What evaluators look for during try-outs

I’ve been asked a lot over the years what I look for in a player during evaluations.  After watching my son during various AA & AAA Ice try-outs, I’ve been thinking more about this topic and wanted to share a bit of what I look for and some other information that I’ve found or has been shared with me.

My friend Graham Acres (gacres99) also shared his thoughts with me.

1. Whatever it is you believe you do best, do that every shift.
2. Listen to what the coaches ask you to do and do that
3. Bring energy and never stop working every shift. Regardless of talent, coaches are attracted to kids who consistently work hard. 

All good advice and greatly appreciated.  So what is it that I look for when I run my evaluations?  I can teach you to shoot, pass and skate.  It’s those intangibles that will earn you a spot on my team.

1. Aggressive play – Be willing to battle for pucks. If you are on the forecheck, get on the puck.  Don’t sit back and wait for them to come to you.
2. Backchecking –  If you won’t backcheck, it’s the fastest way to get off my list.  I need you to skate harder than you’ve ever skated when you are backchecking.  It makes a HUGE difference.
3. Don’t give up – I don’t care if you just messed up, mistakes happen.  It’s what you do after that mistake that I look at. Did you slam your stick? Throw you head back?  Yell?  Get back in the play and make up for the mistake you made.  No one will remember the mistake if you made if you hustle back and make a difference in the play.
4. Come out to Earn your spot – Don’t think because you’ve been playing for xx number of years, you deserve a spot on the team.  No on deserves a spot, you earn it. Everyone there is fighting for your spot, go out and get it. 
5. Communicate – Talk to the coaches. Talk to the other players.  Talk when you are on the rink and involved in the play.  Call for pucks, direct the play.  Be vocal.
6. Don’t be selfish – Yes it’s a tryout to earn a spot on a team, but that doesn’t mean showing off your ability to skate through every player every time with your head down.  Be a play maker.   Make passes. Make good decisions.

A few tips for trying out:

1.  Relax and have fun.  I know it’s easier said than done but remember, you can play the game so just go out and do your thing.  
2. If a coach gives you some advice, make sure you go out and do that.  They are hinting to you of what they want to see you do.  At least try to do it. It shows you are coachable.
3. If a coach asks you to play a position like Defense, please, under no circumstances respond ‘I’m a forward’ or ‘My Dad says I’m a forward’.  Just go out and do it.  Coaches want a team player.

A few other resources that give some inside can be found at:
Inside Edge
Ontario Minor Hockey Association.

Try to remember these tips as you go through your try-outs.  Good luck.

What I Now Know For Sure

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via What I Now Know For Sure.

The 73 Year Old Hockey Rookie

I’ve been helping people learn how to play hockey and improve their skills for the past 6 years. Most of that help has been done over the internet with the use of videos and articles. I also respond to a lot of emails!

One of the most common questions I get online is “Am I too old to start playing hockey?” The answer is always “Absolutely NOT!”. I have helped countless people in their 40’s, 50’s and even 60’s learn to play hockey or get back to the game they love, however recently I received an email that set an all time record

The 73 Year Old Rookie

A few months ago I received a brief email from Kent Meyer, stating he’s 73 years old and just starting to play. He had played rugby for 20 years and missed the camaraderie and physical effort. I responded letting him know he was the most experienced rookie and welcomed him to the best game in the world. Not long after Kent emailed me again letting me know hockey had the #1 spot in his heart.

What Kent has to say about starting hockey

Kent sent the following email and with his permission I am sharing with others.

Why I’m learning to play hockey at 73

Jeremy,

I guess most hockey players would have hung up their skates at my age. For me the adventure is just beginning. Before June of 2014 I never skated in my life. I’m sorry that I didn’t begin skating and playing hockey at three like many of my friends; Most of whom are in their mid-twenties. However, I love a great challenge and ice hockey certainly is that!

Learning to skate before even really playing the game is tough. I played university and touring side rugby for twenty years until age 67. It was a challenge as well, but nothing like ice hockey. After all, running is probably familiar to most of us. Balancing on narrow blades on ice is not. Because of severe arthritis in both hips and two complete hip replacements I had to give up rugby. The good thing is that I missed the competitive and physical contact and sought out a replacement. Ice hockey was a logical choice.

Hockey is definitely now my all consuming passion and a huge part of my life. I have watched and with various degrees of success, imitated the skating basics taught in your videos. They have no doubt helped me to more quickly learn to skate. I am currently on a bronze league team the ‘Titans’ which plays its games at Skatetown in Roseville, CA. Our new season begins at the end of March so I’m working hard to be in playing shape.

Jeremy, thanks for all you have done and will do for those of us who want to improve our game, don’t stop! I hope that my story will encourage other “seniors” to challenge themselves to try ice hockey. I have never been in better physical shape and the camaraderie on my team is awesome.

Hockey has made me twenty years younger

I hope that this article will help inspire others to take up the greatest game in the world. If you are interested in hockey, I have included some links below that will help you in your journey

• How To Hockey videos – A collection of videos I made to help hockey players improve
• How to Ice skate – A 11 part series walking you through the fundamental skills of skating
• Reddit Hockey Players – A community of hockey players talking hockey (highly recommended to browse and join)
• Adults guide to starting hockey – An article with a quick game plan for starting hockey
• The Hockey Movement Videos – A new channel I am working on, new hockey videos every week!
• More stories of newcomers – This is my about page, a lot of people have shared their story in the comments

So are you too old for hockey?

Lets ask these guys

Improve your 1 on 1 Defense – 4 video series

One topic we haven’t covered a lot here on How To Hockey is defense. I’ve been getting requests for a few years for more info for playing defense, so I have put together a 4 video series all about playing defense!

