From Novice to Pro: Natalie's Journey with OnlineHockeyTraining.com

 Following Coach Lance’s online hockey training is a surefire path to success, and Natalie Heising’s Hockey Journey proves it!

From a six-year-old’s love at first skate to the powerhouse of Penn State, Natalie’s journey is an inspirational tale of hard work and dedication and one that was assisted by Coach Lance’s support. 

So read on to learn more about this exceptional player and how you can turn the game you love into a career!

Who is Natalie Heising

Born and raised in Minnesota, Natalie Heising first took to the ice on figure skates. But even at six years old, she knew that there was another winter sport that she was destined for.

After that first day, Natalie went to her mom and asked to switch to the boy’s youth hockey league and never looked back!

Her long career had its ups and downs, but her love of the game never wavered. A love that gave her the courage and determination she needed to eventually make it onto USA’s Under 18 National Team and to turn Penn State into the hard-hitting hockey school it is today.

Now, she passes that love on to the next generation by coaching girls U12A in her hometown. Ensuring there will be plenty of new talent for the future of PWHL hockey!

Natalie’s Hockey Journey

Setting A Goal

There was never any doubt in Natalie’s mind that she wanted to go far with her hockey career. But her real hockey journey didn’t start until she decided that she wanted to make the U18 USA Team in her freshman year of high school.

U18 Team USA Tryouts

When the day of the tryout arrived, Natalie hit the ice for her first-ever national tryouts and skated like her life depended on it. This was the moment she had been waiting for. This was her goal.

But once the tryouts were over, Natalie unfortunately received the news that she did not make the team. The U18 coaches saw potential in her, and they told her to keep working, but this was not her year.

While the news was upsetting, Natalie was determined not to let this setback derail her. She set a new goal for herself, but this time, she knew she needed some help. The leagues and coaches she’d had up until that point were great, but they didn’t challenge her the way she wanted.

So, her search began for something or someone that could bring her to that next level. Something like Online Hockey Training.

Choosing Online Hockey Training

In Maple Grove, Minnesota, the name Lance Pitlick is legendary. Not only for his impressive career with the Ottawa Senators and the Florida Panthers but also for his amazing work within the local hockey community—a community which his two sons, Rem and Rhett Pitlick (who were both drafted into the NHL after college), were a part of.

Natalie knew of Coach Lance since her older brother had played on the same team as Pitlick’s eldest son, and she had seen his expertise up close and personal. This definitely helped make her decision to try Coach Lance’s online hockey training regimen easy.

What Makes Online Hockey Training so Different?

From the beginning, Coach Lance sat Natalie down and talked about what she wanted for her future. Not reaching her goal again was something that neither of them were going to let happen. 

Once training began, she immediately felt the impacts of Coach Lance’s online hockey training and the in-person practices. 

His drills were like nothing Natalie’d been put through before–always building on each other and challenging her in ways she didn’t even know were possible.

But the best part was the fact that she could take home everything she learned during the one-on-one training sessions with Coach Lance. 

Between on-ice practices, Natalie would watch the online hockey training videos over and over again. Repeating the drills until she could complete them as perfectly as Coach Lance did on the screen. 

Over time, her skills as a hockey player improved exponentially thanks to her hard work and Coach Lance’s program.

A Call-Back: Team USA

To test out her constantly improving skills, Natalie joined the Elite League. A fall tournament that often saw Team USA scouts and coaches in attendance.  And thanks to Coach Lance, she felt ready. After hours of repeating complex drills to perfect her dekes and fakes, her creativity with the puck was better than it had ever been. 

Over the next months, Natalie became the top scorer for her team, showing off all of the stickhandling moves from the online hockey training drills she loved so much.

And it all paid off! At the end of the tournament, Natalie got a call from the Team USA coaches congratulating her on her progress and officially asking her to join the team!

Hitting the International Stage

Natalie played for U18 Team USA for the next two years. Traveling to Canada and the Czech Republic to compete on the world stage.

Though she might have had a rocky start to the team, Natalie’s online hockey training with Coach Lance turned her into a gold medalist two years in a row!

Natalie was even named U.S. Player of the Game in the 2016 semifinal win over Sweden and one of the Top Three U.S. Players of the Tournament in 2017!

Setting Records at Penn State

Despite competing for her country, Natalie didn’t let an impressive winning streak turn her soft. She immediately got back to her online hockey training with a new goal in mind. 

This time, Natalie didn’t want to just make a team; she wanted to build one.

Penn State’s hockey department was still pretty new. They had lots of resources but no track record to recruit the type of players that could make the most of them. 

At least until Natalie Heising joined the team. Soon, the hockey program at Penn State began to grow and thrive!

As one of the best players in Penn State history, Natalie was the first player to earn 20 or more points for five seasons straight; she has the most career points and was the first Nittany Lion to win three ALL-CHA First Team honors!

A Future Pre-PWHL

Even with her impressive resume, Natalie left college and retired her skates. At this point, there was no PWHL to look forward to, only part-time hockey and a part-time job to pay for it. 

But all of Coach Lance’s amazing teachings would not go to waste. Natalie’s retirement from the game lasted two months before she hit the ice as a coach herself. Ready to help the next generation achieve a dream she never even knew would be possible: Pro Women’s Hockey!

How to Make the Most of Your Online Hockey Training

Follow the Schedule

When it comes to something like online hockey training, it can be hard to keep yourself on schedule. A lot of the training you’ll be doing is on your own, and it's easy to miss a practice when nobody’s watching.

So here are some of Natalie’s tips to help keep your online hockey training on track:

• Find a goal you really care about
• Keep your training intentional, with specific things you want to learn to help mark your progress
• Set a chunk of time for your training and focus on nothing else during it

And if you’re ever falling into a rut, just think about all that you could achieve by following Coach Lance’s online hockey training!

Don’t Forget Your Hockey Conditioning

As with any sport, skill training is not the only important type of work that goes into improving your game.

To ensure your fitness level is high enough to handle your newfound stickhandling skills, here are Natalie’s workout tips:

• Find a hockey-specific fitness training regimen
• Interval sprints and repetitive lateral movements are better than long-distance runs
• Focus on high reps with heavy weights  

Start Your Online Hockey Training, and Maybe You Could Be a Pro Too!

What started as a little girl’s dream turned into Natalie’s future. All with the help of Coach Lance’s online hockey training!

So be sure to check out our Training program options to start your own journey to the Pro Hockey Leagues!