Centennial/ Blaine/ Anoka youth programs

[jBlaze3000]

What is it about these programs that they are consitently able to put quality teams on ice at all levels of youth hockey on up to their HS programs?

I'm a parent of a Squirt player in the Champlin Youth Hockey Association and it amazes me that every time I pick up a copy of "Let's Play Hockey" these associations have ranked teams from HS on down. What makes the difference for them? I know in Champlin it is not an issue of lack of effort or not caring but I do have a theory:

What frustrates me abut our association is the amount of time spent on strategy as opposed to actually skating. Our practices usually consist of a 10 minute warm up and then it's off to half-ice drills which involve a lot of standing around. IMO the main priorities at Squirt practices should be:

1. Skating fast
2. Skating fast with the puck
3. Passing
4. Mastering the basics of positioning (nothing too technical)

I'm curious as to what the focus of practice is for these successful associations and what sets them apart. Any thoughts?

[Chuck Norris Fan]

What is it about these programs that they are consitently able to put quality teams on ice at all levels of youth hockey on up to their HS programs?

I'm a parent of a Squirt player in the Champlin Youth Hockey Association and it amazes me that every time I pick up a copy of "Let's Play Hockey" these associations have ranked teams from HS on down. What makes the difference for them? I know in Champlin it is not an issue of lack of effort or not caring but I do have a theory:

What frustrates me abut our association is the amount of time spent on strategy as opposed to actually skating. Our practices usually consist of a 10 minute warm up and then it's off to half-ice drills which involve a lot of standing around. IMO the main priorities at Squirt practices should be:

1. Skating fast
2. Skating fast with the puck
3. Passing
4. Mastering the basics of positioning (nothing too technical)

I'm curious as to what the focus of practice is for these successful associations and what sets them apart. Any thoughts?

#1 Coaching. Champlin's Bantam A team had everything needed to win a title or at least compete for one last year, however the coaching staff never got the kids playing the way they needed. IMO they were the best team in player talent in District 10 last year, yet St. Cloud won the district and Centennial was in the state title game.

[jBlaze3000]

Thanks for the reply. Are there more paid coaches at other associations or do they train them more or are they just lucky to have good coaches. I know within the Champlin association there are a lot of coaches that were succesful players (played college hockey at North Dakota, UMD,etc.) but obviously that doesn't always translate into good coaching.

[BlackTape]

Your practices should be all about skills skills skills. Their should be very little systems taking up practice time. If you can't skate, pass, or shoot it doesn't matter what system you run.

IMO Anoka should be taken off the list and St. Cloud and Elk River should be added as tough teams in the district.

[jBlaze3000]

Your practices should be all about skills skills skills. Their should be very little systems taking up practice time. If you can't skate, pass, or shoot it doesn't matter what system you run.

IMO Anoka should be taken off the list and St. Cloud and Elk River should be added as tough teams in the district.

I haven't seen much of St. Cloud but you're right that ER has a good program too. Anoka is definitely 3rd amongst the 3 programs that I mentioned. I just sat through an 8-0 blowout against one of Blaine's B teams (we lost) and I am getting increasingly tired of watching our team getting out skated. Skills, skills, skills is right, it's too bad our coaches don't seem to understand that.

[MnPride2]

What is it about these programs that they are consitently able to put quality teams on ice at all levels of youth hockey on up to their HS programs?

I'm a parent of a Squirt player in the Champlin Youth Hockey Association and it amazes me that every time I pick up a copy of "Let's Play Hockey" these associations have ranked teams from HS on down. What makes the difference for them? I know in Champlin it is not an issue of lack of effort or not caring but I do have a theory:

What frustrates me abut our association is the amount of time spent on strategy as opposed to actually skating. Our practices usually consist of a 10 minute warm up and then it's off to half-ice drills which involve a lot of standing around. IMO the main priorities at Squirt practices should be:

1. Skating fast
2. Skating fast with the puck
3. Passing
4. Mastering the basics of positioning (nothing too technical)

I'm curious as to what the focus of practice is for these successful associations and what sets them apart. Any thoughts?

