3 Shot Hockey Warm-Up Drill

3 Shot Hockey Warm-Up Drill

Hockey Drills, Individual Skill Drills, Shooting, Skating & Agility
3 Shot Hockey Warm-Up Drill This is a great drill to get players' legs going at the beginning of practice. It's high tempo, and combines agility skating, with puck control, and shooting in motion. Enjoy! 3 Shot Hockey Warm-Up Drill: 1. Players line up in diagonal corners 2. On whistle, 3 players from each line leave together 3. Player 1 drives wide and shoots 4. Player 2 cuts around the 1st and 2nd cones and shoots from the middle 5. Player 3 cuts around the 1st and 3rd cones and shoots from the far side 6. All shots should be from tops of the circles VARIATIONS: designate different shot types USE THIS DRILL IN YOUR OWN PRACTICE PLAN: Download PDF Printout Download DrillDraw Import File Add to HockeyShare
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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…
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Do Systems Rob from Skill Development?

Do Systems Rob from Skill Development?

Philosophy, Team Systems
Do Systems Rob from Skill Development? Sample Article from Hockey Development Magazine - Click Here to Download the App I was watching a conversation take place in my Facebook feed a few weeks ago. The topic centered around whether Mites should be taught "systems hockey." It all started with a coach who posted that every coach in the USA needs to get on board with the ADM: So people began going back and forth on this a bit, some coaches expressing their opinions more politely than others. Then one coach said something to the effect that ADM is garbage, and that the kids don't learn systems under ADM. His comment garnered a reply from this coach: Notice he says "positioning is a garbage concept" and that "skills dominate today's game." These…
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Raven Hockey: Game Changing Stick Technology for Youth

Raven Hockey: Game Changing Stick Technology for Youth

Hockey Equipment
Raven Hockey: Game Changing Stick Technology for Youth I don't throw around the term "game changer" very often. And I definitely don't use it lightly! But I believe Raven Hockey sticks to be just that - a GAME CHANGER. Let me explain why. Crash Course in Stick Flex In order to understand what makes Raven sticks so special, it's important to understand how stick flex works. Here are the key points: Every stick made has a number. This number is the "flex." The higher the number the stiffer the flex. This number is established BEFORE the stick is cut. So an 85 flex stick is only 85 at full length. Once you cut it, that number goes up. For me, my 85 becomes closer to 100 once I chop it…
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Hockey Equipment Tips for Kids

Hockey Equipment Tips for Kids

Coaches' Corner, Hockey Equipment
Hockey Equipment Tips for Kids Hockey is still a young sport here in Salt Lake City, which means we have many first-time hockey parents. While these parents all share a love of the game, and enthusiasm for their kids being involved, many of them are unfamiliar with the finer points of putting on hockey gear. Over the past few years, I've consistently seen equipment issues with improper sizing (sticks too long), improper wearing (skates too loose, elbow pads upside down, etc.), and even non-usage (no cup?!?). So I felt it could do some good, at the very least in my local organization, to put together a video detailing the key points of how to size and wear every piece of hockey gear, from start to finish. Obviously, this is a…
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