Lets Play Hockey Article- Anders Lee and his Development

[green4]

Kind of a cool article on Anders Lee and his recent success. They talk about how in this day of age, he has developed unconventionally by actually taking his time and not rushing things.
He talks about how playing multiple sports, staying in high school and only playing hockey 4 months out of the year during his youth has brought him to this level.... So basically the exact opposite of what kids are doing now.

Enough of my brief summarization, have a look for yourselves.

http://www.letsplayhockey.com/online-ed ... hlete.html

[foil_up]

Kind of a cool article on Anders Lee and his recent success. They talk about how in this day of age, he has developed unconventionally by actually taking his time and not rushing things.
He talks about how playing multiple sports, staying in high school and only playing hockey 4 months out of the year during his youth has brought him to this level.... So basically the exact opposite of what kids are doing now.

Enough of my brief summarization, have a look for yourselves.

http://www.letsplayhockey.com/online-ed ... hlete.html

Good read.

I believe that most professional athletes are cut from a similar cloth, as what Anders is cut from. 1/1,000,000 kinds of humans, that happen to possess the qualities and traits that will allow them to be successful as professional athletes.

However, I also believe there are humans that sit "on the bubble", who's success will only be determined by their effort. They don't possess (and never will) the same God given stuff that Anders has. For those athletes, being a part-timer in a particular sport, won't work.

I guess my point is, Anders approach will apply to a certain portion of athletes, but won't work for those who lack the freakish athletic abilities he has.

For that second group, welcome to year round hockey.

[The Exiled One]

I'm inclined to believe Anders Lee as he's telling the same story as every NHL'er I've ever spoken with. Multi-sport is the way to go. Disagree if you want, but I think I'll side with them until I hear differently from an NHL'er.

[DanFromWoodbury]

I think Green is saying that Anders Lee excelled because of only playing 4 months a year. I could be wrong, don't want to put words in Green's mouth. But the mental and psych pieces of a player in his formative years shouldn't be overlooked. I remember more than one kid who seemed to have all the tools when we were kids to get to elite levels of hockey but just was just burned out from the pressure, mainly applied by parents and coaches. My two cents.

[DanFromWoodbury]

I'm inclined to believe Anders Lee as he's telling the same story as every NHL'er I've ever spoken with. Multi-sport is the way to go. Disagree if you want, but I think I'll side with them until I hear differently from an NHL'er.

Yep

[Sats81]

However, I also believe there are humans that sit "on the bubble", who's success will only be determined by their effort. They don't possess (and never will) the same God given stuff that Anders has. For those athletes, being a part-timer in a particular sport, won't work.

I guess my point is, Anders approach will apply to a certain portion of athletes, but won't work for those who lack the freakish athletic abilities he has.

For that second group, welcome to year round hockey.

Very well said, and all true. Couldn't agree more.

[green4]

I think Green is saying that Anders Lee excelled because of only playing 4 months a year. I could be wrong, don't want to put words in Green's mouth. But the mental and psych pieces of a player in his formative years shouldn't be overlooked. I remember more than one kid who seemed to have all the tools when we were kids to get to elite levels of hockey but just was just burned out from the pressure, mainly applied by parents and coaches. My two cents.

I think if you want to play 4 months of hockey that is great, if you want to play year round that is fine too. But, I think a kid should not give up other sports to obtain that year round life style. I played many sports growing up and I think that is the most important part of it.

[Sats81]

I think Green is saying that Anders Lee excelled because of only playing 4 months a year. I could be wrong, don't want to put words in Green's mouth. But the mental and psych pieces of a player in his formative years shouldn't be overlooked. I remember more than one kid who seemed to have all the tools when we were kids to get to elite levels of hockey but just was just burned out from the pressure, mainly applied by parents and coaches. My two cents.

I think if you want to play 4 months of hockey that is great, if you want to play year round that is fine too. But, I think a kid should not give up other sports to obtain that year round life style. I played many sports growing up and I think that is the most important part of it.

