Coach Luka Gianinazzi talks success and pressure in hockey

The 32-year-old Luca Gianinazzi is in his third season as head coach of HC Lugano. In “Roost/Röthlisberger – Hockey Talk,” he reveals his philosophy.

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Luca Gianniazzi has actually set foot in Finland. The Ticino native had enrolled there to study and even found a job to make ends meet. Lugano then asked if he was willing to take over as head coach of the U20 youth training team.

That was in 2018. Gianinazzi is still in Lugano, but this is his third season as first-team coach. He was “thankful” to his poor skating as a player that this happened. “I'm not a good skater, so that limits me. So I have to try to make up for it with my head and my game intelligence,” the soon-to-be 32-year-old told the latest on CH Media's “Hockey Talk” podcast Explained in an episode with Thomas Roost and Thomas Roost. Matthias Roethlisberger.

“As a boy, it was always my dream to be a hockey player,” Janinazzi said. However, at the age of 24, after playing 62 games in several National Leagues and the Swiss League, he gave up his playing career. Instead, he received an invitation from Lugano to join the U17 team as assistant coach. “After two training sessions I realized that I enjoyed life as a trainer and that I had the potential to do well there,” reflects the Ticino native.

A year later, in 2018, he did not move to Finland, but instead received higher-level junior training with the HCL before replacing Chris McSorley in the senior game in October 2022. He's learned a lot since then: “In my first year, everything was new: every interview, every speech to the team, every referee.” Suddenly in front of thousands of fans Coaching in the Hall is a completely different thing. Of course, even though the basics remain the same, hockey is a little different.

Then there's the matter of expectations for the ambitious Lugano: “The pressure is there, but I think pressure is a cool thing.” Without pressure, winning or losing doesn't matter. In the end, it's still just a cool job: “Hockey is my biggest passion. I've been playing since I was three years old.” There's no problem being responsible for making sure every player is always performing at their best.

That's not always possible this season. “At the moment we are definitely not where we want to be with Lugano,” Gianinazzi admitted. But they are now working hard to improve again. But his team still lacks consistency: “If you play your best every night, you'll see a difference in the standings.”

How does coach Lugano want to solve this problem? One of the small things you can influence is change: “It's about when you change and how long the task takes. That's how momentum is affected.” Gianniazzi says his team isn't doing enough right now.

Another lever is confidence, but it's harder to influence. This requires daily work. The 32-year-old explained that you have to take the positives out of training. Our message as a coaching staff is, “We don't have to be perfect, but we have to focus on the things that make a difference.” The next opportunity is tonight on the road against the Ajoy.

You can find episode seven of “Roost/Röthlisberger – Hockey Talk” here or wherever you get podcasts, including Dan Tangnes’ resignation, Jonah Neuenschwander’s debut, various National League moves and the entire conversation with Luca Gianinazzi.

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