Minor Hockey coaches..your help please - Calgarypuck Forums - The Unofficial Calgary Flames Fan Community

Sample00 · 12-03-2009, 01:25 PM

I am the Head Coach of a PeeWee Hockey team.

as many of you might now, PeeWee is the age in alberta where body contact is allowed. We, as coaches, take many clinics during the PeeWee age to ensure that we are properly instructed on how to coach at this level. One of these courses is the Checking clinic.

In the checking clinic, we learn different ways to introduce checking into the game. there's angling, protect the dot, British Bulldog, lock arms and bump, etc etc.

In most practices I will have a drill that will involve some form of checking. I want the kids to get used to the concept and to be able to learn in an environment where it is safe. Hockey games against other teams throw a variable into the mix and you cannot control the contact.

we are now 3 months into the season, we played about 15 games so far and I have a child that wont engage. He is not large in stature and is of a smaller build, height wise he is about average. He's a great kid, very personable, soft spoken and just plain nice. The problem is, when it comes to games against other teams, he'll go out on the ice and skate around but he typically wont get involved in the play and he definately shys away from the contact.

All the other first year kids have learned and are involved. This one, I cant get engaged.
Please help me, CP. I want this child to succeed but I am at a loss of what to do with him. We have talked about it and I spend a lot of time with him trying to get his confidence up. We talk about being the Hittor and not the Hittee, we talk about being close to the boards when you are going to take a hit. I am one step away from wrapping him in bubble wrap.
your thoughts and suggestions are welcomed and would be appreciated.

MelBridgeman · 12-03-2009, 01:30 PM

I coach Bantam AA, we have a few kids that won't engage, you only have one, I envy you.

I am not sure there is much you can do, if you feel you have tried anything.

Sample00 · 12-03-2009, 01:40 PM

you coach a bantam AA program and have kids that wont engage? wow. colour me surprised by that.

CaptainCrunch · 12-03-2009, 01:46 PM

Load all of the Theo Fleury clips that you can onto a laptop and make the kid watch them.

Sample00 · 12-03-2009, 01:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

Load all of the Theo Fleury clips that you can onto a laptop and make the kid watch them.

Theo had an all out, balls to the wall approach to hockey. Theo played with a chip on his shoulder. This child just doesn't have the personality for it and his mother thinks I should be able to teach it to him.

Like I said, I want him to succeed, but I am at a loss of how to change his thought process on this.

CaptainCrunch · 12-03-2009, 01:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sample00

Theo had an all out, balls to the wall approach to hockey. Theo played with a chip on his shoulder. This child just doesn't have the personality for it and his mother thinks I should be able to teach it to him.

Like I said, I want him to succeed, but I am at a loss of how to change his thought process on this.

I get that, I coached football and it was a little different, I had kids that didn't want to get hit because they thought it hurt more then it did.

You need to show him that the engaging part doesn't hurt and is a fun part of the game.

When I coached hockey we did the puck in the crowd drill. Get all your players inside the center ice circle and throw one puck in. The kid who manages to stick handle it out of the crowded area wins. You had to fight for the puck and absorb hits.

Sample00 · 12-03-2009, 01:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

You need to show him that the engaging part doesn't hurt and is a fun part of the game.

When I coached hockey we did the puck in the crowd drill. Get all your players inside the center ice circle and throw one puck in. The kid who manages to stick handle it out of the crowded area wins. You had to fight for the puck and absorb hits.

I have tried on numerous occassions to show him but its not working.

however, I do like that drill! thanks for that one.

MacDaddy77 · 12-03-2009, 02:19 PM

Sound like what this kid needs is to take a couple of decent body checks to realise that it really doesn't hurt and is in fact alot more fun playing a physical game.

You might want to introduce this in practice where he feels more comfortable.

Have a full out practice where you have 2 lines, the coach dumps the puck in the corner and 1 player from each line races for the puck and the winner is the one who gets a shot on net. (This has to be done at full speed!!)

If he shys away from the contact in practice the you are only left with 2 options

1. humiliation (by this I don't mean anyting drastic, but you will have to be vocal in practice and single him out, you don't need to yell or anything but you will have to tell him in from of the team that this is not an acceptable way of competing)

2. Wait and hopefully he'll figure it out before getting hurt.

Another thing to keep in the back of your mind is that this kid might not even really like playing hockey and is only playing because it is "expected" of him. This is the case alot more than people realize

I for one believe that checking should be introduced by coached in practice at the Atom level, where players are a little more evenly matched in size.

MacDaddy77 · 12-03-2009, 02:27 PM

Here is a link to a really good article regarding this exact issue

http://www.itsportnet.com/leagues/60...starticle2.doc

Sample00 · 12-03-2009, 02:29 PM

^^^, I agree wth your whole post including the Atom thoughts

flambers · 12-03-2009, 02:35 PM

My boy play's PeeWee hockey as well, and I have seen this issue with lots of kids. My experience some kids just don't like Body Contact.

I have seen Coaches try lots of different type of drills and practises but the problem is games are a totally differnet situation.

I have seen quite a few kids leave minor hockey and goto Rec Hockey.