No one is denying that. The point he is trying to make, and I concur, is unless you are blessed naturally with INCREDIBLE god given athletic genes the chances of you playing anything even D-1 on up is slim to none if you were to only play 1/3 of the year. I am all about developing kids athleticism, playing multiple sports, aiding in better coordination, balance, etc. Just think it would be more than difficult in this day and age to only play 4 months out of the year and make it...we are seeing less and less and less of this these days.

[green4]

I think Green is saying that Anders Lee excelled because of only playing 4 months a year. I could be wrong, don't want to put words in Green's mouth. But the mental and psych pieces of a player in his formative years shouldn't be overlooked. I remember more than one kid who seemed to have all the tools when we were kids to get to elite levels of hockey but just was just burned out from the pressure, mainly applied by parents and coaches. My two cents.

I think if you want to play 4 months of hockey that is great, if you want to play year round that is fine too. But, I think a kid should not give up other sports to obtain that year round life style. I played many sports growing up and I think that is the most important part of it.

No one is denying that. The point he is trying to make, and I concur, is unless you are blessed naturally with INCREDIBLE god given athletic genes the chances of you playing anything even D-1 on up is slim to none if you were to only play 1/3 of the year. I am all about developing kids athleticism, playing multiple sports, aiding in better coordination, balance, etc. Just think it would be more than difficult in this day and age to only play 4 months out of the year and make it...we are seeing less and less and less of this these days.

I don't know what you are talking about Sats..... DanfromWoodbury wrote what he thought I was implying and I tried to clear it up. Your post makes it seem like I created some type of rebuttal.
All I meant by the original post was to summarize the article. I then mentioned in a second post how in my eyes, I think it is important for kids to play multiple sports.

I will argue your point now, however, when you are 10 years old, you should not be devoting your time to one sport hoping for a future in it. You should be having fun with your friends doing a bunch of different activities. When did it just become about playing hockey collegiately or professionally instead about having fun?

[Sats81]

I think if you want to play 4 months of hockey that is great, if you want to play year round that is fine too. But, I think a kid should not give up other sports to obtain that year round life style. I played many sports growing up and I think that is the most important part of it.

No one is denying that. The point he is trying to make, and I concur, is unless you are blessed naturally with INCREDIBLE god given athletic genes the chances of you playing anything even D-1 on up is slim to none if you were to only play 1/3 of the year. I am all about developing kids athleticism, playing multiple sports, aiding in better coordination, balance, etc. Just think it would be more than difficult in this day and age to only play 4 months out of the year and make it...we are seeing less and less and less of this these days.

I don't know what you are talking about Sats..... DanfromWoodbury wrote what he thought I was implying and I tried to clear it up. Your post makes it seem like I created some type of rebuttal.
All I meant by the original post was to summarize the article. I then mentioned in a second post how in my eyes, I think it is important for kids to play multiple sports.

I will argue your point now, however, when you are 10 years old, you should not be devoting your time to one sport hoping for a future in it. You should be having fun with your friends doing a bunch of different activities. When did it just become about playing hockey collegiately or professionally instead about having fun?

It is important for kids to play multiple sports, each sport offers its own unique aspect that aids in development of other sports. I never said you should be devoting your time to just one sport as a 10 year old.

What I am trying to say is a lot of people will take this article the wrong way, thinking: "Oh, look little Johnny, Anders Lee is in the NHL and he only played hockey 4 months out of the year." Anders Lee is a freak, his athletic ability is 1 in a million and while I agree that him playing multiple sports and excelling in all of them, even in HS made him a better hockey player indeed, it wouldn't have mattered what an athlete of his caliber and genetics did. He would have played at a high level regardless. This is becoming more and more rare. He is a dying breed.

Could you please share some more Curt Giles feel good stories?

[foil_up]

I'm inclined to believe Anders Lee as he's telling the same story as every NHL'er I've ever spoken with. Multi-sport is the way to go. Disagree if you want, but I think I'll side with them until I hear differently from an NHL'er.

Ever spoken with these "year round hockey guys"?

