good and the bad kinds of pain.  As this relates to our (adult kinds of) labor, I’m often heard to say how much I hate the tiredness that comes from something like stressful paperwork, while I really enjoy the tiredness derived from a day of toiling in my yard.  (Man, I sleep like a baby after a day of getting the good kind of tired.)  Athletes experience something very much akin to this, even very old athletes like yours truly.  I mean, it’s definitely no fun dealing with a real injury, but there’s something still kind of nice about that little bit of soreness gained from some hard work.

Finally, thanks, Michael.  And I look forward to following your progress over at “The Muscle Building Fat Burning Video Blog“!

– Dennis Chighisola

First Things First in Hockey Skills Work

I have to laugh at myself a bit, because I sometimes find it funny how my old noggin’ works… What I’m referring to is that one thing often leads me to think of something else, and that just as often leads me to think of something else (and so on).

Such was the case as I read Craig Shaw’s comment this morning.  And that thought process led me to answer Craig in the way I did, as well as to ultimately decide to share a few thoughts with all of my other CoachChic.com friends…

You see, as I reflect back on the hundreds of outstanding players I’ve had through the years, I’ve always found they had a few things in common.  Oh, I’m not talking about great genetics here; actually, I think most of my best players overcame some shortcomings to achieve what they did.

From a mental perspective, those kids always seemed to have a very positive approach to trying new things.  I mean, they could laugh at themselves whenever they were really challenged by a drill.  Hand in hand with that was a certain “Show me what you have for me today, Coach!” attitude.  And, while some might suggest those traits are genetic, my feeling is that they’re a reflection of their parents’ attitude.

What I’m here today to talk about, however — and what Craig reminded me about, is what I probably did for those kids who ultimately found some success in the game.

As an aside here…  You might find it odd that I don’t usually brag about a specific player, or claim to have put this kid or that kid in the NHL or on a National Team.  That’s because I don’t believe there’s a coach on the planet who is totally responsible for a player’s success.  Oh, I know I helped a ton of young guys and gals along the way (as have other coaches or skills instructors), and I’ve even watched a bunch of ‘em on TV.  If you want my honest opinion, though, it’s the moms and dads who give their kids legitimate chances to make it, and it’s the kids who make good use of what their parents are willing to provide — plain and simple.  That said, this entry is about one of those “little things” I probably have done right for my kids through the years, and something that probably served them well for years and years to come…

What I’m getting at is my refusal to skip steps.  So many parents and coaches are in a hurry to have their kids perform moves like elite players.  And I think I may have even been that way as I guided my first generation through NEHI programs.  But, being in a hurry almost always means skipping steps.  And skipping steps almost always causes a player some difficulties down the road.  (Please think about that one, because I’ve seen far too many older players who couldn’t be saved due their failure to master given skills when the time was right.)

Now, one luxury of my job is the time I have to study (and study and study).  And, while I’m not done studying the game yet — by a long shot, the way I’ve plotted skill progressions for you within this site is likely the most concise you’ll ever find.

Take, for example, the stopping movement…  I bring my students or players through maybe ten steps, from the very beginner challenge to some very advanced applications.  (These are described and shown in the three “Must-do Skating Drills” videos under the Skating category.)

Of course, rational people would say it makes sense to NOT go on to Step 4 until Step 3 is mastered.  Yet, there’s something that seems to cause younger parents and coaches to get a bit irrational at times — or they get antsy about their kids’ progress, which causes them to skip from Step 3 to Step 7 (whatever).

I’m also (as my noggin’ makes me jump again) reminded of the advice I provided in the “Creating The Early Goal-scorer” video.  For, my main aim there was to help you help your youngster succeed “at his or her own level”.  Trust me on this one:   Most of the other kids in your youngster’s age group are skipping steps, or they’re not even being given the chance to master many of the game’s basic skills.  So, a kid who IS slowly lopping-off key steps IS ultimately going to blow-away the majority of his or her peers.

Okay, I may have seemingly jumped around a bit here and there (and that’s likely the electrodes in my noggin’ at work).  But the advice I’m trying to convey to you today is to just “stay the course”.  There are bound to be ups and downs in a season — geeeeeze, with young players, there can be ups and downs in a day.  The thing I’m here to tell you is that others will likely panic with the downs and get a bit over excited about the ups.  You, on the other hand, ought to be able to smile at both (yes, even at the downers), because you know you’re on the right course, just putting “first things first”.

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Readying for Tournaments and Tryouts

I just received a question from a long-time Twitter and Facebook friend, Sandi, and this topic seems as timely as one can get.  And, although it has to do with tournament prep, I’d have advised much the same if she was headed to an important tryout)…

You see, Sandi and her son are on their way to a hockey tournament a few states away, and she thought she might swing a little out of her way on the drive to have her son’s skates sharpened a little differently than usual.  (Sandi had read elsewhere about my interest in a new sharpening method.)  Thankfully she asked my opinion on this BEFORE venturing off-track.

My advice to Sandi was to NOT do anything differently from the norm as she sends her boy into the tournament fray.  In other words, I suggested that she do everything to make her son feel comfortable, which includes doing everything as usual.

If you can appreciate what I’m saying here, there are times when experimentation can be helpful, and there are times when I would definitely avoid doing anything outside the norm.  Many — or probably most — hockey movements require fine motor skills, and these can only be thrown-off by different equipment or different equipment alterations.

In my humble opinion, the right time to experiment — or to break-in new gear — is when there are several weeks (or even months) to acclimate oneself to a different “feel”.

Ultimately I suggested that Sandi and her son visit that new kind of skate sharpening shop on their way home from the tournament.   At least the boy could try the results of that sharpening at home at a practice.  From there, he could experiment and judge better whether he wants to continue using it in future games.

PS:  I plan on explaining the skate sharpening process in a coming post.  It’ll be pretty in depth stuff aimed at helping my member friends really know their stuff in this area.  My hope is that you’ll henceforth be able to also troubleshoot any blade problems when they arise.  Then, when I’m really sure about the new sharpening process Sandi and I talked about, you’ll be among the first to know my recommendations.

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Build Your Own Off-ice Hockey Training Center

A lot of the content this month has to do with being creative, and Todd Jacobson and I have (and will continue to) suggest ways you can solve problems by actually creating new drills.  At the same time, many good drills require some sort of training aid (I’ve mentioned previously that a lot of pretty good training tools can even be homemade).

Well, what got me started on the current topic was Craig Shaw’s awesome article on “How Training Like an Astronaut Can be Beneficial to the Brain“.  For, in that piece he mentioned a lot of great little training devices that really CAN help a player improve his or her athleticism — a lot.

But, here’s my fear:  It’s easy to read an article such as Craig’s, drink-in the main idea, then gloss-over some of the other (might I suggest equally important?) particulars.  And in this regard, I’m talking about Craig’s mention of rope skipping, juggling, a trampoline, scooters, wobble boards and the likes.  And I’d throw into that mix something like those Bosu aids (or small inflatable disks often used for balance training).

As an aside here, every parent is probably familiar with the oft repeated summertime chant of youngsters, like, “Ma, there’s nothing to do!”  And my answer to this is to always have a few gadgets sitting somewhere nearby (these have often been conveniently located in our back hall or at the end of our driveway).  Ease in grabbing something to play with is key here.  Hey, no one, including us adults, wants to spend a half-hour setting something up, only to have less time to play with it.

All that said, I thought I’d just mention how I’ve come by some of the unique gadgets you’ll often seen used in videos or photos taken up at The MOTION Lab…

– Of course, jump ropes are inexpensive — or, at least the types I suggest using.  Those made from something like a 3/8″ vinyl will whip through the air pretty quickly.

- So is a container of tennis balls fairly inexpensive.  Actually, the lower the quality, the less bounce you’ll get from one that’s dropped.  There are even some great tutorials available on-line that make juggling fairly easy to learn.

