Bench Coaching
in Youth Hockey
Red Gendron, Assistant Hockey
Coach
Awareness
• As the coach, you must be a calm observer
and in youth hockey your main focus should
be on your team and your players. Try to work
the bench with as little emotion as possible.
That will help you to be aware.
• You have to be aware of matchups, who’s
playing well for you, who’s struggling, what
the opponent is trying to do and who is
playing well or poorly for them.
Basics
• Forwards grouped together, defensemen grouped together seated
nearest the net you defend for the defensemen, nearest the net
you are attacking for the forwards.
• Can be helpful to have one coach changing the forwards, the other
coach changing the defensemen.
• Be calm!!! Talk to players on the bench, encourage them, refrain
from yelling after shifts or during shifts. Encourage players to talk
to each other on the bench. If the coach is anxiety ridden, it will
pass to the players. Hockey is chaotic enough without the coach
adding to the chaos.
• Be respectful and calm with referees. I’ve always felt that referees
make fewer mistakes than my players do during the course of a
game. If you have a reputation for being under control and
respectful to officials, then when you do have a legitimate gripe,
they are more likely to listen.
Communication
• Open communication between coaches is
important; encourage this between members of
the staff on the bench; think about splitting focal
points between you
• When speaking to players, let them catch their
breath then talk to them about recent plays
during their last shift
• Talk, don’t yell (yes I said it again)
• Seek acknowledgement of what you
communicated
Energy
• Keeping the shifts short based on age level
and energy expenditure is important
• Tired people don’t perform well
• Long shifts early in the game might mean the
athletes can’t catch up and will play tired for
the remainder of the game
Changes
• If you’re at home and have the last change, get in the habit
of not changing until the opponent changes
• As soon as you put out a line and a pair of D, call out the
next line up and next pair of D. Have players confirm by
calling out who they are going for
• Teach your players to change intelligently: Making sure
puck is in a safe place; communicating while coming to the
bench; changing before exhaustion; avoiding wholesale
changes; changing one D at a time and rotating the tired D
to the side nearest the bench, etc.
• While changing, make sure the players on the ice know to
avoid making a play toward the bench; this will help to
avoid too many men on the ice penalties
Matchups
• Even in youth hockey you should pay attention to who’s playing
against who. It doesn’t mean that you dump pucks in and change
when you don’t get a match up, but it does mean that you help to
maintain the competitive balance in the game. First vs. third lines
at the youth hockey level can be gross mismatches.
• Obviously they are keeping score and someone will win; that said,
it’s better if you win rather than your opponent. Thus, being aware,
being a savvy bench coach is good provided you remain mindful of
why you are really there, to provide a positive environment
promoting positive experiences for young people
• Be aware of the opposing coach’s tendencies. If he’s trying to
create mismatches, etc. This may define some of your decisions in
an effort to maintain competitive balance