These videos are not JUST for defensemen. As a coach, I have a simple rule, when the other team has the puck our entire team is playing defense. The tips in these videos will help forwards and defensemen improve their skills, get scored against less, and end up with the puck more often!

3 Universal Defensive tips

In this video we share 3 tips that will help anyone improve their defense. These are simple pieces of advice most players would hear from their coaches.

1. Stay between the guy with the puck, and the net
2. Watch the chest not the puck
3. Hide the poke check

Using the Markings

This video contains all kinds of tips that seem so easy, but are not discussed much in hockey. By using the markings on the ice you can easily check your position and improve your defensive game

Playing 1 on 1 in open ice

Defensemen and forwards will both get caught in this situation. Getting beat on a 1 on 1 can be embarrassing but if you watch this video and practice enough, you should barely ever get beat in a 1 on 1. Some tips include

1. Giving the opponent the outside
2. Match their speed
3. Gap control

1 on 1 along the boards

When your opponent has the puck along the boards you have a whole new set of rules. For instance in the video above I recommend having the stick in front of you, or using it to steer the player to open ice. In this video I encourage players to use “stick on puck” which means always having your stick lined up with the puck which helps block passes and shots.  Here are some quick tips

1. Stick on puck, body on body
2. Know when to contain, and when to pressure
3. Angle the opponent for better results

Some final tips for playing defense from the pro’s

Whenever I read coaching books I collect bits and pieces. Here is a collection of defensive tips I have collected from a few coaching books

Pat Quinn

Good defence starts with learning the fundamentals. First it’s learning to play without the puck. It’s learning to play your angles, to position yourself on the inside, to be able to put or move the attack where you want it to come, to play outnumbered, and to protect the goaltender.

Ken Hitchcock

The single most important lesson that any defender can learn is that he doesn’t need to have the puck to dictate what will happen. Learn how to invite the puck carrier to do what you want. Soon [the puck] will be on your stick.

Gary galley

On playing against guys bigger than him – Don’t give up space in the neutral zone. Big guys need space to get speed, give them space in the corners. Dont run them give them a yard and a half then take it away. If you can’t move the stick, take the stick away.

Coaches note – That means lifting their stick, play the stick, then body, then puck

Gary’s ABC’s of good defence

• Play good angles
• Maintain good position
• Know who is on the ice

Defence – on the bench watch other players, what the forwards are doing and what you would do in those situations

Ed jovanoski

Keys to defence

• position
• patience
• poise

Most of these tips are from Simply the Best a great book that includes interviews with some of the best coaches hockey has ever seen.

Pass and Crash

Drill:
1. Player 1 starts backward skating to blue line with puck
2. Stops at cone and passes to next player in line
3. Player 1 crashes the net looking for a pass from behind the net
4. Player 2 starts their backward skating once they receive the pass

Focus:
1. Skating backward while carrying the puck
2. Good hard passes to the corner
3. Crashing the net looking for a pass, deflection or tip

Notes:
Replace the coach with a player to make the passes from behind the net
Switch to other side to get used to working this from both sides

Pass and Crash

Drill:
1. Player 1 starts backward skating to blue line with puck
2. Stops at cone and passes to next player in line
3. Player 1 crashes the net looking for a pass from behind the net
4. Player 2 starts their backward skating once they receive the pass

Focus:
1. Skating backward while carrying the puck
2. Good hard passes to the corner
3. Crashing the net looking for a pass, deflection or tip

Notes:
Replace the coach with a player to make the passes from behind the net
Switch to other side to get used to working this from both sides

Pass and Crash

Drill:
1. Player 1 starts backward skating to blue line with puck
2. Stops at cone and passes to next player in line
3. Player 1 crashes the net looking for a pass from behind the net
4. Player 2 starts their backward skating once they receive the pass

Focus:
1. Skating backward while carrying the puck
2. Good hard passes to the corner
3. Crashing the net looking for a pass, deflection or tip

Notes:
Replace the coach with a player to make the passes from behind the net
Switch to other side to get used to working this from both sides

Skate and Tip

Drill:
1. Players start at blue line and skate toward puck
2. Once they get to the puck and the take a slap slot (SS)
3. Next they skate to the front of the net looking and get position
4. Look for a deflection or rebound of shot from the Coach (C)

Focus:
1. Taking a slap shot while skating up to a puck
2. Getting position and working on deflection and rebounds
3. Goalie works on lateral movement
4. Goalie works on getting clear view of puck from player standing in front

Notes:
Run the drill from one side and then the other so they get used to shooting and moving from both sides.
Also, you have player move out to point and take shot on goal (after they have tried deflection/rebound.)

Skate and Tip

Drill:
1. Players start at blue line and skate toward puck
2. Once they get to the puck and the take a slap slot (SS)
3. Next they skate to the front of the net looking and get position
4. Look for a deflection or rebound of shot from the Coach (C)

Focus:
1. Taking a slap shot while skating up to a puck
2. Getting position and working on deflection and rebounds
3. Goalie works on lateral movement
4. Goalie works on getting clear view of puck from player standing in front

Notes:
Run the drill from one side and then the other so they get used to shooting and moving from both sides.
Also, you have player move out to point and take shot on goal (after they have tried deflection/rebound.)

Skate and Tip

Drill:
1. Players start at blue line and skate toward puck
2. Once they get to the puck and the take a slap slot (SS)
3. Next they skate to the front of the net looking and get position
4. Look for a deflection or rebound of shot from the Coach (C)

Focus:
1. Taking a slap shot while skating up to a puck
2. Getting position and working on deflection and rebounds
3. Goalie works on lateral movement
4. Goalie works on getting clear view of puck from player standing in front

Notes:
Run the drill from one side and then the other so they get used to shooting and moving from both sides.
Also, you have player move out to point and take shot on goal (after they have tried deflection/rebound.)