Prospect Info: 2014 Sharks prospect camp

[Pinkfloyd]

At age 20+? How is this really going to work?

An NHL job and his career should be enough motivation. This whole idea of coaches being able to motivate players by yelling and them or benching them isn't a good one, IMO. In the vast majority of cases, the player will pout or play better for a couple of games, before returning to his lazy play.



So physically, sure, the players are not completely developed. Mentally? It is mostly all there. They will have the training habits they have; change will come organically, not from a threat.

In regards to in-game adjustments....sure, you want your players to be versatile. You want them to be able to succeed against different players. But there won't be the urgency of making an adjustment in order to win. Like, for example, if Sommer has thrown out a bad combination out there, and it has cost his team 2 goals, while an NHL coach would immediately yank them, Sommer would keep them out there to see if they can figure things out, or in another way make them find ways of working with each other. The fact that doing so costs his team the win is less relevant.

Just a hypothetical!

Mentally, no male is truly mature at the age bracket we're talking about. Discipline is hardly polished in the early 20's no matter what kind of motivation you have for a glorious type of career.

As for your less relevant argument, I agree that it is less relevant in the sense that it is not very heavily dependent on results for the AHL coach but it is very much relevant teaching the right way to play and having the right culture to develop in which means having a coach that does treat the game and his players as if it is the same thing as an NHL game because that's what they're supposed to be grooming them for.

 

[SnarkAttack]

Different people need different things for motivation. The best coaches know when to kick someone in the butt, and when the give then a kindly, guiding hand. If you can only do one or the other, you are not doing what you need to be doing to coach everyone.

If going to the nhl isn't proper motivation the coach needs to help them see why it should be. Motivation as a long-term and short-term goal are different things. A good coach can provide both. Obviously there are some that just aren't going to work.

A good AHL coach also gets players ready for the NHL. How many players expected to be good NHL players have gone to Sommer and failed? How many have gone to Sommer and succeeded? Basically, how many players have spent a good deal of time in the AHL and have met, or exceeded, expectations? Not enough...

 

[OrrNumber4]

Different people need different things for motivation. The best coaches know when to kick someone in the butt, and when the give then a kindly, guiding hand. If you can only do one or the other, you are not doing what you need to be doing to coach everyone.

You think that is going to change the makeup of the player in a permanent fashion? It isn't like the coach is telling the player something he doesn't know...

A good AHL coach also gets players ready for the NHL. How many players expected to be good NHL players have gone to Sommer and failed? How many have gone to Sommer and succeeded? Basically, how many players have spent a good deal of time in the AHL and have met, or exceeded, expectations? Not enough...

It would be interesting to see the numbers on this.

The thing is, in the cap NHL, if you can play...you can play. No more leaving players to mature in the AHL forever. Teams need those cheap contracts. Most of the players that spend an extended time in the AHL are either goalies, or are truly not NHL-quality players.

 

[SnarkAttack]

You think that is going to change the makeup of the player in a permanent fashion? It isn't like the coach is telling the player something he doesn't know...

Yes, a respected person giving kicks in the butt or praise at the right time over a long period of time will shape positive behaviors. It's not about already knowing, it's about timing and delivery.

It would be interesting to see the numbers on this.

The thing is, in the cap NHL, if you can play...you can play. No more leaving players to mature in the AHL forever. Teams need those cheap contracts. Most of the players that spend an extended time in the AHL are either goalies, or are truly not NHL-quality players.

This doesn't excuse Sommer from the complete lack of improvement. They may or may not be great players, but they should at least be improving.

 

[LadyStanley]

http://www.atlantichockeyonline.com/news/2014-15_News/mercyhurst072114

A bit more on invitee Jones from university.