For people who are just learning to skate to professional hockey players who have spent thousands of hours on the ice, breaking down a skill to its simplest form can help anyone master it.
This is the approach Jets Hockey Development (JHD) coach Devin Himpe takes, whether he’s coaching 5-year-olds or the pros.
“It doesn’t matter which group I’m working with, when starting a new program or skill I usually try to take things slowly and start at a controlled standpoint, build things, and then put it in a game situation. I think that’s the best way to give a player confidence,” said Himpe.
Along with coaching full-time for JHD for the past five years, Himpe has been an assistant coach for 10 years with the University of Manitoba Bisons Men’s Hockey Team, has coached Team Manitoba, and was a member of the Team Canada coaching staff at the 2019 International University Sports Federation Games in Russia.
Himpe works with players of all ages and skill ranges, from children to adults in their 60s or 70s who are learning to skate, and high school, university and professional hockey players.
“The most rewarding part of coaching is when you clearly make an impact on someone, whether they had fun or got better,” said Himpe. “I’ve always tried to push players to the best of their abilities while having fun.”
Growing up in Dauphin, Man., Himpe spent most of his free time on the ice.
“I grew up in a small town and there was nothing else to do. It was either hockey…or hockey,” laughed Himpe. However, he believes the best players are balanced, not only in their skillset but also in their time off the ice.
“Try to show up with an open mind and be ready to work,” is Himpe’s advice for players. “Don’t just focus on the things you are good at. We need to build everything so you can be a more complete player.”
Himpe also uses this mindset in his coaching approach, as he understands the importance of listening and learning from others.
“If coaches don’t grow and listen to others, then their players won’t grow,” said Himpe who, along with using this collaborative approach, has also invested a lot of his time into his own personal training. He has completed the Hockey Canada skills training and has his High Performance 1 coaching certificate.
Himpe believes its also important for players to take a break from hockey and to play other sports.
“Playing other sports can help improve your hockey skills. For example, playing golf or baseball can help with hand-eye coordination,” said Himpe. “Those skills will translate over to your game.”
While having a well-rounded skillset is important, skating is truly the foundation of any good hockey player.
“If you can’t skate, you can’t pass, you can’t shoot. You can’t do everything to the best of your ability,” said Himpe.
This is why power skating is a staple JHD program throughout the year, and especially during the spring season, which Himpe notes is a great time to get a head start on the areas a player wants to improve upon for next year.
JHD’s spring programs are available for U9 to U18 players as well as adult skaters. Players can also create their own small groups with their friends, teammates, or other players at their level, and choose from a range of coaches to tailor their programming.
“From a development standpoint, players can take a break from team play and focus on themselves, and then take a break after spring development with their mindset on what they just worked on,” said Himpe, adding that spring training is also beneficial for players, and their parents, in that it continues to bring structure and developmental opportunities after the hockey season is over.
Himpe will be involved with each program in some way and is looking forward to helping players improve on and off the ice, but having fun remains key.
“If I can help them develop or gain something out of a practice, as long as they’re smiling at the end of it, that’s all I care about.”
For more information on Jets Hockey Development 2025 spring programs, visit hockeyforallcentre.com.
JHD’s high-calibre coaching and skill-specific training give players the edge
There have been many changes to the game over the past few generations, not the least of which is tremendous growth in skill, speed and flair – and this is not by accident.
“In my own playing days, there was playing time and practice time – there was no additional work unless you went out looking hard to find it,” said Dave Cameron, Head On-Ice Instructor & Program Manager with Jets Hockey Development (JHD), based out of hockey for all centre.
Growing availability of skill-specific training, such as what is offered through JHD, and a high calibre of coaching has been key to this evolution, providing players, both minor and pro, with options and opportunity to take every aspect of play to the next level.
“The biggest change is people like myself who are available to work with players, which has expanded these opportunities.”
A 1998 NHL draft of the Pittsburgh Penguins, Cameron has been coaching for more than 25 years and has worked with players of all skill levels, from those taking their first strides to those on the cusp of making the bigs, and pros who have made the jump to the big show. He is also the skating and skills coach for both the Winnipeg Jets and Manitoba Moose and works with hockey for all centre tenant teams, including the MJHL’s Winnipeg Blues and Winnipeg Freeze, as well as Winnipeg AAA/AA, and Winnipeg Ice (U18 female).
