Building Team Chemistry, Leadership and Culture With In-Season Team Building Activities
Posted by Don MacAdam
What team building activities do you do in-season with your players? Most of us have heard about teams going to exclusive resorts or being involved with some sort of expensive team building program or event. The cost alone will exclude most teams from participating in these types of events.
In the past I have used inexpensive ways to bring the team together and work on building the chemistry, leadership and culture of the team. Here are a few:
- Habitat for Humanity work day
- Museum visits
- NASCAR shop visits
- Cookouts
- Snowmobile parties
- Sightseeing tours
I asked some of my coaching friends to tell us what they do.
Danny Brooks, assistant coach with the Drummondville Voltigeurs in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey league, had an extensive list of events that included rappelling 80 feet down the side of a building, working with ropes 60 feet up in trees, sport psychology sessions, and paintball. The team also uses ‘work ethic’ and ‘self esteem’ charts.
In our team building we jumped off the building, we climbed up the trees etc. Players want to know you are going to war with them. We are leaders who lead the charge not stand back and yell and give orders. If we ask our players to jump we jump first. Team building is critical in the success of the team both in short term events i.e. world juniors and in an 80 game season.
At the high school level coach Frank Hubley keeps it simple. His players already have full schedules with school and other activities.
With team building we use our off-ice sessions. We break the team into groups of 5-6 and work out in the weight room and run the stairs. We also have team meetings with the players.
At Ohio State assistant coach Jason Lammers talks about a neat team building exercise that the team just did.
We have really tried to focus on our team. Today we did a great one! We made a spider web and each of the guys had to fit through one of the holes in the web. It was great!
We are really trying to educate our leaders with articles, talks, and actions to show them how to be more effective.
Lots of coaches are using creative team building events to improve their teams and players. Most would agree that this can lead to greater individual and team success. It can be a lot of fun too!
A Coaching Lesson From the 2008 World Series
Posted by Don MacAdam
With the 2008 World Series upon us there are lots of interesting stories about the Phillies and Rays. This Associates Press article, Nine equals eight, by Fred Goodall on October 22, 2008 has lots of gems in it.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - The manager wears thick-rimmed glasses and listens to everything from the Rolling Stones to the Four Tops. Mohawk is the haircut of the moment. Inspirational quotes decorate walls of the Tampa Bay Rays clubhouse - and we’re not talking conventional baseball wisdom.
Albert Camus weighs in with a thought, although it’s not clear if the French existentialist had any advice for hitting a split-fingered fastball. Economist Alan Greenspan is represented. The words of college basketball coaching great John Wooden are cited.
“Integrity Has No Need Of Rules.” - that’s Camus.
“Rules Cannot Take The Place Of Character.” - Greenspan said that.
“Discipline Yourself So No One Else Has To.” - that’s all Wooden.
“9=8.” Now, that one belongs to Joe Maddon, the unconventional skipper who sold his young players on the motto that’s become the club’s mantra during an improbable run to the World Series.
“I didn’t know what the hell it meant at first,” designated hitter Cliff Floyd said, recalling a speech Maddon delivered on the first day of spring training.
Some players rolled their eyes. Others stared straight ahead with blank looks on their faces.
Floyd, a 14-year veteran signed last winter to add leadership and stability to the clubhouse, gave Maddon the benefit of the doubt.
“It was a different speech than what you’re accustomed to hearing when you come to spring training. It’s usually, “We’ve got a good team, you’ve just got to believe it.’ It was different. So when he said it, people perked up. ‘Whoa. OK, let’s figure out what this means and try to accomplish it.’”
The rest, as they say, is history.
“9=8″ essentially translates to nine players playing hard for nine innings every day equals one of eight post-season berths.
Maddon also sold the concept that the Rays, who won 66 games and finished with the worst record in the majors in 2007, could make the playoffs if they got nine more wins because of hitting, an additional nine because of pitching, and another nine because of defence.
Turns out he was prophetic. The Rays, won had never won more than 70 games in a season, clinched a post-season berth for the first time with their 93rd victory - exactly 27 more than a year ago.
“I’m so used to the eye roll. I’m so used to the scoff,” Maddon said, looking back on that first day of camp. “I’m so used to it, and I’m really immune to both. … At some point, corny can turn into cool.”
