There are many tips and strategies that you can experiment with to become a much better hockey player than you currently are. In this chapter, you will discover some of the best and most professional strategies that you can add into your routine to see if you can take yourself to the next level. You will find tips for both offense and defense players as well as tips that can benefit all players.
Learn From Watching Hockey Games Watch lots and lots of hockey games. Watch live games and watch games through the TV. You can even video tape yourself playing to enable yourself to see how you play from a third person perspective. Experience through playing is important but so is “learning by watching.” You may have a few favorite profes- sional players from whom you can learn some great techniques and strategies just by watching them and picking up on their playing patterns and habits. It is also helpful to watch or read interviews from your favorite experienced players, as they often provide exclusive advice.
Turn Off Video Games The Night Before a Game
Colorado College hockey players are not allowed to play video games the night before a competition and for a very good reason - they can actually affect your qual- ity of sleep because the constant screen changes can prevent your brain from going into the correct REM cycle. Though video games are great for developing hand-eye coordination, it is best to avoid them the night before a big game.
Know The Best Shots
The best hockey players know that direct shots are the least likely shots to go into the net. Most successful shots are taken from redirections and rebounds. Knowing that these types of shots are more likely to go in the net can help you de- velop a better shot strategy and increase your number of shots.
Practice Perfect Positioning
Position is half of the battle to winning a game of hockey because popular of- fense strategies aim to confuse the defense and break up a position to score an open shot. The point of positioning is to protect certain areas of the ice that the opposing team can easily score from. As long as each player knows his or her position on the ice then it will be harder for the offense to impose any confusion tactics.
Study Your Opponent
Studying your opponent can help you get to know your opponent and enable you to pick up on patterns or cues that will help you predict their plays, strategies, habits, etc. Getting to know your opponents inside-out can help prevent you from experiencing any nasty surprises during an important game.
Make Your Stick Durable
Hockey sticks are an important piece of equipment and they can often run expensive. Since hockey is such an intense sport, it is not uncommon for sticks to break. By making your stick durable, you can become a much stronger player and not have to worry about constantly putting out money for a new stick or a stick re- pair. Sticks commonly break along the bottom of the blade so one of the easiest
and best ways to keep it durable is to tape it up and re-tape it any time you can see the tape coming off. The other part of a hockey stick that breaks commonly is the shaft, usually from impact shots. You can also put tape on the parts of the shaft that commonly come into contact with other sticks. Another way to save the life of the shaft is to take easy slap shots, as those types of shots tend to be high im- pact.
Always Work on Your Weak Skills The key to success is to constantly work on improving your weakest skills, whether they are skating, shooting, speed or a combination of anything. Some players may find this difficult during a routine practice so when you have free time, focus on sharpening your weakest areas.
Defense Tips:
Use the Markings on The Rink to Your Advantage By using the markings on the rink to your advantage, you can better position yourself for a better defense strategy. The four face-off dots on the rink can serve as a rink within the rink because they cover the area around the goals. The best place to be on the ice is within this invisible rink while the offense players take the puck outside. The nets on each end of the ice are always aligned with each other so when you are standing in front of your net; you can look at the net on the far side of the rink to determine where you are positioned. This can help you make sure you’re not leaving an open hole for a shot. When defending against opposing forwards, you can use the blue line and circles to determine what kind of action you need to take. Pay attention to the top of the circles to make sure that you’re not too close to your net.
Practice a Strong Breakout Pass A bad breakout pass can lead to a bad start and can even get some players benched. Strong breakout passes feel as great as scoring a goal and can lead to a much better play so always make sure to take an extra second to think about your pass and make it smooth and strong.
Focus on Gap Control
Once the breakout pass occurs it is the job of the defense players to control the gap on the rink. The best way to do this is to catch up to the forwards as quickly as possible after the pass. Prepare yourself to jump into the play if needed and al- ways keep moving to prevent a turnover.
Learn to Analyze Rushes One of the main roles of a defense player is to analyze the oncoming rush as quickly as possible to make a defense strategy. Depending on whether the rush is one on one or three on one makes a huge difference.
For a one on one situation, the defense player should focus on blocking the puck carrier and not the puck itself. Place all of your emphasis on making sure that the carrier cannot get the puck to the net. Another option is that you can check the carrier to prevent him from making a shot. Treat a “two on two” situ- ation the same as a one on one situation. The only difference is that another de- fense man should be teaming with you. As for a “two on one” or “three on one” situation, focus on the puck and not the players. Leave the players up to your goalie. Focus on staying between the players so that you can deflect any passes amongst them and try and force them into angles that won’t allow them to take effective shots.
Bigger vs. Smaller Goalie Stereotypical goalies are often bigger in size and many people think that bigger is better because a bigger goalie can take up more room in the net and can provide more reach and range. However, there are many advantages to having a smaller goalie. Smaller goalies are more likely to have more agility and speed. Big goal tenders often create more holes when they drop because their chest and arms move out of the net area. This is less likely to happen with smaller goalies.
Wrist Slap A good strategy for causing an opposing player to lose the puck is to slap them on the area of their glove that houses their wrist. A medium strength slap can cause the player to lose control of the puck and/or mess up a potential shot, giving your team the opportunity for a steal.
Bump Check An easy way to “check” another player without too much contact is to simply bump him or her. A bump can cause an opposing player to lose focus which makes it easier for your team to take the puck. A bump also can come off as an “accidental brush” so it works really well as a sneaky move.
