- About Open Ice Club
Modern Hockey Guidance for Families and Coaches Navigating the Next Era of the Game
Hockey has changed.
The game is faster, the development landscape is more complex, and the path for young players is no longer as straightforward as it once was. Families are trying to make informed decisions in an environment filled with more pressure, more opinions, more options, and more noise than ever before.
Open Ice Club was built to bring clarity to that journey.
Founded by Cam Paddock and Cole Todd, Open Ice Club helps parents and coaches better understand the modern game, support player development, and navigate the evolving hockey landscape with confidence.
Cam and Cole bring decades of combined experience across professional hockey, junior hockey, minor hockey, elite player development, coaching, skating instruction, skill development, tactical teaching, and program leadership. Over the years, they have worked with thousands of players across a wide range of ages and levels, giving them a unique perspective on what young players need, what families are trying to understand, and what coaches are looking for as the game continues to evolve.
They have seen the game from every angle — as players, coaches, skills coaches, skating coaches, development leads, tactical teachers, and mentors.
Open Ice Club brings that experience together in one place.
Why Open Ice Club Exists
For parents, the confusion is real.
Tryouts, teams, development programs, private training, academy options, spring hockey, advice from other parents, and constant comparison can make it difficult to know what actually matters. Parents want to support their child’s hockey journey, but it can be hard to know where to focus, what questions to ask, and how to separate meaningful development from noise.
For coaches, the demands have changed too.
Coaches are expected to teach skill, develop hockey sense, build team habits, manage parents, support confidence, run effective practices, and create positive environments — often with limited time and limited support. Many coaches are looking for practical, modern tools that reflect how the game is being played and taught today.
Open Ice Club was created for both.
Through content, resources, subscriptions, and tailored support packages, Open Ice Club helps families and coaches access credible, practical, and modern hockey guidance grounded in real experience.
For Parents
Open Ice Club helps parents better understand their child’s hockey journey.
The goal is to provide clarity, context, and confidence — not more pressure. Cam and Cole help families understand what matters at different stages of development, how to think about opportunities, how to support their child through challenges and transitions, and how to make informed decisions in a fast-changing hockey environment.
Open Ice Club gives parents a trusted place to turn when they are trying to understand the game, the path, and what their child may need next.
For Coaches
Open Ice Club supports coaches with practical, thoughtful, and modern hockey insight.
From practice design and player development to skating concepts, skill progressions, team habits, tactical understanding, and confidence-building, Cam and Cole provide support that is tailored to the realities of coaching today.
Their approach is not generic. It is grounded in years of experience working with players, teams, coaches, and programs across multiple levels of the game.
Open Ice Club helps coaches build better practices, ask better questions, and create stronger learning environments for their players.
Meet the Founders
Cam Paddock
Co-Founder
Cam Paddock is a former NHL player, Memorial Cup champion, and hockey leader from North Vancouver.
Drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 2002 NHL Draft, Cam went on to play more than a decade of professional hockey across North America and Europe, including time in the NHL with the St. Louis Blues. Before his professional career, he played five seasons with the Kelowna Rockets and was part of the team’s 2004 Memorial Cup championship.
After his playing career, Cam moved into coaching, leadership, and player development, including serving as Director of Hockey at North Shore Winter Club. His experience spans elite playing environments, program leadership, team development, and minor hockey systems.
Cam brings a direct, practical, and deeply experienced lens to Open Ice Club. He understands what it takes to compete, what young players need to develop, and how families and coaches can better support long-term growth in the game.
Cole Todd
Co-Founder
Cole Todd is a player development coach, skills coach, skating coach, and former Junior A player from North Vancouver.
A North Shore Winter Club alum, Cole played elite minor hockey before continuing his career in Junior A with the Prince George Spruce Kings, Fort McMurray Oil Barons, and Cowichan Valley Capitals. After his playing career, he moved into coaching and development, working with players across minor hockey, academy, and high-performance environments.
Cole’s coaching experience includes work with North Shore Winter Club, St. George’s School, the BC Junior Canucks Brick program, and other elite development settings. His approach combines technical skill, skating detail, hockey IQ, and game-situational teaching.
Cole brings a modern development lens to Open Ice Club. His strength is helping players, parents, and coaches understand how skill, skating, tactics, and decision-making connect inside the game.
Our Approach
Cam and Cole are not one-dimensional hockey voices.
They are former players, coaches, skills instructors, skating coaches, development leads, tactical teachers, and mentors. They bring a wide range of tools, but more importantly, they know when and how to use them.
Open Ice Club is built on the belief that strong development is not about chasing every trend. It is about understanding the game, building the right habits, developing confidence, and creating environments where players can continue to grow.
The hockey landscape will keep changing.
Open Ice Club is here to help families and coaches evolve with it.