Hockey is one of the most difficult games to coach because you must make subjective judgments on your players' overall ability. In baseball, football and basketball, you can depend on hard statistics to tell you who is playing well and who is performing poorly. In hockey, statistics are important, but a player may not be scoring a lot of goals or getting assists, but the player's overall effort may be excellent. A number of coaching resources can help the coach make judgments about his players.
White Board
The coach has to get his team's philosophy across to his players. In many cases, the philosophy will be a reflection of the player's talent. If a coach has a lot of fast skaters on his team, he will build a fast break attack based on head-manning the puck. If his team has strong defensemen but may be a little below par offensively, he may emphasize defense and the neutral zone trap in practice. The coach will use the white board to point out exactly what his players need to do on a white board. He will use this in the meeting room before getting on the ice and when players start practicing so they are aware of their assignments.
Video Review
A coach should use video review to point out to players what they are doing correctly and what they are doing incorrectly. This is much easier to do when a coach has video at his disposal. When a coach points out to a player where he should be on the ice, it is much more effectively pointed out when there is video to back up the instruction.
Coaching Clinics And Seminars
A coach will have a difficult time helping his players improve if he is not staying up on the latest coaching techniques. Contact USAHockey.com to find out where you can find coaching seminars and when they will be in your area. Even the most experienced coaches can use technique refinement and they may also have questions on how to best teach play development and shooting techniques.
Statistics
To put your players in a position to succeed on the ice, stay informed on your team's statistical performance. It's one thing to trust your gut instincts, but you should fortify those decisions by knowing your top offensive players, your most productive defensive players and how your goalie is performing. Use the "plus" and "minus" stats to help determine who your most effective players are. A player gets a plus when he is on the ice and his team scores an even-strength or shorthanded goal. A player gets a minus when he is on the ice and his team gives up an even-strength or shorthanded goal. Check out your goaltenders' save percentages before deciding which goalie to insert in the starting lineup.
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