Jack Blatherwick
Architects can design functional hockey arenas
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- Last Updated on Thursday, 21 February 2013 17:51
By Jack Blatherwick
Let’s Play Hockey Columnist
“You architects like to build monuments to yourselves!” That was the opening salvo by Olympic coach Dave Peterson in a 1987 meeting to discuss broad concepts for the proposed new hockey arena in St. Cloud. The National Hockey Center was to be the future home for the St. Cloud State University Huskies, as well as for local high school and youth teams, and many USA Hockey regional and national programs.
U.S. National Team coaches were invited to share ideas with the architects who were planning construction. Coach Pete waited patiently for everyone to shake hands, but before the architects could start their PowerPoint production, Pete began his lecture. He had seen mistakes in recent arena constructions, and he came to this meeting determined that the National Hockey Center would be truly functional for hockey.
The game without boards
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- Last Updated on Thursday, 14 February 2013 17:42
By Jack Blatherwick
Let’s Play Hockey Columnist
The game without boards has some big advantages, not the least of which is: no dump-and-chase. No coaches yelling, “Chip it out; get it deep; finish checks; backcheck; forecheck; and HUSTLE (meaning skate around like the proverbial headless chicken, and accomplish nothing).”
There are no scoreboards, but of course there are winners and losers in every game to five. Pride and prestige are on the line, not some meaningless ranking. There is no loudspeaker music between whistles, because there no whistles, no zebras and no penalty box. On the outside pond, the obvious trip or slash requires an immediate democratic sanction, like giving up the puck or at least, offering an apology. There are no scouts, no agents and no loud parents, only the quiet ones with shovels and hot chocolate.
Why is competition such a great teacher?
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- Last Updated on Thursday, 31 January 2013 17:34
By Jack Blatherwick
Let’s Play Hockey Columnist
“Players learn more from competition than from drills around cones,” claimed Dave Peterson, former Minneapolis Southwest High School and U.S. Olympic Team coach. He was conducting a clinic in upstate New York and his 1988 Olympic team demonstrated a variety of scrimmage activities for 150 youth coaches. Peterson continued, “There are thousands of hockey decisions every shift, and those who make the right ones are better players, regardless of their skill level.”
Coach Pete was ‘old school.’ He had seen drill books with the cones clearly drawn, but he tossed them aside. His approach to development was simple: “Play.”
Super Bowl production attracts armchair experts
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- Last Updated on Thursday, 07 February 2013 18:12
By Jack Blatherwick
Let’s Play Hockey Columnist
It was a one-hour game. Honest. They played for only 60 minutes in Super Bowl XLVII, but of course the show took all day. This allows plenty of time for experts to tell us what we’re watching, which coaching decisions were good, which were not, which players made a great play (because it’s assumed we need to be told) and which players screwed up.
Of course, every call by a referee is analyzed from six camera angles on instant replay, giving us a new tradition in sport: Players and coaches can make human errors, but referees can not. It’s an interesting deal, really, when you consider that players and coaches are paid a hundred times more than refs.
Follow the rules
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- Last Updated on Thursday, 24 January 2013 16:52
Research shows the relationship between rules enforcement and brain/spine injuries. What is not shown is how rules enforcement promotes skill development.
By Jack Blatherwick
Let’s Play Hockey Columnist
ScienceDaily is not a peer-reviewed, technical journal, the kind where every paragraph needs to be read five times. Instead, it reviews many of the latest findings from those technical journals in language we can all understand. Recently they reported on several Canadian studies which all found that hockey rules intended to limit aggressive play and rules-enforcement reduce the incidence of brain and spinal cord injuries.
