Hockey Chat:  You’ve seen hockey players try to argue there way out of penalties saying that it was just a little hook or they just slashed at the puck not the opponent.  They try to minimize the offense.  Fact is, when they are called for penalty, it’s a penalty.  If they say they just barely hit the guy with their stick, they still are called for slashing.  If plead that they just nudged the guy head first into the boards, they still get called for boarding just as if they slammed him.  When the ref sees a penalty, regardless of the degree, he calls it.

Olympic speed-skater Chad Hedrick was part of a two-medal finish in the 1,000-meter finals Wednesday night, winning a bronze medal. After winning gold in the 2006 Olympics, Hedrick is one of the most prominent figures in Olympic speed-skating today. Yesterday, Hedrick was featured on the radio broadcast of Haven Today with the key line of the intro, “Chad Hedrick is not the same Chad Hedrick of four years ago.”

During this interview, Hedrick discussed his recent conversion experience. He admitted that most people knew him as a guy who worked hard and played hard. In describing his commitment to Christ, he said, “Now I find myself…really living a godly life now. I feel like I’m going in the right direction.”

There are so many qualities needed in order to have the heart of a champion: discipline, perseverance, dedication, endurance, focus, and the ability to overcome any obstacle. We all admire heroes who have made it to the top and have accomplished their goals and become champions. They have displayed the heart to withstand and endure to become great. But the more I understand greatness and what it takes to become successful, the more I see that there is one thing everyone must have to become a true champion—and that is a coach.

As coaches we want to mold our players to produce a championship team. We know that if each player accepts his role, believes in our plan, and executes it, then we will be positioned to win. But if the reliever wants to start and the lead-off hitter swings for the fences with two strikes, your chances for having a great season are slim. The greatest challenges a coach faces are to properly identify roles and to consistently encourage players to believe in the coaching staff, their teammates, themselves, and their assigned roles.