YOUTH HOCKEY COACHING THREAD - Ruining the Love of Hockey, One Kid At A Time

[Greyeagle]

Re: YOUTH HOCKEY COACHING THREAD - Ruining the Love of Hockey, One Kid At A Time

Do you need any formal certification to coach (USA Hockey, etc)? What all goes into that?

Level 1 is a joke, "this is a puck.....". Ok. maybe not that bad but it's pretty rudementry.
Levels 2 & 3 are a little better and IIRC both take most of a day.

It's a good money-making scheme for USA Hockey.


If you think squirts don't focus wait until you coach bantams.....

[goldy_331]

Re: YOUTH HOCKEY COACHING THREAD - Ruining the Love of Hockey, One Kid At A Time

Level 1 is a joke, "this is a puck.....". Ok. maybe not that bad but it's pretty rudementry.
Levels 2 & 3 are a little better and IIRC both take most of a day.

It's a good money-making scheme for USA Hockey.


If you think squirts don't focus wait until you coach bantams.....

You're behind the times. It all changed with this season. Go to the link I provided, or talk to me at Mariucci tonight.

Larch - my issue is that usually the refs who won't explain what they called, are insecure and don't understand the situation, hence are covering up by being dicks about it. Especially if the coach is not too animated. I was at a spring game recently where a kid was called for interference when the puck was right at the feet of the kid he hit. One of the coaches just kept asking "where was the puck" - the ref threw him out rather than answer the question. I was running the clock and right next to the guy asking the ref about it.

[Gurtholfin]

Re: YOUTH HOCKEY COACHING THREAD - Ruining the Love of Hockey, One Kid At A Time

Goldy - I know we could go round and round on this, so this is all I will say about it. Many refs do or have tried to explain situations, but we get put into a lot of situations where we are getting screamed at or otherwise. Many times it puts us into bad situations, so we choose not to. I obviously have no way of knowing how animated Gurt was or if his voice was elevated, but there are many times where the ref has to be cognizant of the situation and understand that things might escalate if they go over there and it may be better if he doesn't, as much for the ref as the coach. As with all humans we respond to what is being thrown at us, elevated voice (or previous issues), you won't get much, kill us with kindness and we'll explain the situation all day.

I'm not aiming this at anybody in particular, but there is a common misconception that coaches have a right to "talk' to the ref, but there is nothing in any book that says the ref has to explain anything to the coach or really even the captain at the lower levels. In Gurt's situation (or any coach) he has to understand that he probably isn't going to win the argument (good or bad, very few coaches do), calm down and ask at the next whistle or period break. Personally, I put the incident on both at 50-50. Gurt sounds like a pretty good coach and most refs are going to figure that out and give him the benefit of the doubt sooner or later.

That said, kudos to anybody who coaches, I've done it myself and while it can be very rewarding and fun, it can chew you up and spit you out with the best. I've seen a lot of good coaches go by the wayside and always admire the ones that stick with it, even if I don't necessarily enjoy reffing their games.

I've got a couple of friends who ref and are good at it and they have said similar things over the years.

I called it my "biggest coaching gaffe" because I KNOW that I'm not going to win the argument and I had known this and lived by this rule up to that point and have since. I broke code, possibly because I allowed my team's poor start to the game against a team that we should easily handle get to me.

I wasn't animated at all and just kept asking him to come talk. You'll have to take my word for it, or not. What I was though was insubordinate in a way and refusing to do what was asked and what was reasonably expected in a hockey game of a coach.

I should have sent a player over right away and then asked to speak to him. I allowed the magnitude of that particular game supersede my own best practices.

There is a back story on this particular ref that I didn't mention, but let's just say that he is one who really likes to insert himself into a game. He's probably 50 or so and has a reputation amongst coaches of being as asspain and really ticky-tack in his calls.

What came out of this though is that I learned a valuable lesson and luckily, didn't have to pay a price to learn it as we still won the game and went on to glory. The situation was all my fault and could have been avoided. You can't let someone else annoy you to the point that you do something silly when they have all the power. It wouldn't be much of a moral victory if we had lost the game but I could say that I was right. That's why I shut my mouth from that point on even though I wanted to jump the boards and choke the ****er out.


