Smart, Hard to Play Against, Hockey:
How much can we learn and when do we stop learning?

People with a passion for life and the game are forever looking for something new or something to solve. They are always looking for lessons in life and the game.

“Given a choice, without training or direction, your mind will take the easy way out.”

The 1st two games of the Stanley Cup finals in 2008 are a prime example. The Penguins will be thanking the Red Wings for teaching them a lesson they will never forget. Now guarding against a Stanley Cup Finals hangover is paramount and history tells us change is inevitable.

The lesson is the fine line between a continuous search for respect and peace of mind that ultimately is the difference between winning and losing. Both Cup Final teams have quality players from top to bottom. Each has unique skills that contribute to winning. The only differences in the games are smarts, mind set, timing, and execution.

Given a choice, we all want to coach a very angry, mean, nasty and upset team with talented people; people who know how to use their energy and talent smartly. Having distaste for your opponent is acceptable when you are going after the top prize. If players do not get passing marks in these categories, you have the wrong players on the team. Every struggling player and team should start with being angry because of their situation.

Both teams had talent, work ethic, energy and enthusiasm that are infectious and competitive players who are hard to play against. The best teams take it to another level. The word smart gets thrown in to the mix and that word is applied to every aspect of the game. Place the word, “smart or smartly” before energy, anger, mean, nasty, take outs, draws, hitting, tandem play, hard to play against, detail people, puck movement, open lanes to the puck and keeping the rink big in all three zones; any facet of the game you want. The level of competition is so tight that finding a way to execute is paramount to winning. The young PENS had it, but this was their 1st opponent in the play offs that requires a team to excel in this area in order to beat them.

There is a benefit to playing on a great team with great players, but those same players still have to smartly get it done. It still comes down to using your smarts when you experience intense, fast thinking situations. Time to think about something gets reduced when you get to the finals. Time to think gets reduced when teams start gunning for you because you were in the finals or having a great season. This is a reason why there are only two teams left. There are more players totally focused, more energy with more attention to detail, smart enough to think quicker on their feet in any situation and they have no fear when it comes to playing angry, mean, nasty and upset.

Space and catch up passes to areas your teammates are reading to jump in to may be the only way to get open and back on the attack in transition because there is so little room and the energy level is so high. Passes to yourself off the boards, when you are out of options and room, are split second reactions that allow you to keep control of the puck and the game. Races to loose pucks have to be won or the opponent separated fm the puck. 2nd effort to loose pucks has to be unmatched.

Clearing passes are a skill and executing properly protects leads and gets you out of sustained fore-checks by the opponent. The new rules on icing mean you will be out on the ice with fatigue setting in. Block fatigue out of your mind when you go in to the face-off in your own end.

Smartly dumping the puck is a unique skill, one anyone can learn to execute. The end result being sustained fore-checks, shots on net and goals.

The Finals have a way of exposing each player’s personality, smarts and zest for life. Those that excel have been waiting for this opportunity longer than they thought and they are able to put the pedal to the metal. The “IT Factor” comes in to play. There are people in every setting who just have the “IT Factor” and a sense of humor to go with it. They have “IT” when it comes to execution under pressure. They have the skill to express their skills.

“Special players crave the stage to sing their song and they try to sing it better than the last time.”

When the Stanley Cup finals are over, there will be one winner. There will be four to six more teams saying, “We could have won and this is how we could have won.” The great teams learn as much from the other team as they learn from their own. My wish was for the players on the young Penguins to win the Cup and then thank the Red Wings for a valuable lesson in Games One and Two of 2008. They challenged you to beat them by showing you how to beat them. My 2nd wish is to guard against the hangover and loss of lessons learned when you play in the Final.

Hockey is still a game that older people play. When he turned 52, Gordie Howe said, “I’m a fifty-two (52) year old adolescent playing a kid’s game.” When I see the smiles on the likes of Sidney Crosby, Evgeny Malkin, Jordan Staal, Ryan Whitney after a great play and goal; and Marc-Andre Fleury after a gamer save, I see happiness because of sharing before any personal gain.

Maurice Richard, Jean Beliveau, Chris Chelios, Ron Francis, Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux; and countless other gifted players make sure the word “fun” never leaves the game. This is how teams are held together during the tough stretches. The lesson here is,

“Being overly serious can be counterproductive. Learn to laugh @ yourself.”

Rob Blake tells a former college teammate that the 2008-09 edition of the San Jose Sharks is the most fun he has ever had in hockey because Joe Thornton spends so much of his time having fun with the team. When he signed for millions of dollars Scott Hartnell’s brother said, “Now he will never grow up.” The will to win remains one step ahead of having fun because there is no more fun than winning.

I am one that believes that “caring levels” ultimately dictate the success of teams. Defining roles and eliminating agenda driven people is a priority. This includes players’ support groups.

There is no spot in any locker room for the timid or weak minded player. The Cup Finals were games that the PENS needed to play in, games to learn from; but isn’t this true in every setting? While it would have been great if the guys could have gotten a few early on the power play, playoff series will still come down to “smarts” and burying “critical moment” chances, because all the other intangibles are a given.

Study the opponent and entice the opponent to do what they like to do. There should be some space behind hitters when they step up. I don’t know if that space is behind them or in the spot that was vacated by the player covering for him. The center forward or strong side wing covered for him, so the opening is usually on their weak side wing. Well coached teams fill in well for players. Is it possible to exploit the desire to crunch people? Entice him in to stepping up and make the space pass that can give you the odd man rush. Easier said than done, because I see they are good @ filling his spot, but great players know what is going on around them. Enticing him in to a hitting situation is better than him surprising you with one. One hand drop, with a space pass, allows the puck carrier to throw him off his rhythm and you slip the check.

