Page 22 - The Hockey Academy News November 2017

Focusing on Individual Skill-Set Development
is the Key to Building the Complete
Hockey Player
By Jon Fontas
Question: What do Sidney Crosby and Steph Curry have in common?
Answer: They are both mega superstars in their respective sports, but the common dominator is they each had individual skills coaches growing up.
During my 30+ years’ experience of teaching hockey, I have come to the realization that the majority of young players today are not being taught the proper techniques on the skills of hockey. As a result, players are not prepared to advance and compete at the next Levels.
There is a big misconception by parents / players that; individual development is measured by how many games you play in a year or the number of goals you score in a season. The reality is, in a game situation, you play to your strengths by using the skills you do best with never having the opportunity to
work on things you cannot do. By trying not to fail, you end up failing which becomes counterproductive to your development.
My philosophy is di erent. It’s my belief from the time you lace up a pair of skates start to focusing on individual Skill-Set development. Skating is number one, “it’s often been said if you can’t skate, you cannot play the game”. This is a true statement, skating is the foundation of any hockey player’s development. There are 4 components of the skating stride; the Windup, Delivery, Follow-through and Return. Without accomplishing all 4 of those steps you end with an incomplete stride which is often referred to as railroad skating; picture someone skating on railroad tracks with their skates apart unable to create any power as they try to stride out.
Whenever I train players from Mites to Pros, we always begin the session with Edge work. This method forces the player to be in their Hockey Position and
concentrate on gripping the ice with edge utilization while developing transfer of weight (Leg-Loading) which is critical for glide time in the stride.
In addition to skating, it’s just as important to develop the other fundamentals of your skill-set; Stick- handling, Shooting and Passing. I think of it as building a house; with Skating as the foundation and the other skills becoming the walls & roof of that structure. I have seen many players who are great skaters without the puck, however as soon as you add a puck on their stick, it seems like their skating made a reverse turn.
The good news is... You are never too young or too old to start focusing on your individual skills development. Ideally the window for a player to maximize their skating development is between the ages of 8-12. During these years their muscle memory is still not fully etched in stone. Therefore, this age group of players are continually adapting to what techniques work best for their style. In turn, players that are older than 13 years of age can also improve greatly and become a more e cient skater, however it’s unlikely their skating style will change.
With regards to Stick- handling, Shooting and Passing skills, it’s not as essential to start at a young age as skating. The main reason is, you do not need ice to train for these skills. Therefore, there is much more opportunity to accelerate your development by cross training with o -ice activities such as; street hockey, lacrosse, shooting pucks in the driveway, or using a puck pass-back machine which all reinforce the techniques of these skills. However keep in mind that speci city of training is always the best way to train.
The bottom line is; at all times work on both your strengths
.. 22 NOVEMBER 2017 | THEHOCKEYACADEMY.COM