Tag Archives: tryouts

This Hockey Dad (and the Boy) is Back!

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Just when I thought I was going to have a nice relaxing, relatively rink-free Winter, the Boy has gone and messed up my plans to put my feet up and watch the World, along with the NFL season, go by. But, who am I kidding. I had no idea what I was going to do with myself for the next 10 or so years as I waited for the next round of Riddall progeny to strap on the blades. And yes, I am assuming the hashtag #imahockeygranddad is in my fairly distant future. However, it seems my return to the ranks of Hockey Dad is going to precede people in the stands respectfully referring to me as Gramps.

You see, early on in the Summer the Boy revealed a plan he and a university roommate hatched, which would see them make a triumphant return from minor hockey retirement to competitive action; a mere two years removed (or perhaps not so mere as time would tell) from their midget careers. I guess as they say, you can take the Boy outta Hockey, but you can’t take Hockey outta the Boy. I suppose I should know with each new beer league sign-up of my own. Both boys had become somewhat disillusioned/bored with post-secondary intramural play and happened upon a call for players from Junior C team in a town close to where they go to school. The reason this idea had to be morphed into an actual plan revolves around the fact the Boy does not own a vehicle, while the roommate does; automatically making them a package deal if the Boy was able to gain a roster spot. The Boy’s desire to make and actually play for this team became obvious in the Summer when I came home one night to find he had worn divots in my backyard doing shuttle runs to simulate hockey shifts. Explained why he offered a, “Sorry about the lawn Dad.” earlier in the day. He also reached out to his most recent Coach to see if he’s put in a good word with his soon-to-be evaluator. There was a clearly exhibited desire to play. Our only stipulation was and remains this “hockey thing” can not get in the way of his studies.
Boy Back on the IceSo two weeks ago, Momma and I shipped the lad back to his home away from home nearly a week early in order for him to begin the tryout process. Yup, back to the tryout game. We would attend the first skate as we had so many times before. Suffice it to say we could kinda tell he hadn’t really been on the ice for a coupla years, while most of his younger counterparts were a few months removed from their previous midget or Junior C seasons. Probably didn’t help to only have 14 skaters on the ice meaning few, if any, breaks between drills. The Boy spent most of those on bended knee gasping for air. But, in the end, they were all gassed and the Boy had done ok all in all. When I asked him how he felt on his way out of the dressing room he quipped, “That sucked. Maybe I don’t care if I don’t make this team.” He obviously forgot how much an end-to-end rush can hurt. I promptly replied, “Yeah, now you know how I feel.” bemoaning my own aging hockey bod.  Two days later he would return for a second  challenge, after which he texted to say he was having second thoughts about giving up some of his coveted weekends with friends to travel to faraway rinks. I got it, having once been a 20 year old uni student myself. My hockey dad retirement would continue unfettered and all was good.

However (you knew there had to be a however), it turns out the prospective team evaluators saw enough in the Boy’s couple of tryouts and apparently had a dearth of defensive options. The Boy’s roommate, who had already been signed by the team, told the Boy his presence was requested at the next skates, which would include a weekend, minimum three-game tournament. I could tell when I spoke to him his interest was renewed and somewhat piqued. Somewhere I heard Sally Field’s famous Oscar acceptance speech “…you like me. Right now, you like me!”

Back in a Hockey RinkFive nights later, Momma and I found ourselves sitting in a nearby rink to watch the first game of the pre-season tourney. The game itself wasn’t pretty, but the Boy and his roommate represented themselves well in a one-sided 2-0 loss as half of the four defensemen who dressed for the game. If the Boy was gassed during tryout drills, this would certainly test his mettle along with his legs and lungs. Post game he complained about getting roughed up a little and favoured his shoulder. Par for the course I said and told him we’d likely be around for game 2 in the morning; cuz what else would we have to do on a Saturday morning?

Later the same night he called to report his shoulder was more than just a little sore, to the point where he thought medical attention may be in order. A few hours and a middle of the night trip to the ER later we received news of a sprained shoulder. Odd coincidence is he had sprained the other shoulder in the same rink a few years earlier. I’m going to suggest he avoids said arena if possible in the future.

Having sustained the injury and not able to participate in the remaining tourney games or any other “tryouts” for  at least a couple of weeks, we assumed his journey back to competitive hockey had come to an abrupt end. Only two days later the next however arrived when he called to say he’d been offered a spot on the team. Somewhere between his brief showing, the dearth of players, his old coach’s no doubt flattering letter and his obvious enthusiasm to play the game, he found his way back to the ice. Congrats Boy!

Now, if I can somehow subtly suggest the Devil look into senior women’s hockey options, we’ll be set for another season. But I kid…I’m a kidder. A few of the Boy’s Junior C games here or there should be enough to satisfy this ol’ hockey dad for a bit. Yes, we’re delaying the inevitable, but the NFL isn’t going anywhere, so I’ll put those plans aside for a bit.

 

Hockey Dad Hats

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Caution Hockey Parents – Silly Season Is Fast Approaching

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Yeah, so in an extended moment of weakness a couple of months back I decided to apply for one more tour of hockey coaching duty. I guess I just can’t get enough of the all the time it takes to prep, spending 140+ hours in rinks between practices and games along with the ever present parent scrutiny and expectations raining down from the stands. But in truth, I applied again because I was fortunate this past season to have had the opportunity to work with a fantastic group of players. A true “team” with little to no infighting or divisions. The parent stuff is part of the job and at this point is mostly easy to simply let go in one ear and out the other. So I went through the interview process again; though mine was condensed being the incumbent for the position I sought. I had my answers ready ahead of time for the questions I thought I would be asked and sure enough was. A couple of weeks later the title of Head Coach was bequeathed upon me again.

