David Maciuk's passion for hockey stems from 35 years of involvement in every facet of the game. Having grown up in Canada, he played minor hockey through junior with the Soo Greyhounds, and pursued a career in minor pro hockey in Chicago with the USHL, gaining valuable experience along the way. He has worked for Gene Ubriaco and Stan Mikita's hockey schools, coached the Chicago Young Americans, and excelled in negotiating contracts and placing players with Mentor Group Sports Management. Over the past seven years, David has held the position of VP of Hockey Operations and Hockey Director, successfully placing players at all levels of professional and NCAA hockey. His unwavering passion and dedication to success are his top priorities, as he provides direction to ensure the proper fit and environment for academic and athletic goals.
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How do you adapt your coaching style to fit the needs of individual players or teams?
A good coach is able to understand the individual strengths and weaknesses of each player and use them together to form a strong team. Transcript: "To me, a team made up of individuals, it's up to the coach to understand what motivates each individual. Some you can lean on, some, you have to leave alone, some can play together, some can't. To me, the sign of a good coach is understanding what he has in front of them, how to use them to the best of his ability and their abilities would be the key factor to me on how you decide how you handle these guys. It's a little bit different girl, a little different. They all have something bring to the table. It's up to the coach to get them to the table with what they do best."
David MaciukWhat is the most important thing for young coaches to keep in mind when developing their own coaching style?
Coaches should be willing to learn, and not think they know everything, in order to find the coaching style that best suits their personality. Transcript: "Coaches are like snowflakes. There's different sizes, shapes and forms and I think what determines your style is what fits you best and fits your personality. But the one most important thing that you're willing to learn and you don't know everything if you feel, you know, everything you shouldn't be coaching."
David MaciukHow can you let mistakes go in order to move forward?
Hockey is a game of minimizing mistakes, and the more skill and knowledge you have, the fewer mistakes you make. Transcript: "Hockey is a game of mistakes. At least you make. The more wind you have, the more skill you have, the less mistakes you make. It's about getting good habits in all three zones. The better habits you have, the less mistakes you make."
David MaciukWhat strategies do you use to build trust and respect amongst teammates?
I used to get the biggest and strongest player and tie a rope around his waist and have all the other players pull him in one direction, to demonstrate the power of teamwork. Transcript: "One of the ways I used to show the players at the beginning of the season what teamwork means among the group. Used to get the biggest strongest guy, tie a rope around his waist and see if the biggest tallest guy can pull everybody over the line. When you blow the whistle and 19 other players in one direction pull, you can accomplish whatever you need to get done all year."
David MaciukWhat do you think is the most effective way to create space on the ice?
Take three hard steps when picking up a puck to create space and have time to make a good decision. Transcript: "One of the best ways to create space is every time you pick up a puck, if you take three hard steps, you'll separate yourself from your defenders and have time to make a good decision."
David MaciukWhat are some great drills for defensive players while not on the ice?
Putting on a blindfold and handling the golf ball for 20 minutes a day is a great drill to do with young players at home to help them make better decisions on the ice. Transcript: "One of the great drills that we do with our young guys is you can do at home is to put a blindfold on and handle the golf ball for 20 minutes a day, so that you will always have your head up, and then you can make the right decision while you're on the ice."
David Maciuk
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