Lazy Goalies

[Aussie Joe 0]

Im currently coaching U/16's and my goalie is the laziest sack of ***** ever! Its driving me and his goalie coach mental. We have tried telling him, drilling him to the end of earth but it doesn't seem to work. I have also told him if he doesn't want the posi then we'll give it to someone else. He remains adamant that he wants to play the pipes though. What can I do?

[SB39 2]

Give it to the backup and make him earn it back; sometimes people need that shame factor to make them start to bust their asses... good luck.

[Chadd 916]

Ask him why he wants to play, find some type of game in practice that motivates him to work harder, all else fails bench him.

[Bo from Boston 0]

Let the players deal with him after a few losses....

[Chadd 916]

Let the players deal with him after a few losses....

That may be the worst possible thing to do, very well could drive the kid from the game.

[Bo from Boston 0]

if he is as lazy as the coach says, the players will do something. If he is giving 100%, they will be understanding...

The players will have their way if the effort isn't there...and if the coach steps in to "protect" him, they will alienate him anyway....

[Chadd 916]

That's a last resort option. As a coach, you have to try resolving a problem like this before it turns into a showdown. I have yet to see any group that age be "understanding" about the failings of another.

[dietzie27 0]

i bet ville niemenen could solve your problem......

[Chadd 916]

i bet ville niemenen could solve your problem......

If you don't have anything productive to add, don't bother posting next time.

[Aussie Joe 0]

Hmm all very odd suggestions. There is no back up either, its him or we get a skater to learn goalie brand new.

Perhaps I should elaborate, We have Matt (lazy goalie 15yo) and Troy (11yo just started hockey 18 months ago). Both have been taught by out goalie coach Stu. Troy wants to learn and is 11 and trains with the seniors! Matt doesn't and rarely turns upto training. Because of his attitude Stu doesn't want to teach him because he sees it as a waste of time.

Is there a way I can teach him a simple lesson on his bad habit? Hes already been warned by Stu that if he plays how he does in games at a state tryout hes gonna come back wit his tail between his legs. What can I do thats plausable?

[Chadd 916]

If he doesn't have the desire to play hard all of the time, there isn't much you can do. It's all a matter of pride.

[Cavs019 702]

I doubt this is a good idea, but get some kids that can really shoot the puck and have them tear him apart, killing his confidence. Then he will either realize that he needs to work harder, or decide not to and quit the game altogether.

[Bo from Boston 0]

there is no happy ending here...if he doesn't quit soon the players will make him quit. This kids days are numbered before they do something to him.

[Chadd 916]

Anyone who can be motivated by another person is fairly weak minded. As a coach you try to give them confidence in themselves and a reason to believe they can improve/win. If you can give them confidence, they will provide the motivation on their own. As a coach, you have to try. You can't just take the lazy way out and say "he's screwed".

[HockeyChick01 0]

Its hard to motivate someone who consistently does that. If they aren't able to motivate themselves to play then you will just be bringing the team down when you play him. If at 15 he doesn't have the motivation then don't bring your team down. I know personally I hate playing with a goalie who is lazy and doesn't try. But then you realize that everyone notices it, and if you want to go somewhere you have to... He'll learn the hard way...

[Miserable 6]

I find it strange that someone would play a sport half-assed like that. Perhaps there are other outside factors in play here? Have you tried to sit down and talk to the kid? Not just about hockey but about everything. Maybe there is a reason he's tanking it. I would think that bringing in another goalie would help motivate him. IF he really wants to play then he will step up once his spot is on the line. If he doesn't, then there really isn't much you can do with him.

[ihockeyiregoalie43 0]

ya think the only way to motivate to goalie is by creating more compitition, bringing in a new goalie,try getting a guest goalie,from other teams,fake it that this goalie my be changing teams, even if it takes suiting up a player in goalie gear to creat compitition,try it, think about it this way, he doesnt need to play well, his always got his spot on the team. where as with a good backup, compitition increases and better results are acheived from goaltenders.i have seen this happen in my own league.

[HDragons73 0]

We had one lazy goalie last year that could barely skate, and he was just a fat ass that stood there. The coach would just let him play when we were up by 5, and he wasn't even really mean about it. You can't be mean about it, because he would lose all his confidence and play worse. I think the best way would be give the other goalie a shot, even if he does worse, unless he's just as lazy as the other one.

[kosydar 0]

I think IHhockey hit the nail right on the head. Two years ago we occasionally shared practices with the bantams because ice is really expensive. Their goalie sucked, he didn't even wear his pads half the time, and when he did, he never put forth any effort. So we were all dreading him coming onto our team last year. Our coach invited a few other goalies to try out for the team, so there would be four goalies, not two. We pretty much had the number one goalie set, so it was between the three for the backup job. When given a little competition, the kid busted his balls. He was the one working the hardest on and especially off the ice. Not only did he make the team as the backup, he far outplayed the main goalie when he played because online the main goalie who didn't try that hard, he continued to bust his ass and got a lot of playing time. The kid is easily ten times better this year than last year, all because there was a little competition for him.