Hal Tearse

Athletes, alcohol and drugs: A bad combination

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Last Updated on Sunday, 27 May 2012 23:31

By Hal Tearse

Minnesota Hockey Coach in Chief

Recently released research that looked at the effects on athletes that consume alcohol, drugs and energy drinks are startling. There is quite a bit of research in this area at the elite athlete level but it also applies to teenage and college age players. The information is available in the USA Hockey coach modules. Here is a snapshot of the important issues to consider.

• Alcohol diminishes performance in all sports. Research reveals that high school age players show a 25 percent decrease in performance the day after drinking alcohol.

• In regards to training, an athlete that gets drunk negates 14 days of prior training. During training periods the enzymes in the body increase which is important to increasing strength and stamina however alcohol usage quickly lowers the enzymes that are essential to top performance. Without rebuilding the levels before consuming alcohol again the player will have a deficit that may not be overcome and thereby never achieving full potential.

• The result of alcohol in the body also reduces mental strength which lowers pain tolerance, causes increased feeling of fatigue, reduces emotional control, cause sleep problems and inhibits recovery after work outs and competition.

• A multi-sport study of professional athletes that compared non-drinkers with those who did drink alcohol discovered that those athletes who were regular social drinkers were injured at twice the rate of non-drinkers. Fifty four percent of alcohol users suffered injuries compared to 24 percent of non-drinkers. This is significant to all athletes.

Drugs like marijuana are pretty straight forward as to the effect from THC chemicals that greatly alter brain function, reasoning, motivation and performance. There is reportedly a residual effect on the body for several days following use.

Energy drinks are mostly just caffeine based stimulants. While the athlete may think that the energy drink/drug improves performance it actually has a negative impact. The body needs 2 cups of water to flush out the caffeine from one cup of coffee and energy drinks contain as much caffeine as six cups of coffee. That means the body needs 12 cups of water to flush out the drug.

As our body uses the water available, it gets dehydrated, which we know reduces energy levels, brain function and overall performance. Most hockey players arrive at the rink slightly dehydrated to start with and then to add caffeine which makes the situation worse, does not make sense and will result in lower performance. 

Hockey players who want to achieve elite status and remain there should stay away from all forms of alcohol, drugs and stimulants. For all of the hard work they put in on and off the ice, to throw it away with a night of drinking or routine stimulant use does not make much sense.

There is far more information available on this topic however the conclusions presented above should make the case that all serious athletes should avoid alcohol, drugs and so-called energy drinks.

Understanding the new body contact emphasis in youth hockey

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Last Updated on Sunday, 27 May 2012 23:31

This is the third in a four-part series concerning the Progressive Checking Skills Development Program which was adopted by the USA Hockey Board of Directors in June 2011. 

By Hal Tearse

As the youth hockey season gets started there are still many questions from parents and coaches about the new standards regarding body contact and checking especially in PeeWees where “body checking” is no longer allowed. There are several points to remember as the season begins which are highlighted here.

1. Proper body contact is still permitted in PeeWees and encouraged in Squirts. It requires that players learn how to angle and use body position to regain possession of the puck. Incidental contact or “rub outs’ along the wall are permitted.

2. Checking for the sake of checking or intimidation will no longer be tolerated.

3. All head and neck contact is now illegal so keep the sticks down. These infractions will result in a five-minute major and possible game misconducts also. 

4. Coaches are responsible for teaching proper contact skills to PeeWees and squirts. PeeWee coaches also need to teach checking skills to prepare the players for Bantams.

5. Skating is the foundation of good body contact and checking. Coaches need to make sure the players are working on skating skills at every practice. Lower skill players are more injury prone according to data collected the past two years at Minnesota Hockey.

For a complete overview of the rule changes go to the USA Hockey website and enter the coaching section. The following link is where there are several video clips and audio files that address many of the questions that you may have: www.usahockey.com/Template_Usahockey.aspx?NAV=ET_03&ID=299508. 

Below are some of the overview points as established by USA Hockey.

• The new rules encourage more body contact in the pre-body checking age categories by providing more training and support for coaches and referees; and encouraging more legal body contact in the pre-body checking age categories through “Point of Emphasis” rule #1 passed by the Board.

• It tightens the standard of play for intimidation hits in the legal body checking age categories. Beginning in the 2011-12 season, legal body checking in games will begin at the Bantam age level (ages 13-14).

• Beginning in 2011-12, each USA Hockey coach will be required to take an age-specific training module which will provide training information consistent with long-term athlete and childhood development principles for the age category the coach will be engaged with. Each module will include training information for body contact and checking.

• Each season, USA Hockey officials attend clinics that review points of emphasis relating to the standard of play. These 2011-12 clinics will focus on allowing more body contact consistent with the rules in pre-checking age categories and a tighter standard of play for roughing, cross-checking, boarding, charging, high-sticking and other intimidation hits in the legal body checking divisions.

• USA Hockey will monitor the on-ice management of games with regular reports from local referee-in-chiefs, coach-in-chiefs and Association Coaching and Education (ACE) administrators to USA Hockey’s national office staff in Colorado Springs.

• USA Hockey will conduct research on the effect of the Progressive Checking Skill Development Program on risk reduction and skill development. The results of the research will be published when completed.

• The Board also passed rules that prohibit any check that comes in contact with the head or neck. The goal of this rule is to make the player more responsible for actions that make contact to the head or neck similar to rules now in place for stick infractions to the head.

 A goal of the Progressive Checking Skill Development Program is to enhance skill development consistent with the American Development Model and its long-term athlete development principles. Another goal of the program is to improve on-ice management of the game to help reduce potential risks in the sport.

