Ice hockey is a collision sport. Players who practice and develop fundamental skills like recovery techniques can show resilience and are more safe. In this segment players and coaches are shown key requirements to develop on-ice agility, balance and stability.

Looking to exit the D-zone quickly?

🔑All 6 players know the assignment 

🔑Winger reads if opposing Defensemen is pinching or retreating

🔑Other Forwards hustle into support lanes

🔑D rims puck with correct amount of pace so it can be collected  

 

When my son was about eight or nine, a professional hockey player moved in across the street from us.

After getting to know this guy a little, my son finally mustered up the courage to ask him the question that every young hockey player wants an answer to. “How hard is it to make it to the NHL?” His answer has stuck with me ever since.

I’m paraphrasing here, but basically the response went something like this. “It’s almost impossible to make it to the NHL. But of course there are guys playing in the NHL, so it IS possible.”

The rest of his story unfolded: When our neighbor was 16, he’d played on an elite team in Canada. According to him, he wasn’t the most talented player on that team, but he was the only guy who made it to the NHL. Then he played prep hockey at a private school in Massachusetts. He wasn’t the most talented player on that team, but was the only guy who made it to the NHL. He went on to play four years of Division 1 hockey at an Ivy League university before getting drafted by an NHL team. He claimed he wasn’t the most talented player on any of those teams, but that he and one other player (also not the most talented) made it to the NHL.

I could tell my son had no idea where the story was going, and honestly, neither did I. This is basically how he wrapped it up.

At some point in your life, whether you’re a hockey player or a mathematician, a violinist, or a dancer, a writer or whatever, if you love what you do enough to work hard at it long enough, you’re going to be good. And you’re going to climb up the pyramid that defines whatever your ‘thing’ is and find yourself at a level where everyone is good.

And at that point, good no longer matters, because good becomes the baseline.

In hockey, our neighbor explained, when everyone’s ‘good’ the question that scouts and coaches ask is “What else have you got?” They want to know the same things that your parents and teachers want to know: they want to know if you’re being the best you can be. Not just the best hockey player, but the best person. Are you respectful, trustworthy, dedicated, likable, articulate, punctual, selfless, team-oriented, etc. etc.? Are you more than ‘good’ at hockey? Because if you’re not, but another player who is equally talented and accomplished is, they’re going to go with them. And you’re not going to make it.

My son was stunned. “You mean you don’t have to be the best skater or the best stickhandler?”

Our neighbor explained that he’d played with and against many, many players who’d possessed more pure talent and ability than him, but that somehow he’d outworked, out-thought, out-hustled, out-good-guy’d and out everything’d them to achieve his goal.

He’d succeeded because he brought more to the game than the game itself.

Beyond the lesson for a young hockey player, there’s wisdom in that story that can be applied to life as a competitive provider of any goods or services.

So you’ve got good cars. Good airplanes. Good hotel rooms. Good software. Good design. Good food. Good whatever.

What else have you got?

ps: Our hockey-player neighbor got a degree in psychology at that Ivy League school.

Hockey Nova Scotia teams up with The Coaches Site to support coach education.

Hockey Nova Scotia and The Coaches Site, hockey’s leading coach education and teaching resource, have entered into a partnership to improve coaching development across the province.

The Coaches Site is an online learning platform that makes it possible for any coach to learn directly from hockey’s best coaches. Whether it’s drills, practice plans, fundamental skills, team tactics or leadership advice, The Coaches Site delivers a world class online learning experience available anytime, anywhere on any device.

With this partnership, select Hockey Nova Scotia coaches will receive a membership to The Coaches Site’s platform, which includes access to 500+ hours of video, 750+ drills and over 1,500 articles.

“We are thrilled to be partnering with The Coaches Site on this pilot program so we can better provide Nova Scotia coaches with the resources they require to lead when they show up at the rink," said Hockey Nova Scotia Technical Director Brad Taylor.

"At Hockey Nova Scotia, we believe coaches play an invaluable role in creating a positive hockey environment that puts an emphasis on player development. This partnership will ensure that our pilot program coaches have access to everything they need to help address their players’ needs.”

“We are extremely excited to work with the Hockey Nova Scotia leadership team to enhance the province’s coach and player experience” says Aaron Wilbur, Founder and CEO of The Coaches Site. “In supporting coaches in both the high performance and grassroots levels, we’re proud to play a part in the development opportunity for the aspiring players in Nova Scotia.”

About Hockey Nova Scotia

Hockey Nova Scotia is a member branch of Hockey Canada. We are a not-for-profit provincial sport organization and the governing body of amateur hockey in the province. We represent more than 20,000 players, coaches, officials, and volunteers. We believe that every Nova Scotian who wants to hit the ice and experience the game should have the opportunity to do so in a safe, fun and supportive environment. Our objective is to lead, develop and promote positive hockey experiences for all.

About The Coaches Site

The Coaches Site is an online learning platform that makes it possible for any coach to learn directly from hockey’s best coaches. The community of over 10,000 coaches, as well as clubs, leagues, and federations, is committed to offering its players an enhanced development opportunity. Whether its drill inspiration, fundamental skills, team tactics or leadership advice, The Coaches Site delivers a world class online learning experience available anytime, anywhere, on any device.

The forecheck can have many variables, seldom do the conditions replicate what was drawn on the whiteboard. However when the conditions are right and all players execute their roles it is extremely effective. 

seattle #kraken demonstrate an effective FC that eventually leads to a tally