The Goalie Guru blog, and all its linked materials, is offered as a one-stop resource to assist ice hockey goaltenders, their coaches and parents (realizing that the latter two are often one and the same) in gaining a better understanding of this truly unique position. Comments, questions, and suggestions welcomed! Reach me at 978-609-7224, or brionoc@verizon.net.

Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Why every player needs to put on the goalie pads

Does this look like a target to you?
Hi gang,

With just a few weeks of summer camps remaining, and the start of youth hockey seasons on the horizon, I thought I'd revisit one of my favorite topics. Year after year after year, I witness kids -- and even coaches -- who treat their goalies like an inanimate bulls-eye. That phenomenon prompted me to write about one of my own long-held coaching beliefs in a column for the New England Hockey Journal. It proved to be one of my more controversial columns, but I still stand by it. Let me know what you think.

Why every player needs to put on the goalie pads

I'm the first to admit my coaching style can be unconventional on occasion. I'm OK with that, because the position, and the game, continues to evolve. And I'm always happy to explain my rationale. The reality is, much of the hockey coaching and hockey parenting that you'll find today is demonstrably Old School, typically based on the "that's how I learned the game" theory (which explains, in part, the resistance to USA Hockey's well-reasoned call for cross-ice games at the Mite level).

So, on the eve of a brand new season, here's another of my offbeat ideas. It's my firm belief, certainly not shared by the majority of hockey parents, that every player ought to spend at least one game in goal. Not a practice, but a game. At least once.

Five years ago, I was coaching my daughter's Squirt team. Our squad had a half-time goalie who was also playing for another team. To accommodate the absences, I implemented a rule at the start of the season that everyone had to take a turn playing a game in the nets. My reasoning was twofold. First, from a practical standpoint, I figured one or two of my young charges might actually like playing between the pipes, which would solve a raft of problems.

Second, though, I wanted every kid to understand what it feels like to get pelted with pucks. It's been my experience that some of the biggest crybabies are the same kids who, in practice and "warm ups," take slap shots from five feet away, or fire away regardless of whether the goalie is actually looking (or preoccupied with the previous shooter), or constantly shoot high, flinging pucks at the goalie's head. They're also the first to blame the goaltender for a soft goal.

So I wanted to make sure that everyone experienced that unique anxiety that the position brings, hoping to instill a little compassion (not a bad exchange for only 36 minutes of game action). And it worked pretty well, in part because it was a "shared burden" that all the kids understood, and it was established right from the get-go. Until the final week of the season. There was one kid – let's call him "Oscar" – who never volunteered to play, and I'm convinced he and his parents were just hoping he'd fly under the radar, and escape the responsibility. They didn't know me.

I called Oscar out for the last game of the season, and told him that I expected him to suit up for the last pre-game practice, just so he could get comfortable with the gear. His mom pulled me aside, and said her son was incredibly nervous about playing goal. I told her I could understand that, but coming to me at the end of the season, when the policy had been in place for six months, was not only bad form, but also limited my options. I reminded Oscar's mom that every child had already played goal (a few, including my daughter, several times), and it wouldn't be fair for me to give her son a pass. After all, lots of the kids weren't wild about playing goal, but they all had stepped up (and none, to my knowledge, had suffered grave emotional scars).

Last, I told Oscar's parents what I figured they already knew, that there are many, many times in life when we're asked to do things we're not entirely comfortable with, and avoiding those moments is not the ideal approach.

So what did Oscar and his parents do? They bailed. Just didn't show up for the final game. Was I surprised? Not in the least (in fact, I'd already warned my daughter – the joy of being the coach's kid – to be ready to suit up if Oscar went AWOL). But was I disappointed? Absolutely. Rather than subject their child to a short lesson in facing up to his fears, Oscar's folks let him skate free. Please tell me what, if any, benefit could be derived from that?

Somewhat predictably, Oscar didn't return the next season. I don't know if he went to another program or not. On one hand, it saddens me to think he may have quit the sport over this situation. On the other hand, if a 36-minute stint in the nets is enough to sour him on the sport, better he find out early that he's not cut out to be a hockey player.

Here are the lessons that Oscar missed out on. First, goaltending is hard. Kids who don't play the position don't understand how tough it can be (much like coaches who never played in the nets). It requires an entirely different skill set, from skating to setting up on your angles. You've got to follow a rock-hard puck, measuring only one-by-three inches, and stop it from entering a four-by-six foot goal. And you've got to do it while trying to move around in bulky gear designed to protect you. That's a tall order for most youngsters.

Second, you can't take a shift off. Regular players make mistakes all the time, but most of the time those gaffs don't result in goals. Coaches might see the mistakes, which can lead to some tough love on the bench. Kids, though, rarely notice the errors of their linemates. But they do notice the goals, and if a goalie makes a mistake that leads directly to a goal, that goalie is going to hear about it from his or her peers.

Which leads to my third point – Goalies, even young ones, face tremendous pressure. Even on teams with enlightened coaches, who try to shield their netminders from unwarranted criticism, being the last line of defense is no picnic. I'm sure this was the major reason Oscar refused to play. But I'm just as certain that, if you never play the position, you never develop the appreciation of that particular brand of torture. We live and die a little bit with each save and each goal (that probably goes double for goalie parents).

I still remember the breakaway goal that Mike LaValliere (the former Pittsburgh Pirates catcher) scored on me in high school, when the puck hit my glove, my shoulder, and then agonizingly rolled down my back into the net. The year? 1975. That's how much goalies carry the weight of each goal with them (fortunately, my memory has become much more selective during my beer-league career!).

