One of the fun parts about writing is going back in time and looking at some of the things you wrote about. Some things you wrote about in the past just don't seem relevant at all. Then there are things that stand the test of time and seem to make even more sense today.
In early November I wrote a post titled ,"Yesterday, Hockey Won".
http://hockeysummit.blogspot.com/2013/11/yesterday-hockey-won.html
A lot of people seemed to like it at the time and I received some really nice feedback on it.
This entry is to follow up on that piece and I am happy to declare that yes, hockey did win.
In November of this past season, the team I have helped coach this season, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Knights u18s played team Comcast who had tragically lost a teammate just days earlier. As I chronicled in the earlier blog post, I was amazed at the resiliency of Team Comcast as they valiantly battled and lost a heart breaking game to our team 5-4. Obviously the results of that game were not important compared to what they were dealing with as individuals and a team mourning the loss of a close teammate. In my opinion hockey did win that day and gave the boys a platform to come together and try to begin a long hard healing process.
So how does that story relate to today?
Fast forward to this past weekend. The same two teams were locked in a tie for points and playing a deciding game in Wilkes Barre with a winner to go on to playoffs and a loser eliminated from the post season. The entire season came down to one game.
The coaching staff, parents and players from Team Comcast obviously had done a remarkable job pulling together and playing hard all season long to give themselves a chance to be in that position and continue their season.
As the game was about to start and intensity filled the arena, I remember looking down at their goal and watching their team all kneel down in a circle with their heads down. I am sure it was to acknowledge their lost teammate. I felt myself get lost for a second in that moment. I forgot we were about to play a game. I found myself thinking of all they had been through. Thinking of those boys becoming young men and somehow learning to deal and cope with what they had gone through. Wondering how they got through it.
Then the puck dropped.......
The game went on. Life went on.
In that earlier blog post I wrote about the healing properties that I believe exist in hockey. Never was my belief so validated than on Saturday. Team Comcast came into our team's building and managed to win the must win game 3-0. They played hard. They played smart. They played together. They deserved to win.
Now of course I was upset for our guys. They played hard all season and wanted to win desperately. I wanted to win desperately. That is what players and coaches are supposed to do.
But after the sting of losing wore off and I was driving home it hit me......
Maybe we all won.
Certainly Team Comcast did. They accomplished a great deal. Those young men should be very proud of sticking together and doing what they had to after their loss of a loved one. A pain like that will never go away completely, but they played the next game. And then the next one. And then the next one.....
But I was thinking of our team too. I was looking for a positive from being eliminated the way we were and what I came up with was this;
I hope our team learned a lesson that they can take with them the rest of their lives from our opponent this weekend. Not just a hockey lesson, a life lesson.
The lesson being that in life bad things can and do happen. Sometimes very tragic things. But you can't quit. You can get through things with friends, with loved ones, with family.......with teammates. No matter what comes your way stick together.
You can be ready for the next puck to drop.....That is what I hope our guys learned.
If they did, maybe our team won too....
Sunday, February 23, 2014
Wednesday, February 19, 2014
19 Hard Things You Need To Do To Be Successful
You have to do the hard things.
- You have to make the call you’re afraid to make.
- You have to get up earlier than you want to get up.
- You have to give more than you get in return right away.
- You have to care more about others than they care about you.
- You have to fight when you are already injured, bloody, and sore.
- You have to feel unsure and insecure when playing it safe seems smarter.
- You have to lead when no one else is following you yet.
- You have to invest in yourself even though no one else is.
- You have to look like a fool while you’re looking for answers you don’t have.
- You have to grind out the details when it’s easier to shrug them off.
- You have to deliver results when making excuses is an option.
- You have to search for your own explanations even when you’re told to accept the “facts.”
- You have to make mistakes and look like an idiot.
- You have to try, fail and try again.
- You have to run faster even though you’re out of breath.
- You have to be kind to people who have been cruel to you.
- You have to meet deadlines that are unreasonable and deliver results that are unparalleled.
- You have to be accountable for your actions even when things go wrong.
- You have to keep moving towards where you want to be no matter what’s in front of you.
You have to do the hard things. The things that no one else is doing. The things that scare you. The things that make you wonder how much longer you can hold on.
Those are the things that define you. Those are the things that make the difference between living a life of mediocrity or outrageous success.
The hard things are the easiest things to avoid. To excuse away. To pretend like they don’t apply to you.
The simple truth about how ordinary people accomplish outrageous feats of success is that they do the hard things that smarter, wealthier, more qualified people don’t have the courage — or desperation — to do.
Do the hard things. You might be surprised at how amazing you really are.
Tuesday, February 4, 2014
7 Random Goals
Guys,
I once again pulled 7 random goals from last nights games in the NHL.
Just like before, focus on the guys driving the net and where the goals are scored from. The goalies at that level are just too hard to beat cleanly and to score you have to be willing to go to those tough areas. Watch these clips and focus on the guys willingness to drive the net. Ask yourself if you are doing the same....... Sometimes it is not the goal scorer but the other guys who are doing it so someone can score.
90% of all goals are scored with someone in front or driving the net hard. It is the simplest thing you can do to become an effective player.
Enjoy!
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