REGISTER
NOW!

player tips

28

November

Summer Hockey Camp in Massachusetts

It’s no secret that coaches like the players who show up early to games. However, coaches love the players that show up early to practice. Like in life, the early bird gets the worm, and in hockey, they also get the advantage!

It’s no secret that the best players are usually also the first to the arena. They are also the first on the ice and the last to leave. Why is this? Because preparation is a huge part of success.

Preparation can be defined as the action or process of making ready or being made ready for use or consideration. In sports this is huge. On the flip side of this, we also know the players that are always in a rush on their way into the rink, frantically putting on their gear, hastily tying their skates only to make it onto the ice just as the practice or game is starting. They never have time to catch up.

Performance & Preparation

Performance is directly correlated to preparation. The player with the most accurate shot also owns the shooting tarp with most puck marks.  The player with the best stride is also the one who has worked hardest on power skating.

Are you fully prepared for the season ahead? Are you evaluating your performance and taking notes on areas of your game to improve on? If you are, then we’ve got a great opportunity for you to attend one of our 30th Anniversary Camps!

Our summer of 2024 hockey camp Early Bird Special is designed for those players who want to get a jump start on their development over the summer! And for parents who want to take advantage of the best pricing of the year!

For a limited time, our camps have special pricing for all dates and locations. We want to reward those who are ‘up and at it’ and want to take their game to the next level.  For dates, details and a spot in camp for a great price, check out our summer hockey school page.

Thanks for reading and we look forward to seeing you at the rink soon!

16

November

Hockey: What are you thankful for?

Posted by Greg Carter

Thanksgiving is the perfect time for hockey players to reflect on the their season, and more specifically, all of the reasons they love the greatest sport in the world!

Coaches

Coaches play an integral part in the development of hockey players and if you are fortunate enough to have a really good coach, make sure they know how much you appreciate them! It takes a lot of time, energy and dedication to coach youth hockey teams, and what you see on the ice from a coach during practice is only part of the story. There is a lot of practice preparation that goes into that one hour practice session and game strategy. Oftentimes the coaches are the first to arrive and last to leave after a game or practice. To this day, I can still remember my favorite coaches and the important skills they taught me!

Equipment

Technology advancements in equipment over the recent years has been nothing short of amazing. Protective equipment like shoulder pads, gloves and pants (breezers) that used to absorb sweat and water and up weighing what seemed like five pounds heavier at the end of the game, have been replaced with ultra lightweight and super durable protective equipment. Skates are amazingly light and players are spoiled not having to go through a week long painful – sometimes tearful – break them in. Perhaps the greatest advancement has been in stick technology as once a player is strong enough to benefit from the flex, the ability to develop a crazy hard shot is just a matter of putting in the time

Parents

Hockey parents are the greatest sports parents ever. Parents willingly wake up long before the sun comes up only to stand in a freezing cold ice arena for that 6 a.m. mid-January practice. They travel hundreds and thousands of miles each season and attend enough weekend tournaments that they are on a first name basis with the front desk at the hotel. The dedication of hockey parents is awesome!

Opportunities 

There are more opportunities than ever for hockey players to develop their skills. From regular season hockey teams to in-season weekly skill camps and clinics. There are plenty of AAA teams and of course summer hockey camps and summer hockey schools. Skill development is a marathon, not a sprint, and there are so many great opportunities for players to master the fundamental skills required to reach their full potential

The Game of Hockey

Perhaps that best thing to be thankful for is the also the most simplistic, the basic fact that kids have the opportunity to play the greatest sport in the world! Hockey has brought so much excitement, joy and happiness, taught so many life lessons, developed so many friendships and brought so many people together in such a positive way.

Enjoy the season, fight through the adversity and always remember that hockey is a sport to be enjoyed, win or lose!

Thanks for reading and we hope you enjoy your Thanksgiving holiday. Stay tuned for our Early Bird Special featuring 10% off of your Summer 2024 Hockey School registration! For details, dates and more, click here.

01

November

Can you see a “C” in me?

Posted by Greg Carter

As youth hockey seasons begin across the United States, players are working their way into roles and responsibilities on the team. One of the biggest early season decisions is selecting a captain for the team. Are you captain material?

The definition of a leader is “the power or ability to lead other people”. Characteristics of a leader are similar, whether in sport, business or virtually any discipline. A leader is someone who inspires and motivates. They are humble, intuitive, dedicated and often times the hardest workers.

