Archive for July 2nd, 2008
As skating is so important to the success of the hockey goalie, it should be a given that sharp skates cannot be overlooked. I have heard some younger goalies that I have coached tell me that they like dull skates because they can shuffle side to side easier, however, the problem with dull skates is that you can’t get as much power on your push with dull skates which actually makes you shuffle across slower. My advice to any hockey goalie is to make sure you get your skates sharpened at either 1/2″ or 3/4″ hollow (You don’t really need to know what that means, just tell the person sharpening your skates and they should know).
Gone are the days of putting the worst skater in net and telling he or she that they can just stand there and stop the puck. Too many times in my life, I have heard somebody say that “Goalies just stand there”. This is a complete myth! The hockey goalie needs to be just as good if not a better skater than anyone else on the ice. Any successful hockey goalie will tell you that you need to constantly improve your skating if you want to make the step to the next level whatever that may be.
It is very important to make sure that you motivate yourself to improve your footwork when you are not taking shots. Ice time is very expensive and if you are serious about becoming a better hockey goalie, you need to make the most out of your limited time on the ice and whenever you get a chance work on your shuffling, forward skating in your stance, backward skating in your stance, and pivoting. In the near future, I will be posting a few different drills that can really help you to improve your skating…so stay tuned!
I’m currently in the process of writing A LOT of drills that will be available to the hockey goalie, coaches or parents to increase their knowledge of what is arguably the most difficult position in all of sports. These drills will be available very soon so check back soon.