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Off Season Training (2)
Here is a
quick review of the physical attributes that we covered off
last time and which we feel are important to becoming a
complete goaltender. But, this time, we have expanded upon
them a little to give you a good feel for what each means. Off Season Training If you play at a competitive or development level of hockey, and are over 13 years old, this is for you. Now that the regular and spring hockey season has ended most everybody is looking forward to some "down" time. Although I encourage everyone to get away from competitive playing during the off- season, you should still take any opportunity you have to keep your skates on the ice at least once a week until the end of June. Although some goalies continue to play on into the mid-summer, I don’t see that as being particularly helpful or necessary to their development Perhaps some of you who play at the Junior level or beyond have already started with your off-season training. If not, I encourage those of you who have not to get started. If you are still Bantam or Midget age, the latest start date should be mid to late June. By doing off ice training and adding a Summer camp, you'll give yourself the best chance to go to training camp in top shape and ready to compete for a spot at whatever level you play. At the point you are in your hockey career, off-season training becomes as important as your on-ice training program. Talent will take you only so far in hockey. Beyond that you need to train off-season. And, since not everyone is blessed with the same amount of talent, off-season training can provide the advantage when competing against a more talented goaltender.
So, understand, if you really want to play at
an elite level, just showing up during the season and then
taking the remainder of the year "off" from hockey or
training just doesn't cut it any more. Top level
goaltending requires year round attention and commitment. Remember, at the elite level,
there is always someone out there who is making the
sacrifice and training during the off-season.
As a matter
of interest, here are the physical attributes you'll need if
you want to
become a complete goaltender. We'll cover these off in a little more detail in our next tip.
Welcome to article number 1A of a 4 part series. This series will touch Here, in part one of our four part series, we look at puck handling. It is suffice to say that puck handling has moved itself permanently into the job description of the hockey goaltender. In previous years, a goaltender could get away with only setting pucks up behind the net. Or, might I say, not playing pucks at all. That, my friends is passé, old hat, history. That is not to say you have to be Marty Turco back there. However, what it does mean is that if you’re not a puck handling goaltender, its time to get acquainted with your beloved hands. This article will focus on just that - The goaltender that is not an active puck handler. The particulars will cover: 1. How the rules are forcing us to play pucks. This season a new standard of officiating has swept across the hockey nation. Hockey Canada states, “The stick will not be allowed to in any way impede a player's progress.” This is translates into a major factor for the puck handling goaltender. For years, a back checking forward was able to tug and hold back the offensive fore-checking player, allowing the defensemen to gain extra time to pick up the dumped puck. Another alternative allowed the back-checker to place a pick on the fore-checker. However, the new standards affect this as well. Hockey Canada indicates that, “the use of a ‘pick’ or a ‘block’ is no longer permitted.” With these new standards, the back checking forward cannot get a stick or place a pick on the fore-checker. Meaning, the defensemen is faced with a fore-checker with unprecedented speed. Enter the new puck handling goaltender. Here, through either proper puck placement, or playing the puck up, the goaltender can help the defensemen handle this new added pressure. Not only will a good puck handling goaltender help his defensemen out by making a play with the puck, but also, the goaltender can help reduce injury to the defense core. Many defensemen will bare the brunt of jarring hits from the untouched fore-checkers. By either moving the puck for the defense or placing the puck in a position that allows the defense to avoid a hit, will prolong the life on his or her defensemen. So now that we have an understanding of why puck handling is more important. We should now look at what we can do specifically; starting with the goaltender who is not so comfortable handling pucks. If you are new to this part of the game, don’t panic - You can do numerous things without even touching the puck that can help your defensemen. Firstly, communication with your defense is vital. Yelling, “man on”, or even set plays such as “reverse” or “quick up” will help alleviate some of the pressures placed on the defense. A good place to start for the beginner is stopping rims. When exiting the crease on the trapper side its important to get your body close to the boards, and place your stick flat on the ice flush with the boards. (See Figure 1A). When your exiting the blocker side make sure your stick leads and touches the boards, allowing for optimal puck reception (See Figure 1B).
In addition to stopping the puck behind the net, it is very important to make sure you exit the crease very quickly, allowing enough time to stop the puck behind the net. How many times have I heard from a goaltender that, “they come so fast once I’m behind the net,” or “it seems like they’re coming from everywhere.” Well this is true, but you can gain the advantage by getting behind the net quickly and allowing enough time to set the puck up for your defensemen. So, we’re behind the net, we’ve arrived on time, and we’ve
By pulling the puck off the boards, it allows easy puck access for the defensemen. With that comes a few options for the defensemen. The defense can pick the puck up and skate it, or if there is pressure, he can rim the puck to the winger who is waiting at the hash marks. After the puck has been set up, a quick Fig 2A Fig 2B retreat to the crease will allow the defense room to make his play while handling the pressures of the for-checker. What about those long shots or dumps? In most cases, the beginner will put the puck in the corner of the rink, making both defensemen and coaches nervous. You have placed your defensemen in a very vulnerable position. The defensemen is now either very susceptible to injury, or you have placed him or her in a bad position to make an effective play. Depending on the situation there are a few options. If the puck is a long dump - not at the goaltender or a rim, he or she must get out quick (See figure 3). Once the goaltender has retrieved the puck while returning to the net the goaltender should set the puck up on the goal line about 5 feet from the net (See figure 4). This provides the oncoming defensemen with four options. The defensemen can either continue his line behind the net or curl with the puck back to the corner. Or, the defensemen can shoot the puck behind the net or hammer it in the reverse direction towards the corner back Fig 4 up to the winger. If there is a long shot, the goaltender should try and get as much The AG imperatives:
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Tip of the Month - Puck Handling - Advanced |
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Welcome to article number 1B of a 4 part series. This series will touch
In article 1A, we looked at puck handling for the beginner. In addition, we saw how the new standard of officiating is creating the demand on the goaltender to handle the puck more often. Now its time to start handling the puck more effectively.
