| Welcome to the final installment of this five part special | | | | with your stick in your hand, but not the ball. This will let |
| report on in-season training for ice-hockey. Let me as | | | | you develop your foot speed but also teach your |
| you a question. How many of you spent extra time | | | | body to multi-task. |
| working on your shooting or stick handling over the | | | | - If you do not have an agility ladder, no problem. Take |
| summer? Do these fundamental skills get the same | | | | a pair of hockey socks and lay them flat on the floor. |
| attention during the season? Again it will depend a little | | | | You will practice hopping over them while controlling |
| bit on your coach and a little bit on your ice time, but do | | | | the ball or while moving the ball around two cones. |
| not believe that playing in games is a substitute for | | | | When it comes to practicing your shot, I do not |
| practicing your skills. Let's say you get a good amount | | | | recommend using the stick handling ball because I think |
| of ice time - 21-minutes per game on average. Of the | | | | it changes your touch, it is not the same as a puck. |
| 21-minutes, how much time is spent handling the puck? | | | | You can purchase 1/8 inch rigid plastic sheets that are |
| Not very much right? | | | | used for stick handling and polish it with furniture polish |
| If you can get on the ice a bit early or stay on the ice | | | | or one of my NHL clients uses a product called Jigaloo |
| a few minutes after practice to work on your puck | | | | to polish the shooting board. He sprays it down with |
| handling or shooting, then go for it. But, if your arenas | | | | that and finds that the puck moves nicely. When you |
| are anything like the arenas in my home town - there | | | | shoot, make sure you have a target so you are |
| is just enough time to resurface the ice before the | | | | training yourself to shoot with precision. You must have |
| next team is out there. If that's not possible, then try | | | | a system to control rebounds - you do not want pucks |
| these ideas: | | | | flying through the neighbor's window or through your |
| - Set up an obstacle courses at home in your | | | | basement walls. |
| basement. You can use small pylons, sneakers, pucks | | | | Finally, make sure you are shooting off your backhand |
| and hockey sticks to create obstacles. Use a stick | | | | as well. This will not only help improve your skill so you |
| handling ball to move around, over or under the | | | | can get some sick highlight goals, but it will also help |
| obstacles. Be creative with it and really challenge | | | | counter some of your muscle imbalances from always |
| yourself to maintain control. | | | | shooting forehand. So the next time you shoot 40 |
| - When you do your footwork drills (like agility ladders) | | | | pucks forehand, then shoot 20-40 backhand. |
| at home try doing the first 4 repetitions using your | | | | If you just spend 5 to 10 minutes 3 to 4 times a week. |
| hockey stick to maintain control of the stick handling | | | | Just working on your skills, then that should help keep |
| ball. Then perform the remainder of your repetitions | | | | you sharp for game time. |