Power Within II Excerpt: Calgary Flames Goaltending Development Coach Thomas Speer
- Thomas Speer served as USA Hockey's National Goaltending Coach, overseeing the NTDP and coaching the Under-17 and Under-18 national teams.
- Speer identifies in-game experience as essential for goalie development, arguing repetitions in live game situations build mental and technical growth.
- Building mental toughness is a deliberate process Speer links directly to on-ice performance outcomes for developing goalies.
- Speer warns that failing to carve out regular time away from the rink is a potential long-term development pitfall for young goaltenders.
- Lessons from the Michael Jordan documentary serve as a reference point Speer uses when discussing competitive mindset with developing goalies.
Thomas Speer is the Calgary Flames goaltending development coach with their affiliate in the American Hockey League, the Stockton Heat, and his path to that job is loaded with experiences that make him perfect for it.
In addition to four seasons playing college hockey, and four more coaching in the ECHL, Speer spent two years as the National Goaltending Coach for USA Hockey, overseeing the National Team Development Program (NTDP) as well as serving as the goalie coach for their Under-17 and Under-18 teams. So, Speer has a lot of experience helping young goalies develop, evaluating talent and watching for the link between performance and mental strength. He shares some of those lessons in his chapter in The Power Within II, the new book co-authored by Justin Goldman of The Goalie Guild and former Dallas Stars goalie coach Mike Valley, and we are pleased to share parts of it here in another exclusive excerpt.
They include lessons from Michael Jordan documentary, the value of experience in games, developing mental toughness and perhaps more interesting (and telling), the importance of carving out time away from the rink and the game, and the potential downfall of not doing so. Enjoy our latest excerpt:
Remember, you can also hear more from the authors on Episode 101 of the InGoal Radio Podcast, (Räty herself was a guest on Episode 48), and we’ve already featured a pair of insightful excerpts here at Premium:
Robin Lehner shared how he’s slowed the game down visually and mentally
Florida goalie coach Robb Tallas shared a lesson from Roberto Luongo on handling mistakes
How Jake Oettinger stayed in the moment on path to, and preparing for, first NHL start
Connor Hellebuyck shifts from studying what goes on around him to focusing on own game
Cal Petersen shares his eye warm up and tips on creating internal swagger in big moments
Noora Räty shares he mental approach and advice on overcoming adversity
We’ve got more excerpts planned for Premium Members, so stay tuned.
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