Breakfast Club - September 13 Update

The Traverse City level 4 USA Hockey coaching clinic last weekend was nothing short of awesome. Two solid days of learning from the likes of Mike Babcock (Mike who? Oh, just some red-haired guy from Saskatchewan, no big deal). Defensive tactics, offensive tactics, how to motivate your players, how to lead your team, goalie training, you name it. And then free tickets for the NHL prospects camp games at the rink near the hotel. Yup, I was in heaven. Plus, my kids got autographs from Steve Yzerman, Brett Hull and Mike Babcock after the last game.

Maybe you've never attended any of the USA Hockey coaching clinics? Why not? Probably because you don't "have to". You're not officially a head coach or assistant coach, you just help out on the ice every so often. Technically, you don't have to carry a coaching card to do that. Your kid's hockey association might not even require you to submit to a background check. Who's got time to go to a coaching clinic when you don't "have to" go, right? You're missing out, is all I can say. You drag yourself out of bed in the morning to come to Breakfast Club, even though you don't "have to" do that. Why? Because you enjoy it and you know it's helping you get better. And that's what the coaching clinics are all about. The speakers are great, don't get me wrong. But the best thing about a coaching clinic is the chance to get some been-there-done-that advice from your fellow coaches. So please, do yourself a favor and take advantage of one of the USA Hockey coaching clinics near you (see http://old.usahockey.com/servlets/SearchRowGen). You'll be glad you did. Besides making you a better coach, it will make you a better player and a better team mate.

This (the last!) week in Breakfast Club, we did some one-touch passing. You know -- passing?? Passing, as in sending the puck to your teammate. Passing, as in catching the puck that your team mate has just sent your way. Uh huh, yup, that's what I thought, gotcha. So having the puck whiz sort-of near the general vicinity of my team mate, that would not be exactly what you had in mind, huh, Lyle? And I'll venture to guess that failing to stop the puck would be another missed opportunity. Duly noted. Meanwhile, down at the other end, we're skating around the cones and shooting on Ronnie. And, amen, though I linger in the zone of death, I shall feareth not because ... skootch-up, you Bozos, don't leave me hanging back by the net while our class mates are zinging wild wrist shots, OK? OK! Back to our regularly scheduled program. Tight turns, tight turn, tight turns. Now add in a give-and-go touch pass, but keep doing those tight turns in a figure eight. Let us not forget the neutral zone defensive dekes. The defender is standing still, with his stick upside down, so it shouldn't be that hard to bust a move on him now, should it? Small ice is always fun, and the three-on-three tag out is no exception. Love it. We have more fun beating each other up there than we should be allowed to. Oh, yeah, there's that puck and we're supposed to be trying to score, too, eh? Oops, sorry, I was distracted…

Well, well, well, here we are. The last week of summer BC. There's an Eagles song about where did the boys of summer go, isn't there? Hopefully, the boys of summer will be back in the fall (session starts Oct 15th). In the meantime, though, we'll have to say goodnight, Gracie. Thanks for the memories (thanks for the memories), and all that good stuff. Keep you head up, your eyes on that goal, and see you in three weeks!

Breakfast Club: September 5 Update

The end is near! The end is near!

No, I'm not talking about Armageddon.

Next week is the last week for summer Breakfast Club and I'm already entering mourning for my mornings. Yeah, yeah, yeah, the next session starts in mid-October. But just where am I going to get my morning fix until then, hmmm? Uh huh, sure, that's what I thought you'd say...

Changing subjects... Do you know an erstwhile hockey chick who hasn't yet actually tried playing because (a) she doesn't have equipment, (b) she has no idea where a flat-out beginner could go and not get run over, and (c) no one asked her, persistently enough? Now is your chance! I've recruited (crossing my fingers) eight of my soccer teammates to try ice hockey. And Lyle and Geoff have responded by promising one night of ice on Saturday September 15th 8:30-9:30pm with all-included loaner equipment, skates and all! I've dubbed it "Bring a Newbie to Hockey" night. Pass the word on, kids. Anyone interested should call the rink 248-888-1400 and ask for Geoff. Which, by the way, thanks for getting me back my mega barrette/clip, Geoff, and I promise to not leave my debris in the locker room too often.

Shameless self-promotion moment: my women's travel team, the Stingrays, needs a coach. Our home ice is on Mondays out of U of M Dearborn at 8:30pm. Most of our aways games are on Mondays, too, but we have a few Wednesday and Friday nights and Sunday mornings. Now's your chance to boss around a whole crowd of women who actually think they should listen to you. Come on! How often does THAT happens in your day, huh? If you're interested, please post a blog reply and Courtney will pass it on to me. Thanks, done with the commercial and returning to our regularly scheduled program.

I'm off for the USA Hockey level 4 clinic this weekend in Traverse City, which just so happens to coincide with the NHL Prospects camp, and oh gee darn all us coaches get free tickets to the games. Yup, I'm geeked. I'll tell you how it went in next week's blog posting.

So what'd we do at "the club" these past few sessions? Skate, skate, skate. Pass, pass, pass. And shoot, shoot, shoot, but of course. A couple of observations. A) You've all gotten better. You really have. Maybe it feels like it to you, or maybe it doesn't. But as the casual observer, I can notice the difference. B) You're all great team mates. You don't want to disappoint, so you go out of your comfort zone and step it up to try to help score that goal, deke that defender, and poke that check. C) You're going to come back, and you're going to try to talk a buddy into it, too. That's how you ended up here, I'm betting; continue the thread!

In the meantime, keep you head up and your eyes on the goal.