What Is A Hockey Practice Really For?

I can’t take credit for this truly mind stretching statement, but I long ago read something to the effect that, “What we refuse defines.”

Hmmmmmm…  “What we refuse defines us.”

As I recall, that was meant as advice for living a more fruitful life, as well as for expanding our business horizons.

My take on those words is that each of us has some inner fears that — either slightly or drastically — limit our chances for growth.  But then, since my job here isn’t to advise members about their personal lives or their business approach, let me share with you how I believe this statement does apply to the way we work on our hockey game…

As I whispered to more than one long-time team parent, as we’ve watched new kids working within the group, “A number of them have come from youth programs where they weren’t exposed to a lot of new things.”  To put it a little harshly, they likely drifted through practices like zombies, mainly because they weren’t asked to really observe, listen or think.  In other words, they weren’t forced to learn or try many new skills, or they just weren’t challenged at all.

By the way…  In my kids’ case, I didn’t notice anyone who didn’t want to get better.  No, there were seemingly no problem players in the group, no bad attitudes, no “head cases”.

So, what IS the problem?  Well, this might just be where that “What we refuse defines us” philosophy comes in.  And it might also be where we have to ask ourselves a very important question — as in “What is a hockey practice really for?”

Now, I’ve mentioned elsewhere that my late-dad was a long-time baseball coach, and a very successful one.  Better yet — at least to me, he was as great a philosopher as I’ve personally known.  So, in reference to the question at hand, dad would say, “Work hard in practice, then forget everything you learned once the game starts.”

It might take you a moment to digest that thought, but here’s my take…  Dad wanted his guys to play their games in a relaxed manner.  The worst thing in the world is for an athlete to tie himself or herself into knots — thinking negatively, or worrying about making mistakes (think The Law of Attraction here).  No, the best athletes tend to play “loosey-goosey”.  They’re not inhibited at all.  And, as Shaun Goodsell or Shawnee Harle might suggest in our Mental Training section, a player must first have great confidence in his or her skills before the games can seem easy.

Beginning to put this all together, I believe that “What we refuse…” statement has an awful lot to do with the inner fears some kids have as they approach new skills.  I mean, a lot of kids worry about how they’ll look while performing a given drill, and that is not a good attitude to bring to practice.  When I see one of my players seemingly holding back, I’ll tell them about some of the NEHI-ers who came before them (many of those guys you’ve heard about or seen on TV), and I’d share with my current kids the way those long ago players would laugh at themselves as they’d try something really wild.  The most successful ones didn’t hold back one iota.  In fact, they’d do what all successful athletes do — trying and failing at first, trying and almost getting it, trying and nailing it, and ultimately owning the new skill.

What I hope you’ll take away from the last paragraph is the fact that there’s a natural progression in mastering any new skill.  And it should make sense that one can’t get to the point of “owning it” without first “trying and failing, trying and almost getting it, trying and…”

My dad’s philosophy supports this.  For, while he wanted his guys to play the games without fear, he demanded that they practice hard and with purpose.  In a way, I’ll put a few words in his mouth, suggesting that, “One does not get the chance to play games with confidence UNLESS he or she has paid their dues at practice.”

So, what is a hockey practice REALLY for?  If I had to define it in one sentence, I’d say that, “The main aim of a practice is for a player to be just slightly more capable at the end than when he or she began.”

That in mind, practice is definitely not the place to hold back.  Yes, there are some parts of a given practice where form is important, and a player SHOULD be concerned about how he or she looks at those times.  But that’s not what I’m talking about here.  What this entry IS about are the times when a bit of stretching is required, or where there’s a need to overcome some inner fears, and thereby expand one’s capabilities.  And for those times, I’ll suggest — as best one can, he or she should DARE to take-on each new challenge, thereby starting that all-important chain reaction — of trying and failing, trying and almost getting it, trying and…