The Numbers’ Game
Possession, as they say, is nine-tenths of the law. In hockey, it may be worth even more. That’s what a comprehensive USA Hockey study suggests, adding statistical muscle to back the belief that puck skills are learned in practice, not games. From the smallest PeeWee to the most-talented Olympic player, the ability to effectively handle the puck is in short supply these days. Many coaches within USA Hockey attribute these diminished skills to a mindset that advocates more games and less practice.
Does Winning Develop Players?
The world of soccer is continuously changing; news now regularly breaks on Twitter, and rarely does a day pass where a link to an interesting article fails to land in your inbox. This easy access to information has been a good thing. It has brought clubs closer together, allowing them to reach out and connect with other clubs across the country, enabling them to benefit from sharing knowledge. It has also given people a forum in which to exchange ideas, discuss problems, and develop solutions to the myriad of issues that are holding back the game in our country.
10 Tips to Improve Your Stickhandling
Find out how to make the time you spend noodling around with a stick and puck more productive. This excerpt from the new e-book The Complete Guide to Stickhandling by Jeremy Rupke of HowToHockey.com showcases the book’s detailed stickhandling tips designed to help you score more goals! You also get a video of 20 drills and a worksheet to track your practice.
Tip: Assists = Points, Too!
For all those puck hogs out there—you know who you are—it’s time for a reminder: assists count, too. In USA Hockey, you get a point for an assist and a point for a goal. Think about that the next time you give up a head-man pass. But don’t think too long or you’ll lose the puck!
Keep Up the Training!
Strength and conditioning is critical to the success of hockey players at all levels. Athletes will spend time in the off-season increasing speed, power, strength, endurance and agility as well as rehabbing injuries. Considerable amounts of time and resources are spent in these endeavors.
Equipment QA: Goalie Throat Protection
Question: Do goalies really need throat protection? My daughter says it limits her visibility too much. Answer: Currently, throat protection is recommended but not required for youth players. Rule 303: Goalkeeper’s Equipment (3) in the 2009–11 Official Rules of Ice Hockey booklet says: “It is compulsory for all goalkeepers to wear helmets and full facemasks. Hanging throat/neck laceration protectors are recommended.” Poke around online for real-world advice from goalies, however, and you’ll rapidly discover a consensus: If you’re going to get hit in the neck with a puck or stick, you’d rather be wearing throat protection than not. Furthermore, the neck is one of the goalie’s most vulnerable body parts, exposed to flying pucks, slashing sticks and sharp skates. To be safe, wear both a throat collar/bib to protect against skate cuts and a dangler to protect against impact from pucks and sticks. Note that your daughter’s hockey association may very well require neck and/or throat protection. If visibility is an issue, many online reviewers recommend a clear shield.
Elements of Power in Hockey Skating: The Windup
In this continuing series on the Elements of Power Skating, Laura Stamm explains the concept of the windup, which involves attention to the edges, knees, body weight, balance and center of gravity. For the windup:
Common Sense is the Foundation of High Performance
Champions usually believe the essentials of life were learned in kindergarten. Their world view is that success is simple and constructed fundamentally from common sense. While average people search for complex answers to their problems, the world class looks for the simple solution first—and usually finds it. They solve more complex challenges by looking at the situation as an outsider viewing it for the first time. Larry Wilson, the famous speaker and author, says the great ones get out of their own way by viewing the problem from ten thousand feet in order to gain a new perspective. They separate themselves from the everyday details and gain a three-dimensional view of the problem. While average people strain to create a solution, champions think for a while then create a mental distance to take their direct focus off the problem. Many times the answers come to them in the shower, in the middle of the night, or at the health club while they’re working out. The law of indirect effort is one of the most powerful problem-solving processes known to man. Champions realize the secret to tapping their true genius is sometimes hidden in the act of not trying so hard.
Elements of Power in Hockey Skating
In my 40 years of teaching experience, I have too often watched (in amazement) coaches stressing quick feet while overlooking power generation. Of course quickness is vital—but so is power! And in order to achieve power, players need to push correctly!
The High Performance Culture
The mystery of what propels people to reach their potential is continually being debated, studied, and hypothesized. Questions surrounding this seem to center around the individual and what they can add, subtract, or adjust in order to reach the pinnacle of their ability. Experts across the board can agree that mental skill, strength training, speed work, and sport-specific athletic skills all have their influence concerning the performance of an athlete. The question becomes how to continually grow all of these characteristics to the point of increased “game time” performance when motivation decreases and passion declines.
