Peter Thiel has a great question:
“What important truth do very few people agree with you on?”
Here’s my answer…
Optimizing for only scoring "pretty" goals will lead to scoring more goals than optimizing for "greasy" ones.
A former player of mine had a clothing collection called ‘Pretty Girls Only’. Very conservative, I know…
My headline to Theil’s question would read:
‘Pretty Goals Only’
Another bold claim, I’ll admit, but allow me to start building this idea with an example from yesterday. Insert Frank Nazar…
Video: Frank Nazar Goal Clip
What Happens When Drew Tries This in Practice?
I watched Max Domi make this pass in his OHL career with London. The next day I was on the rink trying it.
Many current coaches and former players my age probably heard the same two things I heard whenever I tried something creative that inspired me:
“Stop dicking around out here.”
“You’re not Max Domi/Frank Nazar, you’re 15 years old, you can’t do that. You’re wasting time”
Let’s address this 1 point at a time (because at 15, you didn’t get to have a ‘conversation’ about your thoughts because that was called ‘talking back’)
1. You’re Not Dicking Around When It’s the Right Play
To the Force Coach, Frank Nazar is ‘hotdogging’ it with his between-the-legs sauce to the backdoor.
To any coach who ‘gets it’… That was the right play, the best play, the highest percentage play at scoring a goal, and therefore… The only play.
He could shoot on this 2v1 for the pad and hope for a rebound, hope isn’t a strategy.
He could shoot to score and the puck:
Wouldn’t have made the goalie move
Wouldn’t have traveled across the royal road
Wouldn’t have increased the amount of net the new shooter has to score
He could NOT have passed ‘normally’ because the puck line needed to change for the passing lane to ‘be open’.
Nazar knows if he can get the puck to Brindley he’ll have an open net to shoot at. If the pass is completed the odds his buddy taps this into an open net largely outweigh shooting from his current context.
Tell you’re coach that you’re not dicking around if you can make a pass that gives your friend a backdoor tap.
2. Coach, Don’t Limit Me
Just because you could never do what Frank Nazar could do on a sheet of ice doesn’t mean it’s your job to tell every player you coach they can’t.
They just saw on TV that it is possible.
Instead, play a game like this and allow them to make this play and surprise you with their own creations.
Pretty Goals Only SAG
The game is simple and can be played 3v3, 4v4, small ice, cross ice, or even full ice. It can also be played in outnumbered games 4v2, 3v2, 4v3 or even powerplay style with one net, 5v4.
There is one constraint. Pretty goals only.
Inspiration from Joel Cressman's post:
Here’s my spin.
If the ‘Blue Team’ scores, the Red (opposing team) teammates who are waiting out of play have 5 seconds to huddle and give a score. If the Red Team gives the Blue goal a score of 7 or higher, the goal counts. If they give a score under 7, the Blue team can call for a 3rd party challenge if they are unhappy with the score and the coaching staff has 5 seconds to keep or overturn the call.
Playing Pretty Goals Only will create more Frank Nazar’s and lead to kids continuing to play the game because they are having fun and are puck-competent which creates a flywheel to have additional fun.
Test it and report back to me.
Closing Thought
From a college hockey coach who texted me after the goal:
Said a lot to me about Michigan’s culture. You only make that play if you:
1- Feel like you have the freedom to try that move in that moment. Biggest game of season. 2-1. Up 3-2. High stakes.
2- Have practiced shit like that 1000 times in practice and games
If the Michigan staff thought it was ‘dicking around’ or a ‘waste of time’ the first time they saw Frank do it at practice, it doesn’t punch a ticket to the Frozen Four one day.