Sidney Crosby
Patrick Kane
Taylor Hall
Throw in the MN Made '88's, for good measure.

Most played hockey for 10 months+ out of the year, most starting at the age of 13-14. Sure they mixed in baseball and soccer, but they didn't play hockey for just four months!

There are lots of examples to draw from, of NHL guys who didn't take 8 months off as youth players.

Today's reality is, in a high skill sport such as hockey, the job of most professional players starts at a young age and quickly becomes a year round activity.

But, don't take my word for it. Give Sid a call and ask him.

[green4]

No one is denying that. The point he is trying to make, and I concur, is unless you are blessed naturally with INCREDIBLE god given athletic genes the chances of you playing anything even D-1 on up is slim to none if you were to only play 1/3 of the year. I am all about developing kids athleticism, playing multiple sports, aiding in better coordination, balance, etc. Just think it would be more than difficult in this day and age to only play 4 months out of the year and make it...we are seeing less and less and less of this these days.

I don't know what you are talking about Sats..... DanfromWoodbury wrote what he thought I was implying and I tried to clear it up. Your post makes it seem like I created some type of rebuttal.
All I meant by the original post was to summarize the article. I then mentioned in a second post how in my eyes, I think it is important for kids to play multiple sports.

I will argue your point now, however, when you are 10 years old, you should not be devoting your time to one sport hoping for a future in it. You should be having fun with your friends doing a bunch of different activities. When did it just become about playing hockey collegiately or professionally instead about having fun?

Could you please share some more Curt Giles feel good stories?

It's funny when you use sarcasm in a way that reflects that your a little ticked off because you couldn't grasp my basic response and thus required me to explain it to you like a 5 year old. I really was just trying to summerize the piece so people would read it, but You really made something out of nothing here.
The other interesting thing is how exaggerated you made Lee's Athleticism to prove your point. It's clear you probably have not seen him play much recently.
He was a good hockey and football player, good enough for college. He was an average high school baseball player, nothing too special. He picked hockey over football and then worked really hard to become a professional athelete.
He is no Jim Thorpe or Bo Jackson, he's not even as athletic as Datsyuk, Crosby or His teammate Tavaras.
Watch him play, he stands right in front of the net and gets a lot of hard working, dirty goals.

[old goalie85]

I think Budish played football as well. Who was the third player on that line ?

[green4]

I think Budish played football as well. Who was the third player on that line ?

Marshall Everson, not sure if he played other sports.
Budish is the famous one that messed up his knee playing football and since then a lot of Edina hockey kids stay away from other contact sports

[Sats81]

I think Budish played football as well. Who was the third player on that line ?

Budish did. All-State LB, believe he tore his ACL his Sr year also prior to hockey season, thus missing entire sr yr of hockey...another reason we see less and less 3 sport or even 2 sport athletes that are high end hockey players too....(Nick and Jack Poehling and Jack Sadek were 3 of the best football players in their grade but made a decision in 8th/9th grade that they were committing their lives to playing hockey, and although they would have been great HS football players, the risk of being injured playing football was just too high)..

Marshall Everson was 3rd player on Lee Budish line....

[old goalie85]

Thaxs Green !! That was the best pee-wee line I ever saw !!

[GoldenBear]

This is good! sats and green setting all of us up for an Edina North cage match discussion precursory state tournament finals! This is just the first three rounds of sparring. Can't wait until the late rounds. Let me grab some popcorn and sit back and enjoy! Elliot don't be the third man in! GLTA GB.

[Sats81]

I don't know what you are talking about Sats..... DanfromWoodbury wrote what he thought I was implying and I tried to clear it up. Your post makes it seem like I created some type of rebuttal.
All I meant by the original post was to summarize the article. I then mentioned in a second post how in my eyes, I think it is important for kids to play multiple sports.

I will argue your point now, however, when you are 10 years old, you should not be devoting your time to one sport hoping for a future in it. You should be having fun with your friends doing a bunch of different activities. When did it just become about playing hockey collegiately or professionally instead about having fun?

