5 Things To Up Your Game This Off-Season

At this time of year, many consider their options for off-season goalie training in order to improve their game.  So here’s a few items to ensure that you’re able to get a leg up on your competition early.

Head Trajectory

No matter what kind of on-ice goalie training you do this off-season, it will benefit you to engage your head to ensure that you are building great habits as early as possible throughout the off-season.

Head trajectory is more than simply watching the puck however.  Instead, there are technical methods to consider when watching pucks to ensure effectiveness and control of saves, as well as quicker and more efficient rebound tracking.

The earlier that goalies are working on this element of their game, the better for their development as it is part of the foundation which goaltenders will build techniques upon.

Goaltender-Specific Power Skating

Simply put, the best goalies make the hardest saves appear routine and effortless.  But in order to do so, being in the right place at the right time is essential to their game.

Being a great skater is about more than being a quick skater.  Instead, for goalies, being a great skater is about efficiencies, and self-awareness within the crease.

A lot of goalie trainers make their sessions about peppering students with shots.  However, we recognize that for goalies to control the puck, it is essential for them to be stabilized at the proper depth and position of their crease to maximize their net coverage, limiting their need for big reaction saves.

By removing shots while working with goalies, we place more emphasis on skating properties.  Elements such as balance, agility, edge pressure points, loading power, redirecting weight distribution, etc, all enable our students to become more self-aware, and successfully control the play around them.

Check out our July Summer Program which includes a Goaltender-Specific Power Skating element.

Eye-Hand Coordination

If you’ve been around hockey for a while, you may have heard coaches or parents setting goals for shooters to commit to take a minimum of 100, 200, 500, etc shots per day in the off-season.  As goalies, we can do something similar.

Instead of shots, we can work on eye-hand coordination to keep our tracking speed up, and improve it.  Remember, the eyes are a muscle which need to be trained like any other.

Depending on your age, you may wish to use a tennis ball, or possibly a lacrosse ball to challenge yourself to building speed and coordination.

Gain Mobility

Flexibility + Strength = Mobility, and it is essential to all athletes to protect against injury and ensure top performances.  Especially for goalies.

As goaltenders, we stretch out across our crease in ways which our bodies are not meant to stretch while simultaneously having someone crash our net.  Therefore, stability and flexibility are essential to maintain and improve over the off-season.

Make stretching or yoga a part of your daily routine this off-season to gain flexibility, stability, and strength.

For an explanation of the importance of mobility, check out the following video featuring Adam Bracken on The Fitness Lab in Manotick:

 

Play the Puck

Every team coach and scout loves a goaltender who has taken steps to improve their overall game in the crease and outside of it.

Therefore, the ability to stop rims, complete passes, and clear the puck are essential to the goaltender’s game.  Especially if they want to be considered for a higher level next season.

This off-season, ensure that you spend some time with the puck on your stick.  Get used to the feel of the puck while in motion and while stickhandling.  Commit to daily passing and shooting goals like you would with your ball work for eye-hand coordination.  And build timing awareness when stopping rims, or racing out to play the puck if you’re playing any spring or summer hockey.

For goaltenders seeking to make improvements to their abilities, there is no time like this off-season to build toward becoming better goaltenders.  The off-season comes and goes quickly.

For more information on our services and programs, please contact us.