Recent hockey psychology articles and sport psychology tips for hockey players, coaches, and sport parents to improve mental performance in hockey.
Overcoming Intimidation in Hockey Intimidation is a common mental barrier for hockey players. When you intimidate yourself (also called self-intimidation), you make comparisons to your opponents or teammates. You make negative comparisons or think about how you’re not as good, fast or strong as your teammates or competitors. This can make you feel inferior
Momentum and Confidence in Hockey After beating the San Jose Sharks 4-2 to clench their spot in the Stanley Cup Finals, the Chicago Blackhawks are building on their confidence and momentum. The Blackhawks face the Philadelphia Flyers. An important ingredient to the Blackhawks’s success is their ability to capitalize on their wins. Sometimes you
How Confidence Affects Your Game Plan Game plans are important for any team. Some teams base their game plans on their teams’ strengths. What can your team do well with the players you have? Some teams perform well on power plays, while other teams have great defense. Teams can also develop their game plan
The Mental Game Challenge of Self-Intimidation Self-intimidation is a common mental game challenge for hockey players. You lose confidence by making comparisons to your competitors. Most of the time, you’re make negative comparisons, which can make you feel inferior. You might be thinking that the other team is better in terms of their skating
The Importance of Pregame Mental Preparation Do you (or your players) struggle to get into the ebb and flow of the game? Do you feel like you are just going through the motions? If so, you may need to boost your game time intensity. Many players struggle maintaining their intensity in the opening minutes
Boosting Mental Toughness in Hockey The New Jersey Devils lost in the first round of the playoffs 1-4 to the Philadelphia Flyers last week. Despite their loss, the team recognized the importance of staying mentally tough. New Jersey’s Dainius Zubrus said, “You’re playing the same team until you move on. Mental toughness is probably