The Dreams of "Going Pro"

Just about every young hockey player who ever sets foot on the ice will have dreams of one day “going pro.”   

Unfortunately, however, very few players will actually make it to this elite level. A lot of people think this is because most people just aren’t that good or that talented, but that’s not necessarily the case. The real truth is that many players just aren’t willing to work hard enough to achieve their goals and they don’t have the right attitude.

See, believe it or not, the ones who make it aren’t always the best or the most talented. A lot of the time, they just have the best attitudes and the most determination.

Another way of looking at it is that anyone with a baseline of talent can be good at hockey and can get even better with practice. That isn’t enough to send someone to the NHL.

The players who get sent to the NHL are the ones who were good or who became good at the sport but who also offered something extra, and that “something” can be different for everyone. For some, it’s a positive attitude or incredible team-mindedness that catches a scout’s attention or causes a coach to recommend a player, thereby catapulting his career.

For others, it’s simply not giving up; it’s persisting failure after failure, challenge after challenge.

At the end of the day, nobody can really answer the “secret” of going pro or “what it takes.” That differs for everyone, but striving to be the best person and player one can be is a great way to increase one’s chances of making it big in the hockey world.

The Dangers of a "Go Pro" Mindset

Pretty much every parent harbors a (secret or not-so-secret) belief that his or her young athlete will eventually make it to the pros. Parents who do believe this often, usually unknowingly, put a lot of pressure on their kids. What these parents need to realize, however, is that the chances of going pro are relatively slim and that youth hockey, at the end of the day, shouldn’t be about preparing for a career but about having fun and preparing for life in general.

First of all, parents need to realize that only around 1 out of every 2000 young athletes are going to make it big. Those are pretty low odds. That’s not to say, of course, that you shouldn’t encourage your child’s dreams, but it is to say that you shouldn’t be too devastated or surprised if your child doesn’t make it big. Furthermore, you also want to make sure it’s your child’s dreams you’re trying to play out, not your own.

Secondly, it’s important to recognize that being too hard on your young athlete in the hopes of him going pro can also have the opposite effect. If you push and push your child, studies show he’s more likely to experience burnout and give up on sports at a young age than if you just let things be and encourage your child to try hard and have fun.

Finally, remember that hockey is, at the end of the day, about fun and about the multitude of skills, such as leadership and the ability to work with a team, that can be gained from it. Don’t focus on going pro, especially not when your little one is very young. Instead, focus on having fun and just let whatever happens happen.

Related articles

• Youth Sports v. Pro Sports (bigbearhockey.blogspot.com)