Giving regular players a small taste of that isn't a bad thing. Hopefully, the experience develops a little empathy, and camaraderie, within a hockey team. Try it.

FINIS


Saturday, July 27, 2013

Commitment is not just for kids anymore ...

Devils goalie Martin Brodeur celebrates
with his son Anthony, then 5, after
winning the Stanley Cup in 1995
Hey everyone,

Having just finished up a phenomenal week of coaching at Brian Daccord's Prospects Camp with the Goaltending Consultant Group at Merrimack College, I was reminded that top-flight goaltenders needs help and support along the way if they're going to get the most out of their natural talents. Which reminded me of this column, originally written for the New England Hockey Journal. Let me know what you think ...

Do you have the commitment to allow your child to play goal?

A few years back, I paid a visit to my sister in New Hampshire, because she and her clan build a first-rate home rink in the winter, and I absolutely love playing a little shinny there with my daughters, nieces, nephews, and their friends. On this particular evening, my nephews had a new friend join us, and the kid was absolutely all over the ice. He never strayed far from the goal, but nothing got by him. He used anything and everything – stick, body, arms, legs – to stop the puck.

During a break in the action, I asked my nephew Luke about this kid, who I'll call "Joey" (to protect his parents). Luke tells me that Joey is an only child, and absolutely lives to play goalie, which of course gets my attention. For Joey, "hockey" means street hockey. He plays every single day after school, and almost all day on the weekends.

Luke introduced us, telling Joey that I coach "real" goalies. The kid's eyes just lit up. He started in on all the goaltending books he has, and his favorite goalies, from Martin Brodeur and Henrik Lundqyist to Tuukka Rask. He didn't have a favorite team – "I've got 10 genuine NHL jerseys" – but he had plenty of spunk. It was impossible not to like the kid right from the get-go.

As the game is winding down, a big pearl-white Cadillac Escalade pulled up to the curb by the rink. It's Joey's mom. When she stepped out, I told her that Joey was quite the young goaltender, and asked if he's planning to play anywhere.

"You mean a real team? Oh, god, no," she replied. "What a pain. Who needs that?"

The next few seconds can only be described as awkward. Joey's mom had this plastic smile stuck on her face, and my response was stuck in my throat. "You're kidding, right?" I finally blurted out.

The woman looked back at me like I slashed her tires. "I mean, all that driving around to practices and games, that's a big commitment for my husband and me," she said. "And then there's all that stinky equipment … "

"Seriously?" I replied, now dumbfounded. I almost added: "Then why bother having kids?" But I managed to restrain myself. After all, I don't have to live in the neighborhood. Plus, it's really none of my business. Later, though, while gabbing with my sister in her kitchen, I couldn't shake my brief encounter with Joey's mom.

"A big commitment," I told my sis. "Really? Isn't having a child a big commitment?"

Goalie coaches ask kids to make commitments all the time. We do it because, in our hearts, we truly believe that the kids who make the requisite effort get the most out of whatever God-given talents they have, and they get the most out of this game. And this game teaches a number of essential life lessons that you simply won't find in a classroom.

Now, I'm asking parents to do the same. If your children have a passion for something, you ought to let those kids pursue that passion. At the very least, give them the opportunity.

My mom was remarkable in this regard. She was widowed just before I started 8th grade, and she had six of us to look after. I wanted to be a hockey goalie. Street hockey was just the start. Ice hockey was my dream. Fortunately, a few of my brothers had the same dream. Mom looked around, and said: "Fine. You get the equipment, and I'll get you to the rink."

That's what we did. I got a paper route, and made enough coin in a few months to buy a new set of "Made in Canada" goalie gear (which, admittedly, was considerably cheaper to buy in the early 1970s). Mom never failed to keep up her end of the bargain, shuttling us all over New Jersey's Bergen County to our practices and games. We started networking with other families – seemed like everyone had a huge Ford LTD wagon in those days – to form car pools, and give mom an occasional night off.

Today, my wife and I have two teenage daughters. I'm really lucky in that my bride shares my opinion that sports are vital to a child's development. She's a Midwest gal, and grew up playing basketball and volleyball. She also was a competitive swimmer. So she knows a thing or two about sacrifice, both as an athlete and as a parent of an athlete.

Our youngest daughter – our hockey player – also happens to be nuts about horses. I mean, over-the-top crazy. I know very little about horses except this – they're ridiculously expensive. Still, my wife and I understand how important they are to Brynne. This is, after all, the same child who once asked me to take her to a local stable so she could get a job in exchange for riding lessons. She was 6.

"Oh child," I remember telling her seven years ago. "If it means that much to you, then mom and dad will make it work." And we have. Brynne doesn't ride as much as she'd like, but she rides enough to keep her happy (while the family remains financially solvent). It's required some sacrifice, but the smile on Brynne's face when she is spending time in the saddle makes any "sacrifice" seem small. I like to think that my mom felt the same way when she watched us playing hockey.

So now you've got a youngster telling you that he or she wants to play goal. First, make sure they're serious. You owe it to yourself, and you owe it to your child. This was the genius of my mom's response to her boys, those many years ago. If my brothers and I didn't want it bad enough, we wouldn't have found a way to buy our own gear, and mom would have been off the hook.

But if your child sticks with it, then you've got to go all in. It can be expensive, and it can be time-consuming, especially if you get additional coaching. Make the extra effort to get your child to the rink on time for the practice as well as the games. Learn how their gear goes on; help them when they're young, encourage them to do it on their own. Trust me, your child won't ever forget, and it will be one of the most rewarding experiences you'll ever have.

FINIS