Lessons from The Heights, and the NCAA championships

Hi gang,

This post gave me a chance to reflect on a great college hockey season, which I covered for ESPNBoston.com, and the remarkable run that the Boston College Eagles put together this spring. At the heart of BC's stunning 19-game winning streak, which culminated with yet another national championship for the Eagles, was junior netminder Parker Milner. This young man underwent a mid-season transformation unlike any I've ever seen. Which made him a worthy topic for The Goalie Guru column I wrote for the May issue of the New England Hockey Journal. 

Lessons from The Heights, and the NCAAs

You've heard it here before, but it bears repeating: goaltenders can't be afraid to admit when they mess up. The best thing a goalie can do after letting up a soft goal is to tell teammates, "Hey, gang, that one was my bad." And since coaches should hold themselves to the same standards, I need to admit when I'm wrong. And I was wrong about Parker Milner.

See, in my "other" life, I'm fortunate enough to cover college hockey for ESPNBoston.com. That gig gives me a chance to watch some of the nation's best college goalkeepers, guys like Boston University's Kieran Millan, Merrimack All-American Joe Cannata, Lowell's Doug Carr, Maine's Dan Sullivan, and New Hampshire's Casey DeSmith (even got a peek at Union All-American Troy Grosenick).

I also got to see Milner, the Boston College junior from Pittsburgh, PA, play early and often for the Eagles. I worked with Milner, briefly, while he was part of BC's tandem with stalwart John Muse. And though my time with Parker was limited, I could see he was an athlete, capable of playing at the D-1 level. But ability and performance, as most coaches know, can be two very different things.

Following Muse's graduation, Milner was the consensus starter this pre-season (though the Eagles also recruited two highly touted freshmen). His early returns, frankly, were underwhelming. Against Denver on Oct. 14, Milner looked shaky, nervous. He had happy feet, and seemed jittery. Denver coach George Gwozdecky acknowledged after the 4-2 Pioneer win that he wanted to test Milner: "That was one of the things we emphasized tonight; get the puck on the net, and get after the rebound."

Sometimes, the Pioneers didn't need a rebound. Denver took a 2-1 lead when Beau Bennett snapped a quick, bad-angle shot that beat Milner high glove side and snuck under the crossbar. It was not a goal that inspired confidence.

By the semester break, Milner was mired in a three-goalie rotation, the very antithesis of coach Jerry York's preferred approach. And the Eagles were struggling through a 2-4-1 slump. The low point for Milner came in a 3-2 loss to Notre Dame, when he surrendered a soft, last-second overtime goal to the Irish, and two losses to archrival Boston University (giving up nine Terrier goals on only 34 shots).

Milner saw the ice just once in the next nine games, and not at all during a two-game sweep at the hands of Maine in late January. That's when Milner's story takes a dramatic turn, for the better.

"We were really in a hard situation … through the middle of the season with stopping pucks," said York. "We sensed at the time we had a lot of 'B' goaltenders. It's hard to win championships without an 'A' goaltender. It just doesn't happen. We challenged our goaltenders, and Parker stepped up."

Somewhere, deep inside Milner's psyche, the young netminder owned up to his shortcomings. He didn't pout; he took responsibility. And he made up his mind that he wasn't going to be satisfied with simply being a D-1 goalie, riding a three-goalie carousel on a top-flight team. Milner decided he would be the man.

"He's really come on strong lately," said Cross of Milner after BC won the Beanpot, 3-2, in overtime over BU. "We've got competition at every position on our team, and goaltender is no different. Those guys push each other every day, and I think it's made Parker better, and his attitude has remained very positive. I think he took it upon himself personally to take over that spot."

Essentially, Milner proved how special an athlete can be when he fuses talent with hard work. He accepted York's challenge, and rededicated himself to getting better. He started skating extra morning sessions, working with BC goalie coach Jim Logue and assistant coach Greg Brown.

