IN THIS ISSUE

Are the Kids Alright?

Mite ADM Program in 2nd Year at Mission

USAH Part of Inaugural USOC ADM Workshop

The Player - Coach - Parent Relationship at 8U

Coaching Goaltenders

Developing Decision-Makers at 10U

Video: Fail Harder

Video: Hockey Motivation

Just for Coaches: On- and Off-Ice Practice Plans for Goalies

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Volume 2 Issue 9
August 25, 2015

ARE THE KIDS ALRIGHT?


In concert with the U.S. Olympic Committee hosting its inaugural American Development Model workshop, Street & Smith's Sports Business Journal published an incisive look at youth sports in America, including an examination of how the ADM has helped nationwide youth hockey participation rates climb 44 percent.

ARE THE KIDS ALRIGHT?

By Bill King, Senior Writer, Sports Business Journal - When it instituted a trailblazing program that would become a model for athletic development across sports, USA Hockey anticipated a tough go, realizing it was slogging against the cultural current fueled by the emerging youth sports business.

Interstate travel. Year-round play. Single-sport specialization. "Elite" competition, too often defined by time and money invested rather than the actual level of play.

The architects of what would become USA Hockey's American Development Model considered those trends to be more detrimental than developmental, particularly as they trickled down to the youngest children strapping on skates. READ MORE>>
ILLINOIS ADM NEWS
AHAI/USA HOCKEY MITE ADM PROGRAM IN SECOND YEAR AT CHICAGO MISSION
The Chicago Mission in conjunction with AHAI and USA Hockey will conduct the Mite ADM program for a second season. This upcoming season a Squirt Minor ADM team will be part of the program. Mites will continue playing half- or cross-ice with a focus on skill development. Chicago Mission will again host a Thanksgiving tournament while scheduling local games with clubs offering cross-ice programs.
 
The Squirt Minor ADM program will continue on the skill development path while playing selective full-ice tournaments beginning mid-season. Both the Mite and Squirt Minor ADM programs will have three ice slots per week for 24 weeks. Coaching staff will be drawn from regular Chicago Mission coaching staff with all ice at Seven Bridges Ice Arena. We are excited about the Mission's continued support of the American Development Model. Clubs are encouraged to reach out to the Mission ADM staff and schedule games or jamborees with their ADM teams.
USA HOCKEY ADM NEWS
USA HOCKEY PART OF INAUGURAL USOC ADM WORKSHOP
By USA Hockey

USA Hockey is among more than 25 national governing bodies participating in the United States Olympic Committee's inaugural American Development Model workshop today and tomorrow at the University of Delaware.

The event represents a partnership between the USOC and NGBs to deliver long-term athlete development benefits to the entire American sporting landscape through a program that guides athletes' advancement and supports healthy sport experiences.

USA Hockey, which launched its ADM in January 2009, granted ADM name and logo usage rights to the USOC last year in support of its effort to help every American athlete reach full potential. READ MORE>>
ADM ACROSS AMERICA

THE PLAYER-COACH-PARENT RELATIONSHIP AT 8U
COACHING GOALTENDERS
By USA Hockey So, your son or daughter (or both!) wants to be a hockey player? For some parents, hockey is an unfamiliar pursuit. For others, hockey just runs in the family. Parents in either of these situations have something to remember, though: It's for the kids.

The men and women who coach youth teams do it because they want to share their knowledge and love of the game with young people. The most important jobs for any parent of a first-timer are to support your child and reinforce the messages coaches preach at practice. READ MORE>>
By Joe Bertagna "I never played goal so I don't know how to coach goalies," is a common refrain heard at hockey rinks across the country. It's a coach's way of washing his hands of responsibility to his most important player.

Well, a lot of my high school buddies who are youth coaches never played on the power play either but they have taken the time to develop their own man-up strategy.
Coaching goaltenders is not rocket science. Learn the position, help develop your goalies, and raise both your team's record and its level of enjoyment. READ MORE>>
DEVELOPING DECISION-MAKERS AT 10U
By Michael Rand, USA Hockey - It seems counter intuitive, but it's true: the best way to get better at playing the game of hockey isn't by playing a game of hockey.

That is to say, the skills necessary for excelling when it counts - during a game - are best taught in situations that simulate the nuances of the game.

A prime example of this, particularly for young players such as 10U, is using small-area games in practice to help create the types of situations that will hone their decision-making skills. Brett Petersen, men's hockey head coach at Gustavus Adolphus - an NCAA Division III school in St. Peter, Minn. - is a major proponent of the benefits of working in small areas. READ MORE>>
ADM MULTIMEDIA

FAIL HARDER

HOCKEY MOTIVATION
Are your players afraid to fail? Are they worried about what you or their teammates will think? Do you encourage failure? They shouldn't be afraid to fail, your team culture should not allow negativity when someone does, and you should encourage failure as part of your culture...because they aren't trying if they aren't failing. Fail Harder!
No introduction needed for the video above; this is a great motivational clip to share with players of all ages. What are they doing to improve their game? Even at the younger levels encourage them to work harder, to pay attention better, and to take practice as serious as they do games.

JUST FOR COACHES

PRACTICE PLANS FOR ON-ICE

PRACTICE PLANS FOR DRYLAND
 
This week we venture into the world of goaltending drills. As many of us know it is a position that gives most coaches fits. Why? Because most coaches were not goalies and have limited if any knowledge on how to teach or build drills specifically for them. Click HERE for the "Stick & Pad Control with Proper Recovery Drill"

This dryland goalie drill, demonstrated by Maria Mountain, MSc, a fitness coach who works with professionals, Olympians and amateurs, is designed specifically to help goaltenders achieve more powerful crease movement.