The Inside Post

Every year around the holidays players are settling into their team and things are starting to gel. I always have enjoyed asking players on my teams what they would like for gifts over holiday break. Sometimes those lists align with their hockey skills, sometimes they don’t. Regardless, it’s always entertaining. I hear lots of the usual: video games, iPhones, iPads, gift cards, etc. I even have heard some of the strange: underwear, pogo stick, and the best, when a player actually wanted a Chia Pet.

So you spent the past several months training and doing exactly what you should have to get off to a great start this season. Congratulations, you are now in the top group of hockey players who are spending the time in the garage, basement, backyard or wherever it is that you stick handle and shoot pucks. So what now? How do you show all of that talent and make a great first impression to your coach and teammates?

When it comes to hockey practice, training and development, much can be learned from watching the best players in the world. Here are our 10 takeaways after teams have played their first 10 games of the season.

“If it’s important to you, you will find a way. If it’s not, you will find an excuse.”

“While you are thinking about doing it, you are getting passed by someone else who is doing it.”

There are so many great quotes about motivation, and these are two of our favorites. Everyone needs motivation and inspiration in life, whether it’s for school, work and of course training to become a better hockey player. While sayings and quotes can help keep you going during times when you aren’t really in the mood to shoot pucks, stickhandle or go for a run, it takes a deeper, burning desire to become successful.

Tryouts are a very special, and stressful, time of year. It’s a time when all of your training and hard work is put to the test, when it’s all on the line to finally reach the goals you set after last season. Most players, and parents, have their sights set on playing for a certain team, and while it’s important to have a goal, it’s also important to recognize that there are only so many spots on each team. It is however, most often the players who have stuck to their training routine that end up having a good tryout, making the top team and achieve their goal.

Here are some tips for tryouts that can help you get through the process with the proper motivation, preparation and perspective.