player tips

Social media is full of skill videos featuring hockey players making incredible dekes and dangles and then finishing with a storybook goal. Watching this talent leaves everyone on the edge of their seat wondering ‘how’d they do that’? The answer is really quite simple: practice!

This summer we enter our 27th year of summer hockey camps in 11 states. It never ceases to amaze our pro staff how much the talent of young hockey players increases with each passing season.   

The level of play from peewees to preps has gotten to a point where each and every year the discussion in the coaches room is whether the level of play can continue to improve. Amazingly enough, each year skills do improve and the level of play does get better.

Last year at summer hockey school after watching a player make a move that literally brought the coaches to applaud, we asked the player where he learned the move. The answer, not surprisingly, was by practicing it. Over and over and over again. 

Like so many do, this player saw a goal scored on social media and immediately tried it. Then again at practice, and then again at home, in the basement and in the driveway. Everywhere and anytime this player had a stick and a puck, ball or anything else, he was practicing the same move.

Repetition and muscle memory are key to athletic success and within a relatively short period of time the player became successful with this move. After several more hours of practice he became great. Soon, he would ready to try it in a game!

There is an old saying in sports and life that “The great ones make it look easy” and when it comes to hockey skills this is definitely true. However, as we have talked about in past articles, the great ones only become great after spending hundreds or even thousands of hours honing their craft. 

We encourage you to become great! Start by identifying an area of your game that needs improvement and dedicating yourself to working on it until it becomes natural. Find a great deke or dangle on the internet and work on it until you become great!

Thank you for reading. We invite you to train with us this summer at one of our hockey camps located in 11 states. For dates, locations and to register, click here.

As forecasted, we got walloped by a Nor’easter this week. Were you ready? What is your forecast for your hockey season? Are you ready?

Winter is finally upon us, as is the hockey season! As both came blowing in it’s a great reminder about the importance of being prepared. Just as you need that shovel or snow blower ready to clear the driveway and ten inches of snow, so too do you need to be prepared as you head to practice or your next game.

In our last article we talked about “The Early Bird Gets The Worm”. We’ve also covered The Six P’s: Proper, Prior, Preparation Prevents Poor Performance.  The huge snowfall this week is just another great reminder that when you get dumped on, you better be prepared to dig yourself out.

Heading into the season there was plenty of time to get ready and be prepared to hit the ice. So now that we are closing in on a regular routine again, is it all paying off?

The best hockey players are prepared. The best hockey players used the time away from the rink to shoot pucks, train and be ready when the buzzer sounds and the whistle blows. Those are the players making the plays and scoring goals. 

We hope you don’t get caught in the snowstorm this week, or in the flurry of a start of this season. Keep planning, prepping and doing all the little things because it’s all those little things that add up to really big things!

Thanks for reading! Our entire staff wishes you all the best this season. We also invite you to train with us this summer at one of our summer hockey schools located in 11 states. Registration is now open and space is already filling fast!