Here, this subsequent article looks at puck handling from the advanced perspective. The particulars will cover:
We saw in article 1A that, when setting the puck up behind the net we should pull the puck off the wall, allowing for better puck access for the defensemen. Now that
we've mastered that, we need to start recognizing what hand each of our defensemen shoots. With that, we can set the puck to our
defensemen's forehand. This makes life even easier for the
One of the biggest flaws of the puck handling goaltender is poor positioning. Primarily, with his back turned to the play. The goaltender will leave his crease to play the puck behind his net, while still having plenty of time, he move the puck with his back facing the play. As we saw in the last article, it is important to get behind the net quickly so we have time to move the puck. With that, as soon as we cross the goal line, the goalie becomes a third defensemen. If time warrants itself, it's imperative to turn facing the play. If you do not face the play our options are limited. Either rim the puck hard around the boards either side or set the puck up for the defense (see figure 1A). However, by facing the play there are many more options. You can rim the puck hard to either side, set the puck up, make an outlet pass to a winger or a curling center man, or even play an indirect (will be discussed later) (See figure 1B).
Thus, if we can face the play as a goaltender it will open up options for us. But it will also open up options for your teammates. Defensemen can now become outlets instead of coming to get the puck. For instance, your defensemen can now flare out to the corner of the rink and provide you with a safety valve if you cannot make any other pass. In any event, don't limit your options by bad positioning. It is important to note, this option doesn't work all the time. There are instance during a game when you must make that quick decision back there and move the puck. However, if you do have the time, use it! Many goaltenders will stop the puck and rim it hard around the boards to either side. This play is common and effective. However, many goaltenders do not think of another alternative in this situation, that is, the indirect. In order to perform an indirect it is best to have a shot that can consistently hit the higher portion of the boards or the lower portion of the glass. So, what is the indirect? The indirect essentially entails the goaltender to shoot the puck at mid height of the boards approximately at the top of the circle (See figure 2A).
In order to perform this it is imperative that the goaltender has a clear shot at the desired target. Now that the goaltender has seen a lane to the target, and shot the puck the ramification for the opposition can be illustrated. By choosing the indirect, the puck will bounce off the boards at an unfavorable angle (See figure 2B). Here a few things can occur. Firstly, the goaltender can gain more time to return to Figure 2A–The Indirect his net. Next, the puck can clear the zone completely
Secondly, the defense could knock down the puck. However, an indirect will force the defensemen to follow the puck into their body to knock the puck down. While doing so, this buys the goaltenders team time to move up to the defense and retrieve the indirect. Simply put, the bounce off the boards can be difficult to read from the defensemen's standpoint, making it more difficult to retrieve.
Faking is something the modern day goaltender rarely uses. I recall a few years back reading a Goalie's World article that had a Roberto Luongo interview. The article changed how I handled the puck forever. In the article, Roberto was reflecting on how a coach of his told him to fake more before he passed the puck. After reading this, and putting the fake into practice, it occurred to me how easy it was to fake out an opposition forward. Most players take for granted that goalies are not good puck handlers. With that, they will usually fall for the first move you make, creating new options for you or making your primary option more accessible. There are three major parts of the faking arsenal, they are: your head, your stick, and your feet.
Your head can be the simplest tool for faking. For instance, simply looking in the opposite direction of your intended target can throw the opposition. It is important to note, though you may look away from your target to fake, it is important to regain visual confirmation of your target prior to you pass release.
Your stick can be the best faking mechanism you own. By simply changing the angle of the stick blade, this can make your opponents think you are passing in one direction. So, in this instance, you would fake an incorrect angle then, by rotating the blade back to the appropriate angle, you can execute the desired puck release.
A more advanced technique, known as the sweep, can be an amazing advantage if you can learn to execute it properly. For example, you could start with the puck on your forehand, sweep past the puck, regain control on your backhand and then shoot the puck using your backhand. Here you have faked the opposition into thinking a forehand shot is about to be released however you shoot the puck in the opposite direction using your backhand.
Start the puck off on the forehand Sweep past the puck
Bring the stick to backhand Release a backhand
The AG imperatives:
by David Alexander David is the Director of Goaltender
Development" with Alexander Goaltending |
