Hal Tearse
All players important for success
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- Last Updated on Sunday, 27 May 2012 23:31
By Hal Tearse
Minnesota Hockey Coach-in-Chief
All players on a hockey team are important and need to be recognized for their contributions regardless of individual skill or abilities. Unfortunately too often the lower skilled players are subjected to ridicule and teasing from teammates and in some instances their coaches.
One of the important life lessons that should be imparted to players in youth and high school hockey is that all team members are valuable and they are important to the common team goals. Negative comments or actions towards the lower skilled players cause harm to the team and have a very negative impact on the targeted players.
The top end players cannot carry a team without the efforts of the lesser skilled players. Coaches and parents who want to develop well rounded and balanced young people who will become responsible adults who are comfortable working in a team environment have a great opportunity in youth sports.
To foster team oriented attitudes and ideas coaches and parents should insist their players act with respect towards teammates. Coaches who implement a positive approach to coaching their teams will have discussions with their players about how they treat each other. Here are some ideas that the Positive Coaching Alliance (positivecoach.org) offers to help create team unity.
• Create a positive culture around your teams. This starts with the coaching staff as the leaders in this effort. Rather than focusing on the negatives, focus on the positives. Creating an honest and open dialogue between all players and coaches helps with this process. This does not mean becoming a cheerleader but it does require a different approach than most coaches and parents are used to projecting.
• Fill emotional tanks. The research from Stanford University is quite clear: players coached in a positive fashion achieve more and have more fun. All team members should be responsible to keep the ratio of positive to negative comments at 5:1 in favor of positives. A higher ratio is ineffective (everybody gets a trophy) and less than 5:1 drains the emotional tank of players. A team buddy system can be implemented where each buddy encourages and helps their partner all year long. The world and life is full of negatives. Having a positive culture will help all team players achieve at or above their expected levels.
• Take advantage of teachable moments. Coaches and parents alike should be on the lookout for opportunities to help their players understand the consequences of negative words or actions towards teammates. Whenever it occurs, a discussion should ensue that makes it clear to the offending player that it is unacceptable to criticize any teammate especially in regards to his or her skill levels.
• Lower skilled players on the roster need to play. In our all too pervasive “win at all costs” society, the lower end team players often get ignored by coaches and the message to them is very harmful. It lowers their self esteem and eliminates their commitment to the common goals. Coaches that dress players who rarely participate are being dishonest with those players. Redefining the goals of the program and what constitutes “winning” is critical to the culture of your program. With the right framework and expectations players can have a great experience and the teams will likely do better than with the old negative based format.
These ideas and thoughts are pretty much common sense, however for some reason common sense is sometimes absent when the games begin. Young players need guidance by the adults that coach and supervise them. Let’s try to make youth hockey and high school hockey a great experience of all of the players.
“If it’s going to be, it is up to me”
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- Last Updated on Sunday, 27 May 2012 23:31
By Hal Tearse
Minnesota Hockey Coach-in-Chief
Individual attitude and commitment are important in the development of a hockey player during youth and high school hockey. Players who recognize that they alone are responsible for the long term outcome in their sport will inevitably seek out the opportunities they need to get better. It is important for parents and coaches to help their players understand this concept and to help players understand what qualities they need to possess to be a “Hockey Player” versus just playing hockey. There is no particular formula to becoming a “player” but in order to make the point, the thoughts below might help coaches and parents assess and guide their youngsters.
• Anywhere, anytime, anybody
These players will play any time they get a chance. They (or you) will drive several hours just to play. It does not matter with whom or about wins or loses to them; they just want the puck on their stick. They are usually smiling.
• When nobody is looking
These players shoot hundreds of pucks everyday all year long. They do not need a fancy shooting station. Just a net and bucket of pucks. They are never satisfied and always want to do better. For the older players you can find them at the school weight room actually lifting weights and getting stronger. They might be with a couple friends but as often as not they are alone.
• Play other sports
“Hockey Players” love to compete at anything, be it hockey, lacrosse, football or hackysack. They would rather play than watch sports. Parents and coaches should encourage their kids to play other sports to help them become better athletes and learn new skills.