- In some of the videos from our Lab, you might notice a goaltender hopping and juggling while wearing a patch over one eye.  These eye patches are also readily available — and only a couple of dollars — at most local drugstores.

– And would you believe I found our first trampoline at a neighborhood yard sale?  I think it went for about $5.  I later discovered that one of the largest department stores in our area carries pretty decent tramps (so the dad of a Lab student tells me) for a little over $20, and these are available on-line if they’re not in stock at the store.

- I know that scooters were a rage when my grandson was about 10-years old, and I still see them frequently offered at low costs in most local department store flyers.  Oh, by the way…  When Anthony was motoring around our neighborhood, I suggested he split his time on that gadget — I mean, thrusting with his left leg as often as with his right.

– Wobble boards (or teeters, as I call them)?  You don’t need to buy one.  Two crossed 2″ by 4″ boards about 2′ long will do just nicely (and store very easily).  Actually, wait until you see my video on “Chop Stix”, whereby I’ll show you how to make a batch of great balancing, puckhandling and core strength gadgets from a single $3 hunk of wood. 

- Then, about those Bosu trainers…  They’re dawgoned expensive.  However, local department stores carry pretty inexpensive (about 12″ wide by about 2″ deep) inflatable disks that go for about $10 to $12 each.  I have a batch of those in The MOTION Lab, and they’re awesome.  But, while you could easily get away with owning one, two disks are all you’d ever really need.

Two final thoughts…

Whether price is an issue with you or not, I like to make it one as I offer this kind of advice.  (I don’t ever want a player’s chances of improving tied to his or her wallet.)  If there was one thing I took away from my long ago studies in the USSR, it was that those folks were dirt-poor.  Yet, while a lot of their gear was old and worn (not shiny and new like you see in most US gyms), it — and the teaching — was extremely effective.  (I somehow sense my old Moscow friends would smile if they visited my Lab today.)  Anyway, seeing what I did back then caused me to forever after adopt the following sentiments…

Yes, I feel the need to repeat something I’ve said quite a few times in other prior posts, in that, “It’s not really the gadget (or weight set) that makes us better; improved skills and greater athletic qualities come from the way we use them!”

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Improve Your Puckhandling with Coach Chic’s Chopped Stix

I thought I’d give everyone a break from the Incredible Stickhandling series to show you something that is absolutely awesome for puckhandling (not to mention core strength, balance, and a host of other physical skills).  (Trust me:  There are plenty more Incredible Stickhandling drills to come!)

As the following video points-out, I feel compelled to problem-solve.  And I also feel for parents’ pocketbooks — as well as their available resources — as I head towards a solution.

Here you’ll also discover ways a lot of previously mentioned drills and training gadgets can be made and used in a relatively small area.

So, take a look, enjoy the video, and please DO make a set of Chopped Stix to have handy around your house…

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By the way…  As a coach, I am preparing to make a batch of these so that my guys can use them in our weekly off-ice training sessions.  (More recently I discovered The Home Depot has bundled stakes — dirt-cheap, and all one needs to do is saw-off the pointed ends to have about a dozen ready-made Stix!)

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10 Things I Wish I Had Done as a Young Athlete

I am one lucky guy (and I think you are pretty lucky members), in that great new guest writers just keep coming on board at CoachChic.com!  That’s how I feel today, as I get to introduce Jason Price, a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist, an Athletic Trainer, a Personal Trainer and a USA Weightlifting Federation Club Coach.  Jason has over 10-years experience working at various levels of Collegiate Sports.  And, as you’ll discover over time, Coach Price has a unique insight into Sports Performance with an injury preventative twist.

– Dennis Chighisola

10 Things I Wish I Had Done as a Young Athlete

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

Athletes Equation

jason.price@athletesequation.com

I must admit I borrowed the the following idea from another on-line strength coach (see below), on his 10 things he wished he had done as an athlete.  After I finished reading the article I was so impressed with his insight on his past training I thought I would give it a try.

This is not a list of my regrets as an athlete, but simply items I wish I had done more of, known more about, or listened more to the advice someone had given me when I was younger.

So here it goes:

1. I wish I had spent more time static stretching. I had poor flexibility as a youth athlete, I had poor flexibility as a High School athlete, and I had poor flexibility as a college athlete. I’d battled injuries that would have been significantly less frequent or prevented all together by having good and functional flexibility. It is only now as an adult athlete and coach that I appreciate static stretching and all of the benefits of maintaining and having good flexibility.
2. I wish I paid more attention to my diet. In high school I took your typical health class but I never knew until I got to college that I needed to eat different and better as an athlete. It was not uncommon for me to eat some type of fast food prior to a game, or even worse hit up the snack bar during the JV basketball game prior to my game, and eat some Mike and Ike’s with a coke. Then I would be left wondering why my energy level crashed in the second half.
3. I wish I had spent more time performing metabolically correct conditioning for my sport. I was a Basketball player and I would spend a lot of time performing long, slow distance running to prepare for the season. Now I did my fair share of playing basketball, but when I wanted to do a conditioning workout I usually laced up a pair of running shoes and went for a 2-5 mile run. I’d kick myself when I went for these runs, but every start to the hoop season I would be dying during the first two weeks of practice because metabolically I wasn’t ready.
4. I wish I never fell for gimmicks. Yes, I bought strength shoes. In the late 80’s and early 90’s strength shoes were a staple for basketball players. If you are unfamiliar with strength shoes, they are the shoes with the huge platform on the forefoot promise to help you perform plyometrics. Now if I had saved myself $150 bucks and just did the plyometrics, I probably would have seen the same results if not more. So, the truth about gimmicks is that they are gimmicks and there is no quick and easy way to build strength.
5. I wish I lifted weights during the season and not just in the summer. I would hit the weights in the summer hard. After my freshman year my father got me a weight set for Christmas and we put it in the basement. There it sat all winter long until spring track ended and I could then hit the weights. All summer long I would get stronger and I would feel great once soccer season would roll around. But, then came mid August and the weights would sit in the basement and collect dust again. I wish I knew to keep my workouts intense and drop the volume, that I could get stronger during the year that way, and consequently maximize my strength.
6. I wish I didn’t buy a body building book to learn how to lift weights for sports performance. The first strength training book I had was a paperback, “The Gold’s Gym Strength Training Book”. It was filled with loads of good solid advice and exercise routines, if I was training for Mr. Universe, not for high school sports. I needed to get away from the knee extensions and biceps curls and do more squats and over head presses.
7. If I just could have understood that it was NOT cool to fight through injury. The resulting pain and loss of function is the body’s response to injury and not just a hurdle to get over to stay in the game. At the age of 34 I am paying for this mistake, over and over again. Now, I am not saying to quit playing with every little bump and bruise. But, if a medical professional like a doctor, athletic trainer or physical therapist, for example, suggests you should sit out, I would follow that advice. When you are making millions of dollars professionally, then think about playing injured. When you are still developing physically, I’d suggest an athlete sit it out.
8. I wish I had more access to video. Watching video of your play is one of the best ways to see what mistakes you are making. Today, with affordable digital cameras and other forms of multimedia, it is easy for athletes to perfect technique in all aspects. But, the big mistake is watching video for enjoyment, or not having an idea of what to look for. Going through film of your play or drills should be from a critic’s point of view. You should be looking for your mistakes, not looking to see how good you look. You should also watch tape to gain a sense of what breakdowns you are having, and how you might correct them. Critiquing for critiquing sake is no good.
9. I wish I worked out with heavier weights and did lower rep. For some reason, playing soccer, basketball and track, lifting heavy weight for low rep was frowned upon. I listened to too many people who did not have the background to give advice on the matter and I also paid too much attention to that body building book. To build strength you need to lift heavy, and for fewer reps. Working at 90-95% of your 1 Rep max for sets of 2-3 is a good recipe to get stronger. Performing 3 sets of 10-12 at 60% max effort is a good scheme for a soccer mom.
10. I wish I paid attention to having FUN. Playing sports and participating in athletics is fun!!! Yes the goal of playing sports is to win and to be successful. But, the overall satisfaction of laying it on the line to achieve victory should be fun. There is no sport that is life or death, and it should not be treated as such. Now, I am not saying that you should not have a bad taste in your mouth after losing.  You should. But, if you know you gave it your all and your all wasn’t good enough, it does not mean you shouldn’t have enjoyed the effort!

