Coaching is Freaking me out

[Shark#81 0]

Just about knee deep in a weekend certification course for minor hockey coaching. This is a two day thing that must be done by mid december to continue coaching for this year. Also completed a 1/2 day respect in sport (i need to stop #&@#@! during our games) , record check and task work book.

the hockey skills part, skating, passing drills, being on the ice and teaching the kids...yeah i'm diggin' that.

all the discussions around parents, politics, bullying, harassment, how to report abuse,etc. and the lead coach incorrectly running me off the rink just as I am getting in the groove, has got me a bit rattled. who knew.

[fatwabbit 93]

Welcome to the club!

I did that certification course as well, but didnt get a chance to really put everything to use for the hours needed. I eventually helped out on the bench as an asst coach.

[GoBucky 0]

Nobody ever said that coach, even at a relatively low level, was easy. IMO, dealing with parents is one of the biggest challenges that a youth hockey coach faces.

[biff44 0]

Its all pretty simple. Just never say to your main sponsor "quack quack quack Mr Ducksworth!"

[Chadd 916]

Parents should be prevented from watching their children play hockey. While there may be a few who are sane about it, the majority seem to act like idiots. The kids would enjoy the games more and coaches could work on skill development instead of systems at lower levels.

[ktang 34]

About the parents: x sets will like you, y sets will hate you, and z sets will be indifferent. Work with your manager to keep the last two sets apart. Preferably, try to keep the first two sets together.

[Powerfibers 8]

I have coached baseball for years, but the kids and parents that hockey attracts are a different breed. I hate to say it but the entitled kid thing wears thin gets old fast. I agree with the other comments. Not easy at all. Heck, at the lower levels they cannot even stand still! LOL!

[chk hrd 164]

my favorites where the parents who know NOTHING about the game then proceed to tell you what you are doing wrong and what should be done. I'll invite those parents to come out on the ice to give me a hand. They get that funny look on thier face right before they tell you they can't skate and haven't ever played.

IMHO, the parents of the younger players are the worse, they are convinced that thier kid is the future WG out there. By the time they hit midgets reality has set in and most have settled down.

[Secti0n31 0]

I'd actually like to become a coach eventually, I'm a mediocre player, but I'm limited by my out of shape, bad knees, bad back, concussion prone body, and I'd much rather help guide kids or young adults. Those who can, play, those who can't but know how to, coach. I suppose we'll see but coaching hockey is something I feel I can handle, even with the fudged up parents and itty bitty lil ego-driven kids.

[chk hrd 164]

The thing with coaching is knowing your limits and not being afraid to ask for help. I realized that when my son got to a certain point he needed better coaching than I was able to provide as a head coach. He needed someone that has experienced the game at very high levels and could use this knowledge. When I coached I was fortunate to have friends that played at high levels of hockey. I could always count on them to give me a hand if I needed, plus it is always a good thing to have different things taught. The coach of my son's current team will have his college players or pro friends come out every now and then to give a different perspective on the game and it gives the practice a fresh feeling.

[Powerfibers 8]

Sometimes mediocre players make excellent coaches. I think you need to be able to skate well enough to demonstrate certain things, but I see a lot of guys who have immense talent that cannot explain the fundamentals because they are natural talents. If you have had to work hard at a sport you love, you probably have had to do a lot of learning yourself. This makes the coaching easier. It should be about teaching (at most of the levels).

[ktang 34]

I'd actually like to become a coach eventually, I'm a mediocre player, but I'm limited by my out of shape, bad knees, bad back, concussion prone body, and I'd much rather help guide kids or young adults. Those who can, play, those who can't but know how to, coach. I suppose we'll see but coaching hockey is something I feel I can handle, even with the fudged up parents and itty bitty lil ego-driven kids.

Hey, good on you to walk the walk instead of talking the talk. And, getting the right assistants to handle demonstrating things and helping you with the curriculum works.

[zebra_steve 11]

As a coach, you are a TEACHER..... to both the parents and the kids. But, you will find that you mainly have to "manage" the parents and sometimes mediate issues between two parents and sometimes between a parent and a coach. In most cases, it's all new and exciting for Mite parents. IRRC from age 8 to 12 years is supposed to be where they are most likely to learn the most and make the most\fastest progress. Kids this age have a very short attention span - which can be very frustrating. Keep the drills fun, interesting, fast paced, and short. TEACH THE PARENTS NOW THAT IT'S ABOUT MAKING IT FUN FOR ALL OF THE KIDS.... You need to keep it real from the start... stress fundamentals and skill development. Don't get wrapped up in wins and losses no matter how hard the parents push for it. You have 10 or 15 kids to develop. You are not looking to groom the 1 or 2 best players.....

Oh yeah, and when someone starts talking about the kids "not playing their positions".... remind them that it just doesn't matter if they know where they're supposed to be if all they can do is stand there and watch the opponent skate away with the puck or take a shot because they have yet to develop any of the skills to do anything about it.