Silly Season
My first important and least enjoyable coaching task, as always, will be to try to select another good group by going through tryouts. Any one who has been a hockey coach surely feels this is the worst part of the job. Having to evaluate 50 odd players and pare down to a group of 17, with there being often very little difference between the abilities of the last 5-10 players on your list. I personally rely fairly heavily on my group of evaluators to help make the best technical choices based on the quality of each player’s tryout. A three-day tryout is hardly enough time to measure the true relative strengths of all of these players and plenty of factors come into play with teenage girls. But the process is what it is and we do our best to work within it.  The difference with the last few players may be based your previous personal history with them; particularly at the Midget level where you’ve been on teams with the same players on and off for the last 5+ years. And sometimes you just have to go with your gut and hope for the best. One little twist to my tryout sessions this year is that they will be missing one notable participant, namely the Devil, who is still recovering from her broken fibula, sustained in a game in the closing weeks of last season. As Coach and Dad, I’d love to see her skate to justify her spot on the team, but she’s definitely not ready and I’m fairly certain no one will question her qualification based on her previous performance.

tryoutsAll of the tryout fun has already technically started as the team above mine started their selection process a couple of days ago. I’m attending their sessions to see what players I will have to choose from assuming they will attend my tryout once they’ve been released from the higher squad. Even though it’s only second tier Midget girls hockey (not to diminish it) the customary rumour mill has also already started.  Who’s going to try out for which team, who’s already committed or been promised a spot or who wants to play with who. Minor hockey is simply never free from politics. I do my best to keep an open mind by remembering my end goal is to simply keep the game fun for the players; particularly at this end stage of the minor hockey careers. This will be the Devil’s last year. I want to ensure she and her teammates have a positive experience; encouraging them to continue playing the game, regardless the level, or giving back to the game as coaches.

Of course, one of the other unavoidable challenges, is dealing with the ever-present hockey parents. While less so at this age, there are still a few out there who take the “game” too seriously for my liking. Others, as parents are wont to do, don particularly rose-coloured glasses this time of year. Their son or daughter is quite obviously the best player on the ice. And I get it, I’ve been there. Parent’s get pissed when their kids are rejected by a coach/team; a natural defence mechanism kicks in. Momma bear claws as our Momma likes to call them. But we’ve always told the Boy and the Devil they’d be fortunate if this was the worst rejection they ever received in life. Some parents are less objective as I hearken back to being accosted by an irate parent during last season’s tryout proceedings. So my open mind is paired with a solid set of blinders as I enter and exit the rink.  In an effort to quell parental tirades one of the Provincial governing bodies has sent an email to its hockey parents reminding them to behave providing a list of tryout tips. Perhaps I’ll include this link in my introductory letter to the parents of my prospective players. Or maybe I’ll simply ask here if anyone reading this can pass it along to their hockey parent friends. I’d rather not I, nor my coaching comrades, have to worry about dealing with extra difficult situations. For most of us, having to release players is tough enough on us already.

In a few days, my evaluations and a few sleepless nights will begin. Kindly wish me, the players and the parents safe passage through this thankfully short but certainly silly season, after which we’ll all take a Summer rest and no doubt quickly start pining for the smell of the rink again. Or feel free to commiserate here and let me know how you handle the stress of the tryouts whether your a player, parent or fellow coach.

#imahockeydad

It’s the Least Wonderful Time of the Hockey Year

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Last week provided the first opportunity to somewhat reluctantly redon my coaching hat to participate in six days of tryouts for the Devil’s and my team for next season. The first three days were designated for the team above mine, which would provide a preview of players I would be evaluating and selecting a team from. And then my own three relatively intense days of nervously anticipating player selections and, more importantly, releases. I and my evaluators would be given the unenviable task of having to reduce a pool of 45 players down to 17, with the most challenging task being the selection of 9 forwards from 27 skaters; with only 4 1/2 hours of evaluation time to do it. In order to make things manageable, the bottom 10 or so players would need to be released after the initial 90 minute session. Hardly time enough to make such a weighty decision.

You might think, at this point, after 13+ seasons of having gone through the process as a parent and/or coach, things would get easier. It’d be old hat. But rather, if anything, they get harder because closer ties and relationships have been formed between players, coaches and parents. You’re tasked with selecting from a group of players, many of whom you’ve spent significant time with, perhaps even over the last six months and who you (or more importantly your children) call friends. Everybody knows everybody. It would be nice to leave emotion out of it, but there is just no way you can. No matter which way you slice it, someone will be left feeling rejected. For my part, I try to do everything I can to maintain objectivity by leveraging multiple evaluators and lending credence to their experienced hockey opinions. I try to choose people with little or no affiliation to the players they are evaluating; who can provide unbiased opinions based on what they see on the ice.  Sometimes this can result in having to make decisions I would rather not make, in order to build a team comprised of the most deserving tryout participants.  This is not to say previous knowledge of a player’s ability or attitude do not creep into the selection process because they likewise have to. Ultimately, all of this info and input are combined with gut instinct to form a team of players you hope will gel and have some success on and off the ice.

I was a little dismayed when one of the players being evaluated, who had played with the Devil this past season and who had shown quite well throughout the tryouts thus far, did not return to the ice after our first session. When questioned, the player’s parent commented “We were told the team had already been picked and didn’t see any point in continuing to try out.” Anyone who knows me would realize my approach is quite the opposite. I believe I give everyone a fair opportunity to compete; sometimes to a fault. Yet in this crazy minor hockey world stories have a way to taking on lives of their own. The old broken telephone conjures up backroom deals and hush-hush conversations. And I’m not naive to think this doesn’t happen on other teams or in other jurisdictions. One issue with the way girls’ hockey is run in our area is any player, from any centre can play on any team she chooses, which can lead to some of the more skilled players jumping from one centre to another with little to no allegiance in the hopes of advancing their personal agendas; sometimes of their own accord and, of course, sometimes at the bequest of their parents. The same resulted in my own tryouts having a whirlwind of activity surrounding the goalies competing for a spot on my team. In a two-hour period on the second day of my tryouts, there was a confluence of four teams and five keepers in a situation akin the to the six degrees of Kevin Bacon as the actions of one affected another and so on and so on. All I could do was wait for the dust to settle.

