skip navigation

14U/16U Q-and-A: How can I become more explosive this summer?

06/19/2015, 10:45am MDT
By Roger Grillo, USA Hockey ADM Regional Manager

Q: What can I do during the summer to become more explosive and productive next season?

A: For a 14-year-old, the offseason is absolutely critical. In fact, it may be more important, developmentally, than the season itself. So how can a 14-year-old make the most of his or her offseason?

The first key is to begin taking responsibility for one’s own development. At this age, the onus begins shifting from coaches, parents and administrators to the athletes themselves. It’s up to the player to invest the effort it takes to excel as a teenager and beyond. It’s up to the player to decide what they want to ultimately accomplish and then embrace the challenge of achieving those aspirations. No one else can do it for them. In other words, what they put in is what they’ll get out.

A second step to making the most of any offseason is building strength and speed. The most effective, efficient and safest way to do that is by considering what methods are age-appropriate.

Long-term athlete development includes specific windows of trainability, within which, athletes have a heightened sensitivity to certain types of training.

At age 14, female athletes are in the midst of their strength window and at the tail end of a second speed window. That means their bodies are especially receptive to strength training and explosive speed training. While they can make gains in these areas later in life, they’ll make them more efficiently and more significantly now, setting them up for more success now and a higher ceiling later.

For boys, their 14th birthday resides in the second speed window and the stamina window, so it’s prime time to focus on linear, lateral and multi-directional speed, along with endurance training. Their strength window will be opening soon – usually at 15 or 16 – so now is also a great time to begin learning proper strength-training techniques with very light weights. Refining technique and learning good workout habits now will position them to make huge gains and avoid injury later.

So, at 14 years old, it’s all about athletes being at a point where they are ready to get faster and stronger with a strong commitment to do so. Hard work, sacrifice and dedication to off-ice training now (and beyond) will eventually dictate how far an athlete can take their abilities. Along with this, a commitment to proper sleep, rest, recovery and sound nutritional habits are also very important at this age.

The big misconception is that all the great players just woke up one day and they luckily became great players. But reality and sports science tells us that hard work, passion and a commitment to doing the right things are at the core of our truly elite hockey players.

There are no shortcuts and the offseason is a great time to roll up the sleeves and work to achieve goals. Training properly is the No. 1 priority.


The author, Roger Grillo, has coached for more than 20 years at the high school and college levels. He spent 12 seasons as the head coach at Brown University and was a Spencer Penrose National Coach of the Year finalist in 1997-98.

More ADM Newsletter Articles

Tag(s): Newsletters