Post #137 – April 17, 2024 – Right Or Wrong, Tryouts Are Here
Like It Or Not, For Some – Tryouts Are Here Or Have Come And Gone
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Lost Motivation…
Except for a few teams competing north of the border in the Esso Cup, Canada’s National Midget Club Hockey Championship held in Vernon, BC this coming week, the traditional youth/minor hockey season of 23-24 has ended. MN high school and New England prep hockey has been done since early March. The USA Hockey National Championships ended about10 days ago, and most of club hockey in Ontario and across the world has finished over the last 2 weekends.
Time to relax, right? Have a few months off of hockey, may be dust off the golf clubs, reconnect with friends who haven’t seen you in months, break out the grill. At least have some time to re-charge the battery before the summer camp and showcase circuit begins.
Well. For many of you. Not a chance.
The hamster wheel of youth/minor hockey keeps on spinning.
No sooner did your season just end, only to have you jump right back in the car, drive to wherever you needed to get to, and take part in 3 or 4 day tryout event for next years 24-25 team.
With little to no break for anyone, youth/minor hockey organizations across the US and Canada have asked parents and players to partake in a ‘tryout’ process so coaches can presumably make the right decisions in selecting next years team… without waiting until next season really begins.
Doesn’t seem quite fair does it. No time to reflect. No time to take what the coach wants you to work on and actually work on it. No time to get better, learn, contemplate, rest. No time to develop, impress, or surprise.
I’ll keep the economics of youth/minor hockey and the year-long ice contracts some rinks impose on associations to buy, which keeps the hamster wheel going, out of the discussion for now.
What I do want to hit on, is motivation, or lack there of.
Back when I was growing up and playing in Massachusetts during the early to mid 80’s, the youth season ended in mid-April and tryouts weren’t until late August or early September. A full 4.5 months away from the person who was going to decide your fate at the next tryout. Your coach told you a few things he/she wanted you to improve on – or else making the team might not happen. You might not be good enough if you don’t put in the work. So I was faced with a choice, put in the work or not.
It’s funny. Hockey people, coaches in particular, talk about the motivation of a player being integral to her/his success. Coaches love self-motivated players. Players who are first on, last off. A player who takes responsibility for their own development will do well in life – whether they meet their on-ice goals or not. Listen to any college coach talk about what they’re preaching to players in their year-end exit meetings and you’ll hear them give clear and direct guidance on where they need to improve on – to move up the depth-chart. The best part, players have 5-6 months to work on what they need to. They have time to use their motivation to their advantage.
So when an organization or coach tells a kid, hey I know we just ended the season Sunday, But I hope to see you on Tuesday at tryouts… man are we missing an opportunity to make the game and players better. There’s something to be said for working for something – and the lessons you learn from going through the process. There are a million different ways to do things. But I really hope the organizers of youth/minor hockey re-think how they approach the tryout process and allow for some separation.
So if you’ve already had your tryouts and made the team you wanted – congrats. Now the hard part comes, staying motivated to improve. You already got what you wanted.
And if you don’t have your tryouts for some time, consider yourself lucky. Take a break, play another sport. Get a job. Do some volunteer work. You get the chance to surprise and impress someone when the time comes. That is if you’re motivated to do the work and improve.
Until Next Time Everyone… Be Well and Take Care,
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Grant Kimball is founder and contributing writer at Women’s College Hockey.org and beginning his 4th season as an Assistant Coach with the Yale University women’s hockey program. Grant has developed an experienced perspective in the world of women’s ice hockey, having coached and recruited players from across the globe during his 25+ year amateur and NCAA coaching career. He has coached at 6 NCAA DIII and DI programs in the NCHA (D3), the CHA, WCHA, Hockey East, ECAC, and the Ivy League (DI). Beyond coaching, Grant served as a site representative for the 2019 NCAA quarterfinal of the D-I NCAA Tournament. He also currently serves as an Officer with the American Hockey Coaches Association as Vice President of Membership and sits on the AHCA’s Women’s Hockey Executive Committee.