The biggest challenge of the entire process is having to deal with the emotions of those you’ve released and this time around was no exception.  To start with and in a unique twist, after my first round of “cuts”, I was approached by a parent questioning my logic on releasing a player, who wasn’t his daughter. I wasn’t quite sure how to interpret this or what, if anything, needed to be done about it. I thanked him for his feedback and got ready for the second session.

The second round of releases was, as expected, a little more challenging and resulted in a little more emotion. In fact, in one case, if a parent could have slugged me in the jaw without fear of retribution, I am certain they would have. And all I could do was apologize with no doubt faint explanation of the reasoning behind the decision. With this particular player, I’d had some history and had wanted to not have to release her, but could not justify keeping her in light of the other competition on the ice. Having been more often on the parent side I could understand the parent’s interest in inflicting some degree of bodily harm on my person.

I was a little dismayed when one of the players being evaluated, who had played with the Devil this past season and who had shown quite well throughout the tryouts thus far, did not return to the ice after our first session. When questioned, the player’s parent commented “We were told the team had already been picked and didn’t see any point in continuing to try out.” Anyone who knows me would realize my approach is quite the opposite. I believe I give everyone a fair opportunity to compete; sometimes to a fault. Yet in this crazy minor hockey world stories have a way to taking on lives of their own. The old broken telephone conjures up backroom deals and hush-hush conversations. And I’m not naive to think this doesn’t happen on other teams or in other jurisdictions. One issue with the way girls’ hockey is run in our area is any player, from any centre can play on any team she chooses, which can lead to some of the more skilled players jumping from one centre to another with little to no allegiance in the hopes of advancing their personal agendas; sometimes of their own accord and, of course, sometimes at the bequest of their parents. The same resulted in my own tryouts having a whirlwind of activity surrounding the goalies competing for a spot on my team. In a two-hour period on the second day of my tryouts, there was a confluence of four teams and five keepers in a situation akin the to the six degrees of Kevin Bacon as the actions of one affected another and so on and so on. All I could do was wait for the dust to settle.

Regardless the perception or the politics, my concern, at the end of the day, is to try to manage a fair and equitable process, where hopefully no one’s feelings are too badly damaged. Unfortunately,  sometimes trying to be fair ain’t always that easy.

After three days, three relatively sleepless nights, a fair amount of hand wringing and a couple of pointed debates with my evaluators, I did manage to select a final group of nine forwards, six defence and two goaltenders. Suffice it to say, I was glad to put those three days behind me.

Now the fun starts in trying to bring together these 17 budding personalities and getting them to all row in the same direction or at least having them get along to start.  If I’ve chosen right, there is great potential for success, and if I’ve chosen wrong, there’ll just be more a little more work to do. Either way, there’s will no doubt be a tale or two to recount along the way.

#imahockeydad

Back Behind A Girls Hockey Bench

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Da Boy has reached the end of his minor hockey career, but the Devil is still going strong with four-day trip to the Provincial Championships coming up next week in the Nation’s capital.  A couple of  nights ago we we drove an hour for a warm-up exhibition game against a team the ladies are schedule to be facing in the round-robin portion of those same championships. And the Devil had a pretty good showing with two markers, one of which was a particularly dirty little shot off the glove-side post after she froze the keeper on a 2 on 1 rush. She unmodestly patted herself on the back for that one as we climbed into the van for the ride home. Then she trumpeted about it again to her brother when we arrived home. So there’s still some hockey to be played and watched.

However, my focus is already slightly beyond next weekend as I found out a few weeks ago my application for coaching next season’s Midget 2 girls team was accepted and approved. The process involved the submission of an application/coaching resume followed by a 1/2 hour interview with the selection committee; a semi-grilling I had gone through on a few other occasions in the past. I was hopeful of being selected as I’ve come to miss the behind the scenes experience and player interaction I gained a fond appreciation for as the head coach two years ago. Watching and cheering in the stands is great, but being on the bench really puts you into the game.  But before any of the fun practice, game and interaction stuff can start, there will be a week or so worth of hell called the tryout process. Yup, there is little to no rest from one team or season to the next as the tryouts start literally days after the provincial end. And any coach would or should tell you tryouts, or more specifically cuts, are the worst part of the job. Having followed the Devil’s team all year and having a pretty good sense already of who will be competing to play on next year’s squad, I know there will be several tough decisions and a few feelings hurt….there’s really no way around it when you’re talking about rejecting a 15, 16, 17 or 18 year old girl – some of which will be current teammates and/or friends of your own kid.  I know all too well from having to be the hatchet man two seasons ago.  The last few cuts are always the toughest as there is generally very little to differentiate between the skills of one player or another. Rather it might come down to character, the need to fill a particular role on the team or simply gut instinct. Regardless, you almost always find yourself second-guessing and over-analyzing to make sure you’ve made the “right” choices. Luckily, I will have some qualified friends to guide me as non-invested, unbiased evaluators.  So while I’m looking forward to coaching again, I’d be fine to just have a team chosen for me and forego the whole selection process.  Then, of course, I’d hardly be able to take on the responsibility of calling it “my” team so I’ll just have to suffer through.

I suppose one of the only silver linings is this will be the first year in many Momma and I don’t have to go through the whole ordeal from the other side of the glass. No more tryouts for da Boy, of course, and I can fairly confidently say the Devil should be safe to make my team. That’s not to say she doesn’t have to give it her all on the tryout ice, cuz  she does need to help me prove she and I deserve to be at the level and on the team I’ve been given the opportunity to coach.

I’ll definitely take time to enjoy the championship hockey this coming weekend (my last as just a hockey dad for a while) with an eye in the back of my mind on the nerve-wracking and most likely sleepless week to follow.