"We've all been impressed. He's really elevated his game," said Brown. "He looks so much more confident now than he did earlier in the year."

That was pure understatement. Through his own grit, Milner orchestrated one of the most stunning midseason improvements I can recall.

"He's our backbone," said BC's All-American defenseman Brian Dumoulin after the Eagles knocked UMass out of the Hockey East playoffs. “That gives us tons of confidence, knowing that if we make a mistake, it's not over. He's going to make a big save like he has in these last couple games, and he has the last couple months

"That's just huge going on these runs in the playoffs, sometimes it's going to be a goaltending battle, sometimes it's just going to be a scoring battle. And knowing we have a good goaltender behind us is awesome.

Still, I was unconvinced. In press-row conversations during the Hockey East semifinals, I told colleagues that if BC had an Achille's Heel, it could very well be Milner. My thinking was this: Boston College would only go as far as Parker Milner could carry them.

But Milner finished what he started in late January. He was between the pipes for every one of BC's 19 straight wins, culminating in a 4-1 victory over Ferris State in the NCAA championship game. Ironically, he was the only goaltender of the Frozen Four starters who wasn't an All-American. And Milner left Tampa not only with another national championship on his resume (though he didn't play in 2010), but was also named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.

In the NCAAs, Milner gave up two goals in four games, whitewashing both Air Force and Minnesota-Duluth in the Northeast Regionals. During BC's 19-game win streak, he posted numbers (1.09 goals against average, .960 save percentage) that would make any All-American jealous.

"Maybe I was trying to do too much," Milner said of his early season struggles. "There's been some incredible goalies here, and maybe I was trying to live up to that too much. But I'm not John Muse. I'm not Cory Schneider. I'm Parker Milner. And I'm going to try to do the best I can to be a part of this story that we're writing for the 2012 team."

It was a tale with a storybook ending, thanks in large part to Milner's efforts. So, my apologies to Parker. And congrats. You earned every one of the accolades that came your way this season. See you next year.

FINIS

The boys and girls of summer

Putting a young goalie in "time out" ...

Hi gang,

Nothing like a little hip-replacement surgery to force me to take some much-needed down time, and get The Goalie Guru current. This is always an interesting time of year for me, as spring represents such a transition time for the hockey player.

The following is a recent Goalie Guru column for the New England Hockey Journal, on the benefits (and myths) regarding summer camps, inspired by my own experiences over the past 10 years. Let me know what you think ...

WHAT A GOALIE CAMP WILL - AND WON'T - DO FOR YOU

Full disclosure. I often feel uncomfortable lobbying for summer hockey camps. It appears self-serving, since I spend a good chunk of my summer working for them. I understand that. However, that fact also keeps me honest, and I always make every effort to give every child my full attention. I've never mailed it in.

But my allegiance to summer camps goes beyond that. The reality is, I'm a fan of good sports camps of any kind, and my daughters are proof. My eldest, Maddi, attended an overnight volleyball camp in my wife's home state, Kansas, and came home with the tools to jump-start a terrific freshman season. My youngest, Brynne, is a 13-year-old hockey player, and she's benefited greatly by the "immersion" that a weeklong summer camp provides, and she'll be going back to a skating and stickhandling camp this summer. That's when she's not at soccer camp.

So, while I work for camps, as a parent I can appreciate the positive impact they can have. As long as kids also get a break. Booking your young goalie for eight weeks of camps over the summer is begging for burnout. On the other hand, the "concentrated dose" that a weeklong camp offers is invaluable, because it provides essential building blocks. Just like a good diet – you need to establish a solid foundation, which supports future development.

Here's another reason I'm a fan of summer goaltending camps. They are all about goalies. Period. Not shooters, not defensive schemes, power plays or penalty kills (though those topics are covered extensively, from a goalie's perspective). This is just the opposite of almost every youth hockey program I've seen, where goalies are treated like some sort of mildly intriguing appendage.

