player tips

Each year at the start of the season after tryouts, players and parents are revved up with anticipation about where they will fit in on their team.

What will your role be?

What position will you play?

And the biggest question, what line will will you be on?

At younger ages, it is important to pump the brakes a bit, and to keep the larger development picture in perspective. The better players are not just necessarily the players who did the best at tryouts. They are players who understand all aspects of the game. 

The better players are able to adapt to all situations in the game, offensively and defensively. The better players are able to skate competitively both forwards and backwards and understand the importance of “positional versatility” as it is described in a USA Hockey article:

“The ability to be versatile is a key component of today’s successful hockey player,” said USA Hockey’s Bob Mancini. “And it starts in youth hockey. Playing multiple positions at a young age does more than just give options to kids and their coaches. By playing and learning multiple positions, players view the game from different areas and understand  how to better defeat opponents in the small battles that typically pit one position against another. So the benefits can be immediate, and they can also be long-term. Years down the road, those youth hockey days of playing multiple positions can pay big dividends.”

Being able to play multiple positions will help players not only with their long term development, but also immediately this season, as  you seek to find your place, and role, on a team. There are numerous success stories about prep, collegiate and professional players who earned a spot on a top team – and the top line – playing a position other than the one they anticipated. The great players know how to play all positions, and how to accept their role on a team.

As an old coach of mine used to say, it’s more important to be a complete player, than a first line player.

So as you start the season, rather than focusing on the first, second or third line, keep in mind all of the hard work that you put in at hockey camp and your off-season goals, and remember that playing all positions is just as important in long term development as is playing first line center or first line wing. The best players will always find a way to play together, and sometimes that might mean playing defense instead of center.

The question is, will you be prepared, and ready to play?

Labor Day has come and gone, cooler weather and football is upon us and preseason NHL games are starting to pop up on the TV schedule. This could only mean one thing; the youth hockey season is upon us!

As youth hockey players gear up for the season, it’s important to reflect on what was accomplished during your summer hockey training. What are your plans to use the development to be a huge contributor and leader on your team this season?

A good way for young hockey players to start this season, is to reflect back to last season.

What areas of your game needed work? What goals did you set for the summer and did you accomplish them?

Hopefully your summer hockey training allowed you to refocus, work on new skills, get rid of any bad habits and position yourself for a great season.

The areas that you identified as needing work in your post season evaluation were hopefully the key areas of focus for you over the summer. 

Now is the time to apply everything that you learned, as well as show off those skills that you mastered. Maybe you needed to increase your speed, develop a better shot or improve your stick handling skills. Make sure you take what you learned and apply it to every practice, every game and every shift this season!

Hockey is a game that requires many skills, and putting forth the time and effort in the off-season to work hard on your development is part of the equation, but what you do on the ice this season is the true test. Are you prepared to apply your development to your everyday hockey experience?

Everyone has heard the slogan that ‘practice makes perfect’ and this is especially true when it comes to using the tools that you learned over the summer to improvement your skills each and every day this season.

Thanks for reading and good luck with the start of  your season. We look forward to hearing about your next great hockey experience and seeing you at the rink soon!