New Zealand National Team Triple Star Program
The New Zealand Ice Hockey Federation is launching an updated Triple Star program for its national teams for the 2023/2024 World Championship season.
The program will now be broken up in to two distinct areas to select players for each of our national teams.
We have enlisted the expertise of Josh Foreman (BPE, MSc), to develop a standardised off-ice training programme that will be administered by the national team coaches.
The updated selection process will provide a more transparent approach to national team squad selection, with a focus on player performance throughout the program. The programs will be administered with the support and attendance of current national team coaching staff, as well as other senior regional national league coaches.
Players selected to attend each stage of the program will be provided more detail relevant at each stage of the program, relevant to their location.
Why is it called the Triple Star Program?
The name “Triple Star” is a connection to the national anthem – “Guard Pacific’s TRIPLE STAR”. Our three stars are:
• Strengthen NZ Identity – It instills pride in the jersey and how we play.
• Build good Habits/Skills – Both on and off the ice. It’s a player/people-centric experience grounded in the desire to make everyone better at what they do.
• Grow as a Unit – Whānau. Everyone pulls in the same direction.
Aim:
The goal is to build a world class ice hockey program that focuses on the players. The aim is to improve the ranking of all NZIHF National teams in international play at the IIHF World Championship events.
Who are the national team coaches?
Ice Blacks: Head Coach Darren Blong, Assistant Coaches A.J. Spiller, Anton Purver, Cam Frear
Ice Fernz: Head Coach Jeff Boehme, Assistant Coaches Brittany Carrol & Megan Herlihey
U20 Men’s: Head Coach Justin Daigle, Assistant Coaches Cameron Stephen, Michael Byck & Stephen Reid
U18 Men’s: Head Coach A.J. Spiller, Assistant Coaches Collin Vandeven, George Hopkins & Paris Heyd
U18 Women’s: Head Coach Matt Sandford, Assistant Coaches Jaydee Cabral & Abbey Heale
1) Combine Training Program
Players are identified by regional and national team coaches and are invited to attend North or South Island local training programs. This is an invite only program and players will be grouped in to the respective national team category based on their age and gender.
Invitations will be extended to all current national team players, and those identified by local regional coaches, including national league coaches. We will be inviting players who have the potential to play for New Zealand now and in the future.
This will be a large pool of players who will be evaluated by a set training model, on a per-national team basis, to identify those players who meet the attitude, health, fitness and skill level requirements to proceed to the next step of the Triple Star program.
Players who are chosen to move to the next stage will be informed by national team coaching staff, and invited to attend via email. This will be completed by September 27th 2023.
The North Island Combine will be held in the evenings (after work hours), during September 5-17th 2023, with specific days and times to be announced.
The cost is $160.00 per player, which includes ice time and off-ice training.
Register via NZIHF’s esportsdesk registration tool, using the email invitation you were sent.
The South Island Combine will be held in Dunedin on September 9th and 10th.
The cost is $160.00 per player, which includes ice time and off-ice training. If needed, it also includes one night’s accomodation at the Dunedin Holiday Park, a Saturday evening meal and breakfast on Sunday morning.
Register via NZIHF’s esportsdesk registration tool, using the email invitation you were sent.
2) Regional Training Program
Players will next be invited to attend weekly training sessions in their closest respective region (Auckland, Christchurch, Dunedin & Queenstown).
The primary focus of these weekly sessions will be skill development, including one on-ice and one off-ice training session every week, with a particular emphasis on skating and fitness. A minimum testing threshold will be applied to all participants.
Players who attend these sessions will be continually assessed and provided feedback from coaching staff on what they need to work on.
This is an important part of the overall program, and will be used to select each team’s squad list and the travelling team.
Players who do not meet the minimum standard of fitness or commitment will be replaced by other squad members, regardless of their experience or standing in the hockey community.
The weekly sessions will run from 2nd October to 11th December, and will include 10x on-ice and 10x off-ice sessions for $200.00
There will be a short break over the Christmas and new year period, with and 8x further weekly sessions resuming in February and March, for a further $100.00
Note: Players training for selection in the U18 Women and U20 Men’s national teams may continue their training sessions over the Christmas period, due to the timing of the tournaments in the new year. This is yet to be confirmed.
The weekly sessions will run from 2nd October to 11th December, and will include 10x on-ice and 10x off-ice sessions for $200.00
There will be a short break over the Christmas and new year period, with and 8x further weekly sessions resuming in February and March, for a further $100.00
Note: Players training for selection in the U18 Women and U20 Men’s national teams may continue their training sessions over the Christmas period, due to the timing of the tournaments in the new year. This is yet to be confirmed.
I received an invitation to participate in stage one – what do I do?
Players must accept their invitation to the initial stage of the program by 11th August. Accept the invitation and pay via the link in the email you received.
How will I know whether I have made the cut to proceed to the next stage of the program?
Coaches for each team will contact all players in their respective age groups at the end of each training block. Players selected to attend the next stage will be sent an email invitation to register and pay for the next stage.
I have a question about the program, who do I contact?
Enquiries will only be responded to for those invited to the program. We will not respond to appeals or requests for inclusion in the program. Please respond to the email invitation you were sent with your enquiry, or email [email protected]
Resources
Fitness Testing Model
Download the testing criteria and begin training in your own time.
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