Campers will get plenty of work, likely more than they bargained for. But the workload is designed to make the goalies stronger, quicker, smarter, instead of simply running them into the ground (which, as best I can tell, is the end-product of roughly three-quarters of the shorting drills I see in youth hockey these days).

Still, don't be fooled into thinking all camps are equal. There's a well-known shooting and stickhandling camp (which will remain unnamed, to protect the guilty) that offers free spots for goaltenders. When I inquired, I learned there was no instruction. Absolutely none. Zero. They wouldn't even consider having a goalie coach on the ice. These camps simply wanted targets (and, in reality, should have been paying those poor kids). The lesson? Be sure to ask beforehand.

So, with all that said, here are a few persistent myths about camps I'd like to dispel:

You'll get better by just showing up. OK, there's some truth to this. We will make you a better goaltender. But if you think the ability of Mom and Dad to pay for a camp will miraculous make you an NHL All-Star, you're misinformed. Playing goal takes work. Sweat and exertion. There are no shortcuts.

Nice gear makes a better goaltender. There's an old saying, which I repeat often during my goalie sessions: "A good craftsmen doesn't blame his tools." Mommy and Daddy might be able to afford this camp, and all the really expensive gear that the position requires, but if you don't bring the requisite effort, it will all go for naught. Bank on it.

Camps are to get in shape. Wrong. Anyone showing up to camp "to get in shape" is going to miss half the benefit, because they'll be spending half the time trying to keep lunch down, or trying not to huck a lung. The kids who benefit most from camps are the ones who show up ready to roll on Day One. You are reading this in April (or at least the April issue). You have no excuses. Get in shape now.

We will hold your hand. Hockey is a great game because it not only teaches self-sufficiency, but also because it treats that concept as one of its bedrock principles. We – your councilors and instructors – are not getting between the pipes. You are. So it's our job to make sure you're ready to do your job. If you think you're going to get pampered, think again. That would be a disservice to your folks, your team, and ultimately, to you. Our job is to make sure you get in the pool without drowning. And we'll show you how to get faster. But whether you actually get any better or not is really, at the end of the day, up to you.

We will tie your skates, and put on your pads. See the previous paragraph. Throughout the week at camp, we'll offer advice, particularly when it comes to ill-fitting or inadequate gear. My colleague Kevin Morrison at Bertagna Goaltending loves to remind youngsters to cut the boot straps on their pads to an appropriate length, to avoid tripping on them if they come loose. We talk about proper gear care (don't leave it in your bag; hang it in front of a dehumidifier), and gear fit. But we're not nannies.

We are your parents. Not even close. But we understand that Mom and Dad are laying out a pretty penny for you to attend, and we're going to make sure they get their money's worth. But if you talk back or throw temper tantrums at home, and expect to get away with the same behavior at camp, you're in for a shock. There are, at a minimum, 14 or 15 other campers sharing the ice with you. My experience has been that about 75-80 percent of them will dig deep and work hard. If you don't, simply because you can't adjust your attitude, you'll get left behind.

It's all about competition. The objective of these camps is to improve. But far too many kids treat it like a competition, and as a result default to old, comfortable habits, even if those habits prevent them from getting better (the classic example is a kid who stays on the goal line because he's a afraid of getting caught out of position, even though he's giving up half the goal. The solution is becoming a better skater, not staying deep). I remind my campers that I'm not the one picking their teams, or their team's starting goalie. They don't have to worry about impressing me. I only want them to get better. That means getting out of their comfort zone, and push their limits. To quote Brian Daccord of Stop It Goaltending: "In season, it's about results. In the summer, you're working on improving technique, improving quickness, working on your strategies and your technical game, so you know how you want to play every situation. You want to work on your weaknesses, try new things, try to implement new facets to your game, new techniques."

So bring it, but have fun with it.

FINIS

Coaches can't forget the goalies

Working with the youngsters of Agawam Youth Hockey.