That is my list of things I wish I did differently. So, if you are a current young athlete, please heed some of my advice as it will only help you achieve your goals. If you are a former athlete, I would love to hear some of the things you would have done differently.

PS:  I borrowed this great idea from Jeremy Frish’s article found at http://www.strengthcoach.com

Dustin Pedroia’s Hand-eye Coordination

Dustin Pedroia’s Hand-eye Coordination

By Dennis Chighisola

By now, everyone knows that I’m into keeping an eye on other sports.  I’ll dig into anything that will help me coach our game better.  At the same time, I’m a real baseball and football fan (in particular, a devout Red Sox and Patriots follower), and I usually get into the basketball playoffs if the local Celtics are involved.

So, this being a warm, lazy Saturday morning in August, I spent a little time reading on-line about my beloved Bosox before tackling a more serious todo list.

As you likely know, one article can lead to another, as did the write-up on the Sox’ thrilling win last night eventually bring me to an MLB Pro Blog by Steve Hyder.

Now, I also love ESPN’s Peter Gammons.  So, when I noticed Hyder’s recent blog entry was about his interview with Gammons, I really got into it.  And I really got into the part where Gammons expressed his admiration for Red Sox second baseman, Dustin Pedroia.  As he said, “What makes Pedroia special is his hand-eye coordination.  As a boy, he played a lot of tennis and pingpong.  The other thing that sets him apart is his incredible will to win…”

Oops, back-up…  He played a lot of tennis and ping pong as a boy?  Hmmmmm…  That’s something that deserves some discussion with my friends at CoachChic.com!

So, I hope you’re thinking along with me on this one…

Pedroia has great quickness from side to side, and I’m thinking he really does react in the way a tennis player would.  You learn to be light on your feet in that sport, and you learn to be cat-like in pouncing towards any of four directions.  (I’m reminded of two hockey players I recommended tennis to a few years back.  One was a goalie and the other a forward, and they both lacked that lightness on their feet, or those cat-like reactions.  Both players — or their parents — seemed not to heed my advice, though.  And, since “what we refuse (ultimately) defines us,” both boys are now out of the game.  Ya, I win some and I lose some.  Darn.)

As an aside here…  There’s a difference between speed and quickness, you know.  I mean, speed usually refers to longer distances, while quickness has more to do with one’s reactions.  So, while Pedroia doesn’t possess very good speed on the base paths, I think he’s extremely quick in small areas.  (Someday I’m going to get into the way I see speed and quickness in hockey.  But for now, I’ll suggest that true success in our game has more to do with how well a player deals with short sprints and in-close battles.)

Pedroia also has what I call “hands”.  Yup, he gobbles-up just about every ball he can reach.  Ping pong, huh?  That’s what I’m guessing.  And, if you’ve ever seen a high level match in that sport, you know there’s as much footwork and body control required as there is in tennis.

As yet another aside…  When I was an older teen, handball was at the height of its popularity (on the courts where squash is now played).  I played it often at the local YMCA.  The beauty of handball — and how I see it as being such a great skill enhancer, is that the ball can be hit with either hand.  Consequently, Todd Jacobson and I have our goalies play a lot of this against the boards at our weekly off-ice sessions.

Now, there’s one thing Gammons didn’t mention, probably because it has little to do with Pedroia’s hand-eye coordination.  But, I’m guessing that the young second-sacker’s throwing arm was being strengthened every time he took a swipe with either a racquet or a paddle.

Okay, I have to get on to a lot of other stuff now.  Still, I thought this insight into the little things that might go into an ultimate elite athlete was worth sharing with you (even if it is a warm, lazy Saturday morning in August — !)

PS:  While I hope CoachChic.com will include every bit of hockey and athletic advice you’ll ever need, I really do encourage you to pay attention to what athletes from other sports are doing (or have done).

Oh, if you want to catch Hyder’s blog, it’s at:

http://shyderblog.mlblogs.com/archives/2009/06/youve-gotta-love-gammons.html?obref=obnetwork

Training Like an Astronaut Can Help the Hockey Brain!

It gives me great pleasure to introduce yet another awesome guest writer in one Craig Shaw.  Craig has been involved in hockey for over 30-years — as a player, coach and cognitive trainer (or what he calls a “brain trainer”). He has also worked as an educator, counselor and educational therapist specializing in motor skill and cognitive enhancement.  Craig plans on contributing a series of articles explaining what parents and coaches can do to improve some of the underlying motor and mental capacities of their athletes.  (And, lest you think this stuff is just for youngsters, know that Craig is also currently using a very similar approach with elite level hockey players.)

– Dennis Chighisola

How Training Like an Astronaut Can be Beneficial to the Brain

By Craig Shaw

Have you noticed how Coach Chic uses a variety of off-ice techniques to improve balance and coordination, such as trampolines, wobble boards and skipping? These kinds of exercises are consistent with what researchers are finding out about brain development. Studies have shown that rocking, swinging, bouncing and spinning babies not only helps to soothe them, but also enhances their later motor development. In one study babies were spun in swivel chairs in several positions ten repetitions four times a week for a month. These babies showed more advanced motor development than the control group. Likewise seniors who continue work on their balance in such activities as walking, dancing, skating and yoga show slower mental decline as they age.

Why is this? Balance (or the vestibular system in the inner ear) is integral to our ability to control posture, body movement, arousal, eye movements, and sensory integration. In other words, accurate perception, a much-needed ability in the game of hockey I might add, largely comes down to a smooth running vestibular system. And how we perceive the world has a lot to do with healthy brain functioning and emotional stability.

Can this ability be enhanced? It most surely can. Balance is one of the easiest things to train, and our body responds quickly to this training. The types of movements that help to train balance involve changes of movement in space:

1. Up and down movements – such as jumping, skipping, trampolining or going down a slide.
2. To and fro – such as running, skating, starting and stopping and swinging.
3. Centrifugal force – carousels, doing the ‘circles’ on the ice.
4. Turning movements of the body – movements used in spinning, dancing, rolling or turning somersaults.
5. Depth – riding a scooter, skating forward.

The best ways to develop these abilities is gymnastics (I recommend starting them young), doing activities such as those done in Coach Chic’s Motion Lab, and many and varied sports. Activities that require multi-tasking or divided attention, eye tracking and rhythm are particularly good for the vestibular system and the brain in general. Such drills would include juggling, juggling on one foot, juggling on a balance board or a mini-tramp, dribbling while bouncing on a tramp or balancing on a balance board, skipping, skipping while doing mental challenges or singing songs. Standing on one foot with your eyes closed is also effective. (I once worked with a boy who had little confidence in school and came to me for help. I ended up teaching him to juggle on one foot while reciting the Canadian prime ministers in order. When he did this in front of his school, he got a standing ovation! Did that do wonders for his confidence?)

One last thing: now, I have not read any specific studies on this, but it is just an observation that I believe follows some of the ideas that you have just read about. I once traveled to six different middle class elementary schools in Japan to teach them conversational English and Canadian culture. Well, I boiled it down to maple syrup and hockey. Anyway, one school was miles ahead in many ways – ability to learn English, behavior and so on – and I wondered what was different with that school. The only thing I could find was that they had a well-stocked shed holding about 150 unicycles. And did those kids use them! I don’t recall seeing any obese kids, and do you think they had good core strength?