[twolinepass 0]

I'm helping coach squirt house league this year and its pretty fun. Our head coach does a good job of keeping parents close but at the same time keeping tehm away so that they do not have the chance to complain all the time. We lucked out because of bunch of our kids play travel too so most of the parents dont get too crazy for house league.

[Secti0n31 0]

Sometimes mediocre players make excellent coaches. I think you need to be able to skate well enough to demonstrate certain things, but I see a lot of guys who have immense talent that cannot explain the fundamentals because they are natural talents. If you have had to work hard at a sport you love, you probably have had to do a lot of learning yourself. This makes the coaching easier. It should be about teaching (at most of the levels).

My HS coach was like that. Very talented guy that got phased out of IHL at some point and became a coach. He couldn't explain a drill in words, he'd just do it and say 'do this.' What kind of cirriculum would I need to go through to become a coach, be it squirt peewee or bantam, or HS? I'd definitely prefer to use my vault of useless hockey knowledge to teach, rather than being stuck in B/C beer leagues or yelling at the NHL games on TV. I'm willing to take any classes that are necessary, but I've got absolutely no idea where to start.

[chk hrd 164]

First thing is to go to a USA Hockey certification class. Different levels of hockey require a different level of certification, if you get a level 3 that will cover you up to Bantam AA or even Midget A. After that you can contact a local hockey orginization and offer your services. I would start as an assistant and work my way up.

[Chadd 916]

The first two levels of USA Hockey instruction were utterly useless when I went to them. The good stuff starts at level three.

[Powerfibers 8]

My HS coach was like that. Very talented guy that got phased out of IHL at some point and became a coach. He couldn't explain a drill in words, he'd just do it and say 'do this.' What kind of cirriculum would I need to go through to become a coach, be it squirt peewee or bantam, or HS? I'd definitely prefer to use my vault of useless hockey knowledge to teach, rather than being stuck in B/C beer leagues or yelling at the NHL games on TV. I'm willing to take any classes that are necessary, but I've got absolutely no idea where to start.

The materials provided at the USA Hockey coaching clinics are good. I also have the Stamm book and video. I think there is plenty there for coaching the basics.

[MyBoxersSayJoe 133]

I actually got in to coaching at my former high school as an assistant while I had to take a year off from playing due to an injury.

For high school here in NJ, you have to have at least 60 college credits, be certified for CPR and as a Substitute. I actually don't have USAH certification.

For JV this year, we tanked our first three games, so it's back to basics with skill development and positioning, systems. It's been interesting having gone through the high school as a player and now seeing it from the coaches' side of things. My senior year in high school, I probably didn't say much of anything as a captain, but my work ethic, dedication and determination spoke volumes. As a coach, give me kids who will work hard and listen over the ones with talent who will goof-off or have no respect. I've been trying to think back to what drills, skills, theories, etc. really helped me to advance my game. I'm one of those people who understands stuff in my head, but has trouble conveying it verbally. I'm much more of a "show me" type of person. Even if you weren't/aren't the greatest player, I'd say go for it. I love the game, I love sharing that love and enthusiasm with the kids.

The varsity head coach and I coached one of our youth program's Squirt teams in the spring. It was a blast! Just a good time, lots of fun, no pressure like there is in high school to perform. We had a solid team and made it to the finals in play-offs. It warms your heart to still see kids get excited over scoring a goal, laugh and just enjoy the game, the parents cheering, their siblings bringing banners. It really puts everything in perspective. Coaching is time-consuming, it can be very trying at times, but it's rewarding and I love it.

[zebra_steve 11]

Wait until you get the chance to coach the children of players that you've coached. Or see players that you've coached enter the coaching ranks and ask YOU for advice.

[MyBoxersSayJoe 133]

My seniors that graduated last year, I'd help out with when they we pre-mites and I was in high school. It really is an amazing thing seeing kids develop from pre-mites to 18uAAA players. A lot of them are the younger siblings of kids I grew up playing with and I had their parents as coaches at different points in the youth program. It's always kind of weird having someone call me "Coach," I still feel like a kid at the age of 27. I'm not quite the parents' age, I'm not quite the kids' age, but I feel like I relate to both on a good level.

[Chadd 916]

The materials provided at the USA Hockey coaching clinics are good. I also have the Stamm book and video. I think there is plenty there for coaching the basics.

The materials aren't bad but the clinics themselves were terrible at the first couple levels.

[Powerfibers 8]

The materials aren't bad but the clinics themselves were terrible at the first couple levels.

Chadd, I agree completely. That was what I was meaning, not to disagree with your comment. In some respects, I felt like they wasted my time. I don't really like the whole certification process if it means anyone that pays gets the patch. At least with Cal Ripken baseball, there was a test!