Hi gang,

The hockey season, just like "the winter that never was," faded quickly this year. Especially given my work covering college hockey for ESPNBoston, the end of the season is like an overtime game, with all the excitement and adrenaline building to a crescendo. And then ... Nothing.

So, it's in this lull between the season's finale and summer camps that I like to take stock of what I feel are some of the major issues facing young goaltenders. And here's a column on one of those critical topics, originally written for the New England Hockey Journal.

COACHES MUST TAKE OWNERSHIP

Psssst! Hey, coach! Yeah, I'm taking to you. This column is not for players or parents (thought they're welcome to read along). This one is for you, coach, the man or woman who has admirably accepted responsibility of teaching this young group of boys or girls (or both). I commend you to taking on such a huge – and often underappreciated – task. And I'm going to ask you to do more. I'm going to ask to you spend a little more time understanding the role of the goaltender.

Keep in mind, I don't make this request lightly, or without understanding all the pressure you folks already face. I'm a youth hockey coach too, and fully aware of the juggling act that it involves. It's time-consuming, and the on-ice challenges are only the tip of the iceberg. But, at the end of the day, we signed on for this, and if we want our team – not just goaltender, but the entire team – to be successful, we should pay more attention to the kids who get between the pipes.

Because, typically, we don't. Instead, here's what I've found in my two decades of coaching. Most hockey coaches want to hand off the goaltending responsibilities to someone else. Sort of like calling the plumber the second the toilet backs up, instead of getting the plunger yourself.

Now, I realize that, as a goalie coach, I stand to gain from this arrangement. It's not my full-time job, by any means, but I am a professional, and take those responsibilities very seriously. Plus, I love it. And the reality is, the position is so unique that it will always require specific instruction. But that doesn't mean that head coaches can abdicate their own responsibilities in helping develop good goaltenders.

If they do, they risk creating a situation that's like couples in a struggling marriage, when just one spouse goes to counseling. To be effective, both partners need to sign on if they hope to gain any real insights. Likewise, hockey coaches need to design practices that benefit everyone. In short, coaches must do a better job of incorporating goaltenders, which means understanding the unique requirements of the position. That means creating practice plans that feature more realistic drills (and avoiding the dreaded "50 shots in 50 seconds" scenario).

For example, in small-ice scrimmages, allow your goaltenders to tie up the puck. In their lust for non-stop action, coaches are always telling their goalies "Play it! Play it!" Instead, they ought to say "Tie it up." This develops the mindset of gathering the puck (yes, it can be a learned behavior), which will pay dividends in those tight games.

Coaches should also know the basic terminology, and the basic techniques, of goaltending. This would allow them to have goalie-specific warm-ups, instead of having the goalies skating end-to-end with everyone else (which is good for their cardiovascular fitness, but little else). So here's a quick primer:

Getting Square

A huge component to successful goaltending is getting square to the puck. This means facing the puck not just with your eyes and head, but your chest (many coaches refer to having a spotlight on the chest, and shining that light on the puck). When a goalie sets up properly, his shoulders, hips, knees and skates are all equidistant from the puck, presenting the biggest surface area possible.

The Shuffle

This is a surprisingly difficult maneuver to younger, or inexperienced, goaltenders (if you don't believe me, try it yourself). The idea is to move laterally, in your stance, while facing the puck, without opening the hips. The key is keeping the skates (or toes) facing the puck, virtually parallel, and allowing the lead skate (your left, if you're moving to the left) to glide while the trailing leg supplies the power.

The Drop Step

Once known as the T-glide, this move evolved when it proved to be quicker, and more efficient, to drop the leading skate to the heel of the drive skate, forming an "L" before pushing off. So, if a goalie is moving left, the left skate drops back, heel to heel with the right skate, pointing left. This helps open the hips properly, and then the goalie drives off the back, or right, skate toward the left, stopping on the leading skate (not the same skate you pushed off on).

