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Matt Doumochelle hosts this webinar discussion with panelists Eric Palazzolo, Maco Balkovek, and Lukas Havlicek. Drawing on their work at BioSteel Sports Academy, Rink Hockey Academy Kelowna, and HC Slovan Bratislava, they compare ways to create alignment, give coaches room to work, start a season with staff, and bring new coaches into an organization.
From culture and parent communication to delegation and coach development, the panel discusses the day-to-day work behind a successful youth hockey program. They also take on development versus winning, the timing of systems and skills, how much a group can understand, difficult player personalities, and the non-negotiables they would put in place when building an organization.
Key Moments
0:00 – Intro
10:15 – Establishing organizational alignment
12:50 – Giving coaches freedom within an established program
17:30 – Onboarding new coaches
19:45 – Defining a development-focused program
22:55 – Guiding coach-parent interactions
26:00 – Building culture at HC Slovan
32:40 – Delegating across a hockey organization
37:10 – Structuring coach development
44:25 – Non-negotiables for a new organization
51:55 – Managing coaches' urge to win
54:30 – When to teach systems versus skills in youth hockey
57:40 – Deciding how much a group can understand
59:40 – Managing difficult player personalities
1:02:45 – Improving yourself and your organization
Key Themes
• Alignment, culture, and non-negotiables give a youth hockey program direction.
• Coach freedom works alongside onboarding, development, and support.
• Development-focused decisions balance skills, systems, winning, and player capacity.
• Parent communication and delegation shape the day-to-day running of an organization.
• Leaders need to keep improving themselves and their organizations.
Webinar Panel
• Matt Doumochelle, webinar host
• Eric Palazzolo, BioSteel Sports Academy
• Maco Balkovek, Rink Hockey Academy Kelowna
• Lukas Havlicek, HC Slovan Bratislava
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The Built From Steel Podcast is a division of BioSteel Sports.
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