On Fri, 15 Dec 1995, Jill Maser wrote:
 
> Coaching goalies probably isn't too much different from coaching others in
> terms of finding out how to motivate a player to develop and to play his/her
> best.
 
I think you are wrong.  I played goalie for four years at the University
of Illinois (last year I was an A.C.H.A. All-American).  I think goalies
need - and deserve - special attention.  Before you call me a primmadonna
(I've heard people call us that many times before!), you should know I don't
mean *more* attention - just *special* attention.  Although hockey is,
first and foremost, a team sport, everyone knows that a hot goalie can
win an impossible game and a shakey one can blow a sure win.
     Goalies take their performances (as well as attacks on their
performances) personally.  After all, imagine if every time you made a
mistake at work a red light went on over your head and 5,000 people
called your sister (even if you don't have one) a whore.  Now you can see
why Glen Hall threw up before every game (and sometimes in between
periods).
     Our position is different than a skater's.  A skater, based on
his performance, can slide up and down nine spots on the top three lines
without much threat of losing his chance to play.  However, there is one
- and only one - goalie.  When I played, I always needed to know where I
stood among the three goalies on our team.  And I liked (although I often
had to plead with him) for my coach to tell us who was starting this
weekend by Wednesday.  I just have so much to say, but I don't want to
bore you all!
     Goalkeeping is a sport in and of itself.  It's 100% different from
what skaters do.  So why would you think of coaching goalies the same way?
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