The Coaches Room is a regular feature throughout the 2023-24 season by former NHL coaches and assistants who turn their critical gaze to the game and explain it through the lens of a teacher. Mike Kelly, John Hynes and Dallas Eakins will take turns providing insight.
In this edition, Eakins, a former coach with the Edmonton Oilers and Anaheim Ducks, looks at the importance of developing a strong mindset, whether the team is playing well or not.
Obviously, there are many storylines around the NHL, but I have kept a close eye on the teams off to great starts and those facing adversity early.
I have always been fascinated by our brains and how we process different circumstances, and the start of this season opens the door for me to share the lessons I have learned regarding mindset.
It always amazes me the amount of time and money teams and parents invest in skill development; get faster, stronger, heavier, lighter, smoother, work on your shot, your passing, your stick-handling, take more pucks off the boards, work in small spaces, and rip that one-timer!
The skill development is endless and important, but in the end, none of it matters if the player doesn’t have the mental skills or mindfulness to develop the mindset to continuously improve, and more importantly, treat the two great imposters of triumph and disaster just the same.
The San Jose Sharks and Edmonton Oilers have had tough starts. Edmonton (4-9-1) fired coach Jay Woodcroft on Sunday, replacing him with Kris Knoblauch, who was coaching Hartford of the American Hockey League and won his NHL debut Monday (4-1 against the New York Islanders).
Although the expectations for the Sharks (2-12-1) and Oilers, who were considered by many as a contender for the Stanley Cup, may be far different, their challenges remain the same; keep the negativity virus out of their heads and their dressing rooms.
I am not a keep-it-positive believer. I prefer to be positive but only when circumstances are positive.
To come in and preach to be positive when you are dealing with great adversity can come off as disingenuous, a bit of an act, and even fraudulent. The big key is not to be negative.
Negativity will burn down a church, crush a marriage and destroy an organization. It is proven, a negative comment stays with us and affects much more than a compliment.
Whispers behind backs, forming little pity party groups, or digesting a full menu of social media posts leads to a loss of confidence and stokes the negativity fire. The margins are razor thin in the NHL and a small dose of doubt in yourself or your team puts the odds immediately against you. These teams’ beliefs must be greater than the uncertainty from their detractors.
Conversely, the Vegas Golden Knights (12-2-1), Boston Bruins (11-1-2), New York Rangers (11-2-1) and Vancouver Canucks (11-3-1) are off to fabulous starts. There are genuine reasons to be positive. Negative thoughts are not prevalent.
The trap here is to not let complacency park itself in the heads of the players.
Complacency destroys details, kills attitudes and makes us resent in which we once took pride. Teams must continue to work on maintaining a high standard and improving their game. A blind eye or a removal of the foot from the gas pedal cannot be allowed because they are winning.
There are places to improve in winning streaks. They are formed on hard, detailed work and reducing the number of meetings or work days because you are winning is a dangerous road to travel.
Successful and unsuccessful groups each have the same challenge. Each must employ great discipline and possess a trained mindset to be able to get their heads to neutral, get to a calm place while everything negative or positive swirls around them.
This is where they can get their thoughts and perspective organized and not let their circumstance become something they’re not. The next practice or next game has nothing to do with a three-game winning streak or losing skid.
There is always the next game, facing a new team where the lineup may be slightly different and you’re playing in a different building or time zone. Each group must take that single day and prepare to ‘Win That Day’ in every aspect. They cannot be caught in the past, beating themselves up over losses and cannot put off training to find some comfort because of a few wins.
Everyone must be always challenging their mindset to find neutral, organize what is truly needed on the day or moment and work outside of their comfort zones. That is truly how they can ‘Win Today’ and winning each day individually and collectively accumulates into a great season or, more importantly, a great life.
