I made a promise to myself that I wasn’t going to go on another rant today. But yesterday’s post about girls hockey coaches reminded me of another small pet peeve of mine when it comes to coaches and parents asking for advice on how to get their young female hockey players focused for the big playoff game.

Hopefully, by this point in the season, most girls hockey coaches have focusing strategies in place to help the individual players and team as a whole.

When playoff time arrives, I am always hesitant to suggest that a team or player try any brand new strategies. I am much more inclined to tell them to stick with what worked to get you to the playoffs in the first place. But trying out a new focusing strategy is not like trying out a brand-new pair of skates. It is easy to go back to what the team is more comfortable with if the new strategy doesn’t feel quite right. Give it at least an entire game or two to judge whether it worked for your players as individuals and your team as a whole before you pull the plug on it.

The key is to keep it simple at this late point in the season.

Individual Girls Hockey Player Focus Strategy:
If you haven’t been using any mental focusing strategies up until this point, the best way to start is by picking 1 thing you are going to focus on in the offensive zone, defensive zone and neutral zone.

If you are a forward, your three points of focus could be:
1) Offensive Zone: Keep feet moving on the forecheck to force the defenseman to make a mistake.
2) Neutral Zone: Always be in a support position for whoever has the puck and call for the pass when open.
3) Defensive Zone: Keep my head on a swivel and know where my defensive responsibility is (their defenseman) at all times.

Girls Hockey Team Focus Strategy:
With the season on the line at playoff time, it is easy to see why girls hockey coaches might run a little long on their pre-game speeches. There is a lot of important information about the other team to cover and a lot of points to reinforce about team tactics. In most cases, coaches need to keep these speeches short and to the point and get the team focused on what their overall goals are for the particular game.

You might break this down into the same 3 zones as above or even keep it more general. Think of 3 things that your team can use as focus points in order to stay locked in on your goals. It might have something to do with puck movement, player support, getting more shots, or blocking more shots. I can’t tell you exactly what your focus should be going into the playoff run, but I can guarantee you that you’ll see a much greater effect if you keep it simple.

What are your 3 focus points going to be for your next game?

For a team based system for taking your performance to the next level, check out The Best Hockey Season Ever HERE.

Get Focused. Work Hard. Dream BIG.

~ Coach Kim