Jabs #13: Making Youth Hockey Safer In Wake of Jablonski Tragedy

Submitted by Hal Tearse on Fri, 01/13/2012 - 01:27. | comments

While Jablonski's injury was, of course, his parent's worst nightmare, and will change his life forever, such injuries are fortunately quite rare in ice hockey but the publicity, in this instance, has prompted calls for the leaders of youth and high school hockey in Minnesota to demand stricter rule enforcement, better coaching, and more severe penalties for dangerous and illegal "hits" that lead to hockey being a sport with one of the highest rates of concussion.

Longtime Minnesota ice hockey coach Hal Tearse talks about how the catastrophic injury suffered by high school hockey player Jack "Jabs" Jablonski and suggests ways to make the sport safer.

Hal Tearse

Communicate, Communicate, Communicate

Submitted by Hal Tearse on Tue, 06/14/2011 - 03:03. | comments

I was visiting recently with a friend who was the assistant coach on a local high school team the past several years. The head coach had been under great pressure from the parents of the players for many years, but it had intensified the past year.

He told me that no matter the quality of the coach, nobody should go through what the head coach had to endure with the result that, after 9 years, the head coach was taking a leave of abscense for a year. I agreed with him, but, as I thought more, I realized that much of the blame really fell on the coach. He is not a good communicator and manager of people. He is passionate about the sport, studies the game like no other coach, but yet he failed to sell his vision and program to the parents and players.

Hal Tearse

Coaching Great Athletes

Submitted by Hal Tearse on Sat, 06/11/2011 - 00:15. | comments

Today I got a call from Adam. He is a former bantam hockey player who recently graduated from Ohio State, where he played baseball. He is now headed to rookie camp for the Milwaukee Brewers. I thought back to his bantam hockey team and realized that, besides Adam, two others currently play in the NFL, one in the NHL and four more are currently or will be playing professional hockey.

Wow, what a crew! One half of the bantam team ended up playing professionally in three dfferent sports. Now how often does that happen? What a thrill to have coached those young men and their teammates. It simply shows that good athletes can play many sports and, to get to the top, one needs to be a good athlete.

Hal Tearse

Relentless Pursuit of Excellence

Submitted by Hal Tearse on Mon, 05/30/2011 - 05:32. | comments

USA Hockey continues to expand their American Development Model (ADM) that is intended to provide youth players a better quality of experience in the game, higher skill levels, and a safer environment that will attract and retain more players. The model is tested in other parts of the world, makes lots of sense for kids, and it has the support from many disciplines in the medical field. Hockey associations and clubs around the country are quickly adopting the concepts and ideas although some are fearful of the changes that are required. The interesting part of all of this is that many of these ideas have been around for a long time and only now are they organized into a coherent long term development program for youth players and older athletes.

Umpire's Blown Call Provides Coach Teachable Moment

Often when dealing with umpires, parents, and kids (not to mention bosses and co-workers!), being right is only a piece of what's important for a coach. We have to balance correctness with our larger goals. As adults, it is critical that we realize the opportunity every moment affords us, the "teachable moments." As a coach and parent, we always have a choice in how we act and what we say.

Dirt, Drama and Distance

Submitted by CrazyBMXMom on Thu, 09/23/2010 - 07:37. | comments

It is late on Wednesday night, well, actually it is very early Thursday morning and in light of recent actions, I just can't sleep. My mind keeps ruminating over the past weekend and our recent trip to the San Diego area for Nicholas' final BMX National event until the Grands. It was an emotional weekend, as it is his last race as a 7-year-old and also because it was a very difficult weekend for him emotionally and mentally.

Advice to Coaches: Involve Players In Planning Practices

If you are a coach, try beginning practice by telling players the entire practice plan. You probably have it written down already. Just hand it out. It is the responsibility of a good coach to know the skills his players need to develop. In that plan include a time period where the players decide what is best for the team or them personally, based on the last game. If players have a hard time speaking with coaches, they should write down the skills that are important for them to learn.

coaching