While much of Tampa Bay’s success can be attributed to young talented athletes such as Evan Longoria, Carl Crawford, B.J. Upton and Scott Kazmir, players say Maddon’s insistence that things are done “The Ray Way” is responsible, too.
Although he’s an intellectual type who prefers fine wine to a cold beer following a game, Maddon can be one of the boys.
When Upton decided on a whim to get a Mohawk haircut last month, the fad caught on in the clubhouse. Maddon joined in the fun, getting his hair cut and noting the importance of solidarity.
“That stuff all matters,” he said.
It all promotes calmness that spills over onto the field.
“He’s acts like he’s one of us in here, and that’s awesome. Guys appreciate that,” rookie David Price said. “He comes in, we have gangsta rap music just blaring in the locker room. Does he say a word? No. It probably stops about two minutes before the first pitch is thrown. Joe just lets us be us. … He has a relationship with every player, and no relationship is the same. That just speaks volumes about Joe.”
Maddon’s also shown he can be a disciplinarian.
The manager benched Upton twice for not hustling on the bases after Maddon first tried to get the player’s attention in a private conversation. He preaches approaching every game the same - be it spring training or playoffs - and is convinced that’s one of the reasons the team has not been overwhelmed by the post-season stage.
“Our program’s been validated. Our concepts have been validated,” Maddon said Tuesday.
Time to Start Your In-Season Training
Posted by Don MacAdam
Hopefully all your goals were met for the pre-season and your team is ready to start the regular season. Now it is time to change your training emphasis for the in-season.
Here is an excerpt from The Hockey Conditioning Handbook chapter on the in-season. Your focus now is on maintenance.
In-Season Training Emphasis:
1) Aerobic maintenance
2) Flexibility
3) Explosive Energy maintenance
Training in-season should be focused on maintenance sessions. This is assuming you have reached the necessary fitness levels prior to the start of the season. If not, you may find there are not enough practice hours in a day or week to do everything that needs to be done. Concentrate on aerobics, flexibility, and explosive energy, regardless of the fitness levels. The game cannot be played well without these.
Following are some suggested programs for in-season conditioning maintenance.
Sample In-Season Training Programs
Off-Ice
Aerobics is still the foundation for training. A good practice will usually have an aerobic drill package built in. Cycling and running are two common ways to do aerobic work off ice. Skiing, both water and snow, is excellent for hockey players because it includes upper body work.
Flexibility should be done daily with emphasis on proper warm up/cool down stretching before and after practices and games. Add at least one weekly flexibility training session.
Explosive energy can be done as outlined in the pre-season section. You can also incorporate stair sprints (2 steps at a time), or stair hops (up and down) using one leg only for each 5-10 second work bout.
Maintenance of strength/endurance and high energy can be accomplished by exercising at least the level attained in the pre-season. If a player’s ability to sustain high energy is still weak, players will need to do additional training. Continue to do high energy training 1-2 times per week, depending on game schedule. High energy work should not be done the day prior to a game. Try to do at least one of the two sessions on the ice.
On-Ice
All aspects of conditioning should be done at least to the level attained in pre-season work using programs and drills as outlined in the pre-season section. To save training time, or for variety in training, exercise circuits can be designed to meet all components of conditioning, except flexibility.
Flexibility should be done separately before and after workouts. A complete on ice training circuit is presented below.
Click on the Store tab above to read more about The Hockey Conditioning Handbook.
A Communication Lesson From the NFL
Posted by Don MacAdam
The Globe and Mail newspaper ran an article from The Associated Press on October 4, 2008. There were some interesting coaching tips on player communication from two very successful NFL coaches.Here is most of the article.
RENTON, WASH. — There may be a secret to coaching success in today’s NFL, though it’s one Vince Lombardi would never stand for: empower your players.
Giants coach Tom Coughlin was 25-23 in New York with no playoff wins when he arrived for the 2007 training camp in Albany, N.Y., to begin a must-win season. The man renowned for inflexible discipline was concerned over players misunderstanding why he made certain decisions. So he established a leadership council of about a dozen players to deal with internal issues.
Mike Holmgren has had his own players’ committee of about half that size in each of his 10 years with the Seahawks. He also had one from 1992-98 while leading Green Bay. Holmgren won a Super Bowl and went to another with the Packers before moving to Seattle…
Coughlin’s Giants are undefeated and the Super Bowl defending champions.