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The Last Minor Hockey Tryout…For One Anyway

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The Boy just finished the final tryout process of his minor hockey career a few days ago, a component of the game I won’t miss once the Devil reaches the end of her playing days, which are likely still a couple of years off.  In his final year (2nd year Midget), the Boy was hoping to make an AA team, a step up from the A level he has been at for the last eight years. Actually, a little interesting as his first rep hockey stint was with an AA team when he was 8.  AA minor hockey bookends if you will.  I was fairly confident he had the game and knew he had the desire to make this team (listen to me sounding all high and mighty), but the process is the process for a reason.  Every player has to compete against roughly 50 other hopefuls to earn their spot over the course of four or five tryout sessions.

One aspect of the process immediately in the Boy’s favour was the format of the tryouts. In the years leading up to Midget hockey tryouts consisted of mostly of technical drills primarily designed to enable a team of presumably unbiased evaluators to compare players’ skating and shooting  skills.  This is a good and necessary system at younger ages where coaches who may have limited familiarity with players want to quickly determine who belongs at a particular level from a pure skills perspective.  Strong skaters and hard shooters naturally stand out.  This process, however, does not necessarily determine “hockey” skills per se. The softer, or harder, skills depending on your perspective. These hockey abilities include positioning, timing and aggressiveness, which are measured most effectively in game-like situations – scrimmages and small-sided games.

one on one hockey drill

So as you can imagine, the Boy’s strengths lie in his ability to read the ice, make smart passes and battle in the corners – yup, soft hockey skills.  I, and he I believe, will readily admit skating, while not necessarily a weakness, is not his strong suit.  He may not have yet perfected his skating form and it’s probably safe to say at this point he likely never will. In fact, a couple of years ago he had an Assistant Coach who dubbed him “Spiderman” in reference to the way he swung his arms when he skated.  And yes, Spiderman still fits; particularly when he’s tired at the end of a shift or game.  And don’t even get me started on backwards skating – suffice it to says this is  always good for a chuckle. Hey, I’m dad, and I’m allowed.  He gets plenty of opportunity to chuckle at me on the ice.

So we skip back to tryout skate number one, which found all of those who registered divided into four teams.  These tryouts would be all scrimmage all the time, which suited the Boy (and me) just fine.

Now another relatively strong part of the Boy’s game is physical; specifically his ability to use his body and throw a hit.  He announced plans to “light up” some unsuspecting 1st year Midget player.  And he thought he had found a victim with his head down about 15 minutes into the 50 minute session. However, he picked the wrong kid who outweighed him by anywhere from 20-30 pounds and who, in fact, did not have his head down. The Boy was greeted unceremoniously and dumped on his own unsuspecting ass. The rest of tryout skate number one was noticeably quieter where the Boy was concerned.  From my vantage point, he would need to pick it up the following skate on the following night. After night one, his first course of action would be putting ice for an aching shoulder from his open-ice meeting with the wrong kid.

The Boy would come out with renewed conviction on night two and then likewise on night three. He wasn’t shying away from the physical; winning most battles in the corners and along the boards.  He was even, somewhat uncharacteristically, putting the puck in the net.  He was presumably making up for the slow start two nights prior.

Tryout four was scheduled to be an exhibition game against a nearby rival team; however, the Boy was told he wouldn’t need to skate along with a few others who were all presumably “on the team”. Congrats to the Boy and those who had made it. Still some nervous moments left for players looking to fill a couple of  positions yet to be filled.  The Boy would get a call the day of the exhibition game to sub in for someone who got hurt and his mom would be on the bench as the trainer; a position she will happily be filling during the upcoming season.  While the Boy was at the game, his participation was limited; particularly in the third period. Normally that would be concerning, but knowing his fate was already positively sealed, it was fine just watching him sit on the bench.

The next night there was a fifth and final tryout, which looked more like a regular practice to me, though there were apparently still a couple of decisions to be made player-wise.  This year’s squad will have a lot of familiar faces, including the coaching staff who were likewise at the A level last year – another possible factor in the final selection process.

Post skate I had a strange new revelation as the Boy had driven himself to the rink and I showed up in my own car after work.  When the tryout/practice ended, I lingered out in the lobby with a few other parents as I would normally do in my role as the Boy’s chauffeur. But then I realized I had no real reason to wait and gladly left him to drive himself home – an odd, but certainly pleasant realization and one I will no doubt appreciate more and more as the season drags on; particularly after those late night practices.

So, tryouts have concluded for another year and game one is already scheduled for tomorrow night (though the Boy won’t be participating as he needs to serve a one-game suspension following an indiscretionary hitting from behind penalty to end his season last April) with game two coming the night after.  Hockey season is revving up.  Did someone say something about the NHL because I don’t have time to pay attention?

I suppose there will be plenty of tryouts (sporting or otherwise) as the lad enters the next stage of his life.  We hope some lessons learned over the last 10 years of tryouts will serve him well, if even in some small way.  For now, I’ll plan to enjoy as much of his last year of minor hockey as I can; or at least as much as the Devil’s scheduling conflicts will allow.  It’s 5-6 nights per week at a rink somewhere if you’re trying to find me.

#imahockeydad

One v One Thrasher drill image courtesy passhockey.com.

The Tryout Season That Was (Not Without Its Highs and Lows)

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I’ve kept relatively quiet for a few weeks so as not to jinx the Devil as she ran through the latest installment of tryouts – only this time for the Midget division, into which she and most of her most recent teammates entered as the youngest of three age levels. Boys in many centres are fortunate to have a minor-midget division; whereas for girls there are 14 and 15 year olds competing against 16, 17 and even potentially 18 year olds. Quite a challenge at a physical, if not, mental and social level. But the Devil and her young mates soldiered on starting at the highest AA auditions.  Each tryout was comprised of three one or two hour sessions.

There were really no expectations to making an AA team based on the triple-age category and the fact the Devil has never played at a higher level than A (including in her most recent campaign under the tutelage of a fine rookie coach who shall remain somewhat nameless).  Skate #1 was a wee bit grueling at two-hours and considering most of the skaters had been away to the rink for a couple of weeks.  That doesn’t seem like a long time, but it doesn’t take long to have conditioning fall off; particularly when tryouts demand all-out effort and focus for an extended period of time.  An added challenge at any first tryout is the sheer number of competitors.  The Devil was one of 53 skaters on the ice at the first session.  Pretty easy with that many players to not stand out or simply be overlooked.  However, the Devil did enough to avoid an initial cut of about 20 players; which is necessary to make the selection process more manageable for the selection committee.  She would give a full effort in the second skate, never backing down from a challenge in the corners or along the boards. Yet she wouldn’t avoid the axe of the evaluators and would renew her focus a little over a week later on at A team tryouts; a team she felt she had a much better chance to join, though we all knew it wouldn’t be easy.

