Melissa Samoskevich, a former professional women's hockey player and current assistant coach for a new Division I program, shares her journey in hockey. She discusses her early training, the transition from youth to college hockey, and the importance of character and leadership in recruiting players. Melissa also reflects on her family's influence in her career and the development process in women's hockey, emphasizing the unique challenges and opportunities in the sport.

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Takeaways

-Melissa started training off the ice at a young age.

-Confidence gained from training is crucial for athletes.

-The transition to college hockey is a significant challenge.

-Building a new program requires careful talent evaluation.

-Character and teamwork are essential in recruitment.

-Leadership qualities develop naturally over time.

-Physical development is a key focus in player recruitment.

-Family support plays a vital role in athletic success.

-Development in women's hockey often occurs during college years.

-Melissa is excited about the future of her new program.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Melissa Samoskevich
01:14 Early Training and Development in Hockey
04:57 Transitioning from U18 to College Hockey
09:07 Building a New Division I Program
11:49 Evaluating Talent and Character in Players
13:11 Fostering Leadership Qualities in Players
16:16 Balancing Physical Development in Women's Hockey
20:23 Family Legacy and Support in Hockey
23:18 Sibling Dynamics and Learning in Sports
26:47 Closing Thoughts and Future Endeavors

Brenna Dardar, a registered dietitian, discusses the importance of nutrition for hockey players, focusing on weight management, body composition, and the role of carbohydrates and protein in performance. She emphasizes the need for hockey players to understand their individual nutritional needs, the significance of gut health, and the impact of nutrition on overall performance metrics. The conversation also covers game-day nutrition strategies and post-game recovery, highlighting the importance of timing and food choices for optimal athletic performance.

Get in touch with Brenna and Nutrition With Wendi: https://www.nutritionwithwendi.com/

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Josh Levine discusses the various challenges facing youth hockey, including scheduling inconsistencies, locker room issues, rising costs, and the importance of multi-sport participation. He emphasizes the need for better scheduling practices, the impact of overtraining, and the significance of foundational skills in young athletes. Levine advocates for gamifying skill development to enhance engagement and learning among younger players, while also addressing the misconceptions parents have about athletic development.

Connect with Josh Levine:

📩 Contact: The Fortis Academy
📸 Instagram: @thefortisacademy
🔗 LinkedIn: Josh Levine

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Physiotherapist and biomechanist Matt Kelly discusses the complexities of hip and groin pain in hockey players. He breaks down the anatomy of the hip joint into five layers, explaining how each layer contributes to common injuries seen in athletes. Matt emphasizes the importance of assessing hip pain through a layered approach, considering factors above and below the hip joint. He also shares insights on lifestyle behaviors, strength training strategies for young athletes, and the significance of movement competency. The conversation further explores hip strength ratios, alternative testing methods, and the impact of asymmetries in hockey training. Finally, Matt provides recommendations for exercises that promote hip health and stability.

Takeaways

-The hip joint can be understood in five layers.
-Common injuries in hockey players include labrum tears and groin strains.
-Assessing hip pain requires looking at the entire kinetic chain.
-Playing multiple sports can help reduce injury risk in young athletes.
-A consistent hip mobility program is essential for young athletes.
-Movement competency should be prioritized in training.
-Hip strength ratios are important for injury prevention.
-Alternative testing methods can provide insights into hip strength.
-Asymmetries in training should be addressed but not overly corrected.
-Exercises should focus on glute max strength and proper movement patterns.

Tim Lebbossiere interviews Matt Korthuis, a former professional hockey player turned mental performance coach. They discuss the importance of mental training in sports, particularly in hockey, and how it can significantly impact players' confidence and performance. Matt shares strategies for building confidence through self-awareness, positive self-talk, and visualization techniques. He emphasizes the need for consistency in mental training, likening it to physical training, and highlights the role of meditation in enhancing focus and presence during games. The conversation also touches on the challenges of aligning coaching styles with modern mental training practices.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Mental Performance Coaching
03:02 Building Confidence Through Mental Training
05:52 The Importance of Positive Self-Talk
09:00 Visualization Techniques for Success
11:50 Meditation and Focus in Sports
14:53 The Role of Coaches in Mental Training

Tim Lebbossiere sits down with Maria Mountain, an esteemed exercise physiologist and goalie training consultant, to explore what it takes to excel in the crease. They dive into the key attributes of successful goalies, the critical role of consistent training, and best practices for optimizing in-season goalie development. Maria offers expert insights on building strength from the inside out, addressing the unique conditioning requirements of goalies, and tailoring training programs to individual needs. The discussion highlights the importance of mobility and stability in a goalie’s performance, with Maria sharing actionable advice for both coaches and athletes aiming to elevate their game.

Here are some takeaways from the podcast:

-Successful goalies love the game and are motivated by it.
-Consistency in training is key to success.
-Goalies need to focus on prehab mobility and functional strength.
-Building strength from the inside out is crucial for goalies.
-Mobility training is as important as strength training.
-Conditioning for goalies differs significantly from skaters.
-Bottom-up strength training can enhance performance.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Maria Mountain and Her Expertise
06:01 Building Strength from the Inside Out
11:46 Individualizing Training Programs for Goalies

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In this debut episode, we’re thrilled to welcome new podcast host Coach Tim Lebbossiere, Assistant Performance Coach for the Boston Bruins. Coach Tim kicks things off by introducing himself, answering listener questions, and sharing his expert insights into hockey performance.

He offers a glimpse into his coaching style and training methodologies, emphasizing the year-round importance of power and explosive work. Listeners will also gain actionable advice on in-season conditioning, structuring speed training, and optimizing pregame warm-ups to ensure peak on-ice performance.

This is just the beginning—new interview-style episodes with Coach Tim will be released monthly, each packed with valuable strategies and insights to help hockey players take their game to the next level!

Takeaways

• Power and explosive work should be emphasized year-round.
• Strength training has a longer residual effect than speed training.
• In-season conditioning should be tailored to ice time and player needs.
• Distance running may not be the best option for hockey players.
• Low-impact conditioning methods are preferable for hockey training.
• Goalies require different conditioning strategies than skaters.
• Speed work should be divided into acceleration, max velocity, and change of direction.
• Warm-ups should include mobility, activation, and neural activation components.
• Pregame lifting should focus on low volume to avoid fatigue.
• Individualized training is crucial for optimizing player performance.

In this episode, I'm going to give you a science-backed hockey groin performance test that you can use to see where you measure up!

This is a great tool that can be used to identify if you need to make changes to your programs design for more injury prevention, better edgework, and more powerful crossovers.

Lean on the REAL science here and let's make sure you crush it this year. Let's go!

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