The hits on Jordan Staal and Ryan Malone got me thinking about this only because I have a deep respect for their ability to think smart and fast in a split second.

The draws are huge and Pittsburgh had a couple in the dying minutes of the early games. This was nice to see because the draws are slowly getting to the 50% level. Most draws are sawed off, so smart team play dictates the success ratio.

Go to clips of pucks being stripped or players eluding checks. Go to the clips of players gaining the shoulder, taking the hands to the boards and stripping pucks off each other. This fundamental is what we call a “100% take out” and it wins championships. Putting a player through the glass is not nearly as effective against the great teams as frustrating the hell out of your opponent. Great hits (hard hits in to the glass) don’t come close to the psychological victory for plays of this nature. Change of direction may be more effective in combating their fundamental take outs.

There have to be a couple of clips on boxing net play guys out that would prove valuable. Goal scorers showing up right up on time in receiving/shooting situations is something everyone can appreciate and emulate.

WIN stands for what’s important now. Think of situations where two players meet and go down on the ice. Who got up first? Who got back in to the play first? Who forgot about a hit, broken stick, check, bad call, icing with no change or loss of a puck the split second it happens so they can get back to what’s important now. Everything is a race. It’s a race to get up quicker when two people get knocked down.

Detroit is a fundamentally sound team and I believe the biggest obstacle is matching and surpassing their smarts when it comes to the fundamentals of the game. Their take outs are close to 100%, draws are an advantage for them, they keep the rink very big when they have the puck in all three zones, and they time finding the seams as well as anyone in the game. The PENS can do this; all players can do this.

“Control the opponent before you even think of getting the puck. This way the puck is yours. Control the opponent’s body before you think of the puck and you win all confrontations and play with their mind. Control their mind and you win the game.”

Mindset, anticipation and execution are paramount. Anticipation makes you look quicker and helps you solve any situation first. Championships are won when combined with attitude, swagger, mindset, infectious play, gregariousness, boldness and killer instinct.

Shoot smart and recognize the consequences of shots that are easy to catch or in to the mid-section versus low shots that are uncontrollable and lead to rebounds and sustained fore-check.

The “givens” are both teams have talented, enthusiastic, infectious and competitive players who are hard to play against. The stakes are high for both teams and @ a point where they bigger every day they come to the rink. Teams and players learn to live with reward for gaining recognition, notoriety and getting to the finals.

It all comes down to the “IT Factor”. Certain players have the “IT Factor” under control when it comes to critical moments. Some players want to and can be “IT”. They know what’s going on around them, they figure out their blind spots, and they, “Get IT done”.

“Team power fuels star power. You need this to have your top players firing on all cylinders.”

The Cup resembles a playground setting with a pecking order. If you don't like the pecking order, the setting is there to change it. Rules are reduced to guidelines and players get paid to outwork and outperform their opponent with no regard for who they are or what they've accomplished. Players accept the challenge and set out to prove they are better than the next guy. The Cup mirrors life. Aren't we all paid to outwork and outperform our opponent in life? Great win for a group of guys who don't show any quit in them and appear to be relishing the playground setting where there is no room for the timid or weak minded player. Makes you want to bring back the old playground setting where kids grew up learning how to survive on their own in the toughest situations. Something tells me the PIT players have some playground experience and are interesting in altering the 'pecking order'.

Little things caught my eye as the series went on and on. There are more catch up and space passes by DTW than I'm used to watching. Is this coincidental or by design? Area & space passes are effective because there is no room out here tonight. DTW is running in to more pucks than I've ever seen. Must know where they are going with it.

Company attitudes change people. I don't remember certain players as detailed and hard working guys @ age eighteen (18). It's a race to get up quicker when knocked down in this series.

Something must have caught my eye to mention this. Passes to yourself when there is no other pass to buy time. Head swivel and reaction time to loose pucks is all about anticipation, quickness & mind set. Everyone has bought in on PIT according to coaches; nice to see. Players’ sticks are good lessons in terms of getting pucks off people without getting a pim.

Icings happen. Get the fatigue factor out of your mind if it is on your mind when you have to ice the puck and stay on. Gaining the shoulder is paramount, especially when smaller players are going against bigger players.

Are you making sure on getting pucks out of the zone on PK, etc? This is a given for a pro and very important fundamental. The clearing pass all of sudden becomes one of the most important fundamentals. High shots are cherry picked so we are better off with rebound type shots fm off angles that lead to sustained fore-checks. Where is the controlled distaste for the opponent? Long shots have to be uncatchable, 2nd effort to loose pucks has to be unmatched. Gain the red line extended; cannot compromise on this.

DTW minds get to loose pucks as much as their feet. When you get to the level where you are worried about what the other guy is doing, you are done. PIT will have to go fm student to teacher if this series is going to be turned around. I believed they would and they didn’t. One year later (2009), the student became the teacher. What happens in 2010? What lessons are learned? How does smart hockey go to smarter hockey?

Copyright by Chuck Grillo, Minnesota Hockey Camps, 24621 So Clark Lake, Rd P.O. Box 90, Nisswa, MN 56468-0090 Phone 218.96.2444 Fax 218.963.2325 Email chuck@mnhockeycamps.com All rights reserved.No part of this book, blog OR template may be reproduced or transmitted in any form by any means without permission in writing from Minnesota Hockey Camps