Hockey Finder is offering a fun and affordable summer youth hockey program in Hopkins, MN a suburb of Minneapolis. Kids can expect a laid back atmosphere where the word FUN is top priority. Kids have been focused on drills throughout the hockey season and our goal is to freshen things up and bring back the enjoyment of the game while keeping skills tuned.
There are plenty of new fancy training devices and concentrated hockey programs but you simply cannot compare that to skating once or more a week. Most professional hockey players will tell you they attribute most of their skills to playing on the pond with friends. We bring that type of environment and play throughout the summer!
Session 1 – May – July
8 weeks of training and practice, one night per week, no weekends.
Each one hour practice will include 15-20 minutes of drills, focusing on fundamentals, followed by a 40 minute scrimmage.
$120 for the 8 skates.
Mites – Squirts – Peewee – Bantam
Limited to 20 players and 2 goalies of each level.
Hockey Finder is bringing more and more beginner adult pickup hockey opportunities to it’s registered users. “We’ve created partnerships with ice arenas and our registered users where everyone wins. More and more games are being offered through these partnerships and the greatest part is it’s truly a win-win-win. The arena sells tough to fill ice times, the organizers and players don’t have to worry about anything other than playing pickup hockey and Hockey Finder is growing. This is exactly what we were hoping we could do.” says Derrik Dyka co-founder of Hockeyfinder.com.
How it works is simple but will change pickup hockey forever. If you’re an arena manager or owner who’d like to partner with Hockey Finder contact Don Giroux at www.hockeyfinder.com/contact/
Hockey Finder has partnered with Minnesota Made Ice Center in Edina to bring more hockey opportunities to adult players. “The convenience of playing when I can is great! Having moved here from out of state it allowed me to find a place to play hockey and meet people in the process” says Bryce Denton CFO of IntrinXec Management. The program allows adult hockey players the ability to find pickup games which suit their skill level and schedule. It also eliminates many of the headaches which are associated with pickup hockey and/or open hockey. It’s really a three way partnership between Hockey Finder, the arena and the players where everyone wins.
To find out more go to www.hockeyfinder.com and register. Once you become a member you can look for games in your area or if you want to get more involved become an approved organizer bycontacting Don Giroux.
More and more adult pickup hockey opportunities will be added to the site as Hockey Finder grows. Encourage your friends to sign up and help get a game going in your area.
Just received an Easton S19 Z-Shock Helmet courtesy of Easton and Formula. I can’t believe just how lightweight this helmet is. I’m looking forward to sporting it tonight when I play in one of my pickup games on www.hockeyfinder.com
Official Press Release
EASTON HOCKEY LAUNCHES S19 Z-SHOCK™ HELMET AT 2010 OLYMPIC GAMES,
SETS NEW INDUSTRY STANDARD IN PROTECTION, WEIGHT
S19 Z-Shock will offer more efficient impact protection at 325 grams,
half as much as its leading competitors.
VANCOUVER (February 22, 2010) – Easton Hockey today announced the launch of its new S19
Z-Shock™ helmet. Drawing on the innovations and experience of the Easton-Bell Sports Helmet Technology Center in Scotts Valley, Calif., the S19 Z-Shock has been developed to weigh about as much as a small cup of coffee at just 325 grams, about half the weight of a traditional hockey helmet. It immediately becomes the lightest and one of the most protective helmets in the NHL.
Using a solid state construction which combines polycarbonate plastic micro-shells and Expanded Polypropylene (EPP) foam laminated together in a patented process, the ultra lightweight S19 Z-Shock offers impact absorption numbers nearly 50% better than the requirements for certification.
“This helmet is as unique as the Synergy stick was when first released – there’s really nothing else like it in the world.” said Ned Goldsmith, Senior Vice President of Easton Hockey. “By combining our best minds from the Easton-Bell Sports Helmet Technology Center and hockey R&D team, we’ve been able to create a helmet that is both light weight and incredibly protective. Remarkably, we’ve been able to do so with a silhouette that has been an instant hit with elite players like Iginla, Zetterberg and Forsberg, who have all historically been traditionalists in their taste.
In an effort to reduce overall volume, the S19 Z-Shock utilizes a more efficient one-piece construction, allowing Easton’s engineers to replace air gaps and layers of plastic with EPP – a flexible, lightweight foam originally designed for automotive energy management applications. The lamination of these elements brings a new level of structural integrity to multi-impact hockey helmets that historically have only been available in motor sports and other high impact sports. The S19 Z-Shock also features strategically placed anti-microbial comfort pads to provide enhanced stability as well as amazing feel and comfort.
The S19 Z-Shock will be available at major sporting goods retailers in May 2010 and is currently being worn by men’s and women’s hockey players competing in the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games.
Check out Minnesota Hockey’s article on How to Choose the Best Hockey Camp for Your Player. Timing is perfect because we just booked ice for the HockeyFinder Youth Hockey Program. Our program is based on 15-20 minutes of fundamental training followed by 45 minutes of pick up style scrimmage. Players will be exposed to all player positions, seeing how things come together from every angle.
Focus
Short fundamental drills
Scrimmage
Trying and playing all positions (wing, center, defense)
On ice communication and team building
Consistent weekly ice times during off season (not a concentration with no follow up)
Fun! Light coaching experience. All coaching will be directed towards playing a game, passing, and developing all positions. Players will be able to try new things and see results without getting bombarded with stern coaching. We want kids to walk away knowing what works and what doesnt through their own experiences.
Minnesota Hockeys recommendations for off season hockey is
* Instructors’ qualifications, experience and character as role models
* Instructor-to-player ratio (6 or 7 kids per coach is good; the important thing is that the coaches who are there interact with the kids)
* Availability of off-ice training
* Price (a general guideline is $25-$30 per hour of camp; costs vary by location)
* Schedule: Are there many choices to work around your busy schedule
* Camp choices: General or specific skill development
* Convenience: Can we get there easily, on time?
* Fun: Is it marketed as fun? Will my kid want to come back next summer?
Our program is half the price. Head coach is USA Hockey Coaching Level 3 certified. Regular consistent schedule.
We are doing out summer youth hockey program again for mites, squirts, peewee and bantam, all in the metro.
Keep kids feet fresh. Low pressure and high results practice and scrimmage allowing kids to be creative, working from all positions, and being accountable for positioning, line changes, and participation. Practice will focus on fundamentals while the scrimmage will be fun much like pick up hockey, making each player fill the position of the person that is coming off the ice. Players will move around and see all positions with their own eyes. Constant communication and team effort will be encouraged.
