Ice Hockey Coaching Blog

We are honored to welcome Kendall Coyne Schofield as a contributor to IHS.  Kendall is the captain of the USA Women’s National Team and a Player Development Coach for the Chicago Blackhawks.  Kendall and IHS collaborated to film some of Kendall’s favorite small area games.  All of the games follow the key themes of moving, thinking, working, creativity, decision making...

This article was written by TJ Manastersky, Assistant Coach at Union College. The craft of coaching is both an art and science. Each season, coaching becomes more sophisticated as we are exposed to new technologies and attempt to find an edge. This leads to an expectation of coaches to modernize their approach. Yet, the best coaches seem to connect with their team in a way that inspires...

The Team at IHS would like to thank the hockey community for all of your support in 2021. We are so very grateful to all of our members, contributors, partners, and anyone who took the time to write in to ask questions or provide us feedback to help us improve. We wanted to reflect on our most popular updates and content from 2021, all of it is not possible without you, and your feedback. Our...

In the video above, Coach Alyssa Gagliardi discusses the benefits of getting creative and looking at other sports for inspiration. One activity that is beneficial for hockey players is soccer rondos. What is a rondo? Rondos are essentially a game of keep-away or monkey in the middle and can be set up in a variety of ways to practice different situations. In the article below, we...

In the video below, Topher Scott from The Hockey Think Tank dives deep into 8 Important Hockey Habits That Every Player Should Know. Habits are critical when it comes to individual and team development. Coaches at all levels should familiarize their players with these habits and reinforce them at every. single. practice.  WHAT IS A HABIT? Habits are rituals, behaviors...

HEAD UP, HEAD UP, HEAD UP! We hear it all of the time at the arena. We hear it at practices, we hear it at games. But how often do coaches ACTUALLY make players practice this hockey skill so it can become a habit? WHAT IS A HABIT? Habits are rituals, behaviors or skills that we perform automatically without thinking about them. The goal of this article is to help coaches learn how to...

Ice Hockey Systems has acquired 300+ videos from The Hockey Think Tank in a deal that will bring new forms of content and broaden the range of topics for IHS members. This comes in an effort to help improve resources for youth hockey coaches, youth hockey players, and youth hockey parents. The deal includes over 300 pieces of content developed by The Hockey Think Tank including: 20+...

IHS Members: Add Your Own Logo to Your Hockey Drawings! Once you create a drawing, you can save it, add a video example, add it to a practice plan, and share it. Learn how to add your logo in 3 steps by watching the video above or by following the steps below: Click "My Account" on the top right of your account and click "My Profile." Upload your teams logo and click "Save." Start...

The team at IHS would like to thank all of our members and hockey coaches around the world for your support in 2020. Let's be honest, 2020 was tough for everyone, even the world of hockey. Rinks and leagues across the world were shut down overnight. Seasons canceled or cut short. Parents and fans unable to watch in person. The uncertainty, unexpected challenges, and adversity impacted...