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Colorado Hockey Hub

American Development Model (ADM) & Long Term Athletic Development (LTAD)

American Developement Model (ADM) for Long Term Athletic Development (LTAD)

Why the American Development Model? 

For starters, many athletes spend too much time traveling, competing and recovering from competition and not enough time preparing for it.  The emphasis on competing to get winning results often  leads to long-term failure as coaches forgo the development of fundamental skills and concepts to focus on specific game-winning tactics.  Additionally,  too many athletes are specializing in one sport too early.  An early focus on just one or two sports often leads to injuries, burnout and capping athletic potential.

USA Hockey launched the American Development model in 2009 in an effort to retain players who were burning out or suffering injuries from competitive-heavy schedules.

Coach Herb Brooks was famous for saying that, “Great moments are born from great opportunities.” Well this is our opportunity. Our time to get it right.

The American Development Model is a nationwide model for successfully nurturing and developing American athletes through the game of hockey. The ADM is a model that looks at the whole athlete as their bodies and minds mature, and specifically targets age-appropriate physical and mental development of skills and concepts.  It is a program designed to nurture young athletes in order to help them realize their physical, mental and emotional potential and is based on Long Term Athletic Development (LTAD) instead of short-term competitive results.

As an affiliate of USA Hockey, Grizzly Hockey enthusiastically supports the ADM by helping our coaches follow the philosophies and guidelines of the ADM.

For more information about USA Hockey click on the link below.

Find more on the American Development Model and how it integrates Long Term Athletic Development by clicking the tabs below.

The ADM in Practice

For a nice example of how the ADM is put into practice, click on the link to see what's recommended for a typical 10U practice.