Change Your Game

Make a Game Plan

The summer hockey growth spurt I talk about is no joke. Make a game plan for the summer. Plan your work and work your plan. Start on the day after school ends. Every single day counts. The players who show up to the fall season transformed are the ones who treated summer like a job, not a vacation.

Chart what you do every single day. Write it down. Stickhandling, running, lifting, shooting pucks. When you track it, you own it. The marathon mindset applies here. This is not about burning yourself out in week one. It is about consistent, disciplined work over a long stretch of time.

Take Care of Your Body

Hydrate every day. Drink ten eight-ounce bottles per day. Your body cannot perform or recover without proper hydration, and most young players are chronically under-hydrated without even knowing it.

Eat well, rest well, and repair the battle wounds from your winter season and your spring sports. Your body took a beating. Give it what it needs. Sleep is not optional. It is when your muscles repair and grow.

Lift if you are of appropriate age, and do it under the supervision and guidance of a professional trainer. Do not guess your way through the weight room. A good trainer will help you build strength without risking injury, and the gains you make in the summer will show up in your game come fall.

Run. Every Day.

Set aside 30 to 45 minutes to run and jog explosively. Even if it is not far, get out there. I always tell the story of the summer I spent golfing and training with NHL All-Star and my buddy, Jeremy Roenick. We would work out in the gym and golf together at our club at the Cape. After 36 holes and a two-hour workout, many days I would see him set off for a run through the course in 85-degree heat and humidity. No matter how hard you are training, someone else is training harder. Remember that.

Build Your Skills at Home

Shoot pucks every single day. Build a shooting station in your garage or basement. Look online and see how many others have done this. Set targets and work on your accuracy. Repetition builds muscle memory, and muscle memory is what holds up under pressure in a game.

Use your hand grips every single time you are in the car with your parents. Do 100 per hand. Leave them in your parent's vehicles. You will be amazed how much this helps your shot in the fall. I had a rocket of a shot. I was faithful with my grippers. It is a small habit with a real payoff.

Compete Like It Counts. Because It Does.

Be hard to play against in your summer league. Be the hardest worker, even though it does not count. It does count. The habits you build in low-stakes environments are the exact habits that surface in high-pressure moments.

I am always confused when I am playing golf with my buddies and they do not putt everything out. I do not want the gimme because I want to make sure I am improving my skill for tournament play. I am competing with myself at all times, trying to improve. Take this same attitude in hockey, especially over the summer when you can change your game.

Win your battles. Work on winning all battles. Battle for the puck. Never give up. Beat your opponent to the puck in drills, scrimmages, and at camp. You are really competing against yourself to change your game this summer.

Skills That Will Set You Apart

Work on blocking shots this summer. This is a part of the game that is not going away and is becoming more and more important. Coaches at every level notice the players who are willing to put their bodies on the line. That willingness starts as a habit you build now.

Make a commitment to work on your communicative skills on the ice. Even if you do not know the other players at camp, get to know them enough so you can communicate during scrimmages. Hockey is a team game and your voice is a weapon. Use it.

Make the Most of Camp

Your parents have invested in you. Invest in yourself. Show up already in shape and mentally ready to learn. Engage mentally and physically and prepare for hockey camp. You will get out of your training exactly what you put into it. The players who waste their camp time are usually the ones who showed up out of shape and spent the first few days just trying to catch up.

The fall is going to be a clean slate. No matter what team you are placed on, your goal should be to be an impact player on that team. That starts with the work you do right now.

Oh, and do your summer reading early. Do not wait until August. When you do the little things right, the big things fall into place.

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Frequently Asked Questions

How many days a week should a hockey player train in the summer?

Every day. The summer is your window to make real gains and you do not get it back. That does not mean you are destroying yourself seven days a week. It means you are doing something productive every single day, whether that is a full workout, a run, shooting pucks, or working your hand grips in the car. Consistency over the summer is what separates the players who come back transformed from the ones who stayed the same.

Is summer league hockey worth it for player development?

Yes, but only if you compete hard. Too many players use summer league as a casual skate. The ice time is valuable. Use it to work on specific parts of your game, battle for pucks, and build your communication with teammates. Treat every shift like it counts, because the habits you develop in low-pressure environments are the ones that carry into your season.

When should my kid start a summer hockey training program?

The day after school ends. Not mid-July. The summer is shorter than it feels, and the players who start immediately have a significant advantage over the ones who take the first few weeks off. Make a plan before school ends so there is no gap and no excuse to delay.

What can young hockey players do at home to improve without ice time?

Shoot pucks every day, build a shooting station if you can, and use hand grippers consistently. These are not complicated things. They are simple habits that compound over a summer. Stickhandling in the driveway, shooting at targets, and doing grip work in the car will make a real difference in your shot and puck control by the time fall arrives.