ESPN Article: 13 Simple Rules For Hockey Parents Everywhere

A colleague forwarded me the article at the attached link. It's a bit long, but in my opinion worth the read if you are a hockey parent, fan, or referee. Or if you have kids involved in any other sport...

Article: 13 Simple Rules for Hockey Parents Everywhere

My favorite rules from the article are #3, #6 and #10. I've copied them in below for your quick perusal if you don't have the time to go through all 13 rules in the article.

3. Hockey is a very, very, very, very difficult game to play. You are probably terrible at it. It takes high skill and lots of courage, so lay off your kid. Don't berate them. Be patient and encourage them to play. Some kids need more time to learn how to ride the bike, but, in the end, everyone rides a bike about the same way.

6. Do not fret over penalties not called during games and don't waste long-term heart power screaming at the referees. My observational research reveals the power-play percentage for every Mite hockey game ever played is .0000089 percent; for Squirts, .071 percent. I prefer referees to call zero penalties.

10. Teach your kids not to celebrate too much after a goal if your team is winning or losing by a lot. And by all means, tell them celebrate with the team. After they score, tell them not to skate away from their teammates like soccer players. Find the person who passed you the puck and tell him or her, "Great pass." We have immediate group hugs in hockey following a short, instinctive reaction from the goal scorer. I am proud of my boy for a lot of things, but I am most proud at how excited he gets when a teammate scores a goal. He is Alex Ovechkin in this regard.

Hope you enjoyed...