TOP Hockey Program Overview
Currently offering programs for players born between 2009-2014, the TOP Hockey program offers a unique approach to competitive hockey by offering local ice-time, manageable schedules and quality coaching, all while improving players' individual skills and providing a great hockey experience.
We believe in focusing on the process, not the outcome, with all of our practices and games, and believe strongly that age-appropriate development is the best way to keep kids in sport longer. We structure our practices so that players are placed into small groups rotating through stations focusing on individual skills, technical instruction, and game-based learning. We believe our small group format is essential for kids to get individual feedback, quality coaching, and high level engagement. We believe that the values learned from hockey (discipline, accountability, and leadership), are ones that will transcend well beyond sport, and we aim to build those values from day one. We will push your kids to get better by creating a fun, engaging, and disciplined environment conducive to learning, and will always have your child's best interests at heart.
For more information on how our teams are picked, please click here.
Application Process
If you are interested in applying for one of our TOP Hockey Club Teams please click the link below and fill out the TOP Sports Family Application Form.
TOP Hockey applications for the 2021-2022 hockey season are now open for U13 and U11 teams.
Due to high volume, applications for U10, U9, and U8 age groups are now closed.
The 'Four-Corners' Development Model
The 'Four-Corners' development model is a staple at all TOP Hockey practices, providing players at all ages with a highly-structured and efficient practice plan resulting more touches of the puck, more repetitions per drill, and a more engaging practice experience. Players will be placed in small groups and rotate through all stations during the practice time, usually spending between 10-12 minutes per station. We believe in spending a lot of time on the fundamentals of core skills; skating, shooting, passing, and competition, ensuring all players have a strong base of skills before introducing more advanced concepts.
Game-Based Learning Environment
It's no secret that kids like to play games, whether it's on the playground, in the backyard, or on the ice. In fact, games-based learning has been shown to be one of the most effective ways that kids learn. By using games to teach hockey, we can teach kids to execute skills based on their environment, which is called the 'practice-to-game transfer'. Skills cannot be solely learned in isolation, but must be reinforced by making decisions, and ultimately by making mistakes. For any situation that occurs in the game of hockey, we are able to use small-area games to replicate it, provide kids with more reps of that situation, and provide instant feedback and teaching. At all practices we incorporate at least one small-area game station, which can take the form of activity-based games (ie. freeze tag), skill-based games (ie. shark & minnows w/ pucks), and role-based situational games (ie. transition 2 v 2).
Station-Based Practices By The Numbers
- 2x-4x more repetitions of core skills per 60-minute practice, as compared to a 'traditional' single-team practice.
- 27.8% more individual ice-time per week as compared to a 'traditional' team schedule.
- 23% more individual puck-time per week as compared to a 'traditional' team schedule.
- 40% more players on ice per 60-minute practice, resulting in higher engagement and lower ice costs.
Sources: USA Hockey, Hockey Canada
The 'Four-Corners' model is a staple in most European training, and has been adapted for TOP Hockey.