The Butterfly

Often mistaken as a style, the butterfly is really a save technique (i.e. you don't use it all the time). There's a big difference between a well-executed butterfly, and simply flopping to the ice. In the latter, the goalie lets gravity do the work, the arms and butt typically dropping too low, and the stick flying away from the 5-hole. When done correctly, the butterfly is a tight, disciplined move, where the knees are driven to the ice, the butt and hands stay high (allowing the goalie to remain "big"), and the stick stays on the ice, covering the 5-hole. Also, be aware if your young netminder drops too quickly, especially on shots going over the net. The butterfly requires patience (not a strong suit of little 'keepers).

The Butterfly Slide

Another move that proficient goalies make look easy. Youngsters, though, tend to "hop and flop," turning out in a drop-step motion and then jumping to the side. In the butterfly slide, the skates continue to point at the puck, like a shuffle. The lead pad drops to the ice, and the drive legs loads (as in a squat) and pushes off. So, again, if a goalie is moving left, the left knee drops first, the goalie loads the edge of the right skate, and pushes off to the left. When done correctly, the upper body remains quiet, and the stick blade tracks in front, between the skates to cover the space that a goalie must open to push effectively.

The Butterfly Push

In this quick recovery move, the goalie is already down in the butterfly, on his knees. To execute the butterfly push, the goalie lifts the back knee to the chest, setting the edge of the back skate underneath him. This is what he pushes off of. So, if the goalie wants to move to the right, the left knee comes to the chest, the left edge sets underneath, and the goalie pushes off that edge to the right, while keeping the lead pad flush to the ice.

Recovery

A common problem for young goalies is they tend to always recover on the same leg. This is their dominant leg. But as I tell my students, dominant legs are for soccer players, not hockey goalies. The correct recovery leg is predicated by the direction of the puck. And 95 percent of the time, that means recovering on the back leg (which is why I say that goaltending is predominantly rear-wheel drive). If a rebound squirts to the right, the goalie recovers on the left leg, which allows him to push into the direction of the puck. If he recovers on his right leg, all he can do is get straight up, then turn and push. In a game as quick as hockey, that's two moves too many.

The Belfour, or Paddle Down

Perhaps the single most overused maneuver in the game today, and often used incorrectly, the Paddle Down technique was names after Hall of Famer Ed Belfour, who knew how to use it. The concept is sound – when the play is in tight, the paddle down along the ice takes away the bottom of the net. However, far too many goalies use the technique all the time, and usually at the wrong time. In most instances, it's far more preferable keep the stick blade on the ice, in the 5-hole.

Finally, educate yourself. Entire generations, mine included, learned the position almost exclusively via self-taught techniques. I still have my dog-eared copy of Jacques Plante's classic, "Goaltending" (which even featured a chapter with Tony Esposito discussing the radical "V" or "butterfly" style). This tome, though outdated, still is grounded in the bedrock principles that all goalies can benefit from.

Today, though, you've got a slew of web sites (start with USA Hockey) and YouTube clips that can provide the basics and beyond. Other excellent resources include books such as Brian Daccord's "Hockey Goaltending," Francois Allaire's "The Hockey Goalie's Complete Guide," and Jim Corsi's "The Hockey Goalie's Handbook." Daccord and Joe Bertagna, both former goalie coaches for the Boston Bruins, also have top-notch instructional videos that reinforce the fundamentals of the position in easy-to-understand terms.

So hit the books (or the videos), and design a complete practice plan. You owe it to your goaltenders, and your entire team will benefit.

FINIS

Pointers for the stretch-run ...

Hi gang,

I can't believe it's already the last day of February ... Man, the season is just flying by. Still, I wanted to get my monthly column from the New England Hockey Journal posted before March arrives, so here goes. A few critical pointers for goalies, coaches, and parents to keep in mind as the season begins to focus on the playoffs ...

ON SKATING, REBOUNDS, AND TEMPERS ...

