InGoal Magazine April 2012 - Summer Camp Edition : Page 52
Puck-Tracking Drills H ere are some simple drills to work on your puck tracking skills and habits. These are applicable at all levels of hockey. Minor hockey goaltenders and coaches can include them in their daily warm up—just as we do in the NHL These drills, if done consistently and with attention paid to the details of tracking, will help reinforce the skill and habit throughout the season. An Elite Goalies student demonstrates excellent puck-tracking skills during a testing session for the new Warrior Ritual Equipment. Drill 1: Have a good, accurate, shooter with about 30-40 pucks just above the middle hashmarks. The goalie is deep in his or her net. The shooter shoots high glove. Make sure the goalie is allowed to reset before each shot. The goalie should track the puck all the way into the glove. You should actually see the goalie’s head turning with the trajectory/movement of the puck. Watch the puck into the glove! Repeat with 30-40 pucks shot high blocker. Drill 2: Same as above but this time the goalie sets up, and stays, in a butterfly stance. The shooter shoots 30-40 pucks middle glove, again allowing the goalie to reset after each shot. The goalie’s eyes and head should move with the puck. Repeat with 30-40 shots middle blocker. Drill 3: Have a good, accurate, shooter with about 20-30 pucks just above the middle hashmarks. The goalie is deep in his or her net. The shooter shoots middle to low glove and the goalie executes a butterfly glove save. Allow the goalie to reset before each shot. Again, the goalie should track the puck all the way into the glove. You should actually see the goalie’s head turning with the trajectory/movement of the puck. Watch the puck into the glove! Repeat with 20-30 shots middle to low blocker. Drill 4: With 20-30 pucks behind the goal line to the goalie’s right side of the net, and with the goalie set in a good post position, make a pass to the shooter stationed just above the middle hashmarks. The goalie moves to the top of the crease and sets. The shooter will catch and shoot high glove. Wait until the goalie is reset on the post before making the next pass. This enhances puck tracking as the puck is passed to the shooter’s stick, and from the shooter’s stick through shot trajectory into the glove. Repeat from the goalie’s left side of the net. 52 InGoal Magazine April 2012
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