“All of our JHD coaches demonstrate a high level of hockey sense and understanding of the game, but each have had their own unique career path that has led them here, creating complementary experiences and perspectives that benefit our entire program delivery.”
Communication and relationships are a key part of Cameron’s coaching philosophies, and he sees them as impactful to players’ training outcomes.
“Players who succeed the most are the ones with the best attitude and who are open to change,” said Cameron. “I try to be as open as I can with players and I want them to come talk to me about what they are doing well and struggling with, this helps to build a rapport that strengthens the connection between goals and the plan we build to achieve them.”
The communication aspect is even more critical when it comes to team coaching sessions where JHD coaches work to parlay individual strength and skill to elevated team play through communication.
Team coaching begins with a conversation with the coaches to get a sense of what they’d like to see from a development plan. After an on-ice assessment session, Cameron outlines a curriculum, maps out the plans and builds the drills.
With so many development options available now, determining the best fit can be overwhelming but that’s where the relationship starts for Cameron and the other coaches.
“We get a lot of calls from families, some know exactly what they want and some want guidance, and so we work with you to match the program to the player.”
In addition to Power Skating, Puck Skills, Female Programs, 3 vs. 3, and Junior Prospects programming, new to the spring lineup this year are small group programs (8-10 players) during prime-time hours including after school and evenings.
“Our programs can be the perfect supplement for a spring hockey season – or replace spring hockey altogether – with more individual attention, focused work, and puck touches than in games.”
Even with his vast experience in the game, Cameron is also focused on continued learning. He spent time during COVID exploring hockey experiences off the ice, including doing colour commentary for the Manitoba Moose and writing a book, Coaching Hockey with Small Area Games, and is currently working on a second book focused on developing defensemen.
He is in the process of completing a Hockey Canada Master Skills program – just one of 10 Canadian coaches selected to receive this certification.
“For me, on the JHD side, it just lets me take our coaching to a whole other level,” Cameron said noting the plan for all JHD coaches to achieve Skills Coach Certification with Hockey Canada.
He is adamant that a good skills coach should be able to adapt to impact players of any skill level.
“Because I work with the Moose every day, I get to see where they’re at, and the goal of reaching the NHL is so close at this point. The way they prepare for practice, I can take those messages to the younger kids, scale down and explain to them why these same concepts are important. They get a lot of info that the pros are getting, similar concepts to be taught and worked on.”
The ultimate goal, through any JHD program, is to make the tactical to practical connection, correlating training to the game scenario.
“The best thing for me is seeing a player when they have that aha moment, and they understand what they are working on, how it relates to them and how they can use it in the game,” said Cameron. “When they call or text to let us know, the joy they feel in connecting it with the game – and that can be a pro or a young player, for me, the excitement doesn’t change.”
Explore JHD’s spring programs at hockeyforallcentre.com.
This is the first in a series spotlighting the people involved with the hockey for all centre’s First Shift Program, inviting youngsters from Manitoba’s Asian, South Asian and Filipino communities to learn all about Canada’s favourite sport. In this edition of Game On, we meet Allan Chan.
Allan Chan knows there are kids in his community who want to play hockey.
In fact, Chan’s involvement in a program that he helped organize – First Shift – makes it very clear that youngsters in the Asian, South Asian and Filipino communities will grab onto hockey and embrace it if they’re given the chance.
“Right now, in the First Shift program, we have 60 kids that are first time skaters plus another 30 kids that are in and out as coaches,” Chan explained. “We only started in the fall of 2023 and we haven’t done much advertising. It’s just been word of mouth in the communities and still, the spots in the program fill up right away. There is a very strong interest in the community.
“And it’s great to see these kids that have never skated and don’t even know which hand they shoot with, learn and grow in the program. It’s satisfying working with them, so they want to get involved in the game and play it. They’re learning that they belong and they should be part of the hockey community.”
Chan, along with Ganni Maan from Winnipeg’s South Asian Community and Ron Cantiveros from the Filipino community have joined with Bauer, the hockey for all centre and the Winnipeg Jets to introduce Canada’s national pastime to new Canadians who have never played the game before.
Of course, there is a very important reason that the Jets and hockey for all centre have recruited the likes of Chan to the program. David Sattler, the general manager of the hockey for all centre, has seen the numbers and he knows the demographics are changing. And they are changing faster than we ever expected.
