Fireside Chats : Chicago Wolves Strength and Conditioning Coach Jake Nitsche
Photo Credit: Ross Dettman/Chicago Wolves
Over the past two seasons, the Chicago Wolves have made countless changes to their staff, players, and coaches. One of those changes was the addition of hometown boy Jake Nitsche as the Strength and Conditioning Coach of the team. Since joining the Wolves in 2023, Nitsche has spent time preparing the bodies of Wolves players and Carolina Hurricanes for the challenge of playing in the AHL and NHL.
Earlier this week, I spoke with Nitsche about how he landed the coaching job with the Wolves, the goals he has for his career, and hot dogs. Yes, you read that correctly. We had a quick chat about hot dogs at the end of our interview.
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Elaine Shircliff: How did you get started in strength and conditioning? Was it something you always wanted to do?
Jake Nitsche: I played hockey through college. I think for me trying to find my identity beyond just a hockey player just like the players in the professional league after their time as well. was big for me. I like being competitive and being with a team and working for something like a championship or helping a guy get a call up. Those kind of things have always been passions of mine.
Staying with athletes, hockey players specifically, is something I've known my whole life. It was an easy transition for me to work on the other side of being a player to now staff member.
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Before coming to the Chicago Wolves, Nitsche was the Director of Conditioning for the Chicago Steel of the USHL. The Steel’s commitment to excellence on and off the ice has proven fruitful for the sport of hockey, developing high-caliber talent such as Adam Fantilli (Columbus Blue Jackets), Owen Power (Buffalo Sabres), and Macklin Celebrini ( San Jose Sharks).
Multiple times throughout the past decade, the Wolves were able to hire staff members of the Steel, such as former Head Coach Brock Sheahan, to bring that positive culture to professional hockey.
Below is our conversation involving junior hockey and the Chicago Steel.
ES: You were the director of conditioning for the Chicago Steel and now you are in the pros? What are the differences, or even the similarities to your job now?
JN: I think there are a lot of parallels between junior hockey and the American League. The USHL is a very developmental focused league. They have a lot of gym time. There is a lot of time on the ice developing skills. That’s kind of the goal.
It’s very similar at this level, the American League. These guys aren’t in the NHL or they aren’t full time NHLers. So, there’s something there as to a reason why they are here. That is typically a development thing. As whether they need to get bigger, stronger, faster, be in better shape. Or they have the Hockey IQ and they just have physical things they need to work on.
We’re doing a lot of the same things as we were in the USHL with the Steel. The only difference, I think, in my mind, is the schedule is definitely different. Which allows maybe a little less time to be dedicated to development.
At the end of the day, it is still professional hockey. Wins and losses do matter in some regard.
We are focused on winning at the same time as developing. So, that throws a wrinkle into some things and makes it a little more challenging with what you want to do.
The personality of the player, too. They’re not 16, 17-year-old kids that don’t know anything. A lot of these guys are really smart and intelligent. They have worked with some of the best strength coaches in the world and have been taught really well with their habits by those guys. So, they have some really good knowledge.
For me, it’s less of me telling them what to do and more of “where can I help you?” and how can we find the best result with a little bit of ambiguity between the player and myself to come to that solution.
ES: Can you provide a little more insight on the relationship the Chicago Steel and Chicago Wolves have? Whenever the Wolves have someone from the Steel in the organization, they always seem pleased with the product and the person they are dealing with.
JN: It’s a testament to development. During my time with the Steel, we had some amazing runs as an organization with success of championships and wins and losses. Even just development of players. In my two years there, we had over six or seven first round picks and over 20 NHL draft picks. That’s an insane number to produce for a junior hockey team in the USHL.
I think that’s because of the development of the organization, the resources they put into the kids and their wellbeing and making sure they have a legit chance there. They’re getting Celbrinis, the Fantillis, the Owen Powers, from that.
But they are also turning kids that on the surface didn’t have a great chance of getting drafted or ever playing in the American League or NHL, into for sure American Leaguers, bubble NHL guys, and giving them a real chance to play in the NHL.
I think that’s why the Wolves probably enjoy that relationship. They’re getting a high-end player that is really mature from the Chicago Steel. We harp on those kids about habits and treating every day like a pro and embracing that monotony of what it’s like to play in the NHL. Which is having your principles of recovery, taking care of your body and nutrition, and just being a lot more mature than you actually are at 16.
So, I think those habits are a reflection of their success and why so many kids in the organization have really good careers at the next levels.
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Since the summer of 2020, Nitsche has been the Director of Performance at GVN Performance out of Geneva, Illinois. Nitsche continues to work for GVN in the summers out of love for the job, and the time it gives him to develop his craft.
We spoke about Nitsche’s time with GVN, which then morphed into a discussion about his career goals and advice he would give to those trying to pursue a career in Strength and Conditioning.
ES: I know a lot of other strength and conditioning coaches do personal training on the side or they have to work with another company. Do you have to do that too? Or are you solely with the Wolves?
JN: I am a little bit of both. In the summertime, I work for a company called GVN Performance. That’s where I started with my internship out of college. I was working with them even when I was with the Steel and the National Team Developmental Program. All of that was done through GVN Performance.
I’m still with them in some regards. But now, instead of being full-time, I just go back for the summers. Honestly, I don’t really need to do it. I just really enjoy it. I love going back for the summer and seeing the kids. Offseason training is a lot of fun, because you don’t have to worry about schedule, and games, and feeling good all the time.
ES : Do you find that you are able to take things from GVN and apply it to your job with the Wolves?
