The days are getting shorter, nights and mornings colder, and it’s a lot harder to get up in the morning, especially for growing teenagers.  Your teams are now deep in their seasons, and you’ve gotten into a rhythm.  Teams, especially high-level club teams, have carefully crafted workouts and practices geared toward winning every game possible.  Some may encourage you to take days off so you are fresher for each weekend of games.

While we applaud the effort these coaches put into doing all they can to ensure the team has a top performance, it is a delicate balance between showing up to games fresh and ready to contribute and putting in the extra work needed for your development if you want a long-term hockey career.  While organizations tout development and a “one-stop-shop,” we all know that in most cases, they have recruited to win.  Rather than truly develop a team that stays together from year to year (a model embraced in Europe) teams actively recruit and hold tryouts each year so they can draft the best players.

That’s not to say there isn’t any development in these organizations. However, if you aspire to have a high-level hockey career, you can’t just show up to your AAA teams’ practices year after year and think you’ll end up on a great junior team.  Every NHL player will tell you about the extra hours they put in every week to become the best player they can be.  Nathan MacKinnon has said in numerous interviews that as a youth hockey player he took power skating lessons 3 times a week!

Let’s take a look at the 2006 birth year in Colorado, for example.  This was a large birth year, with a plethora of very skilled players.  In addition to their off-season work, these players participated in 2-3 EXTRA skating sessions a week in-season (Most with me and Sergei Bautin, who has since passed).  They would drive over an hour (sometimes two for my skaters who would come down from the mountains) to get to skills sessions.  Most have had many doors open for them.  Almost all of the AA kids I coached are now playing AAA.  Junior Varsity players made their varsity teams and some have even gone on to play Juniors!  Those who were AAA players in Colorado have almost all moved out East to some of the top AAA and Prep Schools in the country.  Some are already playing Juniors (rare in leagues where the average age is 19) and most of those that are have committed to NCAA programs or will soon.

I know many of you are thinking about all the obligations you have, balancing school, your team, and your social life. You’re tired and hoping your coaches, organization, and perhaps advisor can “get you somewhere” if you’re decent.  Unfortunately, in athletics, it’s not about who you know but how good you are.  There are no shortcuts, and no one can get you somewhere, no matter how much they promote you if you’re not an exceptional player.  Now is the time to make sacrifices and realize the only one that can advance you is you.

So how do you balance your development with your team’s?

First, you have to take control of your development.  I hear stories about programs that discourage players from putting in extra development work, overtly or subtly leading them to believe that they will be “punished” in some way (such as diminished ice time.)  Yes, you want to be fresh for games, but you don’t need to be at top recovery for every game.  Remember, you also need to be building what is known as “training tolerance” through your workouts, practices, and extra skill work to be better prepared physically than someone who is only maintaining throughout the season. You have to approach each season with a long-term vision.

What can you do to maximize your training and minimize fatigue?  Here are a few simple steps that should increase your energy and desire to put in the work:

  1. Sleep.  Taking your phone to bed is a career killer – bottom line. It seems so innocuous, but if you sacrifice an hour or two of sleep because you can’t put down your phone, your recovery and motivation will be next to zero. 

    Up late doing homework? How much phone time cut into the time you could have been doing that homework?

    Remember, mental stress, not just physical stress, takes a toll on the body, requiring more sleep.

  2. Nutrition. We all tout the benefits of good nutrition, but we don’t often address caloric intake.  While healthy, clean eating is important, getting enough calories to build, period is more important.  Again, cellular turnover is near its peak in your teenage years, and high-level athletes don’t have to worry about clogged arteries or diabetes.  The short answer. EAT!
  1. Proper nutritional timing after games and at tournaments.  After a game or hard workout, you have 20 minutes to get glycogen back in your system and to your legs. This is critical if you are at a tournament or have a short turnaround. Ideally, you have a 3:1 carb-to-protein ratio, but if not, a drink with a simple sugar is fine (Gatorade, Liquid IV, etc.) Do NOT choose a sugar-free version.  You also have a two-hour window in which to get a meal for maximum recovery.
  2. Buy a fitness tracker designed for athletes such as a WHOOP or an Aura Ring.  I prefer the WHOOP (A subscription instead of an expensive device). It tracks your recovery and lets you know how much sleep to get, how much recovery you need, and what to do to improve it. The metrics are endless! It’s a great tool for keeping you focused on your health and training.
  3. Make sacrifices.  Seriously. Surround yourself with a positive support system of people who understand your goals and don’t tempt you to engage in activities that will hinder your chances of success.  Have the discipline to say no to instant gratification and instead treat your body to extra sleep.  If you want to reach your hockey goals, it has to be a top priority in every decision you make.  It’s not how badly you want it, it’s what you’re willing to do to get there.

Taking these steps should give you more energy to be able to put in those extra skills sessions, such as skating, while in season.  You don’t need to change all at once if you’re finding it hard to make lifestyle changes but start incorporating them.  Have an electrolyte drink (such as Liquid IV) when you wake up in the morning.  Put your phone in do-not-disturb mode, or get a real alarm clock so you don’t need to keep it in your bedroom.  Instead of going to a late-night party, stay home and watch a full NHL game with your family or friends so you can pick up on some new game strategies and get to bed early so you’re more recovered the next week.

Questions about any of this? Let me know!