“If you look at Manitoba’s demographics over the last decade and what it will look like over the next 20-30 years, Asian, South Asian and Filipino communities already make up a sizable group of the population, particularly in Winnipeg,” Sattler explained. “By the time we get to 2040, a significant percentage of the population will be represented by these communities, as well as by our Indigenous communities. We have a plan to help grow the game in emerging communities in both Winnipeg and around the province.
“For our city, our province and for much of the prairies, hockey is what drives the engine in the winter, whether it’s the Jets or the NHL, the CHL, right through to Jr. A and AAA minor hockey programs. If we don’t have kids sign up for minor hockey, we don’t have kids who go on and play at those higher levels and we don’t have kids who grow up to be fans of the Winnipeg Jets and the game in general.”
That’s why the game we love is taking a change in direction. Not in terms of the rules or the way the game is being played, but in the way its presented. People who never grew up with hockey are arriving in Canada every day and Sattler wants to recruit as many as he can to our country’s favourite sport.
It’s why Allan Chan is involved. After all, Chan is not only a member of the Winnipeg Jets advisory board, but he himself is a player.
“Back in about 2010, some friends of mine and I were interested in an annual tournament called the Asian Hockey Championships based in Toronto’” Chan explained. “So we went, myself and three friends, and we joined a team out there and we played. It was great timing and when we came back home we said wouldn’t it be great if we could put a team together?
“So, we did and put together an All-Asian team and went back to Toronto and played in the men’s division. It also has a kids’ division and a women’s division. In 2011, we actually took three teams to Toronto because the Jets had returned and there was a lot of interest in the team across the province. We also had all these players of Asian descent who wanted to play and wanted to be a part of it.
“As the years went by, a lot of my teammates had kids and they’d come to the tournament and play in it, as well. So now we take down two adult teams, a partial kids’ team that joins up with kids from Calgary and Toronto.”
It wasn’t long before Chan was organizing an All-Asian tournament in Winnipeg.
“Last February we held our own Lunar New Year Tournament,” Chan said. “We had a four-team tournament and at that time we decided to have a gear drive and we were put in touch with the True North Youth Foundation. We partnered up on a gear drive and the True North Youth Foundation put us in touch with David at the hockey for all centre.
“We started working with David and Dean Court on Grow the Game back in May of 2023. We also wanted to do something where we got involved in the First Shift Program. So, last April and May, we recruited kids of Asian, South Asian and Filipino descent who had already started playing or at least had started skating, to be coaches in the program.”
This kind of community leadership was exactly what the First Shift program needed.
“Thanks to Scotiabank’s hockey for all and Grow the Game programs and Bauer’s First Shift (through an NHL/NHLPA partnership) along with Apna Hockey’s ability to reach the South Asian Community, Jets Hockey Development has been proactive when it comes to encouraging non-traditional communities to embrace the game,” said Sattler. “We’re hoping this will build bridges and create diversity in a sport that right now, doesn’t have as much diversity as other sports we watch, play and enjoy.”
Chan and his partners, Maan and Cantiveros, have already started to build those bridges.
“We got the kids together of varying skill levels and built a data base of kids who could someday become a coach,” Chan said. “It would really help Grow the Game if we had kids who looked like the kids we were teaching. Sometimes that just helps a lot when you’re working with kids who are brand new to the sport.
“So, in October of 2023 we partnered with Bauer and the Jets and we rolled out the First Shift program. We were catering to players of Asian, South Asian and Filipino descent and we actually moved the program to Seven Oaks where the program would be in a place that offered better accessibility for the parents of these kids.
“Bauer supplied 30 families with free head-to-toe hockey gear. Then for six weeks we conducted hockey lessons at Seven Oaks Arena. All completely volunteer run. Members of my hockey team, the Winnipeg Emperors, the Asian team, helped out and then Ganni Maan had a South Asian team that also came out, along with Ron Cantiveros and the Filipino community. We brought on as many volunteers as we could find to help out including the kids that we identified in the spring that could help us coach.
“That was our first intake and then in January of 2024 we did our second intake where we had another 30 families involved. Our future plans are pretty simple now. We will be involved with First Shift again in the fall with more kids. And we have to make sure we have additional transition programs for the kids after First Shift in order to help them play organized hockey. Having coaches that are just like you can really make a difference.”
A small room filled with hockey memorabilia serves as the headquarters for Andy Kollar, the maestro behind goaltender development at hockey for all centre’s Ice Lab.