Could you please share some more Curt Giles feel good stories?

It's funny when you use sarcasm in a way that reflects that your a little ticked off because you couldn't grasp my basic response and thus required me to explain it to you like a 5 year old. I really was just trying to summerize the piece so people would read it, but You really made something out of nothing here.
The other interesting thing is how exaggerated you made Lee's Athleticism to prove your point. It's clear you probably have not seen him play much recently.
He was a good hockey and football player, good enough for college. He was an average high school baseball player, nothing too special. He picked hockey over football and then worked really hard to become a professional athelete.
He is no Jim Thorpe or Bo Jackson, he's not even as athletic as Datsyuk, Crosby or His teammate Tavaras.
Watch him play, he stands right in front of the net and gets a lot of hard working, dirty goals.

This paragraph right here proves how very LITTLE you know. You obviously don't realize the level of athletic ability ANY professional athlete has. Of every kid who ever laces them up at the youth level less than .01% will ever even play what scouts deem as a meaningful (D-1 or above) hockey game. Lee is very elite. For him to be playing at the level he is in this day and age is special. He was much better than a "good" hockey player, kids that are just "good" don't get D1 scholarships or get drafted. Kids that are just "good" can't skate like they are in the NHL when they are 6'3" 220 lbs. It doesnt work like that green4. So thats it? Just stand right in front of the net, and you get "a lot of hard working, dirty goals?" Sounds like a "good" formula for success!

F

[observer]

A 10 year old is different than a 15 year old. Mix it up all you want when they're young. At 15 there are decisions to be made and 3 sports won't be it. Player falls behind quickly if he's not skating year round.

[green4]

Could you please share some more Curt Giles feel good stories?

It's funny when you use sarcasm in a way that reflects that your a little ticked off because you couldn't grasp my basic response and thus required me to explain it to you like a 5 year old. I really was just trying to summerize the piece so people would read it, but You really made something out of nothing here.
The other interesting thing is how exaggerated you made Lee's Athleticism to prove your point. It's clear you probably have not seen him play much recently.
He was a good hockey and football player, good enough for college. He was an average high school baseball player, nothing too special. He picked hockey over football and then worked really hard to become a professional athelete.
He is no Jim Thorpe or Bo Jackson, he's not even as athletic as Datsyuk, Crosby or His teammate Tavaras.
Watch him play, he stands right in front of the net and gets a lot of hard working, dirty goals.

This paragraph right here proves how very LITTLE you know. You obviously don't realize the level of athletic ability ANY professional athlete has. Of every kid who ever laces them up at the youth level less than .01% will ever even play what scouts deem as a meaningful (D-1 or above) hockey game. Lee is very elite. For him to be playing at the level he is in this day and age is special. He was much better than a "good" hockey player, kids that are just "good" don't get D1 scholarships or get drafted. Kids that are just "good" can't skate like they are in the NHL when they are 6'3" 220 lbs. It doesnt work like that green4. So thats it? Just stand right in front of the net, and you get "a lot of hard working, dirty goals?" Sounds like a "good" formula for success!

F

Plenty of kids that are just "good" and get scholarships for D1 hockey, look at the poehling brothers
But, no you are right, he is better than good, I was just simplifying it for you after you struggled with that one post. Anders was a great hockey player in high school, but he worked very hard to become elite. You made him sound like an athletic freak, 1 in a million person. But he plays with Leddy who he lost the Mr. Hockey to, is he a 1 in a million too? How about Brock Nelson?
Of course Anders is talented and atheltic, but if you watch the way he plays, he does not rely on his athleticism but rather utilizes hard work and determination.

[keepyourheadup]

Just one guys opinion but I'm not convinced that a kid needs to concentrate solely on one sport in order to to achieve his goal of being a professional. I think its more about a system that is now in place to accelerate kids to their maximum potential as young as possible.

