Grassroots: The Minor Hockey Show

This first episode of 2024 features a discussion about the science that should inform  current coaching approaches and how coaches need to now examine the effects on their coaching art. Host Richard Bercuson discusses with Dean Holden and John "the Colombian" Castrillon who has spent decades using game-based approaches in soccer and hockey, even before he was aware of what the science showed.Contact: richard(at)grassrootsminorhockey.comX (Twitter):Richard - @berky544Dean Holden: funlearnreturn@gmail.com

It didn't look like fun. So Kevin, dad of a little girl new to hockey, decided to "go his own way" by leaving the local "Timbits" program and adopting an ecological dynamics approach. He rented a small patch of ice, invited others to join in, and used play activities to turn the kids on to the game. Now he is on his own discovery path of how to properly introduce and teach the game to children.Kevin's Instagram: AthleticDevelopmentGamesKevin's web site: hockey training.comDropbox video link: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/fswu6nzyqadr6q8iyjnph/Games-Based-Learning-8-weeks.MOV?rlkey=xypju1vdd810rnjs6f23dtrt3&dl=0Contact: richard(at)grassrootsminorhockey.comX (Twitter):Richard - @berky544Dean Holden: funlearnreturn@gmail.com

Kealy Lambert is a former college hockey player, now a mom, a coach, a lawyer and the president of Bow River Minor Hockey in Calgary. She's seen the game from just about every angle and now, as the head of an organization, she suspects Canadian minor hockey is heading...well...listen to find out where.Contact: richard(at)grassrootsminorhockey.comX (Twitter):Richard - @berky544Dean Holden: funlearnreturn@gmail.com

Stephen Norris delves deeper into Canada's minor hockey world, finishing with the challenge: What would you do if declared King of Hockey Canada?Contact: richard(at)grassrootsminorhockey.comX (Twitter):Richard - @berky544Dean Holden: funlearnreturn@gmail.com

Stephen Norris,  one of Canada's pre-eminent sport scientists and performance experts, has worked with numerous sport organizations including Hockey Canada. He refers to himself as a "performance guide to a chosen few." In this first of a two-parter, we hear about how and why he started in the field and ends with his annual suggestion to a minor hockey organization that was voted down every time he brought it up.Contact: richard(at)grassrootsminorhockey.comX (Twitter):Richard - @berky544Dean Holden: funlearnreturn@gmail.com

Podcast host Richard Bercuson has taken on coaching a U18AA team this season, a somewhat new experience for him even after coaching for decades. In this episode, Dean Holden poses some interesting questions for him to consider as he navigates these waters using a competition or game-based approach.Contact: richard(at)grassrootsminorhockey.comX (Twitter):Richard - @berky544Dean Holden: funlearnreturn@gmail.com

Season 4 kicks off with Richard and Dean in a pretty deep discussion about the definition of coach development, professionalism in coaching and related topics. It all begins with Richard's follow-up presentation to Oshawa coaches in August when he asked participants to provide their definitions of coach development. Contact: richard(at)grassrootsminorhockey.comX (Twitter):Richard - @berky544Dean Holden: funlearnreturn@gmail.com

For Canadian minor hockey to evolve and improve, solid visionary leadership is the key. Richard and Dean invite Rick Ladouceur to discuss what we have and where we can go. Ladouceur is the executive director of Prairie Storm Minor Hockey near Regina. In addition to an extensive coaching and teaching background, he's held key leadership positions in hockey and recreation/sport management. Thus he is able to offer some interesting perspectives.Contact: richard(at)grassrootsminorhockey.comX (Twitter):Richard - @berky544Dean Holden: funlearnreturn@gmail.com

It took Brian Gillam nearly 20 years to realize that perhaps his coaching approach had room for adjustment. His epiphany came at a High Performance conference and, since then, his readings about leadership, ecological approaches, constraints, etc. have made him reconsider what coaching the game could be about. As Hockey Eastern Ontario's (HEO) coaching development coordinator, he's also in a position to influence others into seeing coaching in a different light. He has created a YouTube series for HEO about skill acquisition, interviews with some of the key figures in the field. All of which, however, leads to one key question: then what?HEO's YouTube channel - Click on The Skill Acquisition Serieshttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIc6D9wLXpCkGsA2ETjpkhgA theory of change for Canadian Sport: Dorothy Paul on culture changehttps://sirc.ca/blog/dorothy-paul-on-culture-change/Contact: richard(at)grassrootsminorhockey.comX (Twitter):Richard - @berky544Dean Holden: funlearnreturn@gmail.com

S.E.E.P. - Six Elements for Effective Practices - is a presentation Richard created to educate, inform, and assist coaches in improving their approaches. In this episode, he describes how the first one went on April 18 in Oshawa, ON, attended by 27 competitive level coaches.The 2-2 1/2 hr presentation is available for any minor hockey organization to share with its coaches. It can be done via Zoom or preferably in person for those within reasonable driving distance from Whitby, ON. Contact: richard(at)grassrootsminorhockey.comX (Twitter):Richard - @berky544Dean Holden: funlearnreturn@gmail.com