Readying to post this unbelievable article, I can’t resist the urge to add a little something…

In the “good old days”, it was thought that specializing was the best approach to preparing an elite sportsman.  Oh, for sure, so many individual skills must become ingrained in the athlete (for example, skating, puckhandling and shooting in our sport).

At the same time, however, modern day scientists have discovered that certain foundation qualities (like those mentioned by Craig) have a huge bearing on an athlete’s ultimate chances at success. Just think about YOUR favorite NHL skater (my guy happens to be the great Ovechkin) or YOUR favorite goaltender…  In nearly every instance, these guys are acrobats on ice, or gymnasts on their skates and with their bodies.  They’re not one-dimensional at all.

– Dennis Chighisola

How to REALLY Tie Hockey Skates

Actually, this topic should have been one of the very first ones addressed here.  After all, isn’t skate tying part of the foundation for all a hockey player will do once he or she hits the ice?  Thankfully, though, a member recently mentioned his bout with “lace bite”, which caused me to put the following together — for him and for all my other CoachChic.com friends…

Now, we have to begin with a premise (or two) here.  I mean, the greatest skate tying job in the world isn’t going to help a player if his or her skate boots aren’t 1) of good quality and 2) properly fit.  Those things assured, the boots should support a player through the rigors of hockey movements, even with a poorly done lacing.

And that last point is important to keep in mind as we go about tying the skates.  In other words, a quality boot that fits right is already somewhat supporting the feet…

1. So, understand that there is absolutely no need to pull the laces very tightly in the lower to middle eyelet areas.  Worse yet, to tie the laces extra tightly over the arch area of the foot is going to put pressure on the arch, and it’s also likely to cut-off blood flow (since this area contains blood vessels that supply the lower portion of the foot).  My advice then is to tie the lower and mid eyelets as you would dress shoes or sneakers.
2. The real “support” in a skate boot stems from the leather (or more likely the modern day synthetic materials) that surround the ankle.  And it’s the top three or four eyelets that — when pulled pretty tightly — will draw the skate boot snuggly around the ankle.  (The number of holes involved in this can vary, but it is usually in the ball park of three or four eyelets.)

That’s it, folks..  Because there’s no real supportive impact in the lower to middle holes, and because there’s a danger of causing great pain by tying those areas too tightly, the laces down below should be left relatively loose.  And, because the top eyelets are the ones that affect support, these are the only ones that should be pulled snugly.

Then, a few more tips…

After years of video analysis, I can spot from the far end of the rink a player with excess tape or laces wrapped around the ankles.  There’s something unnatural — or rather robotic — to his or her movement, because they’ve lost the ability to really flex or snap the ankle from being so encumbered.  (In a way, they’ve pretty much removed the ankle joint from the skating motion.)

Like the premise that skates should be of good quality and fit properly, it just makes sense that spending $2 for the right length laces is worthwhile.  And, although there’s nothing wrong with using a light wrap of tape to just keep the lace-bow in place, excess tape should not be used in an attempt to gain extra support (hey, good boots and the right lace job take care of that).

Now, I’m always fearful of sharing this last tip, mainly because I don’t want the parents of younger, weaker skaters rushing things (let them first learn to skate and let them develop some foot strength).  However — and this might help that skate bite victim…  A lot of years ago, a pretty stylish skating pro player suggested I try not using the very top eyelets in my skates.  (He was talking about stopping short at the next to last hole on each boot.)  As he said (and it’s the very opposite of what those who bind their ankles with tape or laces achieve), “It really helps to get more flex at the end of each thrust!”  I tried, I loved it, and I’ve ever since I’ve been advising my older players to do just that.

______________

Since this article has brought about some spirited discussion by way of member Comments, I thought I’d add the following picture just so that we could all have a pair of skates in view while pondering various opinions…

Studying Alexander Ovechkin

Early next month I want to share something pretty interesting with you.  I’m going to give all my friends a little homework first, however. 

Of course, any study of the great Ovechkin has to be worthwhile.  And I’ll suggest that there’s something to be learned from watching every single goal the great OV has ever scored.

Now, if you watch all of the goals shown in the following video you’ll notice that Ovechkin shoots off a different foot nearly every time.  I mean, he’ll have his weight on the left foot while firing one time, and the next time he’s likely to be balanced on the right.  That’s the mark of a great goal-scorer, you know.  Goaltenders can’t get comfortable — or really set — with OV owning the puck, because he can shoot at any time, not just while in a traditionally comfortable posture

Once you’ve had some fun, though, here’s your homework:  I’d like you to study goals #4 and #2 as much as possible.  In both instances the right-shooting Ovechkin is balanced on his right skate and doing something a little different with the left foot or left leg.  Then, after you’ve had a chance to do that for awhile, I’ve added a few more comments below…

As an aside here…  The above video obviously comes by way of the NHL and YouTube.com.  And I can’t stress enough the benefits of using such great resources.  The human mind learns a great deal from observing others.  So, what better way for a player, parent or coach to improve than to study the world’s absolute bests!

What Ovechkin is doing in those selected clips is not as pronounced as I’ve seen at other times.  Still, there’s a hint of what I’m going to be getting at later.

Actually, the first times I saw him shoot in this manner, I felt the slight wiggle of the foot opposite his stick-blade had to be an awful distraction for a goaler.  Still, it wasn’t until a long time later that I discovered The Great Eight had something else — even more challenging — in mind for the goaltender.

So, stay tuned…

More On YOUR Hockey Stick’s Shaft

I’ve spent a lot of time with the Slapshot Visualization video over the past few days (see it under the free *Gifts download section).  I mean a LOT of time — running and re-running it so many times that I can probably recite most of it by heart.  In so doing, something really jumped out at me in one of the clips…

Now, those who have been through this site a number of times should probably recognize my grandson, Anthony.  Anyway, in a sequence of on-ice stop-action shots, Tony C’s stick is frozen for all of us to see.  And, it is frozen in a pretty good bend.  In other words, his stick-shaft is REALLY flexed, or loading-up to unleash all it’s power into the waiting puck.

Take a look at Anthony’s stick as it bends quite a bit.  (Actually, I suspect we could have found it to flex all the more if some video frames weren’t missing.)

Next, a funny (and at the same time sad) story…  I knew the science of such things when Anthony first entered the game.  The problem back then was that super-thin shafts weren’t yet available to little guys.  So, I actually trimmed adult wooden sticks so that they’d fit into his little (5-year old) hands, and they’d flex when placed under the small amount of pressure a little one could apply.

The funny (or good) part to this story is that folks marveled at how well he could handle that stick and fire the puck.  In fact, one teammate’s dad constantly told me, “I get goose bumps every time I see Anthony shoot the puck!” 

As for the sad side to this tale…  I always tried to be careful in Anthony’s team lockerroom (although that wasn’t always easy).  But when I took some ribbing about my young buddy’s homemade sticks, I dared explain the science to any nearby parents who might listen.  If there was a problem, few (if any) did heed my advice.  Naw, most of the kids never did get the sort of benefits I’m talking about here — either stickhandling wise or shooting wise.  And hardly any from that group even went on to play local high school hockey.

So, I’m hoping I get the attention of all my friends here (if that’s really needed).  And, I’ll direct you to one of the first videos I posted here when this site first opened — that one on Your Stick.  You (or your player/s) won’t be sorry for the quick review.

Basic Strength Exercises for Ice Hockey Players

Once again Scott is arming you with some great information, this time with exercises that are going to provide you with a strong foundation, as well as help guard you against some injuries.  (If you’ll recall from one of my earlier posts, I mentioned how much faster my grandson has felt on the ice this summer, this surely attributed to the strength he’s gained by doing a workout very similar to the following one.)

