Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1481923
N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 2 | M H J ON L I N E . C O M 15 1 SKATING AND ATHLETICISM "When we go to a rink, the first thing that stands out are the good skaters. When you watch women's hockey now, the play- ers can skate and move really well. The D are mobile. The for- wards are fast. And the goalies have good skating ability too." 2 STICK SKILLS "If a player has good hands that can match the speed of their feet, and they have the puck, they can create offense. What also stands out are players who are good distributors of the puck, but who can also receive. At the youth level, not every pass is tape to tape, so can you make a bad pass look good? Goal scoring is obviously an important skill." 3 PLAYING AT A HIGH PACE "Part of this is skating, part is thinking of the game at a high level. As players get older, we look for those that can play the game at a high speed and pace, and pushing the pace in a game. For example, are they jumping into open ice, a pocket of space, in order to get a puck and make the next play. Are they one-touching pucks back to their center on the breakout. That can be playing fast too. Being able to shoot off the pass. The biggest pace jump is from high school to college. If they have this in their game they will have the easiest transition." Coaches can always tell which players are the most competitive and willing to battle in the hard areas of the ice. It's often the difference-maker in close games. 4 COMPETITIVENESS "Any coach would say that competitiveness is super important and not everyone has this competitive bone in their body. We want players with an edge. We want to see the kids working hard, on the forecheck, making a defensive play in their end, where they had to work really hard to get back. Celebrating goals is okay too. Sometimes kids get a bad rap for that. There's a sports- manship line we don't want to cross, but scoring goals in hockey is not easy, so we should celebrate it." 5 RESPECT FOR THE GAME " We look for players that respect the game and other people. Are they giving everything they have all the time, every shift? It's also about body lan- guage and how they act. Are they building up their teammates at the end of the game, can they make it through the handshake line? Are they respectful of their teammates, opponents, coaches and officials? How they talk to their parents in the parking lot after the game is big too. Are they being respectful to all? Those are the types of people you want in your room, who can impact the culture. It's a sacred thing in any program."