The first skate for the next team saw the same intimidating number of competitors at around 45. The Devil knew she’d need to work her butt off again in order to stand out, impress and have an opportunity to skate a second time.  She did just that in the first and then the second session putting her into the final round. By the third skate there were only four or five cuts left to make. The Devil knew she had her work cut out for her, but was hopeful as having been given the opportunity.  I might add here that in a bit of an unusual circumstance, the coach of this Midget A team also happens to be a very good and long-time friend of our family.  That being said, we expected no preferential treatment or consideration. The Devil would need to earn a spot as she did even a year ago when I was heading up the selection process. Though she never said it, what she did hope for was something of a heads up should hers be on the proverbial chopping block.  And, as the process played out, she was indeed released following the final skate which did not, and for that matter still does not, sit well with her.  She said if the skate were on the other foot, I would have handled this situation differently, to which I’d agree, but without going through it who knows.  Having been through tryouts for nearly eight years now the technical reasons for her release are well understood, but there is, of course, no way to separate all that emotion from the equation. This too shall pass. One more tryout, one more life lesson for better or worse.

A week later (and just a few days ago) tryouts began for the third and final Midget BB team.  After having gone through the physical and mental rigors of the first two rounds – the third (because this isn’t the first time we’ve been here) is always a little taxing.  Making this third team would have a couple of challenges of its own. First off there were far fewer players on the ice to begin with – only around 24 for 17 spots.  Secondly this team would be selected by a new coach in the association with whom the Devil has little familiarity and vice versa.  A new coach could certainly be a wild card.  On the positive side of the scale, many of the players trying out for this third team were the Devil’s teammates/friends from this past season who had likewise gone from AA to A to here.  So the Devil was ushered to the rink with the same set of instructions from the previous two rounds – skate hard and there are no friends in tryouts.  I’m pleased to report the Devil and five of her teammates, including her actual linemates, were all successful in this third attempt. There are, of course, some new allies to form and friends to be made.  At the end of all of this, just like every other year, the Devil will get to play, learn, take away from and give back to the game we all love.  For now, we’ll take a wee bit of a rest through the Summer then wait to see what else the next season will bring.

#imahockeydad

A Brief Lull in the Action

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We’re in an odd sort of stage of the hockey year; hence my recent silence.

The Boy’s season is long-since over with a final team party at a local watering hole in a couple of nights.  Though he’s going to be heading back to the ice for a Junior “A” tryout in a couple of weeks; as much for the experience as anything else.  No doubt more on that to come.

On the Devil’s side, once the league playoffs are over, which prematurely occurred for us a few weeks back, there is a month delay until the Provincial Championships start. For some teams, who exited earlier than we did this can mean 5-6 weeks without meaningful games before having to hit the ice for a relatively important tournament.  Hell, even the NHL is off for nearly a week.  I hope I don’t start shaking uncontrollably or speaking in tongues.  We have had a bunch of practices over the last couple of weeks, but that’s just not the same.  Even though we finished our league play with two losses, the Sharks had established some pretty good momentum.  The Provincials start this weekend. All of the competition is sure to be stiff, but we’ll see who’s able to rev the intensity back up in a hurry. There will be plenty of teams who feel they have something to prove.  In an initial three-game round robin format over two days, a team’s fate can be determined pretty quickly so it will be important to motivate them in a hurry.

One bit of added incentive for our girls and those from other centres is that tryouts for next year will begin just a short while after this season-capping competition. All will be acutely aware they are not only trying to win the Provincials; they are also potentially auditioning for a future coach tucked away strategically in the stands.  Our association’s coaches for next season were actually assigned well before our league playoff series was done, so those auditions have been going on for a while. The Devil has already commented about feeling the judgmental eyes following her during one particular game; one in which she did score on a power-move to the net this soon to be just-a-hockey-dad-again might proudly, if not slantedly, add.  She will have her work cut out for her being the youngest in a three-year midget division next year.  No doubt more on that to come as well.

All said we should be able to get a rest in about a month’s time.  Then, depending on the coach, it’s off to dryland training or summer skating in preparation for 2012-13.  I said “brief lull”, not “full stop”.  Did I start this by complaining about too much or too little hockey?  Such is the fickle rink life.

#imahockeydad

Trying Tryouts

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I’ve held off writing this one so as not to jinx the Boy who spent the past couple of weeks (minus a few days) in Midget rep tryouts.  While some kids his age have given up hockey in favour of jobs, girls, etc. and not necessarily in that order; the Boy’s still got the competitive itch.  Though he didn’t say it I believe he was still hopeful of moving up a level to AA this year. He’s been an A player on the cusp of playing AA for the last six years.  Or maybe that’s just a hockey dad talking. Perhaps all he really wants to do is have fun playing with his buddies, which is really just as, if not more important, in the grand scheme of things.

Putting bias as far off to the side as I can, I believe he looked good relative to all the others trying out starting with the preliminary tryouts/mini-camp back in the Fall.   But the AA tryouts presented two challenges – lots of players/competition and players from two different age groups; 16 and 17 year olds with the Boy in the former, younger group. The first set of evaluations were broken down into two scrimmages of about 30 players per skate including a whopping 13 goalies competing for five goalie spots on three rep teams.  The Boy could at least count himself lucky for not being a keeper. The first skate went well with only a few standouts from my perspective.  The Boy held his own as he generally does.  In a scrimmage situation, there are few who will question his determination.