February is the month where coaches and players (but coaches specifically) start looking to round their teams into playoff form. And, as most any coach will tell you, a goaltender can make or break a team's fortunes in the post-season. Just this past month, Sports Illustrated's Michael Farber exhumed one of the great adages regarding netminders: "Goaltending is 75 percent of your hockey team, unless you don't have it. Then it's 100 percent."

So, in that vein, I felt it was really important to touch on a few topics that coaches (and parents) ought to keep in mind during the stretch run. Some may sound familiar to my regular readers, but they bear repeating.

Skating

"When do I get to stop some shots?"

I've lost count of how many times I've heard this from young goalies. I don't blame them. Stopping shots is what we're all about, and the reason most kids take up the "tools of ignorance" in the first place. You never want to discourage that attitude.

Plus, skating drills are hard work, and they're potentially boring (although there is some room for creativity). Since most younger kids have the attention span of a hyperactive flea, keeping them engaged, without the added incentive of stopping some shots, can be tricky.

On the other hand, no one picks up a guitar and starts playing like Eric Clapton in the first sitting. Or dances like Fred Astaire (or even Beyonce) without putting in the requisite practice. In fact, the greats ones – musicians, dancers, hockey players – keep practicing, all the time. Expertise, or even competence, isn't something that is simply attained, but constantly nurtured and refined. It's the coach's job to teach goalies that their performance is inextricably tied to their skating ability. Here's why:

The first rule of goaltending is getting to the right place at the right time, in the right stance. The game is played at such a fast pace that, if you can't skate, you'll always be chasing the play. That's losing hockey.

For most positional players, the turning point in their development comes when they can skate and stickhandle at the same time. It is the proverbial "walking and chewing gum" moment. And it's easier said than done. The same holds for goaltenders. Until a goalie can get to the right spot without thinking "how" he's going to get there, he's going to be too slow.

Skating is the position's foundation. Unless a goaltender has a sturdy foundation, the rest of his game quickly falls apart. Coaches should make sure that their young netminders work on their goalie-specific skating technique before every practice.

This doesn't mean the skating drills that everyone else is doing. The old maxim "a goalie has to be one of the best skaters on the team" is true, but it's a very different type of skating. Coaches owe it to their team to understand those differences, and learn how to run a few basic goalie-specific skating drills (if you need some ideas, send me an email).

Rebounds

Shooting drills should be designed to allow the goalies to follow the rebound. Every. Single. Time. I'm constantly amazed to see high-end "elite" teams relentlessly running Old School shooting drills – a full-length dash followed by an uncontested shot – where the goalies are literally getting drilled. I call it my "One in 20 Rule." If you've got 20 kids lined up on the boards, for every shot that each kid takes, the goalie sees 20. At the end of "warm-ups," the poor kid has seen enough rubber to start a tire factory.

This makes no sense. Actually, it's borderline abusive. First, you risk frying the very player who you're counting on to come up big between the pipes. Chances are, they're not warmed up – they're worn down.

Second, players (goalie and shooter alike) don't learn to instinctively follow their rebounds. This has to be second nature, both if you want your team to score, and if you want your goaltender to keep the puck out of the net (this doesn't mean just looking at the rebound, but following it). In the shooting drills I run within a team setting, I always stress getting after the rebounds, for every player.

I'm often dumbfounded, when I come into a new coaching situation, by how some players need to actually be told to go for the rebound. That's a sign of myopic coaching. The mindset to get after rebounds is not a light switch that can be flicked on before a game; it has to be ingrained.

Some coaches avoid emphasizing rebounds because it means the second kid in line actually has to look and make sure the first kid has finished. Coaches see this as inefficient. I see it as discipline (another hallmark of good teams). If you insist on running the "One in 20" drill, get a shooter tutor, and let your goalies work on their skating.

Temper, temper

Teams can be fragile organisms. They consist of 12 to 18 individuals that form a bond over the course of the season, and nothing tests the strength of that bond like playoff hockey. Arguably, the single most important link in that chain is your goalie's demeanor.

