Teaching Defense to 7-Year-Olds

Teaching Defense to 7-Year-Olds

1 on 1's, 2 on 2's, 2 on 1's, 3 on 2's, Defensive Tactics, Hockey Drills, Individual Skills, Skating, Team Skill Drills, Team Skills, Team Strategy
Teaching Defense to 7-Year-Olds I recently received an email asking about 1 on 1 strategy for 7-year-old defensemen. The coach asked whether he should be teaching the players to play it skating backward (even though they don't skate well backward yet), or starting forward then pivoting backward, or something else altogether. I thought it was a great topic for discussion, and one I'm currently dealing with as well, since I'm working with the same age group on my son's team. So... as I always say, here's my two cents worth: Angle First, then Build to Backwards Most 7-year-olds aren't capable of skating backwards well enough to play a proper 1 on 1. But there are still 1 on 1s in games. So what do you do? Here's my strategy: Put…
Read More

The 3 Areas of Hockey Dominance

Backchecking, Coaches' Corner, Defensive Tactics, Defensive Zone, Individual Skills, Neutral Zone, Neutral Zone Tactics, Off-ice Training, Offensive Tactics, Offensive Zone, Passing, Philosophy, Puckhandling, Shooting, Skating, Special Teams, Team Skills, Team Systems
Improve your Physical Skills, Mental Skills, and Physical Conditioning to Dominate your Opponent! In this post I'm going to discuss what I call the 3 AREAS OF HOCKEY DOMINANCE… now I know that title sounds a little dramatic, but the reality is, if you implement the information I'm about to share with you into your hockey development strategy, you will be miles ahead of your opponent, EVERY TIME YOU STEP ON THE ICE! This video will be equally beneficial for both players, coaches, and even parents who want to be on-board with their players' development. So, let's go ahead and get started! The 3 Areas of Hockey Dominance The 3 Areas of Hockey Dominance are Physical Skills, Mental Skills, and Physical Conditioning. Now we can break each of these areas…
Read More
Dangle Glove Hockey Stickhandling Aid

Dangle Glove Hockey Stickhandling Aid

Hockey Drills, Individual Skill Drills, Individual Skills, Off-ice Training, Puckhandling, Skills, Stickhandling
The Dangle Glove Encourages Proper Stickhandling Technique by Forcing Players to Use their Top Hand Every once in a while, a product comes along that just "makes sense." The Dangle Glove is one of them. This special glove helps to "force" players to use proper technique while stickhandling. Dangle Glove Overview: I'm sure at some point you've seen players stickhandling using a piece of PVC pipe, or a toilet paper tube on their bottom hand. This old training technique has been around for a long time, and is used to help players develop the habit of using their top hand to control the stickhandle, while their bottom hand acts as a stabilizer. The Dangle Glove takes this training method to a whole new level, allowing for more flexibility in drill…
Read More
5-Card Skating Drill

5-Card Skating Drill

Conditioning, D-Zone Coverage, Defensive Zone, Hockey Drills, Individual Skill Drills, Individual Skills, Skating, Team Skill Drills, Team Systems Drills
5-Card Skating Drill 5-Card Skating is a great drill my assistant coach, Ryan Newton, came up with. I like this one because it lets you work on the defensive zone coverage skating patterns while getting some conditioning in. Here's the diagram: 5-Card Skating Drill 1. Players start in 5-card formation 2. On whistle, each position skates full speed out to his or her designated attack area, pivots, then skates backward into 5-card position 3. Sequence follows, position by position. Center covers for the corner positions until they get back, and takes the seam (attack areas 2 and 5) 4. Wingers alternate between attack positions each "lap" 5. Do 4 "laps" then switch out 5-man unit for a new one Enjoy! USE THIS DRILL IN YOUR OWN PRACTICE PLAN:
Read More

Philosophy: Utilizing the Hockey Development Pyramid

Coaches' Corner, Individual Skills, Philosophy, Team Skills, Team Strategy, Team Systems
The Hockey Development Pyramid is a great tool to help design your season's "Road Map" Before the season begins, it's a good idea to take inventory of your team's strengths and weaknesses. I use the Hockey Development Pyramid as a tool to help gather my thoughts, and determine what areas of play should be focused on over the course of the season. Skills within various tiers of the pyramid can be developed simultaneously (i.e. puckhandling and passing can be developed during a breakout drill). However, it is EXTREMELY important to build from the bottom up, not from the top down. Players who have not developed a solid foundation of Individual and Team Skills will never be as effective at performing the higher-level skills such as Team Systems and Strategy. ENJOY!
Read More