Tag: Pond Hockey

Will 4 on 4 be the “new” normal?

Posted Glen MulcahyPosted in Athlete, Coach, COVID-19, Parents

It is so exciting to see the globe enter different phases post COVID-19 quarantine period start put all sports on hold mid March as well as other sectors coming back.

I think one of the biggest milestones for yours truly was when I finally was able to get my hair cut again, normally I do so every month, and the last appointment I had pre Covid just before quarantine period was on March 9th so come June 19th when I got to see my “stylist” of 25+ years was just one of many examples how we are returning back.

I recently read another great article that JJ Adams wrote for the Vancouver Sun and Province newspapers “Rec hockey overhauled to keep it fun, less risky”

The online version of the same article in the Sun Newspaper (yes, there are still people that read the paper, yours truly is one as my first “job” was carrier for the Sun for 8 years) starts with the quote that I shared in our newsletter …..

 

One of the main contributors to the article that JJ talked to was the CEO of Canlan Ice Sports, who run 3 multi sheet ice rinks in the Vancouver and 12 others in Canada and Illinois.

He shared how they have reinvented the format for both their adult and youth recreational leagues which I am very familiar with, having coached in all of the facilities for years and then when my son’s minor hockey “career” was over, in lieu of pursuing the junior hockey path he found very frustrating (as did I), he accepted an invitation to play for an adult team playing in ASHL tier 1 even though he was 18 at the time.

He was able to play 2 seasons with that team but like all others, his season ended March 13th, 2020 and I know he is itching to return to play once a week with his buds as his hockey bag still sits fully packed in our garage.

I shared the highlights of the article at one of our many home cooked dinners we have had the last few months and he shared one of his fondest memories playing hockey growing up we not the 5 on 5 recreational or competitive teams he played for, but was the spring 3 on 3 on smaller ice surfaces or 3 on 3 , 4 on 4 on full ice with modified rules.

For me as well, that was some of my fondest memories, going back to watching him play with the “big boys” when he was invited to play 3 on 3 with his counterparts who were all a year older for his first spring “season” of 12 games from end of March to mid June once a week.

We played in a faculty that had 3 smaller ice surfaces that became a go to for many associations in the winter for practices, small area games and then a natural fit for cross ice hockey (ice sheets are approx. 45% smaller than a full sheet)

3 on 3 had rules to keep the flow going of the game including floating blue line (once entered the offensive zone the red line then became the blue line to keep the puck moving), changing on the fly (vs .buzzers that were being used from H1-4 when we did play full ice) and no penalties, only penalty shots.  No body checking for all age groups also.

Each year thereafter he would ask me to put a team together as he had so much fun so we did and many of the original players and goalies returned year after year as they had so much fun.

Even coaches had fun, as did parents who watched many of the games from the pub (many of which would sure one of their counterparts would be the DD)

When the boys got into their teens, one of the players grandparents was the head skills developer for one of the Canlan sheets near us and asked us if they boys would like to try full ice 4 on 4 or 3 on 3 which is what really kept the bug going for my son and all of his friends.

THEY Loved both options, and although scores were kept, it was literally watching pond hockey and although I was their coach, I encouraged them all the time to just go out there and have fun, they already had their winter seasons with plenty of competitive games and practices, this was just an opportunity to keep their skate legs going once a week in the offseason.

My daughter also played one season of “fun hockey” with one of her softball counterparts, even though she could barely skate at the time, so Canlan and the other private facilities do have several fun progams and youth and adults to consider (although I am not a fan of the competitive spring hockey model that has evolved as have have shared for years)

So when I saw how Canlan was improvising so kids and adults could return back to play I same some of the similar rules we had played with as well as new ones so they could ensure that those that returned back to play could do so safely.

Canlan, like many other multi-sheet corporations like Planet Ice are privately held and run, and their recreational leagues do not fall under the umbrella of Hockey Canada.

The upside for them (and for all the hockey keeners from youth to adults) is they can run programs year round but the cons are the coaches or officials do not have to be Hockey Canada certified, nor do they qualify for Hockey Canada’s insurance program which Tom Renney et al have announced the contagious disclaimer is going to remain unchanged until 2024 to permit local hockey associations to return to play in the fall.

 

 

Some of the things that Canlan is doing to permit their leagues to start up again when physical distancing permits

#1 – In lieu of 5 on 5 (with goalie), they will be 4 on 4 (with a goalie) for cohort groups of 10 per bench (8 skaters, one goalie, one coach)

This will permit more space between the players during game play and comply with current PHO cohort guidelines

#2 – NO penalties, in lieu penalty shots (think basketball free throw)

The difference with the way penalty shots will be done Post COVID-19 is those that are awarded the penalty shot in lieu of puck being placed on the centre ice face-off dot and player skating in on a breakaway, the puck will be place in between the hashmarks and players will have to shoot for there to try and score.

