Great article Coach Brian. Game play isn’t just the fun part of practice, it’s where learning lives. When we design representative “slices” of the game, players must perceive information, make decisions, and solve problems in real time. The key is resisting the urge to script. Give players an objective and shape behaviour through constraints. When game play is intentional and linked to the practice theme, perception and action couple together and learning transfers to the real game.

Analytics give us a map, but they rarely tell the whole story. What stands out here is how Buffalo creates the conditions for offence, rush chances born from defensive work, four in the zone creating traffic, and constant net drives. This is what good training environments do, they shape behaviours that produce opportunities. When practice connects defence to offence and rewards scanning, support, and creativity, chances appear where it matters most, around the net. Great article Coach Kevin

Who doesn’t love a little chaos in practice? Really like this small area game from Northville HS coach Ryan Ossenmacher. As numbers change on the whistle, players must constantly read the ice and reorganize. Each team manages the forecheck and puck support in real time, activating the four roles of the game, offense with puck, offense supporting, defense on puck, and defense away. Great example of perception and action coupled inside the game, developing hockey IQ.

Great listen in the car, so many good takeaways I ended up listening twice. Montgomery’s focus on puck possession starting in practice really stood out. The link between D-zone breakouts and neutral zone counters creating scoring chances is a great reminder that offence often begins with clean exits and smart transitions. Simple ideas, but powerful when practiced with intent and detail.

Great listen. Lots of head nodding moments on this one driving in the car. Becanic keeps bringing the conversation back to habits and the link between thinking and transitional skating. Hockey IQ often shows up in the small details away from the puck, defending, stopping and starting, and supporting the play. Simple ideas, but powerful when players build consistent habits.

Great reminder that effective power plays are built on simple, repeatable habits. Face off readiness, clean breakouts, and strong in zone behaviour give players clarity under pressure. When the task is clear, players can focus on timing, spacing, and puck retrieval instead of overthinking structure. Simplicity often creates speed, and speed creates the advantage.

Strong look inside a Lalonde practice. The key line for me is matching the game to the theme. Small area games are not just activity, they are designed environments that surface the habits you want, like scanning, support, and fast transitions. When NHL teams build games around specific aims, it reinforces how powerful representative tasks can be for developing real hockey behaviours.

Great presentation from Coach Kim Weiss on wall play habits. I liked how she framed the work around problems to solve. Too often coaches spend time teaching techniques like skating, scanning, or stick skills as the objective, when they are really solutions. The real work is coupling those tools to the game problem under pressure so players learn when and why to use them. Smart progressions and great detail. Worth the watch

Attention may be the most valuable resource in modern coaching. players arrive at the rink already cognitively fatigued after hours of screens, social comparison, and digital stimulation. When attention drops, decision making slows and frustration rises. If perception drives action, then protecting focus becomes part of skill development. The environments we design, dressing room culture, practice structure, and expectations now play a huge role in helping athletes reset and engage with the game

I felt this. Early on, I underestimated the complexity of parent dynamics. I thought good coaching would be enough. It wasn’t. Now I document everything, philosophy, selection process, communication boundaries, in detail. My last parent guide was 50 pages. If concerns arise, I ask them to read it first. It doesn’t remove all issues, but it shifts emotion to alignment. Clarity protects culture, and culture protects coaches.