player tips

We hope you are having a great youth hockey season and that you are finding the back of the net, winning more than losing and most of all, having fun!

The next month of the youth hockey season, or any hockey season, can be a grind. Depending on which part of the country you are in, teams have most often been together for several months, experienced the highs and lows of a hockey season, maybe had a few bumps and bruises along the way, and are looking forward to playoffs.

It’s always at this time of year that an old coach used to ask an important question: How bad do you want it?

Whether it was at another tough late season practice, an off-ice dry land training session or between periods of a big game, ‘how bad do you want it’ was a rallying cry of sorts and gut check for the team.

Asking the team ‘how bad do you want it’ was a challenge to every player to rise to the occasion and give their best, regardless of bumps and bruises or the fact it was the 53rd practice of the season.

As you approach the end of your season and we approach our 29th year of summer hockey school, the question of how bad do you want it rings more true than it did all those years ago.

Why? Because when we see all of the talent possessed by youth hockey players today we know that there are plenty of kids who ‘want it’ and are willing to work harder and harder to get it.

We know that the youth hockey players who end up in the playoffs and ultimately playing for a trophy are the players that work the hardest. These are the players that possess some of the top skills and put the team above self. These are the players that want it and are willing to work for it!

As you approach the end of your season we challenge you to ask yourself how bad do you want it? We challenge you to give it everything that you have in each and every practice and game. We challenge you to be the best teammate and the best line mate. We challenge you to never quit until the final buzzer sounds!

Thanks for reading and we would once again invite you to train with us this summer at one of our summer hockey camps located across the U.S. For dates, details and availability, check out our Summer Hockey Schools page!

We hope your season is off to a great start and before you get too far into it, we have a big score to help you reach your goal!

The season is off to a buzzing start from the peewees to the pros. The Bruins are the hottest team in the NHL, Ovi gets closer and closer to breaking a once-thought untouchable record and there are no shortages of highlight reel goals.

As you enter into the busy part of your schedule we’d like to offer you a breakaway, of sorts. We are excited for our 28th season of summer hockey school and invite you to take advantage of the best scoring opportunity that we offer!

For the remaining days of January we are offering our Early Bird Special on all registrations for each of our camps across the country. Summer hockey schools for 2023 include:
• Alaska
• Connecticut
• Illinois
• Massachussetts
• Michigan
• New Hampshire
• New Jersey
• New York
• Pennsylvania
• Rhode Island
• Vermont
• Virginia

To take advantage of this special opportunity simply log on to our website by clicking here.

Thanks for reading and we hope to see you at the rink soon!

When it comes to taking your game to the next level, here are 3 great ways this year to become a better player!

Do The Little Things. All great goal scorers have shot the puck in the driveway thousands of times and scored the winning goal in their head over and over. And over. All great skaters have focused to exhaustion on the fundamentals of power skating. All great passers have developed exceptional hand eye coordination after practicing tens of thousands of hours. It’s always doing the little things that add up to the big things.

Listen To Your Coaches. Some of the best tips and tricks players will receive are from the people standing behind the bench. Experience and expertise are two things that young hockey players don’t have and when a coach – many who have ‘been there’ and ‘done that’ – is willing to help accelerate your development by not making the same mistakes that they did, or by passing on knowledge that a coach gave them to be successful, soak it up!

Have Fun & Be Creative. While it’s hard to watch a youth hockey player make a mistake, development includes making, and learning from mistakes, particularly when they are born out of creativeness. Be willing to try to make that extra deke or dangle. Be willing to have fun while winning. Be willing to take a chance at being great!

From our team to yours, Happy New Year and we wish you the very best this season! Our Summer 2023 Hockey Schools are filling faster than ever, and for a limited time you can take advantage of our Early Bird Discount. For details and dates, click here.

Thanks for reading and we look forward to seeing you at the rink!

Picking out the perfect summer hockey camp can be as fun as picking out the perfect gift!

Our summer 2023 hockey camps are located in 12 states and include the skill development training that youth hockey players need to take their game to the next level. What is the right summer hockey school, and perhaps the right gift for the holiday season? Here is a brief overview of our summer hockey camps for 2023:

Summer Hockey Camps in Alaska

We absolutely love our summer hockey camps in Alaska at the McDonald Center in Eagle River and the UAA Seawolf Sports Complex in Anchorage. These camps have multiple options in June and July and in addition to providing excellent on-ice instruction, has provided some memorable off-ice experiences with bear encounters and more! For more information click here. 