Then, just as this entry was being readied, Scott asked me to remind you about his last post, in that it’s important to be well warmed before you start lifting.  In fact, the more attention you pay to those “dynamic” warm-ups, the more you’ll tend to gain from the actual lifting exercises.

– Dennis Chighisola

Click on each exercise Photo to see a short video.

Back Squat

The back squat is much easier to learn than the front squat.  Make sure that your hands are evenly set up on the bar.  When placing the bar on the shoulders you will want to shrug the shoulders back and up to create a “shelf” for the bar to sit on.  If you do not shrug, the bar will sit on your spine which is not good.  The key to the squat is to break the hips first and sit back like sitting back on the toilet.  Make sure that your chest is up with your back arched upwards.  Lastly, maintain a tight grip on the bar.  This will keep your entire upper body tight.   Make sure that your knees do not collapse and that you keep your weight on your heels, not the toes.

Front squat

Although this young hockey player is using kettlebells rather than a loaded bar, the technique is still the same as Scott describes here…

Again, use an even grip.  Keep your elbows up which will keep the bar on your shoulders.  You don’t want the bar on your clavicle (bone at the base of your throat).  Like the back squat, the first movement is to sit back.  Make sure that your knees do not collapse and that you keep your weight on your heels, not the toes.

Bench

Scott is using a slightly different (and more difficult) load to his bar, but the technique is just as he describes here…

Make sure that your grip is closer as opposed to wider.  You are not a power lifter.  Make sure that you keep your elbows tight. Bring the bar down to your nipples or lower.  Ladies, the bottom of your sports bra is correct for you.

Hang pull

Pick up the weight with a stance that is shoulder width apart.  Bend over while pushing your butt back like for the squat.  Stop right above the knee, pause and then explode the bar vertically keeping it tight to the body.  The key is to keep the bar vertical while not hyper-extending your back (leaning backwards).  I suggest holding off on adding weight to the bar until after you have mastered the movement.

Hang clean

Pick up the weight with a stance that is shoulder width apart.  Bend over while pushing your butt back like in the squat.  Stop right above the knee, pause and explode the bar vertically keeping it tight to the body.  The key is to keep the bar vertical while not hyper-extending your back (leaning backwards).  Some coaches teach their athletes to slide their feet out while sitting down.  Like the previous exercise, I recommend adding weight to this after you have mastered the movement.  When you catch the bar, make sure that your elbows are up like in the front squat so that you catch the bar on your shoulders.  As you catch the bar, bend your legs and sit your butt back to absorb the force of the bar.   The Hang Clean is a hang pull and a front squat.  The only added aspect is catching the bar at the your shoulders.

Deadlift

This young lady is performing a variation of the deadlift, but she still serves as a good example of what Scott describes here…

Set up with your feet a little outside of your shoulders, but not much. Grip the bar so that your arms are outside of your legs.  Drop your butt down to the bar keeping your chest up and back arched upwards.    The key to the deadlift is to stand up while keeping your chest up.  Many people straighten their legs when they stand up.  You are supposed to make sure that the movement is one piece, not two.  Drive your heels into the ground as you raise your chest upwards.

Along with his opening suggestions concerning proper warm-ups, Scott also asked me to point-out to you that THIS is the time – at the end of a heavy workout – when “static” stretching should be done.  I’ll let the authority go deeper into this at a later date.  However, let me at least point-out that lactic acid (the byproduct of heavy exercise) builds-up during a workout like this, as well as when you practice on-ice or play a game.  And that’s a major reason for muscle soreness afterwards.  So, if you want to bounce back quicker than usual (and quicker that other players), gradually “cool-down”, and finish by statically stretching all the major muscle groups.  Both will aid in getting the lactic acid moving and on its way out of your body.  (Scott says he uses ”stretch bands” at this point in a workout, and others will suggest massaging the muscles.  But, let me leave those kinds of details to Scott.)

– Dennis Chighisola

An Interesting Study

The following entry is made with some connection to the previous article in this section, Analyzing the Forward Stride (below).  So, it would be helpful if members review that video so that they better appreciate what I’ll be suggesting here.

– Dennis Chighisola

Todd Jacobson is as much into chasing down scientific studies as Old Coach Chic.  And he’s just as eager to share something interesting when he gets the chance.

Such was the case recently when he sent me the link to an only slightly (hockey) related study he’d found, this attributed to a biomechanics expert, Steve Collins, at Delft University in the Netherlands.

The primary concern of Collins’ study — in my very general terms — was to discover whether the way one swings his or her arms in a walking motion really matters.  So he tested a number of subjects as they walked — with arms crossed or held down to the side, with arms swinging in the normal fashion, and with the arms swinging opposite to the normal motion.  (You’ll get a chance to see those different motions and the results of his study in just a moment.)

Now, that test had nothing to do with speed, as we running or skating coaches might usually concern ourselves.  But it did have to do with efficiency of movement, or the cost of moving in certain ways.

What Collins discovered was that NOT moving in what we’d consider a normal motion comes at a fair cost in energy expended.

I have to say again, that Collins’ study really doesn’t relate that much to our concerns.  At the same time, it proves something that should make a whole lot of sense to us, in that moving with the arms and legs in-sync is a whole lot more energy-efficient than any other kind of motion.

I raise this issue (and the reason Todd sent me that link is) because a lot of folks who don’t know the science of skating struggle with the suggestion that a skater’s arms should move in a side-to-side motion once he or she is underway.   So, here’s the idea:

In running and walking, the legs are moving back and forth in order to propel us forward; but in skating, the skate blades have to push outward in order for us to achieve forward movement.  And in all cases — be it while running, in Collins’ walking study, or in skating, energy-efficiency can only be attained by having the arms travel in an equal and opposite reaction to the way our legs move.

Finally, have a look at a very short video showing Collins’ study, this provided by Guardian.co.uk…  The secrets of swing.  (News articles sometimes disappear after a period of time, so I can’t be sure how long this video clip will remain available.  So, if a member discovers it gone, would you please call it to my attention?  coachchic@aol.com)

Improving Your Wrist Shot Mechanics

For an awful lot of years, I’ve felt that a puck and opponents can distract from a player’s concentration as he or she is drilling.  (Wait until you see the positional drill I invented years ago!)

This segment, however, is all about a player’s wrist (or sweep) shot mechanics, and it gives me the chance to show you how removing a puck from a drill helps my players focus purely on a movement.

As a brief aside here, I’ve mentioned elsewhere about how I frequently invent new drills.  The following is a great example, but it actually stems from a way I found to improve a player’s slap shot mechanics.  That method of training is going to be the subject of my August ‘09 free downloadable gift — a video which allows a player to watch some great slow-motion examples of the slap shot, visualize the movement, and even follow along with some really good shooters.  So don’t miss that freebie; almost any level player should find it extremely helpful.

Now, please click on this Wrist Shot Mechanics link and follow along with me…

What my players are doing is alternating 10 sweeps at an imaginary puck with 10 actual wrist shots.  (The reason you hear pucks hitting the boards throughout the video is because my kids are all working at their own pace, with some shooting and some preparing to do so.)

During the practice phase — done without a puck — I ask each player to concentrate on proper mechanics.  So hopefully a player is rocking back to grab the imaginary puck, then shifting his weight — backward to forward — as he pulls through hard and finishes with a point of his stick-blade towards his target.

Hopefully too, a player comes close to applying those same mechanics as he next uses a puck.

As you might notice, my kids are at various stages of development in this area.  As the saying goes, “Rome wasn’t built in a day!”  Nor is a perfect wrist shot.  So, it’s the constant going back and forth — from the practice phase to the real shooting phase — that will ultimately result in a pretty good shot.

By the way…  After this segment of practice, my guys shifted around and began doing just the same to improve their backhand shots.  The mechanics are just about the same, and we practice these in the same sequence — with 10 simulations to 10 actual shots — for about 4 or 5 times through.