Thanks for being a ref. I did it for one season for men's league and said never again. It's a tough job and I just try to be one of the coaches who isn't making it any tougher.

[Larch]

Re: YOUTH HOCKEY COACHING THREAD - Ruining the Love of Hockey, One Kid At A Time

I should have sent a player over right away and then asked to speak to him. I allowed the magnitude of that particular game supersede my own best practices.

There is a back story on this particular ref that I didn't mention, but let's just say that he is one who really likes to insert himself into a game. He's probably 50 or so and has a reputation amongst coaches of being as asspain and really ticky-tack in his calls.

The first line (at least the first sentence) is exactly how I was thinking that incident might not have become literal. If you sent somebody over then he was still being an asspain, then I'd be right there will you and goldy and blasting that particular ref.

The second line is all too common and gives all refs a bad name. I've reffed in three different states and there has been at least one in every location, even other refs get frustrated with them, but there isn't much we can do and unfortunately are forced to side with them, even if we don't always agree with them.

[MavHockey14]

Level 1 is a joke, "this is a puck.....". Ok. maybe not that bad but it's pretty rudementry.
Levels 2 & 3 are a little better and IIRC both take most of a day.

It's a good money-making scheme for USA Hockey.


If you think squirts don't focus wait until you coach bantams.....

In bantam though I can yell much more frequently if they boys aren't giving a good enough effort.

I agree generally with the no need to talk to a coach, and this is my 8th year as a USA Hockey official. If a coach is screaming at me, I feel no need to go and talk **** from him while I give an explanation. If a coach asks nicely, I'm more inclined to explain something.

[leswp1]

Re: YOUTH HOCKEY COACHING THREAD - Ruining the Love of Hockey, One Kid At A Time

In bantam though I can yell much more frequently if they boys aren't giving a good enough effort.

I agree generally with the no need to talk to a coach, and this is my 8th year as a USA Hockey official. If a coach is screaming at me, I feel no need to go and talk **** from him while I give an explanation. If a coach asks nicely, I'm more inclined to explain something.

Lil les had a coach when he was a 2nd yr mite that screamed so loud you could hear him outside the rink, not even in the lobby. He also shot pucks at the kids, with good aim, full force, that left marks. He did this once to lil when he was trying to explain something and lil asked for clarification cos he didn't understand. Dropped the F-bomb in the middle of a game on my kid and benched him telling him he (lil) knew what he did wrong. To this day lil has no idea what he was doing wrong. Mr. les had a little chat with the guy after the F-bomb event as I heard it from across the ice and was livid. Needless to say they didn't let him coach little kids again after that yr. Funnily off the ice he was an easy going, funny guy.

[joecct]

Re: YOUTH HOCKEY COACHING THREAD - Ruining the Love of Hockey, One Kid At A Time

Is this an illegal hit?



Some think its the classic hit to the guy receiving the "buddy pass". I don't like it. The player is leading with the arm, not the shoulder, and is the check separating the player from the puck or the player from his head?

Or, am I off base??

[state of hockey]

Re: YOUTH HOCKEY COACHING THREAD - Ruining the Love of Hockey, One Kid At A Time

Too high.

[Greyeagle]

Re: YOUTH HOCKEY COACHING THREAD - Ruining the Love of Hockey, One Kid At A Time

Head contact.

[ScoobyDoo]

Re: YOUTH HOCKEY COACHING THREAD - Ruining the Love of Hockey, One Kid At A Time

Is this an illegal hit?



Some think its the classic hit to the guy receiving the "buddy pass". I don't like it. The player is leading with the arm, not the shoulder, and is the check separating the player from the puck or the player from his head?

Or, am I off base??

Illegal. If not it should be.

[Greyeagle]

Re: YOUTH HOCKEY COACHING THREAD - Ruining the Love of Hockey, One Kid At A Time

If not it should be.

Agree.