Leafs GM Brad Treliving Shares Highly Controversial Opinion Regarding Development

Hockey is one of the most competitive sports out there, but when you take it back to its roots, it's still just a game. In Brad Treliving's mind, hockey has gotten to a place where people have forgotten that.

Treliving sat down for an interview with the "Glass and Out" podcast this week to discuss a variety of topics, including player development in youth hockey and his thoughts on how it's evolved and changed over the years and how prospects are entering the NHL with a different mindset.

Treliving admitted that there is a lot more skill involved nowadays, primarily because the youth practice a lot more than in the past. He noted the amount of different coaches and coaching styles that are being implemented at a young age, including skills coaches and performance coaches, which can be intimidating for young players.

However, his problem lies with how there's more concern and importance levied on winning a game rather than actual skill development. At an age where skills need to be honed, talent needs to be embraced, and individuality should be at the forefront, Treliving believes coaches are focused too much on the Xs and Os and a little less on letting young players discover who they are and playing their game.

"You know, I had nephews that played while I was in Calgary, and it would really pissed me off. When you would go to a young kid's game and you know you're seeing a 1-2-2 and all this garbage. To me, the emphasis is on the skill development.

Coach, in any competitive atmosphere, you need to be organized. I think we've taken it a little bit too far with younger players, how we try to set up structure or have a guy stand here and stand there, instead of playing the game. I have a problem, when what benefits that player of trying to develop his ability, is pushed down for 'I'm gonna have three stand in a certain spot because it may give us a better chance to win.'"

This could certainly be a controversial take because it sounds like he's saying winning shouldn't be the main priority. Trying to best prepare the youth for the junior circuits and then the subsequent professional leagues is the all-important task and winning usually goes hand-in-hand with that. However, Treliving believes that they're being stymied and disrupted from playing a skill-game with all the structure and NHL-type strategies that are being implemented.

Winning is just as important as anything else but Treliving might have a point when he sees kids in their young teenage years playing a conservative trap-style game when elite skill is so prevalent nowadays.

Once you get to the professional leagues, things change drastically, and players have to play within a specific role. However, individuality and honing an elite-level of skill is what gets you there in the first place and if it's being stonewalled, then something needs to change - and change quickly.