• Coachable
Coachable players recognize that every coach has something to offer to them. By the time they are seniors most players have had over 50 coaches. By keeping an open mind and learning along the way each team and season builds for the next. Coaches and parents should encourage their players to learn every time they get on the ice or engage in any sport related opportunity.
• Resilient
Disappointment is part of sports and life. Allowing players to experience disappointment and then to bounce back is a valuable lesson. Parents and coaches need to allow players to experience losses without placing blame on the officials or some other factor. For “hockey players” disappointments strengthen their resolve to do better the next time.
• Patience
As each player grows older they have certain windows of time when they are most receptive to learning and acquiring the various skills they need to play. These windows of time vary a bit for each player. Through age 15 most practice sessions should consist of fundamental skills development including small area games. The 12-15 year old window is when players are most receptive to fundamental skill development. Players then continue to develop all through high school and into college and need to continue to refine their skills and build strength. High school coaches should be careful not to neglect fundamental skill work in favor of team skills.
• Motivation
The only motivation that is sustainable is internal. External motivation based on fear or some sort of artificial reward system will fail. About ten percent of players are motivated to become “players”. The rest merely play hockey. When coaching youth or high school players’ coaches are advised to assess which category each player falls into in order to deliver the correct messages and training to each individual player. Players who are willing to give up something in order to get something of greater value understand the trade offs and willingly move ahead with their eye on the future.
As a coach or parent you can assess any player based on the qualities above. If several of the points are lacking you have an individual who is simply playing hockey and hopefully having fun. In the instance of a player where many of the above are present and combined with above average athletic ability, that individual could perhaps move into the elite level of players that could be called “hockey players.”
For Boston Bruins rookie and Plymouth native Blake Wheeler, he recognized at age 15 that he needed to focus on development and forget about current disappointments. You can hear his interview on this subject by going to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKOeuhMhw_A.
By taking a long term view of player development and understanding the process that players go through as they move from childhood to adolescence and then into young adults it is easier to forgive their day to day transgressions, mistakes and blunders as they learn to play the great game of hockey.
To Win the Game is Great
To play the game is Greater
To Love the game is Greatest of All
Hockey: An easy game to play…from the stands
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- Last Updated on Sunday, 27 May 2012 23:31
By Hal Tearse
Minnesota Hockey Coach-in-Chief
As the new year approaches, the interest in watching hockey increases to a fever pitch. There are many discussions in the stands about the various teams and the players. Many definitive statements are uttered a loud, many of them wrong or unfair to the players.
Hockey is very different than other team sports. It takes a tremendous amount of physical and mental skills to play the game at all, much less play well. Unlike the other team sports with set plays and rigid routes and patterns, hockey is a flowing game with constant substitutions and endless possibilities for play making.
We use a phrase “read and react” to communicate to players that they must constantly observe the action around them and react accordingly. No time to check with the offensive or defensive coordinator or have a timeout huddle to diagram the last shot. Hockey is about constant movement up and down the ice.
Parents and spectators who sit in the elevated stands often cannot understand why “little Johnny” didn’t just lift the puck over the fallen goalie to win the game. Or why the puck carrier didn’t pass off to a teammate who was obviously in a better position to score. Or why that “stupid coach put the wrong guys on the ice to kill off the penalty.”
The game is actually very much different the closer you are to it. Up in the stands it looks pretty clear. From the player’s bench the view is much different than from above, and on the ice the view is even different again. The players do not see what you see. They have a much narrower view in most cases and they are normally under the pressure of the competition. As the game progresses, the players tire from the physical exertion and stress. This all changes how they see the game. What you see is not always what they see.
Another element to consider while you are sitting or standing in the stands is the speed of the game on the ice. A top bantam and high school player can skate at top speed from blue line to blue line in 1.9 to 2.2 seconds. That is 50 feet in about 2 seconds. If the skater is carrying the puck through the neutral zone numerous split second decisions need to be made and skills executed. Skating, stick handling, and passing skills are all required here in those 2 seconds. Many of the decisions the players make are right and many of them wrong. Sometimes the idea is correct but the skill to accomplish the task is not quite there. In the context of the skills required to play hockey, the fans and parents should recognize that what is happening on ice is a remarkable combination of physical and mental skills coordinated into a team effort. Celebrate their achievements, and ignore their failures.
