Hockey Crazee

How many times do you see a young hockey player walk into the dressing room with a handful of candy before a game?    Parents have a misconception that this will improve the players performance on the ice however this couldn’t be further from the truth.    All the player will achieve is a quick start with a slow finish.

A couple of years ago we started implementing nutrition as part of our hockey program to help our players understand how different foods and drinks benefit them before and after a game.  Our players were challenged to make healthy food choices which we discussed as a group and worked on improving over the year for performance success.

The Ontario Minor Hockey Association has recently teamed up with Gary Roberts to challenge young hockey players to make proper food choices.    Players are awarded points over a 10 week period based on their food choices at each meal.    A grocery list along with a variety of food suggestions can be found and followed on the OMHA web site.   Athletes learn what foods can give them a natural edge prior to and as in recovery after a game.    For more information on this program visit www.omha.net.

I strongly feel coaches should incorporate nutrition as a cornerstone in their hockey program.   A better understanding of what foods can help your players have more success on the ice is something they can take with them through life.

This year we’ve experienced one of our mildest winters in a long time.   Great news as we’ve spent less time shovelling the drive way only to have the snow plow come by and fill in the end as we stand watching.     Bad news however for Canada’s backyard rinks.    A recent report shows that the Canadian winter is gradually shortening making it harder for the dedicated fathers of up and coming hockey stars to maintain their ice surfaces.

Like most young Canadian boys growing up through the winter meant Saturday’s and after school were spent honing our skills on outdoor ponds and ice surfaces.    Shovelling the six to eight inches of snow that would fall what seemed like daily,  was our dryland conditioning.   Once clear though we were off.    Skating and weaving around the other neighbourhood kids.  Little did we know how much we were improving our skating, stick handling and shooting skills.  Much has been said about the success of players such as Wayne Gretzky and how much of their skill development that allowed them to compete as such a high level was a result of the endless hours skating at home.

As a hockey coach,  I understand how hard it is to find extra ice to practice on besides the ice granted to you by your association.    Rising costs make it hard for teams to find the money to purchase extra ice.     In the past,  you would always have one or two fathers on your team who had great backyard rinks where the team could gather to play a game of shinny and without knowing it work on their individual skills.  You would see a steady improvement in your players skating ability as the season went on.

Canada’s changing climate means less outdoor ice time for young hockey players.   I can only wonder how this will change our younger players skill development.    Our backyard rinks and the enjoyment and freedom of skating outdoors they bring may be melting away.