As we all adjust to the new rules please be patient and give the players a break. They will have this figured out in short order.

Respect and sportsmanship

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Last Updated on Sunday, 27 May 2012 23:31

By Hal Tearse

Minnesota Hockey

A foundational pillar of the new rules and rules interpretation from USA Hockey is based on respect and sportsmanship by all participants in the game. Since players take their cue from the adults around them it is important for all of the adults to model the behaviors and attitudes that are desirable.

This begins with coaches who need to focus on teaching skills and the right way to engage in legal body contact. Coaches play a pivotal role for players helping them to keep a proper perspective on their participation in the game. Remember, “they are not your players, you are their coach” so act like it. Coaches who cannot abide by these requirements should be replaced.

Parents are next. Your kids are a direct reflection of you and your attitudes. Keeping a positive approach and a respectful attitude is essential if the players are to do likewise. This includes supporting the coaches, players, and on ice officials at all times. Yelling at refs, other teams, and other related negative communication is unwarranted and destructive to the game. If it occurred in the school it would be rightly classified as bullying. Kids get plenty of that from other kids and do not need it from adults.  Way too many kids quit hockey at an early age for a variety of reasons but mostly because it is not fun. There are too many unfulfilled expectations placed on kids by their parents and coaches. In today’s world there are many choices that kids can make and they will move towards activities that are fun.

Referees also need to be certain that they are respectful, engage in reasonable conversations with coaches and players as long as respect is present and officiate to the rule book. It is time that personal rule interpretations or ignoring certain rules comes to an end. By insisting that coaches, parents and players behave consistent with good sportsmanship and respect the game will be better for all. You have the tools to make this happen so please use them in a respectful manner.

Administrators also need to take a step back and remember that the game is for the kids. District Directors all the way down to local association volunteers should try to keep the big picture in perspective. There are often times that there is too much individual ego and perceived personal power involved. That makes for bad decisions that harm the game, reputation of Minnesota Hockey and USA Hockey. It also ultimately hurts the kids.

As this season get underway let’s all remember that hockey is just a game that kids play. Some kids will get pretty good at it and will play in high school, college and beyond, but very few will have that chance and there is nothing a parent can do to make that happen.

So sit back and enjoy the game.

Parents are responsible for team success

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Last Updated on Sunday, 27 May 2012 23:31

By Hal Tearse

Coach in Chief, Minnesota Hockey

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In today’s world of youth sports, parents are interwoven into the fabric of the teams on which their kids play. This is quite a change from 20 years ago when the kids were dropped off at the rink and picked up a couple hours later.

Because parents are so much more involved in the teams, they also have a significant role in the season outcome. By understanding their roles, parents can help their kids have a great season and achieve more than their kids anticipated.

The best way to describe the role of the parents is with a couple analogies we can all relate to and remember. They go like this:

“As coaches, we can take your kids through the season and they will achieve about what they have in the past as a group. For instance, if this group has traditionally finished in the middle of the district each year, then we can accomplish the same again this year. If, however, we want to perform at a higher level, we need all of the parents to help the coaching staff.

“Think of coaching like this. Imagine that you are on an airliner heading from Minneapolis to Los Angeles. The plane takes off; you recline in your seat and relax all the way to LA. As far as you know, it was an uneventful flight.

In fact, what is happening in the cockpit is that the pilots (coaches) are constantly checking the progress of the plane. The autopilot is making minor adjustments all through the flight as changing wind speeds, directions and even turbulence cause the plan to deviate off course. The pilots make the corrections to insure you arrive safely.

That is what hockey coaches do throughout a long season as they make course adjustments and try to keep the team on track for the final destination. We all know that an airplane receives lift under the wings and warm air helps to provide lift to an aircraft. The opposite is true that cold air is heavy and tends to make flying more difficult.

The challenge to parents is to provide positive warm air to the team, helping them to soar to new heights. We all know cold air (negativity) only makes the coaching more difficult and hinders the team performance. In some cases, the plane (team) will crash with too much cold air around the team. In essence, whether the team reaches it full potential is up to the parents not the coaches”

The most successful teams I have coached over the past three decades had parents that provided warm air and lift to the team. Without their help there may have never been any state titles or trips to the national tournaments. The parents played a pivotal role in the team successes. I have also experienced the opposite effect.

“When a parent publicly criticizes the team, coach, officials, players on the team or even their child, it is sort of like a pesky mosquito bite. No big deal, the first time. The second time it is like another bite and then another parent joins in and adds a third bite.

After a while, other parents have joined the negativity and the bites start to add up, and then with enough bites the patient (team) begins to bleed. Of course, with continued bites, the patient (team) eventually bleeds to death and dies a miserable death. Have you ever been part of a team like that?

I have seen teams crash a couple times and of course there are no winners in this situation and the kids are the biggest losers. A couple smug parents feel vindicated because they have convinced the other parents that they are smarter than the coaches and it makes sense to disrupt the team.

Now why would any parent in their right mind want to ruin the season for their own child and all of the other kids on the team? There are many varied reasons postulated about why parents act this way but none make any sense.

In Jim Thompson’s book, “The Double Goal Coach,” he recommends that teams have a “Culture Keeper” that consist of several parents that help to remind the group that sportsmanship and respect matters and that they all can help their kids teams play better, win more games and have more fun. More importantly they are demonstrating the values that are so important for young people to learn as they grow up.

More information about how parents can provide positive support for their child, support the coaches and properly deal with any issues of concern can be found at www.positivecoach.org.

As you start on this year’s journey of youth hockey pledge to make this the best and most fun year your child has ever experienced. Hockey is a great game, for the kids.

See you around the rink….