This and That

• The Worcester Sharks started the season 1-4-0-1 to start the season in their first 6 games. Since then the team 10-4-1 and have vaulted to 1st place in the Atlantic Division.

• It’s clearly a different era in pro sports and it has to do with the year round training athletes do in their teenage and college (Junior) years. Take a look at the NFL and the early success of quarterbacks Andrew Luck of the Colts and Robert Griffin III of the Redskins. Quarterback might be the toughest position to transition into but these guys are having incredible rookie years.

• The cover of the December issue of USA Hockey Magazine has a photo from the kids book called “Brady Brady”. Mary Shaw is the creator of the Brady Brady book series and is the wife of ex-NHLer Brad Shaw who is currently an assistant coach for the St. Louis Blues. Check out the books, they’ll make great Christmas presents.

• I have been getting my hockey fix on TV by watching college games. NBC has been covering some of the action, as have other National TV Stations. Here is the National TV Schedule: http://www.uscho.com/tv/

• While on the topic of college hockey, my alma mater, St. Lawrence University will play their arch rival Clarkson University Saturday at Herb Brooks Arena in Lake Placid, NY. Go Saints!

• UVM Woman’s hockey is making great strides this season under rookie head coach Jim Plumer. The Cats are 3-0-2 in their last 5 games. Kudos to the entire coaching staff including Grant Kimball and Chelsea Grills, who is a SLU alum.

• Lastly, Jerry York, Head Coach for Boston College, has 924 career victories and is tied with Ron Mason as college hockey’s all-time wins leaders. York is 924-558-94 in 41 seasons as a head coach at Clarkson, Bowling Green and Boston College. His BC Eagles play Providence this weekend and he’ll likely pass Mason’s record. Good luck and congrats to Coach York.

• Here's a practice tip... work on catching bad passes. When I was a kid my dad used to always remind me to work on catching passes. When you think it about it, it really makes sense because you can control you own passes, but you can’t control how others pass. For instance, when you play a good team your teammates are forced to move the puck quicker and often make backhand passes – which often means the pass won’t be right on your tape. The trick is to be able to catch passes on the fly without slowing down, whether the pass is on your backhand, in your skates or in the air. It’s also an important skill for injury prevention; if you get a pass in your skates the sooner you can kick it up to your stick AND get your head up, the better chance you won’t get hit with your head down while trying to fish the puck out of your own skates.

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