Coincidences?
Players on both teams say the committees enlighten them, unite them, strengthen their teams’ trust.
“It just gives us a chance for you to relate stuff better to your teammates than maybe a coach can,” said all-pro left tackle Walter Jones, a Seahawks committee member. “Not saying you don’t want to hear it from the coach, you are just more comfortable hearing it from a player.
“You build a bond in the locker room. It’s all about respect.”
Added quarterback Matt Hasselbeck, also a committee member: “It makes the players feel they have input.”
Coaches having veterans as their deputies isn’t new in the NFL - or even with the Giants. Bill Parcells used to rely on Harry Carson and George Martin to deliver his intentions and report back on the pulse of New York’s locker room.
But Holmgren and Coughlin have formalized the practice, setting committees and having philosophies on who it should include. Coughlin’s represents older and younger players. Holmgren’s is limited to the captains of the offence, defence and special teams, so it usually includes only established veterans…
Last season, the Giants were 0-2 after routs by Dallas and Green Bay. Fans screamed for Coughlin’s dismissal. Coughlin went to his leadership council and told it there was no other group that he would rather be coaching.
The council relayed the coach’s message. The Giants went on a six-game winning streak en route to shocking the undefeated New England Patriots, one of the biggest upsets in a Super Bowl.
“I think that I’ve communicated better than I have in the past,” Coughlin, 62 and a grandfather, said. “I think I’ve taken the time to do that, attach more significance to that, and been more keenly aware of trying to make everyone understand what’s being done, why it’s being done. And do so with enough advance notice so that there’s time for it to sink in.”
Manning said Coughlin went to his council during New York’s bye last week to inform it he wanted to suspend star receiver Plaxico Burress for that Sunday’s game for missing a team meeting. The quarterback appreciated knowing what was going on.
Coughlin said there was a “very good reaction. The players understood it, they understood why, and they went back to work.”
His last meeting with them was on Monday, apparently over Holmgren wanting to change the way the players review game and practice video.
The 60-year-old has a limit to the give-and-take with his committee.
“I don’t want them coming up to me saying, ‘We want grilled cheese sandwiches on the airplane,’ ” Holmgren said.”We’re talking about things more important
Be Sure You Select The Best Captain Possible For Your Team
Posted by Don MacAdam
Most teams understand the importance of leadership. Getting the right captain and alternates is a major component of team leadership and can be a key to a team’s success. The captain will likely become the ‘face’ of the team to fans and media. He will be the one the coaching staff relies on to ‘run’ the dressing room and players look to for leadership.
Teams use different strategies to pick a captain. The process can take many forms:
- Players vote for the team captains
- Coach picks the best player as captain
- Th most senior players fill the captain roles
- Rotate the ‘C’ through the lineup over the course of the season
- By committee, where everyone gets a say
- Management selects the captains
Danny Brooks, assistant coach with the Drummondville Voltigeurs of the QMJHL had this to say about what is done with his major junior team.
The three most important aspects to our organization are: 1. work ethic, 2. attitude, 3. discipline. The captain and assistant captains must have those attributes first and foremost. The captain represents what we want everyday. Our captain is not our best player, but he brings those attributes everyday. He pushes the best players to adopt those attributes. Leadership is something that is groomed. We do something very unique here in Drummondville; we change our assistant captains every month. We reward players for hard work, discipline and attitude. Each player is also a leader in his own right. A player can be a leader in a particular aspect of the game. For example, if you are a banger, you might be the leader of the bangers. In each case all players have ownership in the team. Players are held accountable for the aspect they lead the team in.
Frank Hubley, coaching at the high school level in Nova Scotia, tells us how he selects his captains
I choose the captains. At times I have asked a number of players who they think would make good captains. I ask them ‘why’ and if there are any reasons why any of their choices may not be a good captain for the team.
I have done it where I ask no questions and I pick the captains myself. I have never allowed the players pick the captains. For me it is too much of a popularity contest. Also, I may speak about leadership to the team then ask for 3-4 names of people they think would be good captains. I have not made up my mind on that way yet.
Jason Lammers, assistant coach with Ohio State, gives us another perspective on the process.