When hockey teams vote on who deserves the honor of wearing the “C”, teammates and coaches make their decision based on ability to lead. This should not be a popularity contest or an honor simply given to the best player on the team.

So what does it really mean to be a team captain?
A captain and leader:

* Is respectful of teammates as well as the game of hockey. 

* Has a deep desire to win, to work hard and to inspire others to work just as hard.

* Is honest and trustworthy.

* Sets good examples in the good times, and well as during the challenging moments of the season.  

There are plenty of examples in everyday life of what defines leaders and captains, as well as unfortunate situations that do not define leadership. For youth hockey players and captains, it’s important to remember that captaincy is a special honor, and one to be taken seriously on behalf of both teammates and coaches who look to their captain for leadership. Remember that the role of the captain and leader also extends beyond the ice, into the locker room and into daily life.

The following is one of our favorite quotes regarding leadership:

 “The function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not more followers.”

Thanks for reading and we hope you are have a great start to the season and of course, that you elect a great captain – and leader – for your team!

02

October

To Move Forward, Think Back

Posted by Greg Carter

As players move forward and gear up for the 2023-24 youth hockey season, it’s important to take the time to reflect back on what was accomplished during your summer hockey training. This should include making plans to maximize development for full impact this season!

Start by thinking back to last hockey season and the skill areas in which you struggled, how you planned to improve, and your goals for summer hockey. The areas that you identified as needing work in your post season evaluation were hopefully the key areas of focus over the summer. 

Now is the time to apply everything that you learned, as well as show off those skills that you mastered on the ice this summer. Whether you worked on your speed, stride, shot or stick handling, apply what you learned to every practice, every game and every shift this season.

Hockey is a game that requires many skills, and putting forth the time and effort in the off season to work hard on your development is part of the equation, but what you do on the ice this season is the true test. Are you prepared to apply your development to your everyday hockey experience? Remember, practice makes perfect!

Good luck with the start of your season, thanks for reading and we look forward to seeing you at the rink soon!

15

August

Mid-August on the heels of Labor Day is the time we all collectively ask, “what happened to summer”?

Summer started with the Las Vegas Golden Knights winning the Stanley Cup in June. For our coaches, it signaled our first week of summer hockey school in two locations, including Eagle River, Alaska.

That first week was memorable for many reasons. It’s always beyond exciting to get back on the ice training youth hockey players. It’s also exhilarating being greeted by bears in the great state of Alaska, and this year did not disappoint (see photo above).

From those first camps through our final of the summer in late August, our 29th year of summer hockey school could not have been more rewarding. Our coaches witnessed an all-time high in work ethic, enthusiasm and skill development!

The following is a summary of our “Swift” summer that went by so fast. And what better way to incapsulate it than to do so by referencing songs from the star of the summer of 2023 herself, Taylor Swift and her Eras Tour!

Fearless

Our coaches were so proud of the youth hockey players that we trained this summer! Players came to camp ready to work hard, learn and make mistakes in the name of development. Fearless!

Blank Spaces

Open ice is your friend. Teaching players to “see the ice” and go to where the puck is going, not where it is was super fun and rewarding for our staff!

Shake it Off

Winners win and none do so without failure. Celebrate the wins and learn from those teaching moments! Shake it off!

Cruel Summer

This popular song may have been the theme song for some players that didn’t make it off of our wait list. While we never want to turn aspiring young hockey players away, most of our camps sell out each summer. We invite you to register early next summer and take advantage of our Early Bird Special which gets you a spot in camp at a discounted rate!

All Too Well

Hockey is the game we all love and to see it in the faces of the players we train all summer is something we really do know all too well. It is also something we never take for granted!

Wildest Dreams

Dream big and don’t let anyone or anything get in the way of your pursuit of excellence! Every single player on the Stanley Cup Champions were in youth hockey skates one day dreaming of hoisting hockey’s greatest prize above their heads! Your Wildest Dreams can come true!

Thank you for reading and from our entire staff, thank you for training with us this summer! Next year is our 30th anniversary. Stay tuned for exciting celebratory announcements later this year as we prepare to “Begin Again”!

subscribe

With RSS feeds, you don't have to visit our site everyday to keep up to date. Simply subscribe to our blog via RSS or Email and our posts will come to you!