Avoid “Cheap Shot” Contact Any type of contact that will obviously throw a player off focus to the point that he or she can become seriously injured is off limits. Examples of a cheap shot in- clude elbowing or spearing. Not only are these types of physical contact immoral but they can also ruin someone’s life and are not worth it.
Use Longer Stick One good strategy for defense players is to use a stick that is a couple of inches longer than a traditional stick. The longer your stick, the better your reach and it is important to try and keep your stick on the puck at all times.
Develop Strong Communication Skills Communication as a team is very important but communication among the de- fense part of the team is especially crucial. If one defense man is doing one thing and the other defense men are not on the same page then the defense strategy as a whole will not work. The best type of communication among defensemen is ver- bal. Simply let your other team members know what you will be doing so that everyone is on the same page and can work together.
Pass Retrieved Pucks Quickly Most defensemen retrieve pucks from the corners of the rink but no matter where you retrieve them from, always pass them quickly to the nearest open for- ward. Doing so can cause the opposing team’s forward players to get trapped in the end-zone, which can ultimately open up an opportunity for a rush.
Focus on Backwards Skating and Turning Defensemen must constantly skate backwards and turn to be able to properly defend their zone so practicing these skills can help you become a solid defense player. Always keep your feet moving when you’re skating.
Shoot the Puck off the Ice The best defensemen can master the skill of shooting the puck 10 to 15 inches off the ice. This skill can also be shared to offense players. This type of shot is the hardest for the goalie to prevent.
Fake the First Shot Faking your first shot is a great way to throw off the opposing players and goalie because it gives you time to get in a real shot while their reflexes are still tensed up from the initial shot.
Offense Tips:
Take Puck Across Net If you ever find yourself in a position in which you’re headed toward the goal with the puck and you’re able to increase your speed, try to take the puck across the net for a score. Many goalies trust their defenders to block shots and will come out of the net to approach the player with the puck. By bringing the puck across the net, you have a better chance of scoring a shot because it will cause the goalie to open up.
Vary Your Rush Speeds When rushing against your opponents, vary your speed by switching your pace from slow to fast. There are many benefits to a varied rush speed. Overall, it can create confusion amongst the opposing team which can give you an advantage during a tight moment. Varying speeds can cause the defense to lose focus and disband, which can buy you more time to get the puck across the rink. It can also enable your linemen to catch up with you.
Switch Up Your Shot Angle By switching up the angle from which you take your shot, you can potentially throw off the goalie and make a score. When you have the puck in your posses- sion, bring it out to an angle that is wider than one you would normally take a shot from. This can cause the goalie to line up with where the puck currently is. Then pull it in towards you and quickly take the shot. If the goalie is not fast enough or doesn’t see the change in angle coming, your chances are making the shot are much higher.
Eat the Puck One of the number one rules of hockey is to avoid taking blind shots. If you have possession of the puck, it is better to wait and evaluate your situation rather than just take a random shot and hope that you score. Waiting for the right mo- ment can help you prevent the other team from stealing the puck from a shot that you missed.
Practice Jam Plays Jam plays are a power strategy in which the offense rushes in front of the net from various angles while keeping the puck in motion and switching their pivot men. The point of this play is to try and free up the goalie though this type of play can be risky because there is not enough defense to save the puck if it goes into a corner or behind the net.
Play With An Invisible Puck Practicing using no puck can help you and your teammates develop anticipation, which can help improve synergy and teamwork when you’re actually playing with a real puck.
Exercise Your Wrists Strong wrists are more likely to make better and stronger shots. You can exer- cise your wrists at a gym or you can buy a small wrist exercising tool, such as a squeeze ball, to perform at home.
Shoot Low Patterns show that players who score the most points often take low shots. This makes sense because goalies traditionally raise their arms to keep the puck from flying into the net. When they make this movement, it opens up a weak spot down below. Though some goalies can quickly change their position to block a low shot, it usually doesn’t happen very often.
Master Your Steal One of the most common ways for a team to gain possession of the puck is to steal it from the opposing team. If an opposing player has the puck, there are several ways to steal it. If he or she has it to the side, you can try to lift his or her stick or try to slide in. If he or she has the puck in the front, a good strategy is to hook his or her elbow to break focus.
Pass the Puck Passing the puck is the most efficient and best way to move the puck toward your opponent’s net. You could move the puck up the ice by yourself but passing it to your open teammates is a much better strategy because it makes it harder for the defense to steal the puck and it utilizes teamwork to score a goal. Without passing the puck, an opposing team member could easily narrow in on you and steal the puck by checking you or calculating a steal strategy by watching your skat- ing pattern. It is much better to work together to move the puck.
Back Check the Player Without The Puck The best strategy for back-checking is to target the player who is most open and who does not have possession of the puck, especially if the player with the puck is not nearby. This player is of concern because the puck carrier has the option of passing the puck to this open player for a shot. Work with your defenseman to cover both of these players.
Avoid Slap Shots in the Slot Use either a wrist shot or a snap shot when you’re taking a shot from the slot. Slap shots are not the best type of shot to use in this position because they do not provide a good amount of speed or accuracy.
Throwing the Puck Back When you are throwing the puck back into the zone, shoot it towards the corner or an end board. This makes it more difficult for the opposing goalie and defense- men to take control of the puck.
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