DEVELOP YOUR GRINDING GAME LIKE ZACH HYMAN
By Enio Sacilotto
Zach Hyman is an established NHL left winger, former Toronto Maple Leaf and current Edmonton Oiler. His trademark is that of a hard-working, grinding, two-way, 200-foot player capable of making plays and scoring goals. His playing style and skills did not happen by accident.
Zach had a long-term goal of making it to the National Hockey League. He loved hockey and started his junior hockey career with the Junior A Hamilton Red Wings, where he had fun and scored many goals.
His long-term dream was to make the NHL, but he never spent his time focusing on the end result. He used his dream as his everyday motivation to succeed. As he says in the interview, “I never got too far ahead of myself.” He continued to put in the hard work and improve, building his game daily.
He maintained a “growth mindset” attitude, believing improvement is always possible. A player with a growth mindset is coachable and never gives up even when setbacks and mistakes occur. Zach set small process goals, the “baby steps” to get him to the NHL. Being an elite athlete is a marathon and not a sprint. Don’t rush, be in the moment and get better every day!
After three seasons in Hamilton, Zach earned an athletic scholarship and played at the University of Michigan for their long-time coach Red Berenson. He hardly played for two seasons. Zach knew how to score and thought the move to the next level would be easy, but it was not. He maintained his growth mindset and took his coach’s advice to heart. Coach Berenson told Zach that he needed to learn the 200-foot game, kill penalties, block shots and learn to compete and grind. Once he developed his offensive game within the grinding game, his career took off. He was a Hobey Baker finalist, and after one season, the American Hockey League established himself as a solid NHL player.
Key takeaways from Zach Hyman for parents, coaches and players; 1) set long-term goals and use them as everyday motivation, 2) Set Performance and daily process goals for improvement, 3) It is a marathon and not a sprint, 4) build off setbacks, be coachable and maintain a growth mindset, 5) develop your complete game and 5) enjoy the game and have FUN!
Enio Sacilotto is President of International Hockey Camps and operates the Mental Edge High-Performance Training. Enio has 39 years of coaching experience (professional hockey in Europe and the Victoria Royals (WHL)). Currently, he coaches at the Burnaby Winter Club Hockey Academy and the Croatian National Men’s team. If you have questions or are interested in his services, contact Enio at enio@coachenio.com or call 604 255 4747. Website: www.coachenio.com.