As stated in an earlier thread the vast majority of kids that make the NHL are supremely gifted athletes, as hard as the average kid tries or as much as he concentrates on just one sport it does very little to close the gap between himself and the gifted kid. The rub is that by playing 10 months a year, it allows too many kids to believe they have what it takes because they've developed a particular skill while the gifted kid has spread his time and ability on multiple sport/skill development. I guess my point is:

Kid X has a genetic ceiling that will preclude him from ever being a truly elite athlete. He can actually convince himself that there is a chance by racing to a lead much like the tortoise and the Hare.

Kid Y, by virtue of a good given gift, can wait till he's 17 or 18 to pick a sport and still catch up and far surpass kid X.

Sid Crosby, Patrick Kane....sure they played all the time but THEY are Kid Y. I'm sure either one could have played 3 sports in HS and then picked hockey and by the time they were 28-29 years old they would be pretty much the same player either way. I believe they would have maximized their potential either way.

Now if you're talking about making it to D1 in college I'd think you could make a pretty compelling argument that concentrating early will indeed give you the head start you need over the competition. How could it not help when we now have bantams being offered scholarships.

[Sats81]

It's funny when you use sarcasm in a way that reflects that your a little ticked off because you couldn't grasp my basic response and thus required me to explain it to you like a 5 year old. I really was just trying to summerize the piece so people would read it, but You really made something out of nothing here.
The other interesting thing is how exaggerated you made Lee's Athleticism to prove your point. It's clear you probably have not seen him play much recently.
He was a good hockey and football player, good enough for college. He was an average high school baseball player, nothing too special. He picked hockey over football and then worked really hard to become a professional athelete.
He is no Jim Thorpe or Bo Jackson, he's not even as athletic as Datsyuk, Crosby or His teammate Tavaras.
Watch him play, he stands right in front of the net and gets a lot of hard working, dirty goals.

This paragraph right here proves how very LITTLE you know. You obviously don't realize the level of athletic ability ANY professional athlete has. Of every kid who ever laces them up at the youth level less than .01% will ever even play what scouts deem as a meaningful (D-1 or above) hockey game. Lee is very elite. For him to be playing at the level he is in this day and age is special. He was much better than a "good" hockey player, kids that are just "good" don't get D1 scholarships or get drafted. Kids that are just "good" can't skate like they are in the NHL when they are 6'3" 220 lbs. It doesnt work like that green4. So thats it? Just stand right in front of the net, and you get "a lot of hard working, dirty goals?" Sounds like a "good" formula for success!

F

Plenty of kids that are just "good" and get scholarships for D1 hockey, look at the poehling brothers
But, no you are right, he is better than good, I was just simplifying it for you after you struggled with that one post. Anders was a great hockey player in high school, but he worked very hard to become elite. You made him sound like an athletic freak, 1 in a million person. But he plays with Leddy who he lost the Mr. Hockey to, is he a 1 in a million too? How about Brock Nelson?
Of course Anders is talented and atheltic, but if you watch the way he plays, he does not rely on his athleticism but rather utilizes hard work and determination.

If you look at the statistics of all kids who "try" and play hockey, or play growing up, it is EXTREMELY rare for anyone to play D1 or beyond. Leddy and Brock Nelson are very elite hockey players. Anyone who argues that is crazy. No one is denying that Anders Lee doesn't play with hard work and determination. When you get to the level of the NHL EVERYONE is talented. EVERYONE is hard working and determined. While his game is centered more around being a power forward guy who is going to make his living in front of the net, anyone who knows anything about the game will tell you to even be the "guy who is a power forward in the NHL" has to have a excellent athletic skillset to begin with. He's playing with the best players in the world. No matter how hard you work or how much sweat you put into it, you simply wont make it to that level without having great genetics to start with.

[goldy313]

I was waiting until Sats pulled how great the Poehlings are into this......

