Last summer, Jamie Glance read the book “Atomic Habits” by James Clear, and it changed the way he approached life at the U.S. National Team Development Program.
It provided a framework for building good habits and breaking bad ones, emphasizing incremental improvement. The main theme, as Glance put it, was “getting one percent better every day.” Typically, he doesn’t like to read; “Atomic Habits” provided Glance with a moment of self-realization — one he needed.
“Just knowing what I’m capable of, and knowing that’s not going to be my best game every single game,” Glance said. “Just staying with the mindset, staying positive with yourself, and knowing what you can do, I feel like that kind of helped me.”
Glance’s U-17 season at the NTDP was extremely taxing — physically and especially mentally — and he admitted that he wasn’t at his best. Tangible success was hard to come by for Glance, as he recorded just 29 points in 51 games as a 16-year-old. In his 15-U season at Mount St. Charles Academy, Glance exploded for 112 points in 58 games. It felt like a drop-off.
The adjustment from minor hockey to juniors, and, in this case, the rigorous NTDP, is substantial. He was used to being the best player on any ice he stepped on. He quickly realized that wouldn’t be the case in Plymouth, Mich. He was competing against the best in his birth year.
“We’ve got guys that are used to not losing a battle, going into a corner, and all of a sudden they don’t win any battles,” Nick Fohr, head coach of the NTDP’s U-18 team, said.
Glance admitted he was frustrated, even lost at times. He was struggling mentally and lacking confidence. He had to accept the fact that he was going to struggle. There were days when Glance didn’t want to go into the facilities because of what the day entailed. Fohr explained that the intensity and frequency of their practices and lifts exceed what the players are used to.
Then throw in playing in the USHL, where there are older, faster and stronger players. They might not necessarily be more talented, but the older players don’t allow the game to come down to pure skill.
“I tell them when they all come here, we’re going to fail. We’re going to fail a lot. We’re really good at failing, and we’re going to go through tons of adversity, and you mentally have to be able to push yourself through it,” Fohr said. “Some kids have more success with that than others do, and it takes some kids longer, and some kids never make it, honestly, because it’s just too hard, too fast.”
Despite how difficult the transition was, Glance never considered stepping away from the NTDP. He stuck with the grind, and with the help of “Atomic Habits,” Glance has taken steps to be successful in his U-18 season.
He realized how important off-ice work was to success on the ice. He upped his level of compete in practice and during lifts, coming to understand that ebbs and flows are part of life. That helped him better handle adversity.
After recording three points in four games to start his second season at the NTDP, Glance went pointless in his next eight contests. He got a “feeling inside” that he needed to talk to Fohr, so he walked into his office unannounced because he felt like he was doing everything he could but wasn’t seeing positive results.
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“It’s not abnormal for kids to come in and see me in situations where they feel a little bit lost in their game,” Fohr said. “We had a good talk, and I just gave him some focus points.”
For Glance, it was about simplifying his game. A part of his struggles, Fohr added, was that Glance was disengaged from the play at times. Arguably, his best trait is his speed, so Fohr believed Glance just needed to keep his feet moving.
Glance now had the skills and the mindset to battle adversity, and since that conversation in October, the Stratham, N.H., native has been one of the NTDP’s best forwards, recording 15 goals and 18 assists in the first 39 games. Those 33 points are tied for first on the team.
That’s now six goals in five games for Glancer... oh, and it puts us ahead 🔥#USAvsSLU pic.twitter.com/S6lRP4PcpG
— USA Hockey’s NTDP (@USAHockeyNTDP) December 13, 2025
“I think a big part of that is confidence,” Glance said.
That confidence has allowed Glance to call his own number rather than defer to teammates — he’s shooting everything, Fohr said — and it’s paid off in other areas of his game, too.
“He’s going to the front of the net, and pucks are coming to him, and he’s putting them in the back of the net, or he’s making plays to somebody else,” Fohr said. “He’s just found ways to be very, very impactful for us.”
It’s also the chemistry he’s formed with his linemates, Victor Plante and Logan Stuart. Stuart, who centers Plante on the left and Glance on the right, said they complement each other’s games well. They all play fast, are smart, and know where each other are on the ice at all times.
Big performances on big stages have followed Glance, most notably at the CHL Prospect Challenge in Calgary and Lethbridge, Alberta. He scored two goals in two games to help the NTDP pull off an upset as heavy underdogs. The event had been circled on the team’s calendar since last year.
“We came in with a chip on our shoulders,” Glance said. “We just wanted to go out there and win and show scouts and people all over the world that we’re just as good as the CHL.”
An added layer to the rivalry is that former players from the NTDP — JP Hurlbert and Harrison Boettiger — were competing for the CHL after the NCAA approved a rule allowing Canadian major junior players to play collegiately. This opens the door to other development options for college-committed players. Glance has stayed committed to the NTDP. He hasn’t explored leaving.
“It could be once in a lifetime to represent your country and put a USA sweater on,” he said. “I definitely wouldn’t give that up for anything.”
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When John O’Connor recruited Glance to Mount St. Charles from Seacoast Performance Academy, he didn’t think making the NTDP was realistic for him; Glance was just 5-foot-2. O’Connor, at the time, was Mount’s director of player personnel.
“There’s no way that I thought watching this little guy with curly hair sticking out of his helmet was going to go on to be what he’s becoming,” he said.
Now an assistant coach at the University of Maine, O’Connor doesn’t have time to watch Glance’s every game, but from what he has seen — whether watching him play or crossing paths on the recruiting trail — he believes Glance has a chance to be a top-60 pick in the NHL Draft.
After all, Glance’s birthday is Sept. 23, rendering him ineligible for the 2026 draft (the cutoff is Sept. 15). While the majority of the NTDP’s Under-18s are in their draft year, Glance doesn’t have to worry about draft rankings for now.
“It’s a little bit of weight off your shoulders, and you have another year to develop,” he said. “I think it’s definitely easier on the mental part.”
For the rest of the season — his final year at the NTDP — Glance is going to stick to what’s worked. But he’s also going to savor the time he has left, whether it’s being Casey Mutryn’s (Norwell, Mass.) chauffeur and listening to the likes of Zach Bryan, Sam Barber or Drake on the way to games; golfing when the weather allows; or fishing in the pond behind where the two live as roommates.
The plan is to make the jump to BU for next season, but first, his goal is to make Team USA’s roster for the 2026 World U-18 Championships, which will take place in Slovakia.
“I think that’ll be a big chance to see what progress we’ve made in the past couple years,” Glance said.
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Players like Glance have lofty goals. Jim Creamer, Glance’s 15-U head coach at Mount, has no doubt that Glance will continue to be successful because of the work that he put in every day at Mount.
“To watch him every day, take each step along the way, BU down the road, it’s great,” Creamer said. “I’m happy for him.”
