Bigger Mountains to Climb

There are lots of leagues and lots of different levels of play in both Lacrosse and Hockey. The top dog in one area, might not fare as well in another. Years ago I was coaching a young team north of the river and we were doing very well early in the season. We had a good coaching staff, enthusiastic players, lots of early ice and it showed on and off the ice. It was evident early in the season that, not only could we play up a level, but we really should take the challenge. Moving up would really mess up our standings, but we made the decision that it would be best for the players to play tougher teams if we wanted to improve our skills level for each player and the team as a whole. It wasn't easy, but the level of our team's play went up, way up as the season progressed. Another team that was at the time about equal in skill to us decided to stay down and eventually dominate the level we had left. Near the end of the season I could see we had made the right decision. I saw the other team play, and knew they too should have moved up along with our players. If you want to get better, play better competition. That doesn't mean play so far out of your range that it works against you. Know when and where to gauge the line. Dominating at one level isn't  much fun after a while. I'd rather see a team lose to a strong opponent than easily defeat a weak team. In some leagues you are where they place you, so play all your lines. A deep strong bench is much better than one that leaves you dependent  on a few hot shots and one line. In fact that's usually a sign of lazy coaching. I'd even venture to say cowardly coaching. Good hockey usually doesn't equal easy hockey. It usually means there'll be some work involved from the team and from the coaches. Like I always say: it's easy to pick a team, it's hard to make a team. Don't coach just to wear a whistle around your neck and look cool. Coach to help your players and your team excel to the best of their ability. No one said it would be easy. So next time you're having a cup of good ole rink coffee watching your team crush a weaker team, or worse your team getting out played by a stronger opponent, ask yourself if this is how the sport was intended to be. Are you climbing up the mountain, or sliding down? If your team is playing their best, then it's upward and onward, if they only need to glide, then its time to find a new mountain to climb.