Having landed back on Canadian soil on Sunday, returning from an unforgettable experience at my first TCS Live conference- left me feeling inspired to contribute something to this amazing community. First time poster, longtime reader, I think that is how the saying goes. Here goes nothing....
TCS Live was so awesome, to be in the same building with 400+ coaches who are all trying to get better at their craft of serving the game & its participants was an unbelievable vibe! It inspired me & also caused me to reflect on why, as coaches, sometimes we are secretive and protective of what we do with our teams and staffs. Ego plays a part & I have no problem admitting that, but I have learned so much from other coaches that I have played for & coached with! I love the line that the best coaches are the best thieves, it's 100 percent the truth.
With all this in mind, I wanted my first post to be about some visual aids that I used this past season with the U13A squad that I was fortunate enough to lead in Red Deer. We had a great season, won our division, won our league & then came a goal short in a provincial semi-final. I am a big believer that as a coach & leader it's our job to motivate & inspire those that we lead. In the playoffs, when things always tighten up & the margins squeeze, any little bit of extra juice or motivation can make the difference. One way our staff leaned into this inspirational leaderhsip was through our "Chief Banner Chase" & our "Last Hunt" boards. Every bullseye marked a signifcant playoff accomplishment for us. In the playoffs it was with each series win, we used landmarks familiar to Red Deer & Vegreville- where the provincial tournament was held. The room was absolutely electric when we achieved these accomplishments as a group & we were able to put a logo on the board over a bullseye! I truly think this brought our team together & reinforced our shared goal. At the provincial tournament we had a similar board, with 3 bullseye's. After we clinched a semi-final berth we asked our 2 stick boys that had been assigned to help us out, to have the honors of putting a logo on the board- it was an unforgettable moment for our group. In the end we fell a goal short & 2 logo's never made the board- that is sports- but it's truly amazing how little visuals like this can take on a life of their own & how much juice and energy they can provide over a long & tough playoff run!
As we headed into the provincial tournament, after winning the league championship the coaching staff talked about re-focusing the group & how we could provide a little bit of extra motivation to hopefully get us over the top, while also highlighting how amazing it is to compete for a provincial championship. We landed on creating a custom designed print for every player that would hang above their stall in Vegreville to highlight how far each player has come. We asked the parent group to provide theirt favorite picture of their player when they first started out. At our meeting before the provincial torunament we talked about how pumped their 5 & 6 year old self would be if they knew that in 5 or 6 years time all their hard work & effort had resulted in them being called league champions & then getting a chance to represent their hometown at a provincial championship! We then handed out the custom prints & you could feel the pride and self satifsfaction in the room. Seeing these hanging above their stall before our first Provincial Tournament game was pretty amazing & hopefully a great keepsake for them to remember the experience!
Hopefully this post inspires some other coaches! It is by no means groundbreaking stuff, but it was something that was custom to our group & I think it captured the spirit and attention the 11 & 12 year old players that we were trusted to lead! It resulted in some unforgettable moments & quite honestly it made the victories togethers that much sweeter & also the season ending defeat that much tougher- but at the end of the day, that is what makes sports & hockey so unbelievable! If you made it this far, thanks for reading!