If the youngster throws a tantrum every time a puck gets by him (or her), your team is going to get nervous. And nervous hockey players make more mistakes. Which leads to more goals. See where I'm going with this?

I've seen too many talented goaltenders let their teams down because they can't get their act together from the neck up. If a goalie melts down, either in practice or a game, it should be addressed immediately and firmly (though quietly in the first few instances). I like my goalies to be competitive, but never want them to confuse competitive fire with being undisciplined.

Instead, they have to learn to channel that energy in a positive manner. Even if they are absolutely raging inside, they must present a calm, confident appearance. That, like almost anything else regarding the position, takes practice (which is why tantrums should never be tolerated, even at practice).

Both parents and coaches need to be cognizant of this tendency. I once had a young student – now a starter for a D-1 program – tell me, after getting completely flustered and quit during one drill, "I don't do that in a game, coach." I had my doubts. Further, even if he didn't, he's already sowed similar seeds of doubt in the minds of his teammates. If teammates think their netminder is a hothead, they're going to be worried about whether that player can keep it together during a high-stakes game.

Again, doubt is a genuine threat to team chemistry. Nip it in the bud early, while helping your goalie to develop that strong outward persona. Your team will be better, and more competitive, for it.

FINIS

It's not my fault!

"How that puck get in the net?" -Patrick Roy

Hey gang,

Happy New Year, everyone. Since we're in the season of well-intentioned resolutions, I decided to focus on one of the key elements of an elite goaltender: Ownership. These days, seems everyone in society (especially greasy lawyers soliciting credit card "victims" and tax cheats) wants to tell you that "it's not your fault." Taking responsibility is getting more and more rare. But that's exactly what you need to do if you want to be a top-flight goalie. Here's my latest column for the New England Hockey Journal. Let me know what you think.

NOT MY FAULT!

Taking responsibility is a big part of a goalie's job

A few weeks back, I was prepping for a Sunday micro-ice coaching session when one 10-year-old netminder popped out of the dressing room, raring to go. Since we had time to spare, I asked him if he'd played any games that weekend.

"Yep, two," he said.

"How did they go?"

"Not so good. We lost both our games."

"How'd you play?" I asked, knowing wins and losses don't always tell the whole story.

"Well, my defense … "

The poor kid never got another word out. "Whoa, whoa," I interrupted. "That's the wrong answer. A good goalie never blames his defense. I asked you how you played, not the rest of the team."

The youngster just stared back at me, wide-eyed. I understand that my young understudy was only 10, but I also saw it as a perfect teaching moment. Hockey players, and especially goaltenders, are never too young to start learning the indispensable tenets of the game. Chief among hockey's bedrock principles is you need to look in the mirror before pointing fingers. If you're a goalie, that means assuming responsibility for keeping the puck out of the net. Full responsibility. Every … single … time.

That's not always easy. Positional players can shrug off mistakes, because they have the goalie to fall back on. The goalie bears the brunt of those blunders, because when the puck winds up in the net, the goalie is usually the last player it goes past. If it's a weak goal, the talk between the players – sometimes whispers, sometimes nothing quite so subtle – starts. It happens all the time, and it drives me nuts. The "blame game" is a popular pastime in far too many locker rooms.

Worse, coaches and parents occasionally do the same thing, sometimes almost without realizing it. There are two important factors in play here. First, coaches (and parents) should never lay fault for an entire game on the goalie – or anyone else, for that matter – in front of other players, particularly at the youth level (this dynamic does change somewhat at the high school and elite levels, but that's a topic for another column).

That type of criticism can crush a kid. ESPN anchor John Buccigross once wrote that the single most important attribute for a hockey player is confidence. That goes double for goaltenders. But confidence needs to be cultivated. Remember, the goalie doesn't have the same safety net as other players. And as any tightrope walker will tell you, performing without a safety net is a whole lot more nerve-wracking.