As the tournaments commence in March, it will be fun to see the terrific play at all levels as the teams advance towards their respective playoffs. Whether or not your favorite team advances to the tournaments, you must respect them all for the great talent, heart, and dedication that they exhibit. Win or lose it is a great to compete.
Then the season will be over. The days will be longer, and the wind will be warmer. We will hold onto the memories of the good times and bad; the joy and the sorrow; the pain and the thrills. And we will look ahead to the future with new dreams, new goals, and Championships yet to be won. Remember that from the stands you see a very different game than what the players see and experience. Give them the benefit of your support and goodwill.
Moving up the hockey ladder
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- Last Updated on Sunday, 27 May 2012 23:31
By Hal Tearse
Minnesota Hockey Coach-in-Chief
Brian made the PeeWee B1 team as a first year PeeWee after having an outstanding two years in Squirts. He was thrilled to make the second best PeeWee team in the association until the third week of the season when reality set in. In Squirts, Brian was faster than most of the other players and he scored goals in nearly every game. In PeeWees initially he was a step slow and having trouble scoring. As the team won their fourth game of the season Brian was in tears because he had not scored any of the goals and he was afraid that his father would be so upset with him that the “long ride home” would be tough to take, again.
This true story illustrates a couple of points that parents and coaches all need to remember with first year players at any level. Nearly all players need time to adjust as they move to the next level of play and parents can place undue and undeserved pressure on their kids to perform.
Moving to a higher level, be it PeeWees to Bantams, Bantams to high school or high school to juniors/college, requires players to adapt to the increased speed of the game and the increased physical aspects at the new level. Every level of the game is faster and quicker than the level below. As players move through the levels the talent level narrows on teams to a point where all of the players are fast and skilled. It takes time to adjust to the quicker pace and they need to make decisions faster and act sooner. It takes time to adjust.
In the youth ranks and for players moving to high school hockey, first-year players could take a couple months before they fully adjust to the new level. Boston Bruin rookie, Blake Wheeler, took about 12 weeks to adjust when he moved from PeeWees to Bantams, and similarly he needed time to adjust to each new level thereafter. The bigger the level of change, the more time needed to adjust. Players leaving Bantams to move into high school typically would move to junior varsity as they acclimate to the high school game. With fewer players available to many high school coaches in smaller programs, 10th grade players are often moved right to varsity level and expected to perform immediately which is an unfair expectation. Coaches and parents need to allow time for the younger players to develop and adjust to the faster game at the higher level.
Brian’s story has a happy ending. I visited with his father, who had not played hockey, and explained the current situation. His father was shocked. He had not understood that his son needed time to adjust to the faster pace and bigger kids. Furthermore he was stunned by the pressure he had unfairly put onto son’s shoulders. To learn that Brian was scared of getting into the car with him after the game brought tears to his eyes. Brian’s dad promised to let the coaches coach and to support Brian in a positive way from that day forward. He kept his word and Brian had a great season once he adjusted to the new level of play.
As players move to the next level, parents and coaches need to have patience and allow the time required to adapt to the new level. Putting pressure on kids too soon is a coaching and parenting failure not a failure by the players. When I coached Bantams I would tell the first-year boys that I would let them know when they were “officially Bantams” and in the meantime play hard and have fun as they adjust. For most boys it took until mid-season before they had made the adjustments. The same is true at all other levels.
As you watch your son or daughter move to a new level, remember the story of Brian and his Dad. Be supportive and positive while your child learns new skills, adjusts to the faster pace and enjoys playing the great game of hockey.
Playing hockey for fun
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- Last Updated on Sunday, 27 May 2012 23:31
By Hal Tearse
Minnesota Hockey Coach-in-Chief
Hockey is a great game to play at all ages and many players develop a love for playing that continues throughout their lives. An observer of kids playing unstructured games and of adults playing pick up games mostly after 10:30 p.m., recognizes many of the things to be valued in the game. Specifically one notices cooperation, respect for each other and the game, and a real sense that the score does not really matter.
In fact normally in these sessions, the players will balance the teams well enough so everybody has fun competing and playing the game. At the end of the sessions the youth players all return to the same locker rooms or warming hut before heading home and the adult players head for the nearest watering hole to cap off a fun evening of play.