Rankings don`t mean squat!!! Win it all then D10 can talk,they may look great against other D10 teams...wait till they get down and play some D6 teams... been there first hand for the last 6-7 yrs,close,but no cigar,ain`t got the man power to get it done.

[MnPride2]

What is it about these programs that they are consitently able to put quality teams on ice at all levels of youth hockey on up to their HS programs?

I'm a parent of a Squirt player in the Champlin Youth Hockey Association and it amazes me that every time I pick up a copy of "Let's Play Hockey" these associations have ranked teams from HS on down. What makes the difference for them? I know in Champlin it is not an issue of lack of effort or not caring but I do have a theory:

What frustrates me abut our association is the amount of time spent on strategy as opposed to actually skating. Our practices usually consist of a 10 minute warm up and then it's off to half-ice drills which involve a lot of standing around. IMO the main priorities at Squirt practices should be:

1. Skating fast
2. Skating fast with the puck
3. Passing
4. Mastering the basics of positioning (nothing too technical)

I'm curious as to what the focus of practice is for these successful associations and what sets them apart. Any thoughts?

#1 Coaching. Champlin's Bantam A team had everything needed to win a title or at least compete for one last year, however the coaching staff never got the kids playing the way they needed. IMO they were the best team in player talent in District 10 last year, yet St. Cloud won the district and Centennial was in the state title game.

Champlins A Bantam last year can blame their misfortune on their coaches,play the same 5 kids over and over again...lose when you need to win...districts,watched it happen.

[jBlaze3000]

What is it about these programs that they are consitently able to put quality teams on ice at all levels of youth hockey on up to their HS programs?

I'm a parent of a Squirt player in the Champlin Youth Hockey Association and it amazes me that every time I pick up a copy of "Let's Play Hockey" these associations have ranked teams from HS on down. What makes the difference for them? I know in Champlin it is not an issue of lack of effort or not caring but I do have a theory:

What frustrates me abut our association is the amount of time spent on strategy as opposed to actually skating. Our practices usually consist of a 10 minute warm up and then it's off to half-ice drills which involve a lot of standing around. IMO the main priorities at Squirt practices should be:

1. Skating fast
2. Skating fast with the puck
3. Passing
4. Mastering the basics of positioning (nothing too technical)

I'm curious as to what the focus of practice is for these successful associations and what sets them apart. Any thoughts?

Rankings don`t mean squat!!! Win it all then D10 can talk,they may look great against other D10 teams...wait till they get down and play some D6 teams... been there first hand for the last 6-7 yrs,close,but no cigar,ain`t got the man power to get it done.

I think rankings do mean something. Even if the D10 teams aren't beating D6 there is still something to be said for being at the top of your district at almost every level (not to mention that Centennial won the AA championship in 2004).

The only reason I referenced D10 is because that is the district that my kids play in. Let me ask you what do think is the key to success for the top D6 teams (Minnetonka, Edina, Jefferson, EP)? You mentioned man power, are you saying that these associations just have more kids to choose from?

[GoGophersGuy]

MnPride..?

"Win it all then D10 can talk"

I'm pretty sure the Centennial A Bantams have made a pretty loud statement here in the last 7 years. If you didnt know, they are in D10.

[muckandgrind]

Your practices should be all about skills skills skills. Their should be very little systems taking up practice time. If you can't skate, pass, or shoot it doesn't matter what system you run.

IMO Anoka should be taken off the list and St. Cloud and Elk River should be added as tough teams in the district.

What exactly do you mean by "skills"? Are you referring to team or individual skills? Individual skills are always important to work on, but there also has to be some focus on the team aspect.

For example, a breakout drill is a team "skill" that needs to be worked on. It's basically just a skating and passing drill. I think people get confused when the term "skills" comes up. Some people take that to mean just individual skills, when team skills can be just as important. There can be some benefit to just skating around cones, but you still need to teach the kids HOW to play the game of hockey. Teams that are well-schooled in the team fundamentals of the games can still beat teams that may have some better individual talent, but have no clue as to how they should operate as a team.

IMO, teaching individual skills exclusively can be just as detrimental as teaching only systems. There HAS to be a blend of both, and determining what the proper blend should be is the key. Another is the tempo of the practice. You can skate around cones all day long, but if you aren't pushing the players to test their limits (i.e. going full speed 100% of the time and demanding that they perform the drills correctly) you won't get anywhere.

