Every hockey player has different motivating factors for playing the game. The vast majority train and play for love of the game, to have fun with friends, and/or to be active, which are all perfectly good reasons! Hockey is an awesome game after all, and the potential exists to improve no matter what your playing ceiling might be.
There is a subset of players within this group, however, who have the goal of playing at a higher level and then relentlessly pursue that dream. These players are likely to have certain physical characteristics, athleticism and skill that propel them forward, to be sure. But these players also share many personality traits such as being focused, driven, passionate, self-motivated, hard-working, obsessive, disciplined, enthusiastic, intense, competitive, aggressive, fierce, diligent, engaged, spirited and determined.
This motivation could begin with an epiphany, or develop over time, but once that clear goal is defined, practice time and training have a completely different focus. No more just going through the motions, but training with purpose, and with the intention of getting better each and every day. This group of players starts to dedicate more time to learning as much as they can about the game, watching reels and videos from training professionals and elite athletes, reading books and articles (such as this one!), seeking out hockey training aids to help develop their stickhandling, passing and shooting.
These players observe the skills or attributes of players they look up to, recognize that they don’t have those skills yet and set out to find ways to get there. They start to take self-assessment and seek out ways to close the gap. Questions such as: Do I need a harder shot? Maybe I should need to hit the weight room, and then shoot 500 pucks a day in the garage on my shooting tarp. Or set up the PASSMASTER in various locations to practice one-timers from different angles. How can I improve skating speed? Check out free content online from strength coach Tony Greco and how he emphasizes lower body strength exercises such as box jumps and one-leg lunges, or slide board exercises from Brrn. How can I stickhandle through traffic while protecting the puck to create opportunities? Maybe I should set up the SWEETHANDS on dryland slick tiles or a concrete slab and practice some drills from onlinehockeytraining.com. They invest that sweat equity to close the gap, and get closer to making that dream a reality.
For those of us not destined to play collegiate or professional hockey, the good news is that we can still apply these lessons to improve our status quo and get the most out of our hockey experience. Whether your player’s goal is to jump from C team to B team, to move from third line to second line, or to find more scoring opportunities during a game, the same framework applies: define a goal, seek out education and tools, and put in the work.
And if your player’s goal for playing hockey is simply to maximize fun, social benefits, exercise, and life lessons from playing youth sports, those are perfectly noble goals as well and great reasons to play hockey. Having a vision for your future and relentlessly pursuing the goals to get there applies to those passionate about becoming a doctor, an astronaut, or other professions as well. The most successful people are those who are determined to put in the work and acquire the necessary to make their dream a reality.
Edited in August 2024 from original article written by Lance Pitlick in 2015. Based in the Minneapolis area, Lance is a former NHL player with Ottawa Senators and Florida Panthers, played collegiate hockey with the Minnesota Golden Gophers, is a foremost hockey training professional both in-person and through onlinehockeytraining.com, and is the founder and former owner of Snipers Edge Hockey.
