Player Development Clinic Program
The Player Development Clinic will be run out of Nichols Arena this season for 10 weeks beginning on Tuesday, October 13th and ending on Tuesday, December 15th, 2020, which coincides with your Phase 1 hockey development. This development program is in addition to your regular hockey program offered by your local minor hockey association. House League players U7 to U9 (IP and Novice) will take the ice from 5:30 to 6:30 pm, and our U11 to U15 (Atom to Bantam) players will take the ice from 6:30 to 7:30 pm. MD players U9 to U15 (Novice to Bantam) take the ice from 7:30 to 8:30 pm.
We believe that your hockey players’ development will greatly improve over the course of the program because we work in small groups, 6-7 players per coach during our instructional time. The program will feature a back-to-basics format that includes power skating combined with progressive hockey skills development. This means we will be breaking everything down for your hockey player in order to learn the fundamentals of skating forwards and backwards with the puck, edging and curving, stickhandling and they will learn various techniques on how to make a crisp pass and shoot the puck.
Our program will be headed up by Paul McLean and Nicole Kaiser. Here is a short introduction to our professional skate coaches:
Paul has been coaching all forms of skating for over 11 years. He coaches recreational and competitive players and skaters of all ages. Paul strives to give the players the tools they need to attain their goals. Strong body alignment and balance are some of the pillars of a good athlete and are among the many things that Paul teaches.
Nicole figure skated until the age of 14 and began playing hockey at the age of 12. In High
School she played hockey with Blue Water Hawks and as well as for their senior team in 2010. She returned to figure skating at the age of 24 and skated on the Adult Synchro Team for the London Skating Club. Nicole believes that good skating skills are crucial to playing hockey and it’s important to have a good foundation at a young age.
These ever changing times are a great opportunity for all our hockey players to keep striving towards their personal goals and continue to have fun on the ice. Let’s make the most of this season and the modified format of play to enhance our hockey and skating skills together. Stay safe and let’s get back on the ice together and have fun!