O’Connor: Abusive coaching antics have no place in our game I'm not the type to suffer in silence. My family, and my friends, know this all too well. Believe it or not, though, I have…
O’Connor: Hey, goalies, let’s hear you talk out there February is usually playoff month for many hockey programs (high school in particular). At the very least, the month is a sign of the final…
O’Connor: Bullying is never acceptable, especially from coaches Throughout my coaching career, I’ve had to listen to parents and players who claim that a certain head coach has it out for them for…
O’Connor: Never mind the helicopter parent, beware the ‘bulldozer’ parent I was a hockey coach before I became a parent. I was a coach while I raised my two daughters, both athletes (including one hockey…
For goalies, practices are about quality, not quantity “The magic bullet is that there is no magic bullet.” — Old running proverb With the start of the high school season, I wanted to…
Goalie Guru: If you want someone’s attention, whisper At the risk of dating myself (yet again), I was recently thinking back to my heyday of the 1970s and ‘80s, when there was a…
Parents, school officials must respect boundaries Sigh! Seems like every time I want to focus on a basic goaltending topic — from techniques to game preparation — something happens that pulls…
Guidelines for age-based goals One of the most difficult aspects of coaching is applying the right approach to each goaltender, at varying age levels. The reality is that not…
Dealing with the fear of losing Adecade ago, I was working with a young goalie who showed considerable promise, despite his tender years. He had good athletic ability, terrific control of…
Coaches must never forget the impact they can have Earlier this fall, my wife and I were settling in for a relaxed evening. I’m typically immersed in early season hockey this time of year,…
If you’re a hockey coach, think like a goalie coach Consider the following a cautionary tale heading into your 2017-18 hockey season. Perhaps the worst thing for a dedicated coach is to see a team…
You might be a goalie parent if … My mom used to love saying, with a healthy scoop of selfdeprecating humor, that "There’s a special place in heaven for goalie parents." I "thought"…