For the next evaluation, the younger hopefuls were off to an exhibition game against a nearby town running tryouts of their own.  It seemed the coach was trying to see which of the younger players might step to the fore in a game situation.  Because it was a game, mom decided to accompany me for her first glimpse at the process.  Of course, only a few minutes into this game, on the Boy’s fourth or fifth shift, he was pushed from behind in open ice and fell awkwardly on his left shoulder.  He was able to get up and skate to the bench, but you could tell some damage had been done – the left arm hung low.  The old adage, the bigger they are the harder they fell rang true.  At the end of the period he was ushered off the ice with mom, the certified trainer, in close pursuit. He laboured to take off his gear while we wondered if his collar bone or some other part of that general area was broken.  He was definitely in some discomfort.   4 1/2 hours and an x-ray later an ER doc was able to report that in fact nothing was broken.  However a sprain of the acromioclavicular (AC) joint would put a damper on tryouts for the next 5-7 days. The Boy’s chances of making the AA team were certainly compromised and the A evaluations were slotted to start in only four days leaving little time for a full recovery.  A quick conversation with the AA coach revealed that he would be hard pressed to crack the AA lineup, which would likely be dominated by older players, in any case.

Now hopeful to make the A team, we took the Boy to a sports medicine clinic for an evaluation and opinion on when he may be ok to go back on the ice.  His first skate was to be only six days after the night of the injury. The physio exam revealed a loss of strength and some lingering tenderness, however some treatment and mandated exercises showed promise. It was decided after a conversation with the A coach that he would miss his first skate, but make every effort to make an appearance for the last two tryouts. While the A coach would take his past performance into account, optics still required him to compete for a position.

As luck would have it, the third skate would not include any contact with more of a focus being placed on skills and goalies. And yet the Boy found a way, during a three on one drill, to fall and land on his wonky left shoulder.  I may have chuckled out loud at the irony of the situation, which raised the ire of some hockey moms sitting in front of me. The Boy took a quick rest at the direction of the coach. I was happy to see him return to the ice shortly thereafter.  The moms still let me have it for my momentary indiscretion.

The fourth and final session for those competing for spots on the A squad was to be a full-contact scrimmage. I told the Boy to play smart; keep your head up. As the Boy and his scrimmage side hit the ice, it appeared he was with the stronger and perhaps already chosen group; meaning the other was comprised of players battling for a couple of final spots. This situation was not lost on the players who’ve been trying out like this for several years. The Boy said after the tryout that one player who inadvertently walked into the wrong dressing room with the “chosen players” quickly looked around and quipped “Uh oh, we’re f%$#ed!”  The Boy, for his part, played smart and was decidedly cautious with good reason. On one particular occasion he had an opportunity to deliver a hit – he thought better of it; later claiming he would have “crushed that kid.”

And so, in the end, the lad returns for a seventh consecutive season of A hockey. He’s pleased that a few of his teammates from last year and other friends he hasn’t played on a team with for a while will be teammates this season. In all he figures they have a pretty strong squad with a mix of younger and a few older players.  The first practice is tomorrow night…the first game a few days later.  We hope the shoulder will be close to 100 percent for that opening tilt.  The already completed schedule shows several familiar late night games both at home and away.  With me on the Devil’s bench, mom is fretting some of the games she will no doubt have drive to after the snow falls.  We’ll split the duties whenever we can.  I will want to get to as many games as possible, knowing his minor hockey days are fleeting.

That being said, I can tell you that none of us will miss the stress of tryouts any time soon.

#imahockeydad

Trial by Fire for a Rookie

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I knew I would have a hectic and most likely nerve-wracking rookie coach tryout week. It was all that and then some as the past couple of days threw me a couple of curves I definitely wasn’t expecting.  As anticipated, my tryouts started with a healthy group of 45 skaters and four goalies, that would have to be pared down to 15 and 2.  Three sessions immediately did not seem like enough, but that is what we were given and that is what we would use to the best of our abilities.

With only the three skates, it would be necessary to release a fairly large number of hopefuls right after the first 90 minute review.  So my evaluators and I endeavoured to identify 15 players who we felt just weren’t presently at the appropriate level. I put implicit trust in the five individuals I asked to help me evaluate prospects.  Two others would complement these initial five as the process went on. I wanted to be sure I had a good variety of experienced-based opinion as I held the fate of these 12 and 13 year olds in my hands.

Before each skate I ventured in to the dressing room to provide my version of a pre-tryout pep talk.  I started each by asking, “Who’s nervous?”, which prompted a few hands to slowly rise.  I follow that with “Oh good, I’m not the only one.” There was no falsehood in that statement. Then I said some other stuff about skating hard and shooting harder, which I am sure fell on deaf ears for most. The Devil couldn’t recount much when I asked her what I said.

I was very pleased following the first skate to find out that my evaluators and I were pretty much bang on in our independent assessments of the talent on the ice.  45 was reduced to 30 for tryout #2.

However, the end of the first evaluation provided my first real challenge as I identified an out-of-town goaltender as a leading candidate for one of the two spots I had available at that position. Being out-of-town and possibly considering other options, I decided to approach this player and ask if I could offer her a spot on my team immediately.  I and my evaluators had seen enough in one session to know she was the #1 or 2 keeper on the ice.  Unfortunately, my offer of a position was turned down as this player was indeed exploring other options in other hockey centres.  I would find out two days later that these options would pan out for her. I was now evaluating only three goaltenders to fill two positions.

The evaluation process became a little simpler with only 30 players to look at, but the level of difficulty from a decision perspective grew exponentially.  The differences between players in this smaller sample size were likewise smaller.  At the end of the second 60 minutes I looked to my evaluators for their assessments. This time we were not at the same level of agreement. They had identified a couple of surprise contenders for positions, who I had not previously considered. They also tagged a couple of players for release who I had hoped would shine a little brighter. It was time to consider releasing players I, and more importantly the Devil, had closer ties to. We spent a fair bit of time post-skate discussing the pros and cons of each player in question.  In the end, I again ultimately went with the objective advice of my selection team.  These were the first set of releases I knew I would dread.  In the first two rounds, releases simply take the form of players’ numbers not appearing on a posted list of returning players.  I double checked my list, pasted it to the rink glass and hustled out of the arena so as not to have to witness the veritable carnage I was about to create. Cue the first of a few sleepless nights in a row.