MacDaddy77 · 12-03-2009, 02:40 PM

on a differant topic. A drill that I found really sucessfull (more aimed at defenceman but the whole team should be involved at this age group)when I was coaching (and one I wish the Flames would adapt!!) is this.

Have something (I used 1 2X10 piece of Lumber on the ice and 1 hanging from the crossbar) placed in front of the net so that there's about a 8-10" gap in between them.

Have the players split into evenly numbers teams and take turns shooting at the gap.

the team that "scores" can then choose which of the other teams has to skate laps

This does a couple of things at the same time.

1. It teaches the kids to shoot for the area just above the pads when a goalie goes down in the butterfly.

2. It teaches the kids that it doesn't always have to be the "big shot" from the point.

3. It (subconciously) teaches the kids to be competive and still maintain the fun at the same time.

It's alot of fun watching the little buggers try and out compete their teamates so they don't have to skate laps. This was probably my favorite time at practice.

flames_fan13 · 12-03-2009, 02:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MacDaddy77

If he shys away from the contact in practice the you are only left with 2 options

1. humiliation (by this I don't mean anyting drastic, but you will have to be vocal in practice and single him out, you don't need to yell or anything but you will have to tell him in from of the team that this is not an acceptable way of competing)

I would try an avoid this as I don't think Humiliation with a guy that has a shy soft spoken personality. That might scare him off instead of motivating him. You could also try have him practice alone along the boards moving the puck with his skates as if he is in a puck battle to help him build confidence and then when he seems to be doing a good job have a teammate similar size to him tie him along the boards and then when he's confident with that get a bigger teammate to battle along the boards with him etc. etc. Once he gets used to the body contact involved he might be confident in game situations.

MacDaddy77 · 12-03-2009, 02:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flames_fan13

I would try an avoid this as I don't think Humiliation with a guy that has a shy soft spoken personality. That might scare him off instead of motivating him. You could also try have him practice alone along the boards moving the puck with his skates as if he is in a puck battle to help him build confidence and then when he seems to be doing a good job have a teammate similar size to him tie him along the boards and then when he's confident with that get a bigger teammate to battle along the boards with him etc. etc. Once he gets used to the body contact involved he might be confident in game situations.

I didn't really mean humiliate him in the adult sense of the word. What I meant was that if you are vocal in practice with him specifically he may feel a little "humilitiated" and try harder.

Of course, I do not know this kid so I can't be the judge of if he has the character to withstand this type of action. That is up to Sample to determine as he is the coach.

That's the toughest part about coaching kids. It's easy to teach them the drills but teaching them the attitude, mindset and character that will help them inside and outside the rink for the rest of their lives is quite difficult.

The most important thing to remember is that you are playing a big part in the development of these young individules and what you teach them on the ice will carry though to other areas as well.

Locke · 12-03-2009, 05:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sample00

Theo had an all out, balls to the wall approach to hockey. Theo played with a chip on his shoulder. This child just doesn't have the personality for it and his mother thinks I should be able to teach it to him.

Like I said, I want him to succeed, but I am at a loss of how to change his thought process on this.

Tape him to the boards and have an assistant coach take runs at him all practice.

g_railed · 12-03-2009, 06:21 PM

I was always one of the smaller players, back when I played minor hockey so I can see where this kid is coming from. I quit playing after my first year of Bantam, but in my three years of contact hockey I never felt that I had been taught to hit or take a hit properly.

I remember doing those same drills, but it was more of getting used to contact than actully teaching it. I remember when we were taught to shoot or pass it was always taken down to basics, I can't say the same thing about hitting.

JFK · 12-03-2009, 07:16 PM

Our coach always had us do the "Tough In The Corner" drill. Have 2 kids line up at the blueline, the coach dumps the puck into a corner, and both players race for it. It's a competition to see who can get the puck, get out front, and get a shot on goal.

Do this drill at a few practices, and it shouldn't be long before the kid realizes that until he starts using his body, he will never win.

666DanceParty · 12-03-2009, 07:16 PM

Run the Gauntlet every practice!

It will give him a chance to hit and get hit by every member of of his team and hopefully the contact aspect won't seem so scary to him anymore.

That drill really taught me how to give and receive hits when I started contact in peewee.

pope04 · 12-03-2009, 08:35 PM

I assume this kid's a first-year Peewee. It's my kid's first year too, and he's a bit of a finesse guy. He'll fish for the puck instead of leaning into other players. I've videotaped a couple of his shifts and I've pointed out - very constructively - where he could've used his body instead of his stick to relieve opponents of the puck.

My kid's pretty big; even though he's a September 1998, he's among the heaviest/tallest on his team. It's taking time, and the second-year guys are helping him with the physical side of his game.

HOZ · 12-03-2009, 08:44 PM

Most kids and unfortunately most coaches think body checking is the big BOOM hit. A good check is one that makes the opposition lose control of the puck. More often than not getting your body between the puck and nudging a player is more than enough to do this...and often far better than battering the opposition.

TEACH, over and over and over gently and persistently to EVERYONE
1. a check is the above. He doesn't have to go Dion nose to nose stuff.
2. If he knocks the player off the puck...that is enough!
3. If he gets bowled over yet that player does not have the puck..he wins. The other guy is welcome to feel like a Heeman since will not be scoring a goal. Just get up and keep going.

Persistence! Patience!