These are our overarching goals year-over-year with the Vegas JR Golden Knights. We are committing to the single birth year model. From the Hockey Club’s standpoint, our process in making competition decisions is to challenge our teams in defined, trusted settings for league play, showcase events and tournaments. USA Hockey added 13U as a Nationally bound age group this past season, which fits our vision for athlete development as a Tier 1 program. We take the next step in that direction by having single birth year teams at every age group.

• Continue to create a culture where players can best develop a passion for the game of hockey
• Teach players relevant hockey and life skills that allows them to develop on and off the ice
• Continue to refine our Organizational Model for Development that delivers on our first twogoals, while providing players and their families a rewarding experience

By focusing on our Hockey Club’s cultural philosophy to develop in our players a passion for the game, emphasizing the essential components:

• Education: Parents, Coaches and Players.  Guide the Parents through the development process
• Continue to build our Hockey Club Coaching Resources
• Teach the Players relevant skills to develop on and off the ice

Experience: Practices, Training and Touches (creative competitive alternatives).  Tryouts for Nationally bound age groups based on USA Hockey’s guidelines following National Tournaments

• That allows for Team Spring Training to set the tone for the fall season, providing a clear direction for our families over the summer
• Structure practices where players Learn & have Fun
• Provide players with unique competitive opportunities (e.g. Training Weekends)

Enthusiasm: Coaches, Managers and Directors MUST have passion for Teaching, Learning, and the Players.

Further, the key to the season will be Creating a Community where the players come first. The focus here is on our second stated goal of teaching our players daily; to advance their development both on and off the ice. The major points being:

Life Skills: Ownership, Resiliency and Relationships

• Ownership -- Teach each player to feel responsible for their own development. The need to learn the value of “earning it” and owning their process to get better
• Resiliency – Teach the players that roadblocks happen… and how to use those setbacks as motivation to grow
• Relationships – Teach the players the importance of being a good teammate and having a positive impact on the team and Vegas JR Golden Knight’s culture

Hockey Skills: Hockey Sense, Skating and overall skill o Hockey Sense – Teach age-appropriate, specific concepts relating to team play

• Skating – Teach age-appropriate, specific concepts (edge work to deception)
• Overall Skill – Teach age-appropriate skills (stick skills to body control)

Training Skills: Competitiveness, Creativity and overall, Habit Building.

• Competitiveness – Use modified game play and practices to create the level of compete for success in our sport
• Creativity – Design practice drills and varied game simulation that promotes player freedom to make plays, make mistakes and figure the game out autonomously
• Habit Building – Design specific practice drills and SAG’s and provide proper feedback to promote players creating good habits within their individual games

Finally, our third Organizational tenet for the season addresses our model and structure to develop our kids as players and people, while supplying our families a rewarding experience. In these uncertain times, defining our structure and promoting touches vs. trips is paramount:

Practices:

• 3-slot per week
• Consistent time
• Use of three facilities; CNA, AFC and Hylo Park Arena
• Club Skills practices

Training Weekends:

• Creative competition – (Pond hockey with a Purpose, Ironman, Shinny)

Games: Team Format for Season

• Travel game(s) weekend
• Home game(s) weekend
• Training Weekend
• Weekend off