[stromboli]

This paragraph right here proves how very LITTLE you know. You obviously don't realize the level of athletic ability ANY professional athlete has. Of every kid who ever laces them up at the youth level less than .01% will ever even play what scouts deem as a meaningful (D-1 or above) hockey game. Lee is very elite. For him to be playing at the level he is in this day and age is special. He was much better than a "good" hockey player, kids that are just "good" don't get D1 scholarships or get drafted. Kids that are just "good" can't skate like they are in the NHL when they are 6'3" 220 lbs. It doesnt work like that green4. So thats it? Just stand right in front of the net, and you get "a lot of hard working, dirty goals?" Sounds like a "good" formula for success!

F

Plenty of kids that are just "good" and get scholarships for D1 hockey, look at the poehling brothers
But, no you are right, he is better than good, I was just simplifying it for you after you struggled with that one post. Anders was a great hockey player in high school, but he worked very hard to become elite. You made him sound like an athletic freak, 1 in a million person. But he plays with Leddy who he lost the Mr. Hockey to, is he a 1 in a million too? How about Brock Nelson?
Of course Anders is talented and atheltic, but if you watch the way he plays, he does not rely on his athleticism but rather utilizes hard work and determination.

If you look at the statistics of all kids who "try" and play hockey, or play growing up, it is EXTREMELY rare for anyone to play D1 or beyond. Leddy and Brock Nelson are very elite hockey players. Anyone who argues that is crazy. No one is denying that Anders Lee doesn't play with hard work and determination. When you get to the level of the NHL EVERYONE is talented. EVERYONE is hard working and determined. While his game is centered more around being a power forward guy who is going to make his living in front of the net, anyone who knows anything about the game will tell you to even be the "guy who is a power forward in the NHL" has to have a excellent athletic skillset to begin with. He's playing with the best players in the world. No matter how hard you work or how much sweat you put into it, you simply wont make it to that level without having great genetics to start with.

Subconsciously looking for a compliment?

[green4]

This paragraph right here proves how very LITTLE you know. You obviously don't realize the level of athletic ability ANY professional athlete has. Of every kid who ever laces them up at the youth level less than .01% will ever even play what scouts deem as a meaningful (D-1 or above) hockey game. Lee is very elite. For him to be playing at the level he is in this day and age is special. He was much better than a "good" hockey player, kids that are just "good" don't get D1 scholarships or get drafted. Kids that are just "good" can't skate like they are in the NHL when they are 6'3" 220 lbs. It doesnt work like that green4. So thats it? Just stand right in front of the net, and you get "a lot of hard working, dirty goals?" Sounds like a "good" formula for success!

F

Plenty of kids that are just "good" and get scholarships for D1 hockey, look at the poehling brothers
But, no you are right, he is better than good, I was just simplifying it for you after you struggled with that one post. Anders was a great hockey player in high school, but he worked very hard to become elite. You made him sound like an athletic freak, 1 in a million person. But he plays with Leddy who he lost the Mr. Hockey to, is he a 1 in a million too? How about Brock Nelson?
Of course Anders is talented and atheltic, but if you watch the way he plays, he does not rely on his athleticism but rather utilizes hard work and determination.

If you look at the statistics of all kids who "try" and play hockey, or play growing up, it is EXTREMELY rare for anyone to play D1 or beyond. Leddy and Brock Nelson are very elite hockey players. Anyone who argues that is crazy. No one is denying that Anders Lee doesn't play with hard work and determination. When you get to the level of the NHL EVERYONE is talented. EVERYONE is hard working and determined. While his game is centered more around being a power forward guy who is going to make his living in front of the net, anyone who knows anything about the game will tell you to even be the "guy who is a power forward in the NHL" has to have a excellent athletic skillset to begin with. He's playing with the best players in the world. No matter how hard you work or how much sweat you put into it, you simply wont make it to that level without having great genetics to start with.

I agree with all of this, they are all unique and great talents.
What I was arguing was the literal phrase that you used "1 in a million"
I can take some blame for that, as I am a very literal person, but you have 3 one in a million players on one team coming from a state of only 5 million. You throw in the rest of the current and past NHL players who are alive and taken from the population demographic, we are looking at like 100 1 in a million people.
That was my latest point, over exaggeration.