The Most Important Value Learned in Hockey

As the Minor Hockey season winds down we are reminded that minor hockey instills an important life skill in our youth. Sportsmanship is important in any sport but in minor hockey, it is especially significant. Youth hockey players need to develop a strong appreciation of the game. Practicing sportsmanship will help players have fun, stay active and sharpen skating skills.

Who Should Practice Sportsmanship
Sportsmanship in minor hockey isn't limited just to players. Coaches, parents, officials, and spectators must set an example for young players.  Fairness in game play time, despite size or skill level is an important aspect of establishing an example that all players will follow. Spectators need to remember that these are children playing and that no one's NHL career is made or broken during a single game or even a single season.

It's about Core Values
Sportsmanship develops a strong character. Hockey players learn respect. Showing respect to other players, teammates, and coaches establishes a strong sense of character. Respect spills into other attributes. Responsibility, determination and integrity each weigh into the value of sportsmanship.

It's about Fun
Youth athletics are rewarding but they also instill a sense of fun. Good sportsmanship ensures that the game provides a safe experience for participants and families. Winning isn't everything. Coaches and parents need to stress to young players that building skills and having fun should be a top priority.

Establish a Code
Adults and minor hockey participants should understand the elements of fair play. Many leagues require parents, coaches, and players to sign a conduct agreement before play begins. Most agreements include these standards:

• Respect rules
• Respect opponents
• Respect officials and decisions made
• Keep self-control
• Support teammates and allow everyone time on the ice

Sportsmanship is key to all athletic endeavors. Learning how to be respectful and how to have fun will be lessons minor hockey players can use on and off the ice for the rest of their lives.

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How Sports can Help your Child

The way to build a child’s self-esteem is by teaching them how to set goals, work hard, accomplish tasks, understand the body, and learn from failure. Introducing your child to sports is just one of the ways they can build these skills.

Goal Setting: Playing sports gives the child an enormous pool of goals to choose from like mastering the basic skill set, becoming more fit, getting stronger, or winning the league championship.

Individual sports like running, swimming, or golf are great for children of all levels because not only can they compete with a team, but they can also compete against their own scores or times.

Hard Work: Through sports, a child will learn that practicing diligently with the team may not be enough; to improve they will need to spend extra time practicing certain skills on their own.
Doing so will not only build confidence, but it will also garner praise from the coach and teammates, while putting the child in a leadership position giving incentive to his teammates to improve themselves as well.


Accomplishing Tasks: After losing a game the child can learn that there is no shame in working hard and coming up short. The key is effort, personal development and having fun.

Understanding the Body: In sports children learn to value their body for “what it can do” not simply for “how it looks”. Children who play sports have a more positive body image and experience higher states of psychological well-being than those who do not play sports.

Learning from Failure: Children gain self-esteem by playing a game hard, losing, picking themselves up, congratulating the other team, and then going home and working hard with hopes of defeating that team the next time. Working hard to improve is something that can help children gain confidence thus bolstering their self-esteem.

Building Confidence in Girls

Building self-confidence in girls can be a challenging but rewarding task. In today's society, there is so much in the media that takes away from a girl's self-esteem. Perfect looking models on every magazine cover and almost every Internet pop-up can cause a young girl to compare herself to them unfavorably. Building self-confidence will help girls do better in school and will also prepare them for success as an adult. It can also lessen the chance of eating disorders and help girls develop healthy relationships with others.

Why are sports for girls so important?

Though exercise and good health are often sited as the main goal for involving girls in sports the most important effect of girls in sports is CONFIDENCE.

Girl athletes have one of the lowest rates of tobacco use among any sector of the high-school population; they are less likely to abuse drugs; they are less likely to get pregnant, more likely to delay their first sexual experience, and have, on average, fewer sexual partners than girls who do not participate in sports. In addition, girls derive benefits from athletics that are difficult to measure objectively, such as confidence and self-esteem; they score higher on tests designed to gauge positive body image.

It largely doesn't matter what sport girls become involved in, from karate to football, hockey or cycling, as long as we recognize the value of building confidence in girls and reward them. Self-confidence and recognition of participation and achievements goes a long way to achieving a positive self image.

As Agnus Berenato, head women’s basketball coach at the University of Pittsburgh says, “The most important lesson playing sports can teach a young girl is this: Whatever happens to you on the court, or on the field, or in the pool; the same thing will happen to you in real life. You think the coach is not fair; you’re going to think your parents are not fair. You think the ref made a bad call; you’ll think your teacher made a mistake. But, through sports, you can learn life-long coping skills. You persevere – you get knocked down – but you get back on your feet and strive to achieve.”
Aran Awards & Engraving is happy to support girls sports in Hamilton, Burlington and Stoney Creek. Check out all the amazing ways you can reward and inspire your athletes at aranawards.com