Glenney a big proponent of culture
Jay Glenney is a strong believer what happens inside the dressing room is just as important as what occurs on the ice.
The 52-year-old Dunnville native recently completed his 20th season coaching hockey with a solid campaign behind the bench for the Niagara North Stars U16AAA squad that saw eight players drafted in the Ontario Hockey League Priority Selection.
“We don’t take a lot of the credit. It’s the kids,” Glenney said. “They put in the work and the effort. Obviously, we’re extremely proud to have that many. We’re happy to have played a small part in helping to get them to this first step. The rest is up to them.”
Glenney began coaching in his hometown at the grassroots level, moved on the Southern Tier Admirals at the novice level and then to the North Stars where he worked under former Niagara IceDogs and Brock Badgers coach Marty Williamson.
“I was very fortunate to learn from him with the midget program,” Glenney said of Williamson, who is now coach and general manager of the Barrie Colts.
Glenney said one of the big takeaways from working with Williamson was the importance of culture.
“I learned a lot about running effective practices, the culture aspect of a team, work ethic, attitude, all the things that are important to OHL teams when they’re trying to scout kids,” he said.
Glenney said having the proper atmosphere is vital at the minor midget level.
“For us, it was really about having positive attitudes and culture. The other stuff, the scouts and agents can see the game,” he said. “They want to know about the kids themselves so that’s what we really tried to focus on. You have your systems and you work through that but it’s more about making sure the kids are good kids and they have positive attitudes, (good) body language. You’re always going to have certain situations you are going to deal with, but if you can get the whole team buying into that, it takes care of itself.”
Glenney said he’s been able to achieve that through good communication with the players.
“We focus on the kids, not the parents, not those outside things. We want to make sure the kids are on the same page as us and we have that mutual respect. If you’re transparent with them and try and communicate as much as you can with them, I find it’s successful and it works.”
Glenney said the makeup of a player is key when selecting the roster.
“Every year there’s changes but you do your homework. You just don’t bring in good hockey players, you’re really looking for a good fit,” he said.
Glenney, who works as an IT project manager, is quick to give credit to his staff — sons Kyle Glenney and Trent Glenney, wife Sarah Glenney, assistant coaches Craig McPhee and Dave Lostracco, and goaltender coach Lucas Lobsinger.
“It’s an excellent staff,” Jay Glenney said. “Couldn’t be more fortunate to have who we have. I can’t say enough about their dedication and commitment. The kids are fortunate to have them.
“I feel blessed every time. You’re spending so much time with your kids and they still want to be around you and want to give back.”
Both Niagara goaltenders were drafted — Maksim Corovic, selected 84th overall in the fifth round by Brantford and Liam Edgcumbe, who went to the Flint Firebirds in the eighth round, 148th overall — and Jay Glenney gives a good deal of the credit to Lobsinger.
“Lucas has been great,” he said. “He came out probably at least twice a week to work with them and it doesn’t stop there. He communicates with them and they can reach out to him whenever they want. It’s so important because we don’t know the goalie aspect. We just want them to save a puck. It was very good to have him involved.”
Lobsinger, a former IceDogs netminder and IceDogs and Badgers coach who is also a goaltender scout for the Firebirds and runs Lobsinger Goaltending, is a big fan of Jay Glenney.
“I’ve know him for few years and really worked with him the most this season. I was really happy he asked me to help him and come on board,” Lobsinger said. “The thing I think Jay does so well and maybe some minor hockey coaches struggle with is keeping the guys accountable and doing it in a way that’s fair and honest. He’s really professional with how he handles the younger kids.
“He gave both guys (goalies) opportunities to have success and didn’t overly ride one guy and believed in both guys and also told them at times they needed to be better. The fairness, the honesty, but also the right approach summed up how Jay handled that team all year.”
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