My son takes some cheap shots

[UC-CP-SF-dB 0]

Last night at my sons power skate a much older kid was tripping and checking my son and other durring the drills. These are kids ranging in age from 5 to 8 years old.

I let the first two go as just kids being kids, however it continued throughout the practice and progressively got much more mean spirited.

These kids all play together on house and travel leagues, so I kind of think that yes there will be some goofing around but I am wondering if I should say something to the coach if this continues to happen.

I kept my mouth shut because my son just ignored the knucklehead and kept skating away from where he was...which I was very proud of him for doing.

[Hazard14 0]

if it would continue to be like this, and that was my son, i would say something.

your son ignoring him and skating away means he dislikes it and just because the other kid is larger, doesnt mean he should be giving little kids cheapshots.

think about it this way, if he does things like this at a younger age it will continue throughout his hockey career and there needs to be some intervention

[Jason Harris 31]

I've coached that age and haven't had a problem with sending a player to the bench for a minute or so, while explaining why I sent him. A coach can't keep his eyes on every player, so he should appreciate the input.

[Zamboni 6]

Do advise the coach/instructor what occured-he will appreciate your waiting rather than screaming over glass/confronting the older kids parents. The kids that bully younger ones are good at picking their spots, they know when focus is on other players going thru the skating drill there won't be eyes on boys in line etc. Flip him an email, that way he can have a word with boys before going on ice and its over.

If I send a kid off its for that whole ice time-really pisses parents off and they then deal with behaviour issues.

[BigDipper 0]

I agree, take the the higher road and be a classy respectful parent and speak to the coaching staff. Mentioning it to other parents or even the player himself is not a smart and wise move. And another thing. Give your son a pat on the back, but I wouldn't mention to spoke to the coach. Let him feel that by walking away he helped, if not solve the problem. It will play better on his mind years down the road.

[UC-CP-SF-dB 0]

Thanks for the input boys.....I should have mentioned that there are roughly 30 kids on the ice with 2 coaches...I completely understand that the coaches can't watch everyone.

After the 3rd incident I felt myself shoot up off the bleachers and ALMOST yelled over the glass...however I just kept thinking that I did not want to be THAT parent.

I see how our coaches get hammered as soon as the kids get off the ice by parents asking questions and what not..I have always kept my distance and either waited till I saw that the coach had at least a breather from the onslaught of parents or shot off an email....there is nothing short of injury that requires an immediate conference with a coach.

Luckily my wife and I have had very good relationships with our son's coaches thus far. We realize that they are taking time from their lives to help our children learn the game that they love so much. We can only respect their abilities and direction and have confidence that they will run a fair and supportive practice.

[BigDipper 0]

As a former coach up to the AAA level, I couldn't agree more with your statements, from both points of view. And how you mentioned earlier it is hard to sometimes not notice the little things. And I guarantee they will handle the matter appropriately and immediately. No coach wants his program to be hampered by bullying or players fighting with one another, especially at that age. It reflects on everyone. Where about's are you?

[UC-CP-SF-dB 0]

As a former coach up to the AAA level, I couldn't agree more with your statements, from both points of view. And how you mentioned earlier it is hard to sometimes not notice the little things. And I guarantee they will handle the matter appropriately and immediately. No coach wants his program to be hampered by bullying or players fighting with one another, especially at that age. It reflects on everyone. Where about's are you?

I Live in Woodridge, Illinois

SW burbs of Chicago.

[Sven 1]

Reminds me of this fighting video where 3-5 yrs old try to fight, hehe.

[BigDipper 0]

Love chi-town incredible city. Good buddy of mine is from Northbrook. Actually your story reminded me of an incident with myself in pee-wee hockey at a mixed power skating session....

[fatwabbit 93]

my son's almost 4, and an incident a few months ago still lingers in my head. My son and I rough-house a lot, and I think he sometimes takes that level of playing with the other kids.

There were a few other kids playing at the playground, and some older kids were horsing around. My son wanted to join in and they told him to go away. They then kinda pushed him a few times, and my son just gave the largest kid a punch (kid was about half a head taller and much bigger all round). The kid broke out in tears, I almost broke out laughing. Had to drag my son over to apologise and told him that he needed to control his temper.

He's much smaller than the other kids, takes after his mom (5'1" in heels)

[tsiarls79 0]

my son's almost 4, and an incident a few months ago still lingers in my head. My son and I rough-house a lot, and I think he sometimes takes that level of playing with the other kids.

There were a few other kids playing at the playground, and some older kids were horsing around. My son wanted to join in and they told him to go away. They then kinda pushed him a few times, and my son just gave the largest kid a punch (kid was about half a head taller and much bigger all round). The kid broke out in tears, I almost broke out laughing. Had to drag my son over to apologise and told him that he needed to control his temper.

He's much smaller than the other kids, takes after his mom (5'1" in heels)

Tough kid you got fatwabbit! I'd prefer a son like that cause temper is an easy thing to work on rather than courage.

[Elwood 0]

I coach 5-8 year olds, and see this happen from time to time, usually certain kids are the repeat offenders. Speak to the coach(es) so they can keep a 3rd eye out. With 20-30 kids out there its a tall task to track everything thats going on.

When I do catch it, kid gets laps or bench time (along with an explanation).

[fatwabbit 93]

thanks... he's got a funny motto know. He'll shout 'courage' cause he asked me what it meant last week, and I told him it meant to be brave when you are scared.

He's currently into the same sports, and will watch the liverpool soccer games when I watch them. He finds it extremely funny when his ol' man gets all animated at the ref!

[bheidepr 0]

I agree, take the the higher road and be a classy respectful parent and speak to the coaching staff. Mentioning it to other parents or even the player himself is not a smart and wise move. And another thing. Give your son a pat on the back, but I wouldn't mention to spoke to the coach. Let him feel that by walking away he helped, if not solve the problem. It will play better on his mind years down the road.

+1. I coach 3 teams (Mite-Squirt) and this is excellent advice.

[gdk927 0]

We had a similar issue with our son a year ago, when he was 11. The abuse was both physical (tripping and pushing) and verbal. You expect some amount of verbal back-and-forth with 11, 12 and 13 year olds, I suppose. It got to the point where the other boy was pushing our son and taking the puck from him during games. You can imagine that it was quite frustrating for us and our son. He started to ask if he could quit the team, and had no interest in signing up again. We spoke with the coaches, without our son there, and explained how he was feeling about what was happening. They spoke to the team in general terms about what was expected of them as a team, and committed to watch out for any more behavior like this. They also asked the team captains and asked them to make sure that the whole team was being supportive of one another. Once this happened the behavior stopped. Our son is back with the team again this year, and having a much better time.