[jBlaze3000]

In my own association I'd personally like to see more overspeed drills and full ice skating at the Squirt level. Maybe 1/2 the time spent on individual drills and 1/2 spent on team drills. I always see our coaches trying to explain these complicated concepts to our kids after like a 5 or 10 minute warm up. The kids will be restless and not really focused on what they're being taught. I think if they skated hard for 30 minutes they would be more focused (not to mention the skating benefits of the full ice drills).

[MnPride2]

"The only reason I referenced D10 is because that is the district that my kids play in. Let me ask you what do think is the key to success for the top D6 teams (Minnetonka, Edina, Jefferson, EP)? You mentioned man power, are you saying that these associations just have more kids to choose from?"


Yup

[MnPride2]

"I'm pretty sure the Centennial A Bantams have made a pretty loud statement here in the last 7 years. If you didnt know, they are in D10."


Really...they`ve won the A Bantam title 7 yrs in a row...

[gilmour]

In my opinion, Squirt A kids have to understand how to play the game. They need to understand what to do in all three zones. And yes, they need to work on the core individual skills. The first third of the season for a SqA team (note: I do not think this applies to B1 and B2 teams) should have more of an emphasis on zone play/systems than the remaining two-thirds of the season.

I break the time allocation down as follows:

First Third of Season - 60% Individual Skills and 40% Systems
Second Third of Season - 70% Individual Skills and 30% Systems
Final Third - 70% Individual Skills and 30% Systems

At ages 10 and 11, the top Squirt players are ready to understand the accountability that comes with playing each position. In my opinion, a SqA coach should be teaching Team Skills/Systems and Individual Skills.

SqB1 and B2 should place much more emphasis on Individual Skills than what I listed above.

[GoGophersGuy]

Yeah. Exactly what I wrote, 7 yrs in a row.

[BlackTape]

Your practices should be all about skills skills skills. Their should be very little systems taking up practice time. If you can't skate, pass, or shoot it doesn't matter what system you run.

IMO Anoka should be taken off the list and St. Cloud and Elk River should be added as tough teams in the district.

What exactly do you mean by "skills"? Are you referring to team or individual skills? Individual skills are always important to work on, but there also has to be some focus on the team aspect.

For example, a breakout drill is a team "skill" that needs to be worked on. It's basically just a skating and passing drill. I think people get confused when the term "skills" comes up. Some people take that to mean just individual skills, when team skills can be just as important. There can be some benefit to just skating around cones, but you still need to teach the kids HOW to play the game of hockey. Teams that are well-schooled in the team fundamentals of the games can still beat teams that may have some better individual talent, but have no clue as to how they should operate as a team.

IMO, teaching individual skills exclusively can be just as detrimental as teaching only systems. There HAS to be a blend of both, and determining what the proper blend should be is the key. Another is the tempo of the practice. You can skate around cones all day long, but if you aren't pushing the players to test their limits (i.e. going full speed 100% of the time and demanding that they perform the drills correctly) you won't get anywhere.

It has been fairly well published that High School, and college level coaches still spend around 80% of practice on personal skills so I would say that you are not correct in your statement. Lets put it this way if worked on team skills 50% of every practice, then your association should remove you as a youth coach.

[muckandgrind]

Your practices should be all about skills skills skills. Their should be very little systems taking up practice time. If you can't skate, pass, or shoot it doesn't matter what system you run.

IMO Anoka should be taken off the list and St. Cloud and Elk River should be added as tough teams in the district.

What exactly do you mean by "skills"? Are you referring to team or individual skills? Individual skills are always important to work on, but there also has to be some focus on the team aspect.

For example, a breakout drill is a team "skill" that needs to be worked on. It's basically just a skating and passing drill. I think people get confused when the term "skills" comes up. Some people take that to mean just individual skills, when team skills can be just as important. There can be some benefit to just skating around cones, but you still need to teach the kids HOW to play the game of hockey. Teams that are well-schooled in the team fundamentals of the games can still beat teams that may have some better individual talent, but have no clue as to how they should operate as a team.

