Adam Oates

Ready to elevate your game? Meet Coach Adam Oates! With 20 years of competitive experience—from local Calgary rinks to starring at Trinity Western University—and three seasons running skill camps and team ice sessions for YYC Hockey Club and HDC, Adam combines elite-level insight with a genuine passion for guiding U9, U12, and U15 athletes. His dynamic, player-first approach ensures every skater leaves the ice more confident, more skilled, and more excited for the next challenge.

Adam’s hockey journey started in Calgary’s minor leagues and has carried him through two decades of play, highlighted by MVP honors in his very first Mac Midget game and a roster spot at Trinity Western, where he continues to hone his vision, passing precision, and on-ice leadership. Officiated by his trademark mantra—“failing to prepare is preparing to fail”—he translates that same commitment into every drill he runs, whether it’s a tight-space backhand-passing circuit, a decision-making small-area game, or a structured power-play walkthrough. He’s seen firsthand how deliberate repetition builds muscle memory, so he layers video breakdowns and on-ice feedback to ensure each player understands not just how to execute a skill, but why it matters in real game situations.

In three years as a camp director and ice-time coach with YYC Hockey Club and HDC, Adam has refined a coaching philosophy rooted in positivity, accountability, and leadership development. He creates an atmosphere where mistakes are celebrated as learning moments—athletes are encouraged to experiment, reflect, and then try again with targeted adjustments. Beyond X’s and O’s, he weaves in life lessons about teamwork, resilience, and personal responsibility: every session ends with a short “team huddle” where players set one concrete goal for the next practice and share what they’ll do to achieve it.

Off the ice, Adam pursues Hockey Canada certifications to deepen his technical toolkit, fuels up on chicken, white rice, and veggies, and dreams of drawing up the Toronto Maple Leafs’ power play for stars like Matthews, Marner, Tavares, and Nylander. He lives by two guiding principles—preparation above all else, and focusing on what you can control—and amps up his teams with classic tracks like “Money for Nothing.” Whether you’re mastering your first wrist shot or refining advanced in-zone reads, Coach Oates’s blend of high-performance experience, structured feedback, and genuine care will push you to become not just a better player, but a confident leader ready for any challenge.