John attained PhD ABD status from McMaster University in 2006. His areas of expertise are sport psychology, skill acquisition, and athlete development. John’s work has been published in academic journals and presented at international conferences.
Over the last two decades, he has worked with hundreds of elite athletes on perfecting their game. John teaches and coaches the key mental preparation skills that are necessary for consistent high quality performance. His insights and practical strategies are relevant and effective for anyone committed to improving their performance.
As a sport scientist, John’s work in the game of hockey includes:
- examining the differences in how on-ice practices are structured in minor and junior hockey;
- the effect of wearing a face shield on feelings of invulnerability in youth hockey players;
- how goaltenders use advanced visual cue information to anticipate shot trajectory;
- how an official’s previous call can influence decision-making on a future call;
- how previous playing experience impacts the ease with which coaches identify unfolding game situations; and
- how knowledge about the game of hockey is structured and organized within the memory of players and coaches.
As a player, John developed in the Greater Toronto Hockey League (then, the Metro Toronto Hockey League) before graduating to the Junior ranks where he played in the Metro Jr. A and Mid-western Jr. B leagues. John retired from playing in 1994 to focus on his education. But when the opportunity arose, he came out of retirement in 2001 until 2004, to play Senior Hockey for three seasons with the Dundas Real McCoys and the Brantford Blast.
As a coach, John began in 1994 with the Waterloo Minor Hockey Association where he spent four years at the Bantam and Midget AAA levels. The 1998-1999 season saw John move to the US where he was head coach of the University of Florida Gators ACHA Div III Hockey Club. Returning home to Canada in 2000, John began coaching in the OMHA. For the past six seasons he has been a head coach in the OMHA-South Central Triple A (SCTA) with the Halton Hurricanes and the Hamilton Jr. Bulldogs. John has also taken part in the OMHA Under 17 hockey development program as an evaluator at the regional camps and a coach at both OMHA regional and final camps.
John brings a winning attitude to his work. As a player, John won two OHA Provincial Championships. The first with the Waterloo Siskins Jr. B Hockey Club (1994 Sutherland Cup) and the second with the Dundas Real McCoys Senior AAA Hockey Club (2002 J. Ross Robertson Cup). As a coach, John has represented the Minor Hockey Alliance of Ontario three times in the Midget AAA Regional Championships (Waterloo Lions 1996, 1997, and 1998), taking home the bronze medal in 1998. In 2010 and 2011, John guided his Hamilton Jr. Bulldogs team to consecutive OMHA Finals, winning Silver in 2011 and competing in the OHF Championships that same year.
Currently John is coaching Novice in the OMHA with Ancaster Minor Hockey.