One of the worst irritants that I’ve encountered in my years of coaching has been with a group of coaches that I dub, the “Weekend Warriors.” The weekend warriors are usually self-proclaimed part time coaches whose credentials are based solely on their playing experience. These coaches have full time jobs out side the hockey world, but help out to make some extra cash or even to do favors for friends. The weekend warrior’s part time coaching career generally gets its start through a network of friends or with individuals they may have played with growing up.

Quite often the weekend warrior will be found at the lower levels of junior hockey but they aren’t restricted to the lower levels alone. Illustrating this point; over the summer I came across a division one team in the CCHA who had an individual whose real occupation was in law enforcement.  He would come out every once and a while, with no real set practice schedule, to help out with the goalies and that was it. 

I get phone calls around tryout time on a regular basis… with parents asking if I know the guy who was evaluating the goalies… and 90% of the time I don’t.  The 90% usually represents individuals who fall into the weekend warrior category. The reason these coaches are so popular in the lower levels of junior hockey is that they’re cheap… if not free. People feel that as long as there is someone teaching them, then it doesn’t matter what they teach. The biggest mistake that teams and coaches will ever make is to have a weekend warrior coach their goalies because of price. When it comes to coaching GOALIES… IT SHOULD BE ABOUT QUALITY… NOT PRICE.  

Here are some ways to identify a weekend warrior:

Answers along those lines will more than likely mean that the goalie coach is indeed… a weekend warrior!  Do your research before making a decision. If the coach doesn’t have a web site, cliental with testimonies, or a full time career as a goalie coach specifically, then he will not be effective and possible hurt more than help your goalie.

The reason I’m writing an article solely dedicated to this subject is that the number of these coaches is getting higher. The problem with a weekend warrior is that they will not posses the knowledge and education to coach from. Just because they may have played doesn’t mean they can coach, not to mention how out dated is the information that they’re telling the goalies. A truly good and dedicated coach, who knows what they’re doing, continuously studies the NHL goalies down into the goaltenders of the collegiate and major junior leagues. They take notes, review game footage, and review the history of where the goaltending game has come from and evolved from. The part time coach, by circumstance, does not posses these attributes, because of the time and effort it takes to do so with their full time careers. One of the most difficult areas for coaches, and even more so for the part time coaches to do, is to relate to each individual goalie. The truth is that most coaches flat out can’t! Coaches armed with all the knowledge I’ve highlighted here will assist in developing individuals because they will know all the different styles and stereotypes and be able to adapt them to different styles of goalies at young ages.

The bottom line here is… even at the youngest of ages, don’t be fooled by teams and coaches who have a “guy” or a “friend” helping the goalies. Pay the extra for quality coaching and your goalie will have more fun and a much better chance of getting the start and making it up through the ranks.

I have been asked many times by parents, “how sharp should goalie skates be?”  In the day, I would like to keep my skates a half form of dull. I liked to slide laterally in the net but still have enough edge for telescoping in and out.  Those days have come and gone.  Just like the double pad save on a penalty shot which has pretty much been replaced by a sliding butterfly.  Skate sharpness is personal and usually sharp.  The pro goalie that is using the butterfly slide a lot will need to rely on a sharp edge to get him over to the other side of the net in a timely manner.  They’ll usually use a 3/8 on the wheel.  With a younger goalie, he might find that 3/8 is too much, because his skating ability isn’t as developed its hard for him to control his skates with that sharp edge, thus making it hard to perform in the net.  This is where ¾ to 5/8 might do the job.  What does all this mean 3/8, 5/8 or ¾?

Think of it this way.  A ¾ edge is going to be much flatter edge then a 3/8 edge because when the wheel is conditioned, it is ground at a flatter angle.  At 3/8, more of the edges of the wheel is taken down to form a much rounder wheel. Thus causing a deep grind with higher edges where a shallow grind is flatter and the edges aren’t as deep.  With that explained which one is right.

 I would tend to stick with a ½ to 5/8 for our goalies who are Bantam’s and below and when they start to develop there skills increase to a 3/8.  But again it’s up to the goalie and what he likes.  Another area to look out for is how the skate is sharpened. We’ve all taken our skates to the local pro shop and asked for a sharp pair of skates… some might even specify what kind of edge they desire.  Whether they get what they requested depends on the sharpener.  I have found that some pro shops won’t even re-condition the wheel to meet the request because it means having to bring the wheel back to the condition to meet forwards skates when there done.  Still another area to touch on is whether or not your getting  even edges.  This means are the edges at the same height on the skate.  I have just recently found a pair who’s inside edge was lower then the outside edge by 1/1000 of and inch.  You might say that’s nothing.  Well it is something when you’re a young goalie trying to master his/her shuffles.   These are all little tips to check for when having skates sharpened.  My suggestion is to find a good sharpener who you can trust.  I like Maximum Edge.  They do a great job and are provided with good training prior to going out and sharpening for the public.  In fact, the NHL only relies on Max Edge qualified people.  The next item one should ask their sharpener is to see if he has an edge gauge. Ask to see the gauge to make sure the edges are even.  Better yet you can obtain one through BTP Clinics and carry it with you on all your travel game to make sure you’re getting even edges.  

Finally, as a wrap up, a goalies skates are one of the most important tools he has and proper attention needs to be given to them.  One, always dry your skates off with a rag, then do it again when you get home because as the blades get warm again they sweat and cause moisture which promotes rusting. Two, use cloth guards all the time.  Three, maintain a constant and vigilant habit by inspecting your blades sharpness and rivet tightness.  With all these tips you will maintain a good pair of skates and they will last.