With no internet access here at the rink or in my apartment I was not able to update this blog as much as I would have liked to. So I will make this my final post in regards to covering Thursday and Friday's activities. I won't dig into the nitty gritty but I will just give an overview of what I learned during my time here, and speak to what future TheGoalieGuild scholarship winners can do to have the same quality of experience I had.
The staff at GoaliePro was a critical part of my learning process throughout the week. Not only did Jukka scaffold you into situations where you are able to work in environments that help you develop your coaching technique and pedagogy, but he placed you with well qualified staff members who are extremely helpful with anything. There was zero judgement or belief that their way was best, the staff would always discuss flaws in technique or positives about goaltenders and what we both could do to help that particular goaltender.
Another aspect of Finnish goaltending culture I picked up on was their lack of secrecy behind their success. There were many nationalities represented at the camp ranging from American, Canadian, Hungarian, Russian, etc. but at no point did the Finnish community try to hide their training or technique. Jukka and his staff are true ambassadors for the position in the global perspective. For instance, I was constantly taking video of drills and pictures of technique to have in the back of my mind next year when I start coaching. Jukka wanted me to gain this knowledge because goaltenders are a special community and we are all there for the betterment of each other.
To the future winners of TheGoalieGuild scholarship that funds a week of learning here in Helsinki, Finland with GoaliePro these are my wise words to you: soak literally everything in. You are here to learn and to improve, that is the attitude I chose when I learned I would be the recipient of the scholarship. Sure I could have come over with a belief that since I played NCAA Division 1 hockey that I knew everything about goaltending and such but that isn't true. No matter if you are a beginning goalie/coach or you played in the NHL I promise you that there will always be more you can learn. My outlook on coaching has shifted and this trip has provided me with a stronger sense of self as I enter the profession. Do not be afraid to make mistakes, you are in a foreign country and you are trying to learn so there are going to be road bumps during the process but you have more support here than you will ever have anywhere else. Also, take pride in yourself during your time here. For instance, I tried to take initiative during drills to talk to goaltenders about their game or about anything they wanted to talk about. This shows to not only the students and the staff, but most importantly yourself, that you are engaged and have pride in what you are here for...it means more than you think. Lastly, stay involved with the staff because even though I have only been around them for five days I am extremely happy to say that I have made some awesome friends during my visit. When you are surrounded by what you love, and are spending the time with friends who share that same drive to help develop goalies and better themselves it is hard not to get lost in it all; but that is a good thing because it is in that frame of mind that you are truly able to learn at your full potential. To the future recipients of this opportunity please prepare to work your absolute hardest, open your mind and heart to everything in this beautiful country and make strive to make this opportunity better for future recipients.
Thank you for tuning in to this blog all week and taking time out of your day to read about my beginning steps of the journey I am embarking on. A huge thank you goes to Justin Goldman, Jukka Ropponen and the GoaliePro staff and I can't forget the amazing people of Finland for investing their time and effort with me. Words will never be able to express my appreciativeness for that.
"Slow is smooth, smooth is fast..."
-words to live by in goaltending
Side note: Below are a few photos, in the future please refer to my social media pages to look for more photos of my experience. As I receive more I will make sure to post them! The one photo is the square where my apartment was located, a beautiful gated space where people felt open to visit with each other and leave their bikes unlocked...I found that very cool that this country does not feel the need to steal other's property, citizens are very respective of others. In the other photo you see will see the young group of goaltenders properly warming up for their on-ice training session. The goaltenders warmed up and cooled down before/after each on-ice and off-ice workouts, learning at a young age develops good habits!