OK potentially for adults, teenage players who will have the physical strength to do so, not so much for players U12 but that will adhere to the LTAD models that are restricting competitive games

# 3 – Face masks – Canlan is also working with Bauer for various of masks that players can use while playing, as well as ones for coaches, administrators, on ice officials and even parents/fans

 

#4 – No Face-offs – Ensures Physical Distancing is adhered to with two 10 minute running time periods (vs. 3 15-20 minute stop time)

#5 – Refs will have electronic whistles (pushing a button vs. blowing thru)

#6 – Social Distancing Dots on the bench (for 4 additional players to sit and coach to stand)

#7 – Water Bottle Shield on the bench

** Pre-Covid, it was amazing how few players brought water bottles to practices when I was doing coach evaluations … I suspect that the awareness created with COVID that will no longer need a reminder

#8 – Pregame questionnaire and “zone control attendant” to ensure adhere to social distancing when come to the facility, will be escorted to their dressing rooms that has been marked to ensure players/goals get dressed 6’ or more apart

#9 – No Showers (yikes, that could lead to some stinky drives home)

#10 – No dilly dallying in the dressing rooms post game

Translation – NO BEER for the ASHL players and one of the best part of playing adult recreation team sports, the post-game rituals and conversations in the dressing room, dugout or benches so in lieu this means they will have to improvise, adapt and overcome (i.e. head to a pub or an empty parking lot and park all their cars and open bumpers, doors to permit social distancing and ensure can answer the first question everyone will have) …..

WHO HAS THE BEER (cooler, water etc)? (The Snack)

Before the last words everyone will say as they are closing their doors to head home

WHEN DO WE PLAY AGAIN?

Kudos to Canlan, Bauer and other organizations that are working on the ways so that can all return to play the games we love to play, coach, ref and watch as safely as possible.

 

 

Kids don’t need more structure, they need more free play

Posted Glen MulcahyPosted in Athlete, Coach, Organization Executive, Parents

Two years back I wrote about 5 different initiatives in the USA that were focusing on unstructured or free play “Bring Back More Free Play” and although I have seen a PARADIGM shift of sorts with some youth sports, others have gone the other extreme where the costs and time commitment are pushing so many kids out.

Compound that with the fact that less and less kids are playing outside without direct supervision like we did as kids and as Peter Gray shared in his great Ted Talk below the decline in free play has lead to an increase in mental health issues.

I think back to my childhood and have shared as the first slide of our core talk, Don’t be a Kid’s Last Coach, titled That was Then where I pulled some random pictures from the internet that reminded me of some of the vivid memories I had growing up.

Yes I played a lot of organized sports and I have great memories of my teammates, coaches, team dinners, pool parties and some of the milestones where we achieved our end of season goals, but a lot of my memories were from the free or unstructured play I had.

Below is a screenshot with images that I have shared in Don’t Be a Kid’s Last Coach that I titled That was Then;

 

 

POND/OUTDOOR RINK

I would be totally remiss in starting a presentation about free play if I did not talk about all the time I spent on outdoor rinks and ponds as a kid growing up in Quebec.  I also had the opportunity to do so on the Rideau Canal and even the frozen tundra in the Northwest Territories when I lived on Baffin Island.  What I remember most and all those that I have asked if they ever played was (a) how long they PLAYED and (b) only stopped because they needed food, go to the bathroom or parents came to get them as it was time for dinner.

Bobby Orr (who was pretty good) attributes the main reason he became the player he became was all the repetitions he had playing on the pond in Parry Sound, and I remind coaches all the time to ensure they have 10 minutes (minimum) of stick and puck (unsupervised ice time) for their teams so it equates to a few days over the season.

His Dad would merely remind him every time he dropped him off, “Bobby, just go out there, have fun, and see what happens”

 

RECESS SOCCER

I only played one season or organized soccer when I was 12-13 years old and as I really did not know the rules my coach made me the goalie.  Having played hockey since I was 3, I must confess being a goalie in soccer was not something I aspired for, seeing only a few shots a game and for the rest of the game looking at the stars or day dreaming.

I opted to play football in lieu and became one of the organized sports I played until Junior

What I do recall about soccer is all the time we played pickup games at recess, lunch hour, after school like the picture above.  Many times were on gravel fields and once I moved to BC, many of which were in the rain.

I loved to be outside with my buds just playing for the sake of playing

 

SANDLOT (UNORGANIZED) BASEBALL

The picture is one of the characters from the Movie Sandlot, whom I refer to is the younger me, at one point my hair was that brighter orange (has darkened over the years) and playing pickup baseball, scub, was one of my favorite activities in spring, summer even when I was playing organized ball.

We would just grab our gloves, hats, a wooden bat, any balls we had and head to the field.  We would elect captains and we picked out teams and played for hours on end.

