Hockey Training Centers

[WB6162]

http://www.twincities.com/ci_17245379?nclick_check=1

Hockey associations, cities consider 'dry-land' training sites for all to afford
Associations, cities consider opening less-expensive training sites for all
By Nick Ferraro
nferraro@pioneerpress.com
Updated: 01/30/2011 11:24:08 PM CST

The entire Apple Valley Squirt "C" hockey team showed up for its practice last Wednesday. And there was no ice to be found.

Their coach, Tim Wehner, wasn't surprised. He's come to expect a good turnout when it's their turn inside Apple Valley Hockey's Training Center — a 4,500-square-foot facility built in time for last season. It's designed to make players stronger, quicker, faster through off-ice workouts.

"I get better participation here than on the ice," said Wehner, who, along with assistant coaches, runs the weekly "dry-land" workouts for the 9- and 10-year-old boys.

The center — in leased space between a carpet company and a granite-countertop store — ensures that all of the association's 400 or so players get organized dry-land training, not just those whose parents can pay for it at private, for-profit operations, said President Tim Everson. Teams use one weekly 75-minute training session instead of an hour of ice time.

Dry-land training is the buzzword among hockey associations, insiders say, and it's motivating them to build their own facilities or partner with cities to set aside space in existing arenas.

Eagan opened a dry-land training area in its Civic Arena this month as part of a larger rink renovation project. Cost for the space will be paid for through rental fees the city will charge to the Eagan Hockey Association over about 15 years, said Mark Vaughan, who manages the arena.

The Hastings Hockey Association plans to begin a campaign soon to raise $375,000 to build a 4,000-square-foot training facility on city-owned land near its Civic Arena. The Hastings City Council passed a resolution this month supporting the effort.
Parents are feeling increasing pressure to pay for off-ice workouts, said Marc Chorney, director of the Bantam teams, who notes for-profit training centers are now in many neighboring communities.

"I tell my 13-year-old to just go stick-handle and shoot pucks in the garage, and he does some of that," said Chorney, who played in the NHL. "But you can definitely pick up the kids on the ice who go to these places — they're better, farther advanced."

Hastings Hockey needs to respond to stay competitive, Chorney said.

"What I said to the boosters is that if I ran my own business the same way I did 10 years ago, I would be broke," he said. "You have to change if you want to keep up with the Joneses."

NO SUBSTITUTE

One night last week at Total Hockey, Lakeville North Pee-Wee players in tennis shoes fired pucks at nets that lit up when certain spots were hit. Other players took turns skating up a ramp of artificial ice to improve their quickness.

Kirk Olson, Total Hockey's general manager, said the downtown Lakeville operation draws players from all over the area. Its biggest customer is the Lakeville Hockey Association, which is sending more than 40 teams to Total Hockey for dry-land training this season.

Other similar businesses have sprung up in Apple Valley; Stillwater; Hudson, Wis.; and elsewhere in recent years.

"The competition is thick," said Olson, a former Wild strength and conditioning coach.

Total Hockey charges about $40 an hour for off-ice training, Olson said. The Lakeville teams incorporate the cost into association dues, he said.

"I think we keep things here pretty cost-effective," he said.

Jack Blatherwick is a physiologist for the Washington Capitals who for four decades has been teaching off-ice training to hockey players and coaches across the United States. He said dry-land training can be done cheaply by youth coaches.

"Think of all the things you can do with a sandbag on your shoulders — you can jump, do side-to-side lunges and squats. It doesn't need to be expensive," he said.

This past summer, Blatherwick, who lives in St. Paul, helped convert the Wild's former practice locker room and storage area at Parade Ice Arena in Minneapolis into a dry-land space for kids. Other rinks should look for similar space, he said.

"In my opinion, every youth practice should either begin or end with some dry-land training practice," he said. "And that can be done in arenas by finding wasted space."

Hal Tearse, coach in chief for Minnesota Hockey, agrees that there is value in putting kids through dry-land training. But he believes some associations are going that route as a way to substitute expensive ice time.

"How much value there is to it, nobody really knows," he said. "But it seems to be the trend. It's also a lot cheaper than building a new ice rink, which is five million bucks."

The best resource is free for kids and associations, he said.

"From my perspective, they'd be much better off going to the outdoor rink and playing shinny hockey," he said. "I drive around communities and I see all this great ice with no one on it. ... There's no substitute for ice time, none whatsoever."

PARENTS BACK IT

Everson, Apple Valley Hockey's president, said they went ahead with the training center after a survey of parents showed support for it.

The cost to convert the vacant warehouse space and equip it was about $70,000 — money generated from the association's pull-tab and bingo operations, Everson said.

Team fees keep the doors open, he said, noting it doesn't cost parents any more because the one hour on the ice the training replaces would be more expensive.

"We didn't do this in addition to what they were doing already," he said. "I bought less ice this year than I did in the previous years because I know each week one of their practices is going to be at that facility."

Parents are on board with that philosophy, he said.

"You're always going to have a few naysayers that say we need more ice and this isn't enough," he said. "But to be quite honest with you, the majority of the people like it for the simple fact that the kids are able to work on specific skill sets that you aren't able to do on the ice in a one-hour scenario."

Parent Dee Dee Buzay-Southwick is in that camp.

"I like it because it seems like they get more one-on-one attention here," she said after dropping off her 9-year-old son, Tyler, on Wednesday. "And my son loves it here. He loves hockey."

Wehner, the Squirt coach, said the only complaint he hears from parents is that the center's synthetic ice dulls their kids' skates. He said he likes that it provides more of a "classroom environment" to coach.

"These guys need fundamentals at this age, and we can work on specific things here with skates on and without skates," he said. "When they're done, they're sweated out. So they're getting a good workout, for sure."

Nick Ferraro can be reached at 651-228-2173.

[spin-o-rama]

dryland in Jan? When there is outdoor ice?
No thanks.

[old goalie85]

I agree, give the kids the night off. Let them go to the rink.

[Scout716]

I wonder how many of these "Training Centers" are located way up North? I would assume thise kids build skills by just showing up to an Outdoor rink, under no structure, and just having fun.

[WB6162]

I agree with the responses. I think the kids are getting over-trained. Sometimes I think they are looking like robots out there, when they should be playing rink rat hockey and learning to be creative. Just watch some of the Varsity teams, their defensemen do the same exact thing every rush, you can almost set your watch by it.

My son plays Junior Gold hockey because he just couldn't give up the time needed to play varsity in his private school. Junior Gold is great hockey, not up to the skill level of varsity but at least the kids are creative out there. Many of them played C, B or B1 as kids-didn't receive all the training. Lot's of pick up hockey games and rink rat time.

It makes the games more fun to watch. They make mistakes-lots of them and that's what makes it interesting.