Can you teach creativity in hockey?

The simple answer is “no” but you can generate an environment that encourages children to naturally develop their creative side. In fact, that is one of the main duties of any coach involved in junior hockey. Producing such an environment can be challenging and this note explores some options available to coaches to make that happen.

What kind of hockey players do you develop?

Let’s start by defining what is meant by creativity. It’s not just about the skills: dekes, fakes, one-handed-shots, behind-the-back passes or spin-o-rama moves. Creativity also refers to a player’s ability to make different decisions that helps win battles in each game, in each shift and in each situation. It is a frame of mind that a player develops that allows them to consider their options and make more right decisions in a split second regardless of what the game or the opposition throws at them.

Here are some actions that every coach could and should consider as part of their role.

Encourage and build enthusiasm

Everything starts with enthusiasm. Encouraging and creating a passion for the game is the must-have base that everything else builds on. This should be the number one priority and focus for all kids in the early part of their hockey career (e.g. 4-10 year olds). If the children are late starters then the first 2-3 years of their training and playing should be devoted to supporting their natural desire to play the game. 

Enjoyment is the key to success 

It is OK to make mistakes

Mistakes are great because they enable learning. It can be frustrating for adults - be they parents or coaches - to watch children make mistakes or carry that puck end to end yet again when the headman is wide open. But that is very much part of their learning process and coaches' job is to guide their players along the way. Coaches' job is not to tell off the player if they didn’t get it right or to shout at them for making mistakes (link). This is a key element of producing an environment that conjures both passion and creativity in kids.

In junior hockey nobody should be afraid to try their new skills or be worried about making mistakes. If the opposition scores a goal as a result, it doesn't matter. These are the best learning opportunities for the players and a hallmark of a good coach is that they can talk the player through the situation, make them think what other options were available and then encourage them to forget that particular play, move on, and try again.

Promote individual skills rather than team systems

License to be creative with the puck must become more important than team systems at all situations. It is the only way for players to learn how to make good on-ice decisions based on the situation rather than a system created by the coach (link). The problem with systems is that although they make the game look better in the short term (i.e. more like adult hockey) and can be more effective in achieving  team results (i.e. to win leagues) they tend to do so at the cost of individual development. Team systems and tactics should not be introduced as a significant part of the game until the players are 15 years or older.

Make training sessions more game like

Teaching skills is an important part of junior hockey but it is equally important to put all those newly learned skills in the context of games and game like drills during the training. Unstructured play for example, is a great and much underused form of training as it encourages the players to experiment, figure out for themselves what works and what doesn’t and to keep their heads up and observe more of what goes on around them on the ice. As part of structured training, small area games are particularly good (see also the next point).

Full-ice or cross-ice games

One issue with hockey in the UK is that players predominantly start on full-ice format when they are 8-9 years old. The drawback of full-ice format at young age is that it dilutes the game intensity and amplifies the gap between the stronger and the less experienced players.

Cross-ice format on the other hand helps to combat this. Everything happens a lot a quicker, which in turn develops the decision making process. It is easier for the less experienced players to keep up and it is simpler for the coaches to stream players into groups based on their ability so that everyone gets to play a role, have more touches on the puck, contribute to the game and hence improve faster. All players should be playing regular cross-ice games until at least the U15 level.

Rotate player positions

Another consequence of starting to play full-ice format at an early age is that it requires players to adopt positions. At worst, this can lead to a situation where a player’s position is decided when they are less than nine years old. It is all too common for coaches to keep the players in the same positions not just in games but also at training. This has a big impact on individual player development as children as young as 10 or 11 can be specialists in one position but have little idea of how to play in a different position.

Consider an eleven year old child who has only ever played defence on full ice and all of the sudden is asked to play as a winger or a centre forward. They find it difficult as they are constantly out of position and not used to applying basic skills when playing upfront. Even simple things like remembering the offside rule can become a struggle.

This is very much at odds with the goal of developing rounded players with ability to make right decisions in different situations. All too often this is the reality in junior hockey in the UK. Instead every child should have an opportunity to gain skills and understanding of how players in different positions think, behave, perceive and play the game. The simple solution is to rotate all positions at U9, U11 and U13 age groups and not introduce fixed positions until the players move to U15 level.