 

PICKUP BASKETBALL

Another one of my favorites was playing pickup basketball outside at my schools or many of our houses (we moved every year until I was in grade 8) we had a basketball hoop either mounted on our house (leading to a few broken windows that ate up our allowance) or a wooden pole and went thru nets like many kids go thru candy.

The most fierce battles I ever had was the 1 on 1 battles driving the net with my friends or younger brother in our driveway where we all pretended to be Kareem Abdul Jabaar, Larry Bird or Michael Jordan.

 

Michael Jordan loved pickup basketball so much that he negotiated a For The Love Of The Game Clause in all of his contracts so he could play anywhere, anytime.

I did play a few years of high school basketball, and another favorite was when our gym teacher let our PE class play tackle basketball as most of us were playing hockey, football and rugby.  Yes there were some bruises, scrapes and other non-life threatening injuries that school insurance prohibits kids today to keep them in bubble wrap but where else would we have learned resiliency?

 

BIKE RIDES

I will never forget how my Dad taught me how to ride a bike, he got me training wheels and held my bike the first day and within a few days I had developed the confidence to break away from his firm hand on the handlebar.  My mother shared with me many years later as he passed away when I was 8 that after day one he raised the training wheels a bit, then another inch, then another so after day 1 I literally was on my own.

Although I loved to ride my bike from that time, it was a necessity as my father passed away a few years after he “helped me” learn how to ride the bike and my mother did not drive as a result of a couple of really bad accidents she had, one before she was married, the other when I was learning how to ride.  The second was so bad that she ended up in Montreal Neuro for over a year to recover from a broken neck and back so lived with my Nanny and my brother with our other grandparents as my fathers job was so demanding.

My Nanny had moved to Ottawa and had remarried to Papa John, and many times that year when the Rideau froze he would take me there so I could go for a skate, play stick and puck and have many vivid memories of those times.

Fast forward to when I got older it was the way I got to practices, games and earned money delivering papers after school for many years.

 Because my mother did not drive again until after my kids were born, I was saved from the infamous car ride (home as well as to the games) that many kids have shared is the worst thing about their youth sports experience also, and the only feedback she ever shared was how much she loved watching me play.

 

 

SNOWBALL FIGHTS

Like Pond Hockey, I also would be remissful not sharing the infamous snowball fights we had on a regular basis while in Quebec and took great pride in building our arsenal and HUGE forts for us to battle after school each day when the snow was perfect to make snowballs.

Sadly schools have now banned snowball fights as kids could get hurt … I don’t know, I took a few in the eye, forehead and am ok, like everything else, just because you MAY get hurt, does not mean you will.

It is also where I improved my throwing mechanics in the winter for baseball/softball in the spring, without which perhaps I would not have played at the competitive level for many years.

If you have read to this point there are probably many other images that you have of activities that you did as a kid as I did like British Bulldog, Beach Volleyball, Frisbee, playing catch, golf, tennis, racquetball, handball, stickball, street hockey, climbing trees, going to the school playground and so on.

I chose these particular pictures and ask the question in our talks “What is missing in the pictures?”

NO ADULTS  – NO PARENTS – NO COACHES – NO OFFICIALS – NO UNIFORMS

NO  $300.00 Composite Bats or Hockey Sticks, $1000.00 skates, 300.00 cleats, home and away helmets, gloves, pant shells, hoodies, nameplates etc.

We played for the love of the game.

We made our own teams, rebalanced as needed so no blow-outs occurred and we made our own rules and enforced them

We kept score merely for bragging rights, it was not about banners or trophies like it is today.

We had so much fun that we played for hours on end until it got dark.

In Spring, Summer and winter breaks ….Next Day  …. REPEAT and do it all over again or perhaps choose a different sport but sadly those days where kids played for the sake of playing have eroded.

Fast forward to this generation of kids and NBC shares how excited when they get to play “unorganized baseball” that even their own coach fessed up he had no idea how to do so?

 

Rule # 1 – Parents need to be quiet (if you ask any kid that is what they want when they play)

Rule #2 – Kids pick sides and EVERYONE Plays

Imagine – kids playing sports with no grown-ups involved screaming instructions from the stands, dugout or coaches that run short benches….

When asked after the game what he liked best, one of the players shared THIS (unorganized baseball).

Should we tell your Dad?

YEP.

Parents, Coaches. Executive members remember what it was like when you grew up and the fun you had when you just played for the sake of playing?

If we shifted the needle to promote unorganized games and focus on creativity, skill development, making friends, having fun to follow models like Norway and Sweden until the kids are in high school the current attrition rates where 70% quit by the age of 13 other nations are experiencing will reduce significantly GUARANTEED.

Kids don’t need more structure, they need more FREE PLAY.

Parents – Stop keeping up with the Jones with travel ball, Off-Season select teams, specialty trainers and encourage your kids to play For the Love of the Game again.

Let’s all work together to bring the game back to the kids …. Where it belongs.

 

BONUS – Download a FREE printable PDF version of this blog HERE