Hockey Coaching Qualifications

My good friend Scott Umberge inspired this piece, mainly from his comments in reference to “The Artistic Hockey Coach“.

Actually, I think Scott was right in the points he was trying to make.  Yet, there might just be another side to this story, especially when it comes to volunteers.

A major aim of the CoachChic.com site is to arm parents and coaches with as much scientific information as possible, and to then share some ideas about artful ways to apply those scientific principles.

In my mind, almost anyone can be a great teacher/coach.  But, as usual, here are a couple of stories that should help make my point…

1) A number of years ago, as I was winding down my talk at a local coaching clinic, an older gentleman posed a pretty good question.  Basically, he was concerned about his age (I’m guessing he was in his late 60′s).  He felt he had plenty of knowledge to share with kids, but he was worried about not being able to skate all that well.

I thought for awhile about that one…  I mean, here’s a guy who seems to really care, and he seems to have plenty to offer in the way of knowledge.  And, wouldn’t it be a crying shame if these things were lost to the kids in his town?

So, I ultimately suggested to him that I would (God willing) someday be 70-years old, 80-years old, whatever.  And I’d like to think that, even if I could no longer jump barriers and such, I’d still be able to teach the game.

2) Even further back in time, I once visited a friend who was in charge of a youth hockey organization on the outskirts  of Montreal.  His organization had produced many professional players, and a look at my friend’s trophy case — and all the photos of current or former NHLers — caused me to think out loud…  “Wow, it must be awesome having some of those guys come back and help teach the next generations.”

My Canadian friend wrinkled his nose and shook his head, “No, our best coach doesn’t even skate!”

You can imagine my amazement, as my friend went on to explain how his program’s AAA Pee Wee coach actually walks on the ice in furry boots.  He went on to explain though, “He is a great organizer and a great teacher!”  And, he added, “His main job isn’t to demonstrate.  He can use others for that!”  (Come to think of it, I’ve seen lots of skills coaches buzz around the ice, wow-ing students and customers with wild moves.  It only takes me a short time to realize they are all “artsy”, and their teaching has very little scientific basis.)

Anyway, returning to the year 2009, I need to say again that, “almost anyone can be a great teacher/coach”.  I think the Number One qualification is that he or she truly care.  (Please think long and hard about that one, since it goes a long ways towards doing what’s right for young players.)  That established, a great teacher/coach would have to gather as much knowledge as possible — he or she will want to be correct about what’s being taught, and he or she should build a bag of coaching tricks — or methods for getting the best teaching results.  Then, borrowing from the above described Pee Wee coach, it would also help if one is a great organizer.

Finally, I hope you appreciate that I’m not disagreeing with my friend Scott.  It’s just that he was talking about paid coaches, while I want to make sure that any volunteer who wants to make a positive impact with kids should know that’s possible.  First, though, you have to care.