Reply To: Game Intelligence / Decision Training

[Tom Molloy]

I can look at the computer screen now without my eyes killing me. I couldn't read your posting Dave.

I have had the same kind of coaches that you mention along with my jr A coach who put out a puck at the start of practice and then went and drank a bottle of whiskey with the owner while we played shinny games up to 5. He would come out the last 20-30 minutes of practice and bag skate us. When we were losing he would rant about us not using our power play or forecheck and we would look at each other thinking 'what power play'; what forecheck?' Anyway you eet a lot of different kinds of people in this game.

I started as the first kind of drill sargent coach who believed the fitest tea would win, then as I studied what the international coaches George kingston brought here every summer had to say I became a very tactical coach. When Juhani came he foreced me to look at how I was running practice and I started coaching like I taught PE and using drills, games and tournament. When I did this my teams winning percentage went up a lot.

So it is a process to develop a effective coaching style that is effective in teaching the skills and game understanding players need to be successful.

As I am thinking about our weekend games I am doing a mental review of what we have covered because another thing I have learned is that you can't expect players to be able to do things you haven't practiced and then reviewed. So everything is cummulative.

'The Game is the Greatest Coach'
'Enjoy the Game'