Summer Hockey Camps in Connecticut

Summer Hockey School in August at South Windsor Ice Arena in South Windsor, CT is one of our most popular camps! For more information click here. 

Summer Hockey Camps in Illinois

We have three summer hockey schools in Illinois including Addison Arena in Addison, North Shore Ice Arena in Northbrook, and Canlan Ice Sports in Romeoville, Illinois. For more information click here. 

Summer Hockey Camps in Massachusetts

Our home state! We have something for everyone when it comes to summer hockey in Massachusetts, including: Ed Burns ice Arena in Arlington, NESV in Attleboro, Raymond Bourque Arena in Beverly, Warrior Ice Arena in Brighton, Canton Ice House in Canton, Valley Sports Arena in Concord, Valley Forum Haverhill in Haverhill, Pilgrim Skating Center in Hingham, Hyannis Community Center in Hyannis, The Bog Ice Arena in Kingston, New England Sports Center in Marlboro, Essex Sports Center in Middleton, Chase Arena in Natick, Charles Moore Arena in Orleans, Rockland Ice Arena in Rockland, Hockeytown USA in Saugus, Somerville Veterans Memorial Rink in Somerville, Roche Arena in West Roxbury and O’Brien Arena in Woburn! For more information click here. 

Summer Hockey School in Michigan

New this summer is a June summer hockey camp in Michigan! We’ll be at the Lakeshore Sports Centre in Muskegon June 19-23! For more information click here. 

Summer Hockey School in New Hampshire

The Tri-Town Ice Arena in Hooksett and the Keene Ice Arena in Keene are the awesome hosts for our summer hockey camps in New Hampshire in July! For more information click here. 

Summer Hockey School in New Jersey

We have a great option for summer hockey camp in New Jersey at the Jersey Shore Arena in Wall Township, NJ! For more information click here. 

Summer Hockey School in New York

Bill Gray’s Ice Arena in Rochester, New York is home to our 2023 summer hockey camp in New York! For more information click here. 

Summer Hockey Camp in Pennsylvania

We have two options for training and summer hockey school in Pennsylvania including Hatfield Ice in Colmar and the Steel Ice Center in Bethlehem. For more information click here. 

Summer Hockey School in Rhode Island

Boss Ice Arena in Kingston is the host for youth hockey players looking to take their game to the next level at summer hockey camp in Rhode Island! For more information click here. 

Summer Hockey School in Vermont

We love our camps in Vermont at both Cairns Arena in South Burlington and Union Arena in Woodstock! For more information click here. 

Summer Hockey Camp in Virginia

The Chilled Ponds Arena in Chesapeake is home to our summer hockey school in Virginia! For more information click here. 

Thanks for reading! We invite you to train with us at one of our summer hockey camps in 2023 and through the holiday season, we are offering a 10% Early Bird discount! Have a safe and happy Holiday Season!

Development is a marathon, not a sprint. When the season begins there is an appetite for immediate satisfaction in the way of goals, wins and championships.

It’s true everyone wants to win each and every game, but winning the last game is more important that winning the first game. Great coaches enter the season focused on development. Developing individual skills for each player, as well as developing team play and the chemistry that it takes to win championships. This development is what leads to goals, wins and championships.

If the players and team are performing at the same level and the end of the season as they did at the start, the results are not going to be favorable.

This season don’t be in a hurry for mediocrity. There are decisions being made by coaches that have the long term success of the team in mind, versus short term satisfaction. Yes, coaches want to win every game, but with the development of the players and team at the forefront.

We had a team with an amazing first power play. It would be easy to always put that first unit on each and every power play, regardless of time of year or score of game. However in order to develop more players, the second power play unit was used throughout the season.

When playoff time came, the top scorer and leader of the top power play got injured. It was fortunate that other players with a season worth of experience were able to step up. The coaches were never rushing development and sacrificing long term development for short term gain!

We hope your season is off to a great start, and for those just finishing a season, we hope it ended with a win!

Be sure to check out our website for 2023 Summer Hockey School dates and locations, registration is now open! Thanks for reading!