Let’s face it, hockey seasons can get long – for coaches, players and all involved. Training, playing, practicing and traveling from September through March, and all year for some, makes it unsurprising that a common experience is a season that begins with excitement and energy turning into a weekly grind.
“I think for everybody at some point in the year, we feel those lulls where maybe the kids aren’t growing as much or things feel like they’ve gotten stale,” said Dereck Grosskurth, District 6 Coach in Chief and a USA Hockey Coach Developer. “Body language is a big tell. Players don’t look excited or focused when they’re standing in line for drills; maybe they aren’t playing with the same intensity or speed. Sometimes it’s the way they communicate or a lack of communication. When they aren’t engaged, it’s obvious.”
According to Grosskurth, there are several likely causes for this annual slog.
“For some kids, not seeing immediate success or results can be a barrier to staying engaged,” he said. “They don’t see the work that goes into that success, the learning and the failure that goes into it. Coaches need to show the kids the value of the work and why it’s important. For others, especially those who skate all year long and don’t play other sports, there may be some burnout that sets in. Or it could just be the sheer number of games and the repetition. At certain ages, kids just get tired.”
Why It’s So Important
For a variety of reasons, it’s critical for coaches to look for ways to keep players positive, interested and enjoying coming to the rink every day.
And it makes perfect sense: if your players are happy, engaged and motivated, practices should be more efficient and effective. The net outcome of this, according to Grosskurth, is a better team culture, continued development and a greater likelihood that the kids will keep coming back for more.
“For kids to learn, they need to be an active participant, both on and off the ice. It’s essential for them,” he said.
Tips to Punch up Practices
Grosskurth, who also serves as an assistant coach for Armstrong-Cooper’s girls’ program, says some simple tweaks to a team’s practice plan can make a big difference.
“In terms of keeping kids motivated, our job as coaches is to make sure practices are fun and engaging and at an appropriate level of challenge for the kids. It’s the coaches’ responsibility to create that environment,” he said. “We need to make practices the best part of their day. Practices should be fun and a time to just let go, so you’re still working on skills and concepts, but in a game-like environment.”
Grosskurth says kids love to compete and suggests coaches turn drills into competitions – like obstacle courses, scored or timed activities or races. For younger teams, Grosskurth has incorporated games like racing to catch a rolled hula hoop before it falls over, picking up bean bags and trying to catch a balloon before it hits the ice. “Small-area games also provide many benefits,” he says.
“These are fun ways for the kids to work on the essential skills of skating, agility, balance and coordination, but they’re just out there having fun,” Grosskurth said. “Ultimately, we want to add layers to our practices, so there’s some repetition, but we’re building on themes or structures. We can increase or decrease the number of players involved in a drill, change the space you’re practicing in or modify scoring systems. This way kids can recall and remember what they did previously, but you’re keeping it fresh.”
How Parents Can Help
While coaches typically bear the brunt of the responsibility, Grosskurth believes players’ parents can make a big impact on their young skaters’ overall enjoyment of the game.
“Parents have an important role as the encouragers,” he said. “Saying things like, ‘Hey you did great out there, it was so much fun watching you play,’ can go a long way. Rather than being critical, parents can ask how their player thought the game or practice went and let the kid have some time to reflect. None of us want to be told what we need to do.