Issues & Advice

It’s critical for coaches set expectations for their team and lead by example. Coaches play a key role in player safety on and off the ice. In fact, they are considered the primary responsible party for the team in the hockey environment – whether they are present or not when an incident occurs. This means […]

Team Sportswoman of the Year was the latest honor for U.S. backstop Maddie Rooney admits her life has most certainly changed after backstopping the U.S. Olympic Women’s Hockey Team to a gold medal during the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in PyeongChang, South Korea. Being named the Team Sportswoman of the Year on Oct. 17 at the Women’s Sports Foundation’s […]

“So, we’ve spent a lot of time the last eight years developing those resources in conjunction with the other professionals to provide the best platform possible.” Strike up a conversation about hockey with Mike MacMillan and you instantly can hear the passion in his voice about the sport.  As the USA Hockey national coach-in-chief, MacMillan […]

“There’s no correlation between playing games and development, especially at that age. Those kids need to be on the ice (for practice) at least two to three times for every game.” To maximize the “Golden Age of Skill Development,” Minnesota Hockey has made a rule change to ensure players are getting the proper ratio of […]

“I want to grow the game, and I want to get people involved. Getting down there and working with these brand new players, it takes a lot of time to make sure they’re properly equipped. It takes an army of people.” Coaching and refereeing keeps Purcell busy, and that’s the way he likes it It […]

Another important step in creating a team culture focused on development is ensuring everyone understands the role of mistakes and how players learn from them. The first few weeks of the season are always an exciting time of the year. Every team has a blank slate, and players of all ages are energized about the […]

“There are going to be collisions. There are going to be accidental hits. What we focus on is taking away the purposeful checking and the purposeful hits that can lead to something more.” When Eric Hedblom first heard about the Minnesota Hockey Recreation League (“Rec League”), it couldn’t have come at a better time. His […]