Badgering a goaltender for a bad goal isn't going to instill confidence. In fact, it will do just the opposite. A much better approach is to take a quick note of the mistakes that happen – was the goalie off angle, or did the goalie fail to cover a rebound – and then create a practice plan that addresses those shortcomings.

Second, coaches can't lose sight of the big picture. They need to understand the breakdowns in the offensive- and defensive-zone play that resulted in goals, or goal-scoring opportunities, and to assess responsibility correctly and fairly. I've watched more videotape than I care to think about, and believe me, the "fault" for a goal isn't always the final shot, or even the final pass. Listen to any quality hockey color analyst (NESN's Andy Brickley is terrific, as is Eddie Olczyk of Versus/NBC), and you'll typically get a thorough account of how a goal-scoring chance developed. More often than not, it's a mistake that happened two, three, or even four touches before the actual shot on net.

Yet, over and over, I hear coaches focusing on that final instant, and placing the blame squarely on the goaltender. Just a few weeks ago, one coach was telling me how his goaltenders were clearly his team's wink link. So I took a quick peek at the standings for his league, and noticed his squad was tied for dead last in scoring. Obviously, goaltending wasn't his only issue.

Of course, I'm not blind, either. I've coached some teams with pretty suspect goaltending. Interestingly enough, the kids often have a better read on just how good, or bad, their goaltenders are. I've seen defenders raise their games in order to keep shots to a minimum, knowing that's their best chance to win. But I've never allowed kids to point fingers.

Instead, coaches must foster cooperation. The bottom line is that this is a team game, and there's no place on a hockey team for prima donnas, whether at forward, on defense, or in goal. These players are like acid, burning through the tightly knit fabric that is so necessary for team success. They might be talented, or they might just think they're talented. If that player plays defense or offense, their commentary regarding the goaltending (legitimate or otherwise) can be a poison. Likewise, the goalie who thinks a goal is always somebody else's fault is also a huge liability. No matter how talented the players are, they're rarely worth the aggravation.

There are, I'll admit, exceptions. My favorite whiner of all time was Patrick Roy. There's no debating Roy's ability and his resume. The guy is a first-ballot NHL Hall of Famer. In my book, he's also a first-ballot inductee to the Whiner Hall of Shame. My most enduring memories of Roy are of Saint Patrick, slumped on the ice with the red light glaring behind him, raising his gloves and eyeballing his defenders as if to announce to anyone watching: "That goal wasn't my fault."

Roy got away with his on-ice antics for one simple reason. He was a tremendous goaltender, probably one of the Top Ten of all time (my own Fab Four includes Glenn Hall, Vladislav Tretiak, Tony Esposito, and Dominik Hasek, in no particular order). Roy was also a "me first" guy of the first order. Unless young goaltenders can play at Roy's level, they shouldn't even think about showing up their teammates. (Roy was still a jerk, but it's hard to argue with his accomplishments. Still, there's a "right way" to win and a "wrong way.")

What's more, it rarely happens in reverse. Think about it – When was the last time you saw a player publicly berate his or her goaltender? It almost never happens. Now, in private, and behind the goalie's back, is another matter entirely. This is when parents and coaches play a critical role in making sure goaltenders aren't singled out. Teams win together, and lose together.

All that said, goalies can't forget that they are the proverbial last line of defense. It's their job to make up for mistakes by other players, and to make sure they stop the puck. And part of the job description is "ownership." The sooner a goalie realizes and accepts this basic truth, the better. The goalie is the safety net. End of story.

For coaches and parents, it's essential to develop that mindset right from the get-go. Excuses are like a virus – give them a warm, welcoming environment, and they'll spread like wildfire. Soon, you'll have a full-blown epidemic on your hands.

Furthermore, excuses can become a crutch, replacing hard work and the drive to improve. Without that drive, a young goalie is going to start giving up more goals, and will need to find even more excuses. That's not a formula for success.

FINIS