Using Your In-lines for Hockey Training

I think members are going to absolutely love this new area (and I’m kinda psyched at the prospects)!

What’s happened is that a local guy, 49-year old Jerry Z, recently contacted me to ask for help with his in-line skating.  After a brief get-together, Jerry and I decided to use his experiences — as a fairly new roller hockey player — to help CoachChic.com members (both in-liners and on-ice players).

As you’ll discover along the way, my new friend is REALLY new to skating — of any kind, so he wrestles a bit with his comfort over those wheels.  At the same time, though, he’s a really good sport — a nice guy, and he is seemingly willing to do the things I prescribe as “homework”.

Speaking of being a good sport and a nice guy…  I’m not sure we could find many volunteers out there to do this sort of thing.  I mean, Jerry has to be willing to look a little foolish at times in order to improve (and he is already making progress).  Worse yet, he has to do it in front of a whole bunch of new friends here at CoachChic.com.  My guess is that you all are going to learn to love him and to really appreciate his efforts.

As for a little background, Jerry tells me he’s always been a true hockey fan…

He played street hockey since about the time he was 8-years old, but he never played on any truly organized team or had any formal coaching through those early years.  I think typical beginner woes discouraged him from staying on the ice very long as a youngster, so he stuck to running on a floor or pavement — through middle and high school, in some youth programs, a few camps and clinics, in college intramurals, and then with some pick-up groups.  For about the past decade he’s participated mostly in deck hockey leagues (a formal version of street hockey), more recently skating with some in-line pick-up groups.

Of course, all that just sets the stage for where we are right now.  For, as you’ll see — and as he freely admits, Jerry struggles sometimes to keep-up with more experienced guys.  However, as you’ll also ultimately see, he is more than willing to endure the bumps, bruises and pains that come with paddling his way in a new sport.

That as our backdrop, I think a lot of members are going to learn from the way I troubleshoot Jerry’s problems.  And you ought to really enjoy seeing his progress.

As we head into this new venture, I also want members to keep a few important things in mind…

• Jerry’s main aim is to increase the amount of fun he’s having playing amid his roller hockey friends.  But then, isn’t that the reason all of us here are working on our playing, coaching or parenting skills?
• The only reason I took on this assignment is because Jerry seems a willing worker.  Actually, in just a week I’ve seen some improvement in the way he moves around the roller court, this I attribute to his doing the little homework challenges I’ve asked of him.
• As I hammer at in What Is A Practice Really For, a player has to be willing to stretch himself or herself in drills.  In other words, Jerry has to be willing to dare a bit — or to break through his current comfort zone.  And that is also something he seems more than willing to do.

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.

Finally, I don’t want all my “ice” hockey friends thinking there isn’t going to be a lot to gain from watching Jerry and I work together.  Almost everything I do with him is going to be transferable to the ice.  And, if you do as I and my Team NEHI players do, you’ll use your wheels as a means of awesome cross-training for the ice.

Analyzing the Forward Skating Stride

Now, despite the fact you may have heard something contrary to any of the points you’ll find in the following video, I assure you they are all scientifically based.

As a matter of fact, while there are a few so-called “powerskating” instructors out there who have their own (unfounded and unscientific) opionions on the mechanics of hockey skating, the most respected authorites in our sport espouse exactly what you’ll find here…

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The Mathematics of Stick Targets

I’m half joking about the above title.  I mean, you probably don’t believe we should have to get very technical about how to hold a stick blade when readying for a pass.  Yet, I find passes being muffed so often that I feel compelled to get into this subject pretty deeply.  In fact, once or twice per season you’re likely to find me down on my hands and knees on the ice, holding a stick blade in various fashions, and explaining exactly what I’ll share right now…

If you’ll click this Stick Targets link, it’ll open a short video in a new window.  Go ahead, and please take a look…

It’s pretty common sense stuff, huh?  If the blade of a stick faces anything but perpendicular to the path of the coming pass, the puck is going to deflect away from the stick.  No if, ands or buts.  Nor is there any question that the puck has its best chance of sticking IF the blade faces directly at the oncoming puck.

It’s all obvious, right?  You know it and I know it.  Yet, a lot of players are forever carrying their stick blades lazily, with little regard for whether their targets are really facing the puck.  And, when a pass does go bouncing 8′ off their sticks, they just bang their sticks or shake their heads as if the hockey gods had let them down.  Ha, hardly.

As a brief aside here, I truly believe one of the biggest mistakes we coaches and parents can make is to ignore the obvious, or skip-over the very basics.  Again, you and I often know this kind of stuff.  But, we’re doing our players a huge disservice if we don’t make absolutely sure they know it too.

Oh, one other thing in reference to good stick targets…  If you can visualize a potential receiver travelling along and holding his or her stick blade any way other than perpendicular to the puck, there’s a good chance the guy or gal who wants to pass can’t really see the target.  In other words, with the blade held uncaringly at a drastic angle, the player with the puck is probably only seeing part of it.  On the other hand, the passer is sure to see where the receiver really wants the puck IF he or she shows the whole face of the blade.

The Best Hockey Shooting Advice I Can Offer

A number of great videos are included below…

I think it’s a good idea for a hockey player to practice his or her shots in a stationary position.  My players do it often, mainly to work on their mechanics.  At the same time, we all know that’s not exactly what conditions are like for them during the game action.

No, there’s little time to prettily prepare to shoot; actually there’s little time to do much of anything except to rip-it when the opportunity arises.

Complicating matters all the more for a wannabe shooter is the fact that he or she seldom gets to pull the trigger in a balanced position.  And, a lot of players even find themselves with a defender or two draped all over them.

So, with those extreme challenges in mind, I’ve created a number of ways to help my guys be able to fire a hard shot under almost any conditions.  In fact, a number of my more experienced players have scored goals from their knees, from their fannies, or with only their right or left hand gripping the stick.  (My very best long-time players can rip a puck with either hand.)

So, here are some clips of just a few drills I have my guys do in prepping to shoot under any sort of circumstances.  If you can appreciate it, I’m trying to build the players’ hand and forearm strength so that they can rocket a shot without having to be anchored or need much leverage…

1. Although my StickWag is guaranteed to put umph into anyone’s shot, I more recently came-up with a variation that REALLY burns the forearms and also gets the core muscles.  So, click the following link and take a look at how Up/Down StickWags work.
2. Long-time members know I like to gain variety in my players’ training by borrowing from other sports.  And that was the case with this real hand and forearm burner I’ll dub the Baseball Bar Wrestle.  As you’ll see in the video, the aim is to tip the heavy bar downward, then resist that downward movement in order to bring the tip back upward.  Again, the idea is to fight — or wrestle — the bar.
3. Talk about a great idea striking at an odd time…  I was moving some gear in The MOTION Lab a few weeks ago, and I happened to grab a pair of dumbells by their fattest parts.  Just this required more than a little grip strength.  From there I thought, “How about holding the weights in that manner, then wagging them up and down and around, much like we do with the StickWag?”  Ouch!  Take a look at these Dumbell Wags!  (FYI…  After trying it a few times in the manner shown, I now have my players alternate holding their fingers turned upward and downward.)
4. The last shot strengthening exercise (for now) is sort of a plyometrics one.  Shown below is a photo of a Team NEHI player heaving a tire as far as he can.  In order to get some distance, a player will usually draw it far back first, then come around quickly to really fling it.  And you can imagine the effort that’s required of the core muscles, and those involved in initiating a strong wrist shot.  By the way, the Tire Throw would also benefits baseball hitters and throwers, as well as those in other hitting and throwing sports.  (As much as any other exercise shown in these pages, all safety precautions must be taken.)

Would you believe…  Right as I was publishing this page, an unbelievable idea came to me for making #2 (the Baseball Bar Wrestle) even more challenging, and a lot more appropriate to what the drill is meant to do.  So, look forward to me making that new piece of gear, taking a few video clips, and showing it to you soon!