IMO, teaching individual skills exclusively can be just as detrimental as teaching only systems. There HAS to be a blend of both, and determining what the proper blend should be is the key. Another is the tempo of the practice. You can skate around cones all day long, but if you aren't pushing the players to test their limits (i.e. going full speed 100% of the time and demanding that they perform the drills correctly) you won't get anywhere.

It has been fairly well published that High School, and college level coaches still spend around 80% of practice on personal skills so I would say that you are not correct in your statement. Lets put it this way if worked on team skills 50% of every practice, then your association should remove you as a youth coach.

Where did I say 50%? There is no hard and fast percentage...that's a judgement call that needs to be made by the coach. But I disagree that you NEED to spend 80% of your practice skating around cones. I've been involved with many successful teams and programs that don't spend 80% of the practice time focusing exclusively on individual skills.

The problem nowdays is that a TEAM SKILL like a breakout has been unfairly called a "system". When you run breakout drills in practice are you not ALSO working on individual skills like skating and passing? This is where a lot of people seem to get confused.

People seem to forget that hockey is a TEAM GAME. In youth football, do they teach the kids how to run plays? Of course they do. In baseball, do they teach the kids their positions and how to run plays like outfield cutoffs? Of course they do. Hockey is no different. Players need to be taught the game. They need to know what there responsibilities are on the ice. They need to know how to break the puck out of their own end. A good coach will work on BOTH individual and team skills. They are not mutually exclusive.

[MnPride2]

Yeah. Exactly what I wrote, 7 yrs in a row.

...looking in to that

[neutralregroup]

I'm with you, muckandgrind. My kids have played in D6 & I have coached in D6 for years. We love running into teams that have "coached" the creativity out of their players! One of the keys to developing (especially at the Squirt/10U levels) hockey players is to run "sneaky" skills drills that translate into the systems you want them to use in "live" game situations. We typically make our players carry pucks even during the "overspeed" drills, and run fun passing drills that become the beginnings of "cycling in the offensive zone"... etc.

There is a great book for coaches to read called "Who's Puck is It, Anyway?", written by Erickson. Pick up a copy and enjoy!

Good topic folks.

[jBlaze3000]

IMO, teaching individual skills exclusively can be just as detrimental as teaching only systems.

It has been fairly well published that High School, and college level coaches still spend around 80% of practice on personal skills so I would say that you are not correct in your statement. Lets put it this way if worked on team skills 50% of every practice, then your association should remove you as a youth coach.

muckandgrind - I disagree that teaching individual skills exclusively is just as detrimental as teaching systems only. I'd rather have a bunch of kids that could skate like the wind but hadn't been coached any strategy then the other way around. I do agree that a mix of both is the key.

In my own estimation our Squirt B coaches spend over 1/2 of practice on strategy which is very frustrating. I can't wait for the outdoor ice to open so my kid can SKATE!

[jBlaze3000]

I'm with you, muckandgrind. My kids have played in D6 & I have coached in D6 for years. We love running into teams that have "coached" the creativity out of their players! One of the keys to developing (especially at the Squirt/10U levels) hockey players is to run "sneaky" skills drills that translate into the systems you want them to use in "live" game situations. We typically make our players carry pucks even during the "overspeed" drills, and run fun passing drills that become the beginnings of "cycling in the offensive zone"... etc.

There is a great book for coaches to read called "Who's Puck is It, Anyway?", written by Erickson. Pick up a copy and enjoy!

Good topic folks.

Exactly!! When they are doing these drills put a dang puck on there stick!!! Sounds like D6 has it figured out. Care to share any of the drills you mentioned? I'm already looking into finding a copy of the book you recommended. Thanks!

[muckandgrind]

IMO, teaching individual skills exclusively can be just as detrimental as teaching only systems.

It has been fairly well published that High School, and college level coaches still spend around 80% of practice on personal skills so I would say that you are not correct in your statement. Lets put it this way if worked on team skills 50% of every practice, then your association should remove you as a youth coach.

muckandgrind - I disagree that teaching individual skills exclusively is just as detrimental as teaching systems only. I'd rather have a bunch of kids that could skate like the wind but hadn't been coached any strategy then the other way around. I do agree that a mix of both is the key.

