Reply To: Improving Practice – Ideas Anyone?

[Peter Allen]

When you coach, especially in the U6 –U 14 age groups, you need to understand that some of the best practices look a little unorganized from the stands.

I can run some of the best looking practices, players skating hard, cutting through the neutral zone, receiving a pass and shooting on net.
U9 breakout that would make your head spin, players protecting the house, and shooting the puck around the boards out of trouble. Parents telling me how great they looked out there, but I hate this type of practice.

This type of practice does not help the players improve their skills.

We all need to be SKILL COACHES.

When a player can SKATE WITH THE PUCK, his/her head up everything else because easier. We cannot be concerned with our win/loss records; we need to coach for long term skill development.

There is not enough stickhandling practice being done.
Have the players in stations working on their stickhandling, not just puck control (passing, receiving, shooting). Work on toe drags, spin-o-rama, the Gretzky, fake-shots.
Let the players be creative.

Sometimes the best practices can be a little ugly.