What Is A Hockey Practice Really For?

I can’t take credit for this truly mind stretching statement, but I long ago read something to the effect that, “What we refuse defines.”

Hmmmmmm…  “What we refuse defines us.”

As I recall, that was meant as advice for living a more fruitful life, as well as for expanding our business horizons.

My take on those words is that each of us has some inner fears that — either slightly or drastically? — limit our chances for growth.  But then, since my job here isn’t to advise members about their personal lives or their business approach, let me share with you how I believe this statement does apply to the way we work on our hockey game…

Over the past few months I’ve been watching some new Team NEHI members trying to blend with my long-time guys.  In most instances I see them pulling it off fairly well.  Yet at other times I’m noticing some kids holding back.  Yes, holding back.

As I’ve whispered to more than one long-time team parent, as we’ve watched new kids working within the group, “A number of them have come from youth programs where they weren’t exposed to a lot of new things.”  To put it a little harshly, they likely drifted through practices like zombies, mainly because they weren’t asked to really observe, listen or think.  In other words, they weren’t forced to learn or try many new skills, or they just weren’t challenged at all.

By the way…  In my kids’ case, I haven’t noticed anyone who doesn’t want to get better.  No, there are seemingly no problem players in the group, no bad attitudes, no “head cases”.

So, what IS the problem?  Well, this might just be where that “What we refuse defines us” philosophy comes in.  And it might also be where we have to ask ourselves a very important question — as in, “What is a hockey practice really for?”

Now, I’ve mentioned elsewhere that my late-dad was a long-time baseball coach, and a very successful one.  Better yet — at least to me, he was as great a philosopher as I’ve personally known.  So, in reference to the question at hand, dad would say, “Work hard in practice, then forget everything you learned once the game starts.”

It might take you a moment to digest that thought, but here’s my take…  Dad wanted his guys to play their games in a relaxed manner.  The worst thing in the world is for an athlete to tie himself or herself into knots — thinking negatively, or worrying about making mistakes (think The Law of Attraction here).  No, the best athletes tend to play “loosey-goosey”.  They’re not inhibited at all.  And, as Shaun Goodsell might suggest in our Mental Training section, a player must first have great confidence in his or her skills before the games can seem easy.

Beginning to put this all together, I believe that “What we refuse…” statement has an awful lot to do with the inner fears some kids have as they approach new skills.  I mean, a lot of kids worry about how they’ll look while performing a given drill, and that is not a good attitude to bring to practice.  When I see one of my players seemingly holding back, I’ll tell them about some of the NEHI-ers who came before them (many of those guys you’ve heard about or seen on TV), and I’ll share with my current kids the way those long ago players would laugh at themselves as they’d try something really wild.  The most successful ones didn’t hold back one iota.  In fact, they’d do what all successful athletes do — trying and failing at first, trying and almost getting it, trying and nailing it, and ultimately owning the new skill.

What I hope you’ll take away from the last paragraph is the fact that there’s a natural progression in mastering any new skill.  And it should make sense that one can’t get to the point of “owning” it without first “trying and failing, trying and almost getting it, trying and…”

My dad’s philosophy supports this.  For, while he wanted his guys to play the games without fear, he demanded that they practice hard and with purpose.  In a way, I’ll put a few words in his mouth, suggesting that, “One does not get the chance to play games with confidence UNLESS he or she has paid their dues at practice.”

So, what is a hockey practice REALLY for?  If I had to define it in one sentence, I’d say that, “The main aim of a practice is for a player to be just slightly more capable at the end than when he or she began.”

That in mind, practice is definitely not the place to hold back.  Yes, there are some parts of a given practice where form is important, and a player SHOULD be concerned about how he or she looks at those times.  But that’s not what I’m talking about here.  What this entry IS about are the times when a bit of stretching is required, or where there’s a need to overcome some inner fears, and thereby expand ones capabilities.  And for those times, I’ll suggest — as best one can, he or she should DARE to take-on each new challenge, thereby starting that all-important chain reaction — of trying and failing, trying and almost getting it, trying and…

The Importance of a Good Warm-up

“Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place.  If I quit, however, it lasts forever.”

– Lance Armstrong

The Importance of a Good Warm-up

By Scott Umberger

I recently read an interview with strength coach and power lifter Jeremy Frey.  Jeremy is a ridiculously strong man.  In a meet he has lifted the following: 1003-lb squat, a 771-lb bench, and a 804-lb deadlift with a 2579-lb total, which is second best in the world within the 242-lb class.

Jeremy stated that he has not experienced any serious injuries in his career.  That is unheard of in the power lifting world.  Let’s face it, if you lift heavy weights enough you will get injured over the course of 5 to 10 year career.

Jeremy strongly believes that his health is due to the fact that he properly warms up before every workout.

Other power lifters and gym goers warm up with 135-lbs for a set of 10, and then jump right into a workout.  And I personally hate spending time with mundane functional movement and corrective exercises.  They are mind numbing.  They are necessary, though.

One key to a proper warm up to work on your shortcomings as an athlete.  (No one is completely perfect.  Trust me, I haven’t found “perfect” in any of the thousands of athletes that I’ve worked with.)  The idea is to work towards fixing existing issues one day at a time.

I believe that Jeremy, being a very good collegiate strength and conditioning coach, understands the importance of increasing ones core temperature before touching a weight.   YOU NEED TO BE SWEATING BEFORE TOUCHING A PUCK, not to mention properly working on the mobility of your hips and shoulders.  After your body is warmed-up, then you should perform some of Coach Chic’s puckhandling drills to warm your hands up as well as spark your central nervous system (CNS).

Let’s face it, skating isn’t a natural motion.  It’s extremely hard on your hips.  If you’re a North American, you might have been brought-up to think that you need to skate everyday in the off season.  Think about it, though:  You spend 8 to 9 months during the season skating nearly everyday.  So, when do you give your body a chance to rest?   My recommendation:  Get off the ice and become a better athlete — like the Euro’s do! (Most kids can’t afford summer ice in Russia.  Yet, look at the kind of hockey players they turn-out!)

How about an athlete who never warms-up properly?  Or, what if you are an athlete who lacks flexibility and mobility, and  then does nothing to fix it?  I will guarantee you that if you play long enough, you will get injured to some degree.  Some injuries you can’t control.  However, many basic injuries (hips/shoulders/glutes/hamstrings) can be prevented by always pre-warming your body through a proper dynamic routine prior to playing and prior to practicing.

A good warm-up should last at least 15 to 20 minutes.  So, throw the IPod on, do your body a favor, and take care of it.  ALL of my high end hockey players have been taking care of their bodies and going through a scripted dynamic warm-up.  Now, I’m teaching the young ones to do it too.

Dennis Chighisola here, and I’m wondering if members noticed anything seemingly unusual about Scott’s description of a warm-up routine.  I mean, he described all exercises that involved movement, or as he labeled it, a “dynamic” routine.

Sample Static Stretch

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Nowhere in there did he suggest doing the “static” stretches we so often see local kids doing — like holding a set position for a time, then trying to stretch the affected muscle group.  The reason? It’s because Scott knows what most top trainers know today.

Now, I often brag a bit in these pages, mainly because I feel all of the writers at CoachChic.com are trying to arm you with the very latest in scientific information.  And, nothing can put you further ahead of others than what you’ll find on this page.

In trying to explain this in non-scientific terms, let me say that physiologists now believe that those generally prescribed static stretches are not helpful to athletes in explosive or speed-oriented sports.  (And yes, that means hockey players.)  In fact, they believe static stretching prior to practicing or playing can actually prevent a body from reacting quickly.