This year we had the guys fill out a questionnaire asking for more information about teammates. For example we asked; who would you want in your foxhole, who is the most committed on and off the ice, and who has the best work ethic. We added up the scores and then decided if we agreed with what the guys thought. It seemed to work really well!
There is no sure-fire way to ensure your team selects the best person as captain. That shouldn’t stop you from doing everything possible to try to make this happen anyway. The right leader could make or break your season.
If you have any suggestion on how to pick captains, please comment on this post,
Gearing Up for the Pre-Season
Posted by Don MacAdam
You are either already in your pre-season or it is just around the corner. Season plans should have been in place by now, along with the regular season schedule and practice sessions. Are we excited or are we panicking?
What did you learn from previous pre-seasons that you will use to make this year the best ever? Are you going to have a catchy slogan to rally the player around?
Here is an excerpt from The Hockey Conditioning Handbook that will give an overview of your conditioning objectives and areas of emphasis. The book also contains information for on-ice and off-ice training and programs for you to use. Go to the Store tab at the top of the page to buy the book.
Pre-Season means on-ice workouts have started but league games have not. It’s your last chance to get all your conditioning ready for the ultimate test - game time.
Pre-Season Conditioning Objectives: 1) Top Up Off-Season Levels 2) On-Ice Transfer of Conditioning
The first part of the pre-season usually has 2-3 weeks of dry land training for ‘topping up’ your off-season training. The off-season foundations must then be adapted to the ice. Your running legs get switched to skating legs. This is also the time to incorporate specific high energy and explosive energy training. Dry land work can be done to help develop these energy systems initially. But it will be essential to ultimately train these two systems on ice as well.
During the pre-season a player should be able to gradually reduce his aerobic workouts from 5-6 per week to 2-3 per week, with at least 1 of these being done on the ice. Players should put their strength training gains to use while practicing skills and reduce regular strength workouts to 1-2 per week. Flexibility work should still be done as a ‘loosen up’ in warm ups and as a ‘tension relaxer’ at the end of all workouts. Otherwise, players will start to lose the flexibility gained from off-season training. Less time can be spent on flexibility now. One or 2 repeats of an exercise for each major muscle group should suffice at this stage.
High energy training is difficult to do on ice psychologically because of the combination of intensity and time (very hard for 40-90 seconds) needed. Skills drills are not easily adapted to these training requirements. For this reason, optimum high energy work (60-90 seconds) is easiest done off-ice. Specific high energy work (30-60 seconds/a typical shift length) should be done on ice.
Explosive energy work should be done daily, primarily on ice. This system will be a key to quick skill execution during games.
Pre-Season Training Emphasis:
1) Foundations On-Ice 2) High Energy Training
3) Explosive Energy Training
Use the pre-season to finish getting completely physically prepared to play games. All physical aspects of conditioning must be transferred effectively to the ice. Here are samples of pre-season training sessions for both on-ice and off-ice work.
Do you have your overall goals and objectives set for your pre-season? Are you rebuilding or just fine tuning around a core of returning players?
What is your player selection criteria? Do your staff and the players trying out for the team know the criteria? They darn well should. Is fitness testing included?
Use the pre-season wisely. It is an ideal time to set the standards, discipline, culture and environment for your team for the season.
It’s Hockey Coach Firing and Hiring Season
Posted by Don MacAdam
With four new NHL head coaches being announced recently, and two on Friday the 13th, I guess we can’t call hockey coaches and management superstitious.
Most coach hirings come with the usual quotes from owners and GM’s; “…he is he right fit for our team”, “…he brings discipline”, “…brings intensity”. They are all touted as the best man for the job. Typically, at the pro level at least, the ‘best man’ has about a three year shelf life.
At most levels of the game a hockey coach has a similar job description. Knowledge of tactics and strategies, the ability to develop players, run quality practices, handle the stress of game situations, and the ability to motivate players are common traits that we look for in a coach.
There are a couple of traits that will set a few coaches apart from others-communication skills and integrity.
Communication skills are important at any level of coaching. Most coaches are good talkers. The great ones are also good listeners. Mastering the different forms of verbal and nonverbal communication will be a tremendous asset for anyone.
