Shooting: EZ Goal Review

Coaches' Corner, Hockey Equipment, Off-ice Training, Skills, Useful Products
The EZ Goal and Backstop combo is a durable, versatile, and inexpensive way work on your shot from home! One of the highest priorities in my Home Hockey Training Center was to have a solid shooting station. The first step is to have a good goal that you can shoot real pucks at. I chose the EZ Goal and Backstop because it is a full sized, durable, and portable piece of equipment. The design is very cool, and it can actually fold up for easy storage. Assembling the EZ Goal frame was very simple. It took me about 35 minutes to build both the net and backstop. Most of it snaps together with spring-loaded pins. The few tools that were needed actually came with the net (other than a phillips…
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Overspeed Agility Drill

Overspeed Agility Drill

Hockey Drills, Individual Skill Drills, Shooting, Skating & Agility
The Overspeed Agility Drill brings in many different skating elements! I've mentioned before that technical skating drills can be boring and monotonous for many youngsters. The problem is that skating ability is SO essential... you HAVE to find ways of developing it! One method I've found to work with youngsters––and older players too :)--is to add a shot at the end of a skating drill. This tactic turns it from a skating drill into a shooting drill, and is much more fun and motivating for the players. Start with no pucks. As your players progress, add a puck, then start making them do 5 push-ups for each time they lose the puck. Players must be able to execute these skating maneuvers at full speed without mishandling the puck. Add more…
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Full Ice 3 Pass and Shot Drill

Full Ice 3 Pass and Shot Drill

Hockey Drills, Individual Skill Drills, Passing & Timing, Warm-Up
The Full Ice 3 Pass and Shot Drill can be VERY effective with the right group of players! This drill is a more difficult version of our regular 3 Pass and Shot Drill. In this version the passes are longer, and must be harder. With the right group of players (and the proper number of players), this can be a very fun and effective drill. However, if your players aren't capable of handling long, cross-ice passes, they'll spend a lot of time chasing pucks into the corner. See the diagram and explanation below: Full-Ice 3 Pass and Shot Drill 1. players leave respective lines and skate across the ice 2. receive a pass from next player in line, and quickly return the pass 3. loop to receive the final pass…
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