What they advise instead — as Scott has, is for the explosive sport athlete to perform a series of exercises that are similar to those he or she will ultimately have to do in their practice or game.  Of course — and as Scott also suggests, those exercises should be gradually increased in intensity, the purpose being to S-L-O-W-L-Y bring the athlete’s body from a resting state to one that’s ready to go all-out.

Want to be strong? Earn it!

By Scott Umbergerger

“The #1 rule in investing is don’t lose money.  Rule #2, refer back to rule #1.”

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– Warren Buffet – Owner of Berkshire Hathaway, probably the greatest investor of our time

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In my first post I talked about several areas of athletic ability.  If you missed it, here’s a quick recap, plus a little more…

• Strength is #1.
• To get stronger, do the exercises listed below.  These alone will start you on your way to being faster and becoming a better athlete.
• What is strong?  Reasonably strong is being able to do 50+ good push ups, 20+ pull ups, and parallel squats at twice your body weight.  Then, once you are reasonably strong, you can progress into plyometrics and explosive movements.
• Learn to decelerate and accelerate first.  And to achieve this, learn how to land when jumping.  That’s a place to start.  Understand, if you can’t slow down correctly, you can’t accelerate.
• Here’s the thing about strength:  You have to earn it.  Much like creating wealth (see the quote), you have to pay your dues over time and allow it to grow.  It isn’t rocket science; it really isn’t.  Strength isn’t rocket science either.  Both strength gains and wealth building just take a certain amount of discipline to achieve what you want in the end.
• Strength is obtained over the course of years, not days.  Nor can you take weeks off from training and expect to make consistent gains.
• Your off-season is a time to get stronger and to fix any issues (or injuries) you may have experienced during the past season.  And don’t forget:  Since skating isn’t a natural motion, there’s a chance it (or some other hockey specific motion) has caused some imbalances in your body.
• Strength is to be maintained throughout the regular season.  (Sure, the off-season is a time for devoting even more attention to strength training.  But you don’t want to lose those spring and summer gains once the regular season gets underway.)

So where does this leave you?  Weak?  HA!  Let’s hope not.

My point in all of this is that strength is something that you have to commit too.  It has to be part of your game.  You work on hockey skills and you train your body.  Oh, it’s not all hockey, and it’s not all lifting, running or skating.  There has to be a balance in all this, just as there needs to be balance in your life.

In the next post I’ll discuss specifics in what needs to been done in the gym.  But you must understand that it will involve a commitment on your part.

Then, as important as all your skill, strength and conditioning work is, let me also stress the need to eat correctly.  I’m not talking perfect here, but you should pay attention to this important area, and perhaps aim to do better than what you are doing right now.  Nearly every athlete I talk to thinks he or she eats perfectly. So let me end this discussion with a few more tips:

• Watch your calorie intake, making adjustments according to whether you might be a little over- or under-weight.  Reaching your desired weight is really as simple as that, in that taking in more calories than you burn will have you gaining weight; burning-off more than you take in will have you losing weight.
• I might recommend getting 1 to 1.25 grams of protein per pound of body weight.
• Be careful about wasting your money on some hot product that promises a shortcut to strength or weight gains.  And appreciate that supplements won’t help calorie/nutrient deficient athletes.  All any athlete needs is a quality multi-vitamin and fish oils.

See you shortly with more specific ideas…

BEYOND Incredible Stickhandling 2 – 4

Ready for some really challenging puck tricks?  Here goes…

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BEYOND Incredible Stickhandling 1

As promised, we’re moving on from the Incredible Stickhandling series to some skill drills that are surely BEYOND those.  Hopefully you’ve kept working on the early skills, because you’ll need those as a foundation for some very challenging new drills.  So here goes, with an introduction and the first new puckhandling problem…

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Dealing with the “Puck Hog”

Now, if there’s one person who is bashed often at most rinks, it’s the so-called “puck hog”.

Ya, parents can be especially tough on that guy (or little girl), which very frequently trickles down to teammates eventually mimicking their (sometimes pretty cruel) comments.

I actually find it interesting that no other skill seems to attract such scrutiny.  I mean, folks seem to admire you if you’re a good skater, they certainly appreciate it when you pass the puck (especially to their kid), and most fans even accept you if you shoot better than others.  But, just handle the puck beyond a few seconds — make one nifty move, and you’re liable to really hear an earful.

From my kzillion years around the rinks, it seems the abuse starts pretty early — with 20- and 30-something parents getting on the likes of 7- and 8-year olds.  And I have to think there’s at least a little emotional scarring taking place with those little ones.

Now, this subject gives me the chance to touch upon some (hopefully interesting) related areas, all of these having to do with fairly young guys’ and gals’ hockey…

Picture, for instance, that a young shooter throws the puck on-net with the puck ultimately hitting a flailing goaltender in the chest.  The folks go nuts in the stands, with at least someone yelling out, “Great save, Joey!  Great save!”

No!  No!  No!  First, young goalers probably cover less than a third of the net, which means there were tons of open spots towards which the shooter could have sent the puck — IF he or she had only been able to handle the puck and look-up.  Secondly, young goalies — at least usually — don’t move that well, remember:  they don’t cover much of the net, so the so-called save was only made because the shooter blew his or her opportunity.  (Oh, conditions totally change at the slightly higher levels, with smart, skilled netminders playing their angles well enough to make shots hit them — on purpose.)

In yet another for instance, a poor skating, poor puckhandling young player barely touches the puck before it squirts to someone who can skate and tote the biscuit pretty well.  The skilled youngster goes on to score a goal, which brings at least one voice from the stands (guess who) to call-out, “Great pass, Jimmy!  Awesome pass!”

Ya, right.  You know what I’m getting at here…  Jimmy had little to do with the resulting goal.  In fact, the team is probably lucky he ultimately got out of the way so someone else could put the puck home.

One quick aside here…  I’m not condoning selfishness with the puck; never have, never will.  But it’s been my experience — or I’ve mostly observed — that few kids under 8- or 9-years old have a selfish bone in them.  I have noticed some kids not able to handle the puck and look-up, which causes them to miss all the passing opportunities around them.  And I have seen young kids who had to keep carrying the puck because other mates weren’t able to keep-up or get into proper position.

Anyway, this line of thinking also brings me to a conversation Todd Jacobson and I were having the other night, this obviously having to do with gifted puckhandlers.  From my side, I was sharing with Todd my experiences as a college coach, especially late in games when the outcome was still hanging in the balance.  And I was telling him that I’d been on both sides of the problem.  In other words, I’d had that good feeling late in some close games, because I knew I had someone really deadly cruising around the ice.  Oh, but I’d also suffered that sick-to-the-stomach feeling some years, knowing our opponents had their own slick guy just hanging in the weeds.  “Game breakers” I call them, or those players who just have a way of making good things happen on an attack.  And, to a man, those game breakers were always unbelievable puckhandlers.

Okay, it’s time for me to apologize if I’ve been a little cruel to those who have been at least as cruel to young kids.  But, as always, there are several good reasons I raise a given issue…

First, I need to warn parents and coaches of young ones that future coaches are going to select players who are skilled enough to compete at the higher levels.  The Jimmys of the hockey world aren’t going to make it, nor are the ones who consistently send shots into goaltenders’ bellies.  (And you can ask Todd Jacobson what he thinks about the chances of a goalie making it if he or she isn’t smart enough and skilled enough to play the angles well and cover a lot of net.)

Secondly, I frequently feel the need to point members towards Coach Chic’s Building Blocks Approach to Skills.  And, while my placing of puckhandling as the second most important offensive skill will surprise some, my real hope is that members understand the reasons I make this claim.  For, once you do, you’ll probably appreciate why capable puckhandlers can make better defensemen — especially during breakouts, and why a higher level coach might lean towards a number of better puckhandlers on his or her powerplay.

Thirdly, North American readers probably know that most Major League Baseball players were usually the top performers on their Little League through high school teams, and that a majority of those guys played the key positions on their younger teams, pr