The mental side of hockey isn't something you just work on for 20 minutes and check off the list.

It shows up all the time.

How does a player respond after a bad shift?Can they let a mistake go and move on?

Do they stay engaged when things aren't going their way?

How do they handle not getting the ice time they wanted?

Do they stay positive and be a good teammate when they're frustrated?

Those are all part of the mental side of the game.

As coaches, we spend a lot of time working on skills, systems and habits. We also need to spend time helping players understand how they think, react and respond when things get difficult.

We're not going to eliminate mistakes or bad days.

That's hockey.

The important part is learning how to respond and get ready for the next shift.

That's a skill too.