I decided to take to the ice with the players for the third and final skate in order to get a sense of their on-ice personalities in addition to their hockey skills; particularly of those with whom I’d had no previous experience. A much different, if not more valuable, perspective than what you get up in the stands. By the last skate, we were down to only having to release a few at forward and defence along with one goalie. Another real tough set of releases were waiting on the horizon. The final selections and releases are handled via letters given to each player in sealed envelopes with explicit instructions to not read them until they have reached their vehicles; away from each others’ curious eyes. The goal is to lessen, as much as possible, any sort of public humiliation for those being released. But, of course, the brutal truth forces itself out in relatively short order; if not in the parking lot against instructions then on Facebook within the hour.

My post-tryout plan included a brief team meeting to provide congratulations to those who’s efforts were rewarded with a position on the team, to relate some of my immediate plans and to cover a few administrative details. For most of those in attendance, yours truly excluded, the nervousness of the past week subsided. I was surrounded by a group of visibly relieved players and parents.

I, on the other hand, still harboured some jitters fueled by the fact that I had made some difficult releases. I received news from a father that one such release did not make it beyond the parking lot. She had, in fact, broken down upon learning her fate, prompting two of the players I’d chosen sto forego my team meeting in favour of to consoling her. In fairness, she had played at this level last season with these two players, but I was unable to grant her the same in light of the evaluations of others on the ice over the past three sessions.  I and my team felt there were other more appropriate choices based on our honest assessment.

After the team meeting, which did not conclude until well after 10pm on a Thursday evening, I did finally exhale, confident in my selections; at peace with my decisions, tough as some may have been.

Fast forward less than 24 hours to a bizarre turn of events.  I received a call on my mobile phone from the previous evening’s news-bearing father who was now calling to tell me that his daughter, who I offered a position on my team, had somehow managed to be counter-offered and accepted a position on another team in another centre. I was flabbergasted.  How had his daughter even auditioned for this other team as I understood that their tryouts had concluded over a week before. I was driving a the time so I pulled over to process what had just occurred. The phone rang again. The call display announced that the father of the other consoler from the night before was on the line.  I simply answered “Let me guess? Your daughter has accepted an offer to play in another centre?”  He confirmed this to be the case. I had apparently chosen two players who auditioned with no real desire to play on my team.  I don’t think I’m out of line to ask aloud — Who does that?

I was suddenly, quite inexplicably, short two players. I immediately called my association rep for advice, though I knew what had to be done. I would need to scramble as the tryouts for the team directly below me were scheduled to start in three hours.  I had to decide on and locate two players who I had released. I must then find these players before they stepped on the ice for the next round. I also had to inform the coach of that team that I would be taking back two of the players he thought would be vying for positions on his squad – players he was no doubt looking forward to securing as they were among my last releases.

I was able to find one of the players in time, but not the other.  My only course of action was to physically attend the next tryout – to go to a rink where a whole group of players whom I’d just released, and their parents, would no doubt be thrilled to see me.  My other chosen player was at the rink. In fact, she was in the dressing room getting ready for her next tryout. I spoke with her father to see if he thought she might be willing to accept my decision – my necessity – to revoke her release. I was pleased, and I believe fortunate, that both players I re-approached were thrilled to have been given another opportunity to play with and for me.

Quite a turn of events to arrive at a team of 17 players who I now believe all do want to play together on this team. And that will be key to the success of this group as with any team.  I told the girls who did attend my first team meeting that, I have, at this point, only selected a bunch of talented individual players.  Our combined job now is to become a team in the true sense of the word. That’s what we’ll begin working on when we get together in a couple of weeks; after all of the stress and turmoil of tryouts has fully subsided.

I sure did find out why some coaches say this is the worst week of the year; though I submit that mine was a little more difficult than it needed to be. The story of the players who decided to jump ship in the final hour has yet to play out in full. There are rules that appear to have been circumvented.  I will leave that for authorities to sort out. 

However, on the face of it, I don’t believe the hockey gods will approve of the way the whole scenario unfolded. I, as a hockey dad, certainly wouldn’t set an example for my kids based on deception and dishonour.  Hockey after all is supposed to be a game based on honour and respect. That’s what I want to convey to my players and my kids.  In that regard, I was proud of the Devil who competed hard throughout the evaluations to make sure no one questioned the fact that I was given the privilege of coaching a team. She made sure she belonged there.  In doing so, she at least made that part of my rookie experience this week a little easier.

#imahockeydad

Trial by Fire for a Rookie Hockey Coach

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I knew I would have a hectic and most likely nerve-wracking rookie coach tryout week. It was all that and then some as the past couple of days threw me a couple of curves I definitely wasn’t expecting.  As anticipated, my tryouts started with a healthy group of 45 skaters and four goalies, that would have to be pared down to 15 and 2.  Three sessions immediately did not seem like enough, but that is what we were given and that is what we would use to the best of our abilities.

With only the three skates, it would be necessary to release a fairly large number of hopefuls right after the first 90 minute review.  So my evaluators and I endeavoured to identify 15 players who we felt just weren’t presently at the appropriate level. I put implicit trust in the five individuals I asked to help me evaluate prospects.  Two others would complement these initial five as the process went on. I wanted to be sure I had a good variety of experienced-based opinion as I held the fate of these 12 and 13 year olds in my hands.

Before each skate I ventured in to the dressing room to provide my version of a pre-tryout pep talk.  I started each by asking, “Who’s nervous?”, which prompted a few hands to slowly rise.  I follow that with “Oh good, I’m not the only one.” There was no falsehood in that statement. Then I said some other stuff about skating hard and shooting harder, which I am sure fell on deaf ears for most. The Devil couldn’t recount much when I asked her what I said.

