Dave Smith, NHL Officials Health and Wellness Coach

During the International Coaching Conference, we had the opportunity to listen to David T. Smith, the NHL officials health and wellness coach.

Dave Smith NHL Official Health and Wellness Coach

The NHL officials Health and Wellness program >>

National Hockey League Officials Fitness and Conditioning

  • This is a sample program for NHL Officials. As all people are different so are Fitness Programs, the following is used as a guideline with minimum standards for NHL Officials.
  • Consult your family doctor before starting any training program

Off season training

  • Start by setting some fitness goals for the start of the next season and focus on those throughout your program.
  • Incorporate and maintain good eating habits such as frequent small meals rather than a few large ones so your body is burning calories all day. Maintain a balanced diet between carbohydrates, fats and protein.
  • Incorporate a stretch and exercise routine before every training session.

Schedule

  • 5 days a week / Up to 2 hrs a day
  • Strength twice a week
  • Aerobics twice a week
  • Run, bike, roller blade or other activity once a week

Strength

  • Weight training utilizing a variety of programs with changes in repetitions, sets, tempo and exercises.
  • Push-ups using varying arm position and use of blocks
  • Sit ups, crunches – proper form is very important
  • Leg Strength (lunges, squats, step ups)

Aerobics

  • Use heart rate monitor to maximize training zones
  • Run – 15 min increasing to 60 min.
  • Ice sprints – 30 sec increasing to 60 sec.
  • Bike – 35 min increasing to 60 min.
  • Roller blade or Stairmaster
  • Jump rope and plyometric exercises with Resistance Bands to increase foot speed and agility

Cardiovascular Exercise (Run, Bike, Stepper or Glider)

  • Warm up (5 min)
  • 1 minute increasing intensity intervals for 30 min in your target heart rate zone
  • One minute work, one to two minutes rest intervals
  • Lower the intensity if you are not recovering to your original Heart Rate after first work/rest interval
  • Cool down (5 to 8 minutes)
  • You should monitor Heart rate at all times

Maintaining fitness during the season

  • 15- 20 minute warm up before games
  • Light jog, bike or jump rope to warm up muscles and joints and increase Heart Rate
  • Stretch and flexibility as a daily wellness program
  • Aerobic Exercise 2 or 3 times a week on non game days
  • Strength and Resistance exercises are done as travel and game schedule allows. Maintaining a base throughout the season will allow an easier transition into the off season training program and helps promote an overall healthy and productive lifestyle.

The program is picked from the NHL officials page >>

Dave Smith, NHL-official coach

Floorball coaching staff

It seems like good floorball teams always have luck, you look over to their side of the field and the head coach seems to have a ton of help. Floorball parents seem to positively flock in to help winning teams! Or just maybe it’s the other way around, maybe the floorball team is successful because of the staff around it. Maybe the real truth is this, behind every successful floorball coach, there is a helpful coaching staff.

Talk to long-time floorball coaches and you’ll discover one thing mighty quickly. Most of them have several people that have been working with them for years. They have an assistant coach, maybe even two or three. They have some parents that help with fund-raising; they may even have the same sponsor year after year.

Youth floorball coaching, training, practices and drills

This isn’t just luck, it’s smart planning on the part of a head coach. Smart floorball coaches make sure that they have plenty of help, and plenty of the right kind of help. Before the floorball season has even begun, they probably have decided on a program and gotten their assistants to commit to another season. Even first year floorball coaches can do this, they might get off to a later start than the returning coach, but they certainly should spend the floorball pre-season finding as much help as possible.

Floorball Stickhandling and Ball control starting positions

Mailatekniikka ja pallonhallinta lähtökohdat harjoitteisiin Harjoite

Practice floorball stick handling from different postions. The pattern or boxes in the pictures can for example be taped on the floor. If the different positions are visual, then it’s also easier to practice the drills in different positions and the players will easier understand the advices and directions from the floorball coach. You can perform the stickhandling practices in front, diagonally in front, forehand / normally, and on backhand. The stickhandling drills will also work great as homework during the floorball off-season.

Floorball off-season jumping practice

Salibandy oheisharjoittelu ja harjoitukset, hyppyharjoite

Off-season practice to floorball. The floorball off season jumping drill is started in a low position with one foot in front of the other, then a jump up and you switch the position of your feets, but land as in the starting position.

Floorball off-season practices and drills in pairs

Salibandy oheisharjoittelu ja kuivaharjoitukset, pariharjoite

Floorball off-season practice and drill performed in pairs (1-1). The floorball off season drill is performed shoulder against shoulder and the players try to get over to the other players side while slowly moving forward. This is an effective off season practice building up strength in legs to use in games during tight situations in floorball games.