Is AAA The Way?

Player development should be the focus of summer training decisions.

We’ve all heard the cool team names. We’ve heard about the team travel schedules that could bank enough frequent flyer miles for a trip to Tahiti. And we’ve all seen the uniforms and warm-ups that would fit within the dress guidelines set out for professional teams. There is no doubt, AAA teams sound good, look good and are well-traveled.

On the ice, many AAA teams have some good players, and there are some teams that have great players. It is not uncommon for these players to pull the game jerseys over their heads 20 or 30 times during the course of the summer, and in the end, the results can appear pretty good: the team won some games, your player scored some goals while playing with, and against, some decent competition and he or she even went home with a great warm-up and uniform.
But did your player truly develop their skills and at what cost?

Parents often spend thousands of dollars to put a player though a summer of AAA games and tournaments. The perception seems to be that that if a player is participating in games against a high level of competition and with skilled teammates, than the player must be developing his or her skills.

Perception however, is not always reality.

Practice to Game Ratios
The schedules of many, if not most, AAA teams are heavily weighted with games. Minnesota Hockey, the governing body of amateur hockey in Minnesota, has a recommended practice to game ratio that was formulated in the interest of player development.

“It’s been proven in studies for years that the best way to develop players is through practices, not games,” said Barry Ford, who is Minnesota Hockey’s coach-in-chief. “Minnesota Hockey recommends a ratio of 3:1. You simply can’t focus on becoming a better player if you are playing games all summer.”

To further prove this point, look no further than the success of European players during the past decade. Europeans are known for their high practice to game ratio and their focus on skill development as opposed to wins and losses.

In an interview with Marian Gaborik, the NHL superstar, told MHJ readers about development and training methods used by Europeans.

“Europeans pay more attention to [skill development],” said Gaborik. “We played [games] twice a week, and the rest of the week we practiced.”

“Why are Europeans producing so much talent these days?” asked Herb Brooks in an interview with MHJ last season. “Well, in Europe they have a better ratio of games to practices. . . . The bottom line is that [the U.S.] needs more emphasis on development.” Brooks went on to say: “I think there are too many AAA [teams], and as a result, we are creating a bunch of robots.”
USA Hockey Puck Possession Study

A study was conducted by USA Hockey at the 2002 USA Hockey National Championships to determine, on average, how often a player touches the puck during a game. This study concluded that, on average, a player will touch the puck for 38.4 seconds at the Peewee level and 106.2 seconds during a Bantam game.

This study supports the player development philosophy of Minnesota Hockey and the recommended game to practice ratio. So why does there continue to be such a big emphasis placed on games rather than practices when studies have clearly proven that practices are the best long-term development method?

“I think that many parents, because of the large financial and time investment that they make in hockey, like to see their children score goals and win games; it’s a return on their investment if you will,” said Ted Brill, the director of player development for Minnesota Hockey. “This return however, is not a long term invest-ment in player development.”

The Best Alternative For Summer Training?
John Erickson is the president of the United States Hockey Camp Association and firmly believes that attending a hockey camp is the most productive way to develop skills during the off-season. He advises parents to make summer training decisions in the best interest of the long-term development of a player.

“A player isn’t going to attend a week long hockey school and return home a drastically improved player either,” said Erickson. “But a hockey school, much like a grammar school, will provide players, in a practice setting, with the tools to bring back home and practice to improve their skills.

“There isn’t a parent out there that does not want their player to be better the next year. And how do you accomplish that? Athletes improve their performance through practicing and improving their fundamental skills, not by playing games on AAA teams during the summer.”

For more information on the USA Hockey puck possession study, log on to usahockey.com. For information about Minnesota Hockey’s summer training programs visit minnesotahockey.org.