Integrity speaks to the core of the person. The elite coach will base all his coaching on his integrity. There won’t be any attempts to fool players, staff or media. Players will be the first to see through a coach. Others will soon follow.
Strong organizations make great hires almost all the time. Coaching is rarely easy, but a coach in a quality environment has a far better chance to be successful. During the hiring process, the first place an organization, or the individual doing the hiring, should look is at the structure and culture of their organization. This is a key factor in deciding who should be hired and how successful the new coach will be.
“Coaches are hired to be fired”. Bet you heard that one before. There are all kinds of reasons why coaches eventually hear that the organization is ‘…going in a different direction’. Lack of regular season or playoff success is a common reason. One that grates me is ‘the players didn’t like the coach’. When the inmates are running the asylum, nothing much good gets accomplished. Sometimes, the coach just needs to be replaced. Maybe the reason a coach gets fired is the most common reason for a firing-the boss just doesn’t like you.
The coaching profession is no place for a superstitious person. Neither is it a place for management who don’t start the firing and hiring process with an honest look inward.
Honesty and Mentoring: Trademarks of a Successful Coach
Posted by Don MacAdam
Mike Babcock is the very successful head coach of the Detroit Red Wings. An excerpt from a recent newspaper article points to two reasons for his success-honesty and mentoring. In the article, he appears to have little problem accepting part of the blame for his team losing a game in the Stanley Cup finals. No excuses or coach speak here. Just an honest assessment of what happened. Refreshing, don’t you think?
The article also mentions how Babcock also talked with Dave King, former NHL head and assistant coach, and former coach of Canada’s National Team. He is one of the most respected coaches in hockey. Babcock uses King, Scotty Bowman, and several others as mentors.
Following is a portion of Eric Duhatschuk’s May 30/08 article in the Canadian newspaper, the Globe and Mail.
PITTSBURGH — Mike Babcock woke up yesterday morning after the Detroit Red Wings’ first loss in the Stanley Cup final and did what he usually does the morning after a game: He talked to his wife and he talked to a fellow coach, Dave King.
It wasn’t necessarily in that order.
Babcock does it for reasons that he patiently explains all the time: That lifetime learning is a core belief, and that no matter how long he stays in hockey, he doesn’t pretend to have all the answers.
Babcock was blunt about where part of the fault lay for Wednesday’s 3-2 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins - a loss that cut Detroit’s lead in the best-of-seven series to 2-1. He admitted to overplaying his two best forwards, Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk, although he added that they didn’t do a good job of keeping their shifts short enough.
Honesty is a ‘must have’ quality to be successful. It might take people awhile to find out you are not honest, but they will eventually figure it out. Players will be the first group to see any lack of honesty. An important rule for coaches- Never try to fool your players. It can’t be done for any significant length of time.
Mentors have the ability to bring the best out in your coaching. We don’t have to learn everything ourselves. Get great mentors and find out what they have learned. Share ideas, ask questions and be sure to listen.
The Hockey Conditioning Handbook
Posted by Don MacAdam
Ice hockey conditioning made easy!
Discover how to have fast, strong, totally fit hockey players all year long.
If you are a coach or a player who has loads of questions and little time to study how to train smart and effectively, The Hockey Conditioning Handbook is for you.
This ebook pulls together a multitude of information about hockey conditioning and puts it into a few simple principles that, when applied consistently, will make players faster, stronger, and last longer at the high tempo hockey needs to be played at for success.
This system, developed by two best selling hockey conditioning experts, has been used by major junior, college and pro players to improve their game performance and has advanced and even extended careers.
We have used these training techniques over the years with players in the Detroit Red Wings, Edmonton Oilers and Ottawa Senators organizations.
When you apply The Hockey Conditioning Handbook training principles you will develop quicker foot speed, faster skating, harder shots, and more powerful checking.
The book shows you how to apply the principles of training in the off-season, pre-season, in-season, and post-season. The Hockey Conditioning Handbook also provides specific examples you can use when putting together your practice sessions. What could be easier?
Keep your stick on the ice!
The Hockey Sensei
P.S. Buy The Hockey Conditioning Handbook now and get two great coaching tools FREE.
The Drill and Practice Log will provide you with a tool to plan drills and practices and develop a way to compile a log for future reference.
The Game Coaching Card is a ready source of information for the coach during games and a way to record game information for future reference.