I was very pleased following the first skate to find out that my evaluators and I were pretty much bang on in our independent assessments of the talent on the ice.  45 was reduced to 30 for tryout #2.

However, the end of the first evaluation provided my first real challenge as I identified an out-of-town goaltender as a leading candidate for one of the two spots I had available at that position. Being out-of-town and possibly considering other options, I decided to approach this player and ask if I could offer her a spot on my team immediately.  I and my evaluators had seen enough in one session to know she was the #1 or 2 keeper on the ice.  Unfortunately, my offer of a position was turned down as this player was indeed exploring other options in other hockey centres.  I would find out two days later that these options would pan out for her. I was now evaluating only three goaltenders to fill two positions.

The evaluation process became a little simpler with only 30 players to look at, but the level of difficulty from a decision perspective grew exponentially.  The differences between players in this smaller sample size were likewise smaller.  At the end of the second 60 minutes I looked to my evaluators for their assessments. This time we were not at the same level of agreement. They had identified a couple of surprise contenders for positions, who I had not previously considered. They also tagged a couple of players for release who I had hoped would shine a little brighter. It was time to consider releasing players I, and more importantly the Devil, had closer ties to. We spent a fair bit of time post-skate discussing the pros and cons of each player in question.  In the end, I again ultimately went with the objective advice of my selection team.  These were the first set of releases I knew I would dread.  In the first two rounds, releases simply take the form of players’ numbers not appearing on a posted list of returning players.  I double checked my list, pasted it to the rink glass and hustled out of the arena so as not to have to witness the veritable carnage I was about to create. Cue the first of a few sleepless nights in a row.

I decided to take to the ice with the players for the third and final skate in order to get a sense of their on-ice personalities in addition to their hockey skills; particularly of those with whom I’d had no previous experience. A much different, if not more valuable, perspective than what you get up in the stands. By the last skate, we were down to only having to release a few at forward and defence along with one goalie. Another real tough set of releases were waiting on the horizon. The final selections and releases are handled via letters given to each player in sealed envelopes with explicit instructions to not read them until they have reached their vehicles; away from each others’ curious eyes. The goal is to lessen, as much as possible, any sort of public humiliation for those being released. But, of course, the brutal truth forces itself out in relatively short order; if not in the parking lot against instructions then on Facebook within the hour.

My post-tryout plan included a brief team meeting to provide congratulations to those who’s efforts were rewarded with a position on the team, to relate some of my immediate plans and to cover a few administrative details. For most of those in attendance, yours truly excluded, the nervousness of the past week subsided. I was surrounded by a group of visibly relieved players and parents.

I, on the other hand, still harboured some jitters fueled by the fact that I had made some difficult releases. I received news from a father that one such release did not make it beyond the parking lot. She had, in fact, broken down upon learning her fate, prompting two of the players I’d chosen sto forego my team meeting in favour of to consoling her. In fairness, she had played at this level last season with these two players, but I was unable to grant her the same in light of the evaluations of others on the ice over the past three sessions.  I and my team felt there were other more appropriate choices based on our honest assessment.

After the team meeting, which did not conclude until well after 10pm on a Thursday evening, I did finally exhale, confident in my selections; at peace with my decisions, tough as some may have been.

Fast forward less than 24 hours to a bizarre turn of events.  I received a call on my mobile phone from the previous evening’s news-bearing father who was now calling to tell me that his daughter, who I offered a position on my team, had somehow managed to be counter-offered and accepted a position on another team in another centre. I was flabbergasted.  How had his daughter even auditioned for this other team as I understood that their tryouts had concluded over a week before. I was driving a the time so I pulled over to process what had just occurred. The phone rang again. The call display announced that the father of the other consoler from the night before was on the line.  I simply answered “Let me guess? Your daughter has accepted an offer to play in another centre?”  He confirmed this to be the case. I had apparently chosen two players who auditioned with no real desire to play on my team.  I don’t think I’m out of line to ask aloud — Who does that?

I was suddenly, quite inexplicably, short two players. I immediately called my association rep for advice, though I knew what had to be done. I would need to scramble as the tryouts for the team directly below me were scheduled to start in three hours.  I had to decide on and locate two players who I had released. I must then find these players before they stepped on the ice for the next round. I also had to inform the coach of that team that I would be taking back two of the players he thought would be vying for positions on his squad – players he was no doubt looking forward to securing as they were among my last releases.

I was able to find one of the players in time, but not the other.  My only course of action was to physically attend the next tryout – to go to a rink where a whole group of players whom I’d just released, and their parents, would no doubt be thrilled to see me.  My other chosen player was at the rink. In fact, she was in the dressing room getting ready for her next tryout. I spoke with her father to see if he thought she might be willing to accept my decision – my necessity – to revoke her release. I was pleased, and I believe fortunate, that both players I re-approached were thrilled to have been given another opportunity to play with and for me.

Quite a turn of events to arrive at a team of 17 players who I now believe all do want to play together on this team. And that will be key to the success of this group as with any team.  I told the girls who did attend my first team meeting that, I have, at this point, only selected a bunch of talented individual players.  Our combined job now is to become a team in the true sense of the word. That’s what we’ll begin working on when we get together in a couple of weeks; after all of the stress and turmoil of tryouts has fully subsided.

I sure did find out why some coaches say this is the worst week of the year; though I submit that mine was a little more difficult than it needed to be. The story of the players who decided to jump ship in the final hour has yet to play out in full. There are rules that appear to have been circumvented.  I will leave that for authorities to sort out.

However, on the face of it, I don’t believe the hockey gods will approve of the way the whole scenario unfolded. I, as a hockey dad, certainly wouldn’t set an example for my kids based on deception and dishonour.  Hockey after all is supposed to be a game based on honour and respect. That’s what I want to convey to my players and my kids.  In that regard, I was proud of the Devil who competed hard throughout the evaluations to make sure no one questioned the fact that I was given the privilege of coaching a team. She made sure she belonged there.  In doing so, she at least made that part of my rookie experience this week a little easier.

#imahockeydad