Kollar points to a picture on the wall of him clad in North Dakota goalie gear.
“That one is me,” he says.
The photo takes him back to his four years as starting goalie in NCAA Division 1 hockey with the University of North Dakota, where his team won a National Championship in 2000 and was runner-up in 2001. After a couple of years playing in the UHL, ECHL and WHA2, Kollar returned to his hometown for a job that kept him close to the sport. Since 2014 year, he’s been leading the charge of developing the next generation of goaltenders at hockey for all centre.
“Growing up, I was either playing or coaching hockey, so when I was offered the position at hockey for all centre it was a no brainer of me.”
Just outside Kollar’s office, a specialized ice surface equipped with five goalie creases provides a versatile learning environment for trainees.
“I like to start all my goalie training with creating a beneficial stance because I believe the stance serves as the foundation for all aspects of goaltending, including movement and recovery,” explains Kollar.
“Everybody’s body functions differently; it’s my job to cater my training to each person to make sure they have the most effective stance.”
Goalies of all ages and skill levels can benefit from the personalized attention and detail of the Ice Lab’s private training sessions – which can be booked individually or in packages of five or ten. In addition, more intensive multi-day camps, like the ones offered each July, also incorporate tailored dryland training at hockey for all centre’s gym, Focus Fitness.
“I train people of all walks of life, from those who want to improve for their beer league game to eight-year-olds starting off and teenagers of all levels.”
Kollar delivers personalized feedback, fostering an environment of continuous improvement and extends his ear and his advice to players who want to discuss their challenges and triumphs.
“I have a goalie who told me they wanted to play college hockey, but later on I found out he was failing math. So, I told him he had to focus more on school until he got his grades up.”
His parents were very encouraging and got him a tutor and Kollar helped stress the importance of school coming first and wanting all his players to not only achieve success in hockey, but in life.
“He worked hard and got his grades up and graduated high school and now he is playing hockey for a D1 school with close to a 4.0. Those are the moments that I am really proud of when I coach.”
While humbly acknowledging he may not be an expert in mental health, Kollar knows the pressures that come with being a netminder and remains committed to creating a safe space for his players.
“I believe it’s important to keep an open dialogue with my players if they want to discuss a game they feel went badly or if they are failing a class,” I want them to know someone cares because when I played hockey it wasn’t something people talked about.”
“When you are in your crease, mentally you’re so isolated from the team it feels like you are alone when you let in a goal or mess up, but I want to make sure players don’t feel like they are alone.”
Registration is open now for spring and summer sessions – view a complete list of Ice Lab goalie lessons, please visit hockeyforallcentre.com.
As the current season progresses and the excitement of on-ice action intensifies, the team at Jets Hockey Development (JHD) is already gearing up for spring and summer programs, eagerly anticipating the opportunity to guide players toward their next level of success both on and off the ice.
“Through our spring and summer programs, we aim to equip players with the essential skills and strategies needed to elevate their game,” said Dave Cameron, JHD’s Head On Ice Instructor & Program Manager. “Our focus on individual development ensures that each player receives tailored guidance, creating a pathway for them to excel and reach new heights in their hockey journey.”
JHD is committed to providing year-round support to players, teams, and coaches to ensure continuous improvement, not only through the regular season, but throughout the spring and summer as well. This year, JHD will introduce in-person video coaching sessions, offering players valuable feedback to enhance their understanding and proficiency in tactics, technique and movement.
“We continually aim to improve our offerings here at hockey for all centre, and every year, we evolve our JHD programming to best fit next year’s upcoming talent,” said Cameron.
JHD’s spring and summer programming caters to all ages and focuses, from forward, defence and goalie specific sessions to faceoffs and checking, and power skating and puck skills. In spring, the focus is on skill development, while the summer sessions prepare players for upcoming season tryouts emphasizing the fundamentals of offence and defence, puck control, edge work, positional play and real-game scenarios. JHD sessions are designed to foster player confidence during practice which can then be seamlessly applied during a game.
“I’m a big believer that any player can grow their skills and confidence with us,” he said. “And we can be as creative as possible to put programs together for a variety of age groups, from young beginners to older players who want to learn the game,” he said.
In anticipation of spring registration opening in late December, Cameron encourages players to embrace a forward-thinking approach. “Even as you immerse yourself in the present season, it’s never too early to set your sights on the next level. Envision your goals and focus on your development.”
