Youth Development (S01 Ep. 1)

In the final episode of Season 2 of the Hockey Factories Podcast we break down the challenges these enviable programs face, collectively and individually. We focus on the women's game, the growth in the sport and the next step it has to take. Plus, what are some of the best clips we had from Season 2? We'll throw in some great stories about Wendell Clark, Jon Cooper, Rod Brind'Amour and Athol Murray.

It's said in nearly every locker room that any team has a bond for life. We examine the bonds players and current staff at Notre Dame created in their time there. We talk about intangibles in a player and in a coaching staff that can make a massive impact on a program and five traits that a player can possess that will separate them from the pack.

Do players develop through winning? Does the result even matter when it comes to a teenage player's growth? It's a great debate that we visit in Episode 3 of Season 2 of the Hockey Factories podcast with opinions from coaches in Switzerland and Sweden. We'll talk about the program's investment in the player and the age old cliche of "trusting the process," even when your results don't reveal themselves for years.

Episode 2 of Season 2 of the Hockey Factories podcast takes a look at development through the eyes of the player. What are they looking for in a program and what have they experienced that has helped them become the players they are? We get insight on what Draft Day is like for several 1st round picks, including a historic run by Djurgardens and we hear how a conversation with a GM changed the course of a legendary Canadian coach's career.

We kick off Season 2 of the Hockey Factories podcast by looking at how science has crept into the sports world, maybe nowhere as clearly as Zug in Switzerland. I get to fan-girl a bit and we'll talk about skills that are becoming more prevalent like read and react and another that we seem to be losing because of the overwhelming increase of individual skills training.

In episode 5 of the Hockey Factories Podcast, Matt Dumouchelle dives deeper into the people you've heard about from the previous four episodes. We realize very quickly everything being done in these programs - and what can be done in yours - has to do with people and treating people the right way. We also have some fun with some must-hear clips from interviews he conducted while writing the articles.

With a few things going your way, nearly any program could have flash-in-the-pan success. But what Shattuck St-Marys, the Okanagan Hockey Academy, Adler Mannheim, Jokerit and Frolunda are doing takes years and years of consistency, improvement and reflection. In episode 4, Matt Dumouchelle looks at questions like, how do these programs continue to produce some of the best talent in the world? Where do they see their own room for growth? And what are the biggest challenges they face in the future? 

Let's talk about talking! But not just talking - communicating. It's not just in the words you say, it's how you say it, what message you're conveying and if it's being explained properly, who is and isn't listening and how to get a group of young men or women with different learning methods to be on the same page. In Episode 3, Matt Dumouchelle explores why without communication, not much will get done and offers some tools that you can use to make sure your message is coming across.

There is no greater impact on a player's hockey life than their coach. Coaching is a reward and an honour and with it - like great power - comes great responsibility. In episode 2 of the Hockey Factories Podcast, Matt Dumouchelle will reveal strategies used by coaches around the world ranging from how coaching has changed in 2022, the challenge of coaching the most skilled and not-so-skilled players on your team and how important it is for coaches to collaborate for the greater good.

Welcome to the Hockey Factories Podcast, brought to you by The Coaches Site. In this series we will hear from the coaches, managers and players who helped bring the Hockey Factories articles to life. In episode 1, Matt Dumouchelle examines youth development and where Shattuck St-Marys, the Okanagan Hockey Academy, Adler Mannheim, Jokerit and Frolunda leave their marks on a player's career. You can download the full Hockey Factories PDF Book, featuring the first five organization profiles at https://join.thecoachessite.com/hockey-factories-ebook