In my own estimation our Squirt B coaches spend over 1/2 of practice on strategy which is very frustrating. I can't wait for the outdoor ice to open so my kid can SKATE!

I have seen teams that lost to lesser individual skilled teams because they didn't play as a team. No passing + 5 kids chasing the puck around = Tough loss.

Again, it all about what your definition of a "system" is. Would you consider a breakout a "system"? I wouldn't, but know some that would. A break out drill in practice is a great drill that works on both skating, passing, and TEAM concepts all in one.

For some reason, maybe those stinkin' Europeans , but there seems to be a recent trend to not teach kids how to play the game. Isn't that what they signed up for? To play hockey? Like I said before, football, baseball, soccer and basketball teach the kids how to play as a team, but some people think that is taboo in hockey. I'll never understand that line of thought...

A good coach can integrate both the individual and team skills together so players are developing in both areas. A good coach also know what his players need to be working on the most to improve themselves. If the issue is skating, then he needs to focus on drills that improve that area. There is no one single recipe that works for everyone....every team is different.

[jBlaze3000]

I have seen teams that lost to lesser individual skilled teams because they didn't play as a team. No passing + 5 kids chasing the puck around = Tough loss.

Again, it all about what your definition of a "system" is. Would you consider a breakout a "system"? I wouldn't, but know some that would. A break out drill in practice is a great drill that works on both skating, passing, and TEAM concepts all in one.

For some reason, maybe those stinkin' Europeans , but there seems to be a recent trend to not teach kids how to play the game. Isn't that what they signed up for? To play hockey? Like I said before, football, baseball, soccer and basketball teach the kids how to play as a team, but some people think that is taboo in hockey. I'll never understand that line of thought...

A good coach can integrate both the individual and team skills together so players are developing in both areas. A good coach also know what his players need to be working on the most to improve themselves. If the issue is skating, then he needs to focus on drills that improve that area. There is no one single recipe that works for everyone....every team is different.

Remember I'm speaking as the parent of a Squirt B player:

Yes, I think the breakout is something that should be taught at this level. I also think that they should work on defense to defense passing in their own zone, maybe start teaching them to cycle the puck. Nothing more than basic strategy.

Hockey is different than the other sports you mentioned in that it is played on skates (shocking, I know) so I think more time needs to be spent on individual skills. I also wish that there was more coordination between Squirts, Pee Wee's, Batams where each level would have a specific focus as far as the strategy that was being taught and the next level would build off of the skills learned in the previous. Too many times it all depends on the coach's opinion of what works and there seems to be no continuity or "master plan".

[jBlaze3000]

A good coach can integrate both the individual and team skills together so players are developing in both areas. A good coach also know what his players need to be working on the most to improve themselves. If the issue is skating, then he needs to focus on drills that improve that area. There is no one single recipe that works for everyone....every team is different.

Agreed. I guess its obvious that I feel my team needs more skating. I could see a situation where if all the kids were advanced skaters that they could focus on more advanced game strategy. It's pretty rare to find teams like that at the Squirt level though. Even amongst A teams.

[muckandgrind]

A good coach can integrate both the individual and team skills together so players are developing in both areas. A good coach also know what his players need to be working on the most to improve themselves. If the issue is skating, then he needs to focus on drills that improve that area. There is no one single recipe that works for everyone....every team is different.

Agreed. I guess its obvious that I feel my team needs more skating. I could see a situation where if all the kids were advanced skaters that they could focus on more advanced game strategy. It's pretty rare to find teams like that at the Squirt level though. Even amongst A teams.

It doesn't have to be "advanced" game strategy, just simple game strategy. Things like a breakout, and positional stuff like teaching a defenseman what his responsbilities are and where he should be on the ice. Simple stuff like that. You can, and should, start teaching the basics of those at the Squirt level (especially "A"). And as they get older, you start introducing more things like forechecks, PP and PK, etc.

I pretty much agree with your original post on this topic. One of the things that drive me nuts is seeing kids skate without a puck on their stick. There are very few drills (that I can think of) that should be done without a puck involved. And I also agree that there needs to be a lot of emphasis placed on both passing the puck and receiving the puck.