(Originally published October 2023)
The first time I was exposed to video analysis in hockey was in 2004.
That season, our high school varsity coach had the idea of renting a video camera (one of those big old things that recorded into a small cassette), filming our games and then reviewing our performance on tape one lunchtime per a week.
It didn’t go well.
My teammates and I didn’t want to be stuck in a classroom watching grainy VHS footage. We’d rather be taking our time finishing our lunch, hanging out with friends or even catching up on schoolwork.
The meetings were poorly run. It was difficult for our coach to find the right clips by fast-forwarding and rewinding on the finicky cassette player, and we mostly ended up hooting at our own highlights and giving our teammates a hard time whenever they tripped over the blueline.
All in all, I didn’t get much out of this first exposure to video analysis due to inadequate technology, peer pressure and our coach’s lack of expertise in running video meetings.
Twenty years later, watching game film and running meetings have become my job, so naturally I look back at that early experience with a sense of what might’ve been.
Youth hockey coach Chazz Vineberg recently asked: “What is the most effective/useful way to watch game film for a youth hockey coach?”
My answer:
Find (at least) one positive clip for each player, especially if they are recurring situations. Then show them, let them know it's hasn't gone unnoticed and help them execute that positive play more often.
Sometimes players think they need to grow two feet in height or completely reinvent their skillset to make it to the next level. More often it's just a matter of utilizing their existing strengths 3-5 times more per game.
This reply was entirely motivated by what I wished I’d gotten out of our high school team meetings.
I was one of the best shooters, if not one of the best goal scorers on our team because I was unable to create enough shot volume to get on the scoresheet with consistency. This was caused by my inability to manufacture puck touches by getting off the wall on breakouts, extending OZ sequences with puck protection and disrupting plays on the backcheck. But back then we were all oblivious, and so I never received the right coaching to maximize my hockey experience.
Video analysis would’ve been the way for my coaches and I to make the connection between my strength (my shot) and where my team needed more from me (creating additional possession opportunities). This is especially relevant for youth coaches, who are in the business of helping their players have fun rather than imposing changes in how they play.
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