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Watching @NWHL @CTWhale_NWHL vs @TheBostonPride right now.
A few of my thoughts on the notable differences between high-level men's and women's hockey
(Thread)
A few of my thoughts on the notable differences between high-level men's and women's hockey
(Thread)
1) Almost every hockey player is an unfinished product after his/her college career.
At McGill I coached a handful of women who have gone on to play pro/int'l hockey. But at least 2x+ shouldve continued.
It's great that there are some options for women who want to keep playing
At McGill I coached a handful of women who have gone on to play pro/int'l hockey. But at least 2x+ shouldve continued.
It's great that there are some options for women who want to keep playing
2) For minor hockey & rec players it's a great idea to watch women's hockey because the style of play is more similar to what leads to success at those levels: complete passes and work as a team, because the rink plays bigger and it's better to control the puck than to chase it.
3) High-level women's hockey is also a good venue to learn about team-level tactics. Defensively these NWHL team play similarly to what you'll see at the NHL - 5-tight in the DZ, 1-2-2 forecheck in OZ/NZ, etc.
4) Women's hockey tend to be a bit lower-scoring not just because of shooting power being less of a factor, but also because I think most female players aren't really taught how to create offense in a comprehensive way.
4 cont.) In minor hockey, early-maturing and physically gifted girls use wide speed to create goals. They tend to be the ones who get scolarships while the other tend to fall by the wayside.
4 cont.) As a result at elite levels (NCAA, USports, NWHL, PWHPA) you'll see a lot of players with great skating pace and technique, but relatively few who are masters of deception/speed change/direction change/ to make Ds miss
4 cont.) The most notable exception I've worked with is Melodie Daoust (McGill/PWHPA/Team Canada), who is of average size and not a pretty skater by national team standards, but has elite hockey IQ on par with any top NHLer. But she's a rare exception.
5) Ultimately I think the greatest potential value of pro women's hockey is going to be the creation of viable post-playing careers in hockey. Some of my former players are now skills instructors working w both girls and boys. And they're doing really well.
6) About Brand's PP goal for BOS: A lot of players think scoring is about getting a quality shot off, but it's really about getting any type of a shot that makes it awkward for the goalie to stop the puck. A not-impressive-looking redirection but goes in where the G isn't.
6 cont.) I would estimate that most NHL goals are scored with the shooter shooting at 40-60% of their max effort - they're trying to hit a spot or just challenge the goalie by getting it off quickly.
I see lots of female players trying to overshoot, which is counterproductive.
I see lots of female players trying to overshoot, which is counterproductive.