What is it about the game that captivates these players old and young and keeps them coming back to the rink time and again? And why do so few youth players here in Minnesota participate in open hockey outdoors or indoors?
The answer lies in the over competitive “win at all costs” environment that persists in our culture and the expectations they have learned from the adults in their lives. The simple answer is that many kids do not really have fun playing hockey due to the pressures placed on them and the expectations they feel.
It is quite likely that in most of our youth programs we have squeezed the fun out of playing the game. Kids would rather spend free time having fun without the pressure of winning and participating in stress filled situations day after day.
Oftentimes, kids playing on teams that are not in the top of their league feel a sense of frustration and disappointment that they get from the adults around them. Video games offer an escape from their overscheduled and over structured lives so instead of heading to the rink for pick-up hockey, they seek refuge in other activities.
Coaches and parents can help in addressing this issue by following some of these simple ideas.
Filling the emotional tank: We all need emotional fuel to be successful in all of life’s endeavors. Most adults know the horror of working for an unreasonable or verbally abusive boss. On the other hand, working together with people who are supportive, cooperative and share a similar vision is very much rewarding emotionally and financially.
Youth sports are the same. Players need to keep their emotional tanks filled as much as possible in order for them to perform their best and willingly return to the rink day after day. The term “emotional tank” comes from Ross Campbell’s book, “How to Really Love Your Child.”
According to Jim Thompson, founder of the Positive Coaching Alliance, the term “emotional tanks” is a psychological construct for thinking about things that help people do their best whatever challenge they are facing. Such things as energy levels, willingness to try new things, whether you are optimistic or pessimistic about being successful at a task are all affected by the level in your emotional tank.
Parents can use a method of finding three things to complement their child about for the conversation in the car on the way home from games or practices. If you can only think of one thing, find three ways to say it. Simply make sure that they are positive.
Understanding the big picture: Young people take all of their cues about their abilities and relative standing in the world from their parents and adults in their immediate lives. The messages they hear everyday from their parents and coaches helps to frame their view of the world during their early years of development.
It is during this time in their lives that helping kids to understand the big picture of sports is important. Game outcomes are less important to kids than participating and having fun. Understanding that losing is part of the game is an important lesson for players to learn.
Coaches need to help their players to recognize that winning every night is unrealistic and that effort and wanting to win are what matters. Parents need to similarly recognize that winning and losing are all part of the experience of playing hockey and to insure their kids understand that it is OK not to win every game.
As with all things in life, the destination is not the prize to be won rather the journey to the destination is the treasure. Parents and coaches should recognize and understand the big picture in order to help their players achieve their potential and to have fun.
Positive recognition: Hockey is a team game. Rarely is a goal scored for or against that was a solo effort. Goal scorers get plenty of recognition but rarely do the playmakers or defensemen that started the play in the defensive zone get recognition. Goaltenders are the last defender and the first ones to take the blame when a goal was scored.
It is important to team success that individual players are regularly recognized for effort and contribution to the team. Good plays need to be acknowledged and in any game there are many positive things that occur regardless of the final outcome.
By filling player “emotional tanks” with positives, a coach may then also offer constructive criticism without emotionally draining the players. The optimum ratio of positive comments to negative comments is 5:1. Higher than that is the same as “everybody gets a trophy everyday” and less than that drains emotional tanks. Coaches and parents need to be careful about finding the right balance.
Communication: Two-way communication between coaches/parents and players is essential for mutual understanding and maximum development of players and teams. As adults we all want input in our jobs and in our families. Giving players on the team a safe and regular process of input gives them more ownership in the team and a more cohesive group. Coaches that solicit ideas from players and ask questions rather than give answers will find that their teams will be easier to coach, have more fun and the players will develop faster.
The journey: Because we start kids in hockey at such an early age we need to insure that they continue to play hockey because they enjoy the game and have fun. Parents and coaches are responsible for insuring that they keep a long term view of the process and help kids develop skills and a passion for the game. People with passion can do amazing things. Kids without a passion simply go through the motions and quit playing.
Have fun, develop passion and enjoy the journey.
