player tips

We are beyond excited for our 29th year of summer hockey school and we invite you to train the CARTER method with us!

With pitchers and catchers recently reporting for spring training and the start of baseball season, we thought we’d weave in a little baseball talk as we ramp up for what is sure to be a great summer of skating.

Training the CARTER method has been a home run for players attending our hockey school. What exactly is the CARTER method?

C=Control. Our hockey camps educate students on the importance of body control. We have designed a sequence of drills to help them understand and enhance body movements to improve their overall balance and body posture.

A = Agility. Our unique training methods focus on quick lateral movements and foot work. With proper body control and weigh distribution, students will develop evasive techniques, making them more effective hockey players.

R = Reflex. Hockey is a read and react game. Reflexes and split second decisions affect the game. Increasing your hockey skills helps improve all aspects of the game. Through the CARTER METHOD we raise the level of play and quicken your reflexes.

T = Technique. We teach and improve hockey techniques under controlled situations and through repetition. We then incorporate speed once the proper techniques have been mastered.

E = Edge. Edges are challenged and enhanced throughout the week using control and overspeed drills. Edges are incorporated into the skating stride through Power Skating and Dynamic Skating.

R = Retention. Individual Skill Development. All of the Greg Carter Schools work on total skill development through the use of European training equipment, parallel bars and carousels.

It’s time to step up to the plate and knock it out of the park! We invite you to train with us at one of our 2023 youth hockey camps located in 12 states! Many camps are nearly sold out! For dates, details and more information, CLICK HERE.

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

Do you ever wonder why some of the same teams always seem to find themselves in the championship game and even winning the title?

In recent articles we’ve talked about Winning Being A Habit and that To Be The Best, You Need To Set Goals Like The Best. When it comes to winning, it’s pretty obvious that the best teams have players who are doing all the little things that add up to the big things! But why is it that certain teams and programs always seem to produce winners?

It starts with skill, talent, work ethic and all of the ingredients that you would expect in a successful recipe. However there is something that I’ve noticed in recent years, especially at the youth levels that great teams share.

Selflessness. (Related Articles: “Are You A Me or We Player” & “That You Do Is More Important Than Who”)

As I watch teams, from the good to great, I’m always intrigued by the top players. I watch their skill sets, their style and how they interact with their teammates. From an individual standpoint, this is important because much of the time as the top players go, so goes the team. More specifically, if the team relies on the top player for everything, other teams can usually contain the threat. But if that top player (or players) relies on themselves for everything, and tries to do everything either out of selfishness or not trusting that teammates can get the job done, well this is separation between good teams and championship teams.

What I mean is this: How bad does a top player, or any player for that matter, want to score themselves vs. making sure that the team wins. I’ve seen players in game changing moments shoot from bad angles for example, rather than sliding the puck to a teammate for an easy tap in goal. I’ve seen players that want the notoriety of scoring in the big game or scoring a big goal seemingly more than an assist on a teammates goal. These things don’t happen on championship teams.

The teams that are playing for the championship are the teams that operate like teams! The players, all the players, want the team win more than the individual stats. Championship teams make good hockey decisions, they make good hockey plays, they are unselfish and we is always more important than me.

As you head into the the playoffs we wish you the best of luck at your Mass Hockey USA Hockey or local tournament! We hope that your team comes together and plays like a team and when that final buzzer sounds, you are celebrating a well-deserved championship!

Thanks for reading and as you set goals for next season, please accept our invitation to join us at any of our hockey schools in 12 states this summer!

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!