JN: Yea, for sure. The secret magic is how in this setting you can develop and use advanced methods, and when is the right time to use those.
A lot of the summer is getting caught up on education and trying to learn something new over the summertime. So we can bring it into the next season and make the system we have in place better and keep elevating it for our players and our guys in the organization.
So, yeah, I’m definitely trying to bring summer stuff into the season as best as we can.
ES: How did you end up working for the Wolves?
JS: I think for me, it was just networking. So, through my job with the Steel and still being with GVN. Last season, when the Wolves were independent, the company had gotten the contract for strength and conditioning for the Chicago Wolves. So, we did an internal interview process within the entire company for anyone who was interested in doing it.
I ended up being the one getting picked. So, I worked for the team during the year while running the facility last year in Geneva.
Then, when the reaffiliation with Carolina came about at the end of last season, I had to go through all of that again. Where I had to re-interview for my job. Now, go through my talks with Carolina even though I had some loose communication with them because we had a couple prospects with them last year. But I still had to talk with Carolina and let them know who I was and let them know I was still the right fit for this organization and this program.
That’s kind of like my goal.
As much as I love the private sector, I love the team setting a lot, as well. That’s where I kind of want to keep going.
Like a player, they are trying to climb the ranks to get in the NHL, most strength coaches, if not all of us, are trying to do the same thing.
ES: Is that your ultimate goal, to get to the NHL? Or do you have another ultimate goal?
JN: I definitely want to win a Stanley Cup. That’s a big dream of mine, to be able to hold that Championship and have my name on the cup. I don’t really want to stop until that happens.
Long term, if that doesn’t happen very quickly or in the near future, college is another option I really enjoy as well. Playing for a National Championship is the same kind of idea but with a lot more development.
My sweet spot as a strength coach is working with that 16- to 24-year-old age range. I think college would be a great fit for me.
But that’s definitely a last stop for me kind of thing because those strength coaches stay there for a very long time. Adds a lot of stability to your job.
ES : They stay at the college level for I feel like ever. They’ve seen so many coaches cycle through and they’re just there, living their best lives.
JN: They’re the one main stay in the entire organization. A lot of that comes because it’s hard to get rid of a strength coach with all the regulations in college. So, they’ve got a lot of security.
Pro hockey is a lot more volatile. You can lose your job if your team’s not winning whether that’s your fault or not. Different management comes in, you could be there for a year and then you’re gone the next year.
For stability reasons, I think college when I’m a little bit older is probably the end result because of that factor.
ES: What kind of advice would you give to someone wanting to get into this specific profession?
JN: Knowing what you’re getting into. Pro sports and working in pro sports is a very glitz and glam thing on the surface. It’s cool to work with guys who play in the NHL, high draft picks, and these highly touted players. But, it’s a lot of work in the day-to-day.
Your lifestyle is not what’s told about. No one really talks about the real job and how stressful it is. Being away from your family all the time. Even when you’re home for home games, you’re not home. I think that’s a big one. You need to get into that environment and know what you’re getting into before you decide you want to do it.
So, internships, talking to people who work in it, and asking the right questions about the job and things like that is number one.
Then, a lot of it is networking. It’s who you know, who likes you, and are you in the right spot at the right time. That’s how you get the opportunity. Obviously, you have to prove that you deserve it, that you’re qualified and capable , and you do an exceptional job at it.
Then, that goes into making sure you always educate and continue education. And never being satisfied with just doing good enough of a job.
Always have the mindset of “How can I elevate”, “How can I make this better?”, “How can I do something differently than everyone else in some way that is yielding really good results and push forward the field of strength and conditioning?” because this field needs to be pushed forward a lot in comparison to football and soccer. There are some things we are really behind on, in my opinion, that those sports are able to do.
So, just having that hunger.
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As I said earlier, Nitsche grew up in Chicago. Spending his whole life immersed in hockey, working for the hometown minor pro hockey team has been a dream come true.
ES: You grew up around the Chicago Area. Is it a dream to be working in professional hockey in your hometown? Even thought it ‘s minor league?
Jake: Yea, it’s a really cool experience. I grew up going to Wolves games seeing the players and the fireworks show and witnessing that as a fan. It’s definitely surreal to be able to now be working for that team I grew up watching and cheering for and having those really good experiences in my childhood.
It’s really come full circle.
Yea, it’s the minors but it’s still a really cool thing.
I don’t like it when my wife brags about me to all her friends and says I have a really cool job. I don’t like that attention in that way. But every day is fun. I enjoy my job so much and I do really have a really cool job.
ES: Actually, I have one more question, I grew up right outside of Chicago. So, I have my thoughts about hot dogs. Since you grew up there, I was just wondering what you feel is the best hot dog joint in the Chicago area?
JN: I gotta go with Gene and Jude’s. I grew up right down the street from it
ES: YES! Gene and Jude’s is the best!
JN: There is another place in Wicker Park called Jimmy’s that’s really good too.
ES: I miss those. The sports peppers just taste better at Gene and Jude’s.
JN: That’s just the way they cook it. That grill has years and years of grease on it.
ES: They can’t get it off now!
JN: It’s the ingredients. All the history in there.
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”Fireside Chats” is a series of Q and A style interviews of the Chicago Wolves by Elaine Shircliff of “Graced By Sports” and Andrew Rinaldi of “The Calder Times”. Our goal is to interview as many staff members, coaches, and players as possible during the 2024-25 season to allow fans to get to know the team they love. The title “Fireside Chats” is an homage to the Chicago Wolves pre-game pyrotechnic show during home games at All State Arena.
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