Skills

Explanation of Goaltending Skills

Stance

In goaltending, there are many different stances.  All one has to do is compare the stances of the great goalies in the NHL.  None of the them set up in exactly the same way.  However, there are some basics that we encourage young goalies to build into their stance.  First, the goalies must not stand too erect or too low. There must be an adequate bend in the knees to allow the goalie to move with power and efficiency.  The glove hand should be held in such a way that the pocket of the glove is open and exposed to the puck.  The wrist on the glove hand should be curled down and not up.  Finally, the glove height should be just above the knee.  The blocker should be properly positioned so that the blade of the stick is positioned between the skates.  The width of the stance is often a matter of preference for the goalie.  However, it is important to understand that the stance changes in relation to the position of the puck.  The closer the puck is to the goaltender, the tighter the stance must become in order to take away holes.

Movement

Moving with power and efficiency is an important part of goaltending.  We encourage our students to keep their shoulders down and their hands in position while moving in their stance.  We call it Amoving as a package@.  There is little point in getting to the shooter if you are not in a good ready position.  Goalies can move with power if they have a good bend at the knee.  When moving laterally, many goalies drag their stick behind them.  Instead, the goalie should make sure that the stick stays properly positioned throughout the entire move.  We also emphasize the important of getting back onto the inside edge quickly after getting into position.  If the goalie does not grab the ice with an inside edge, he will not be ready to follow the shooter if he dekes or shoots quickly.  We work on a number of moves at the goalie school.  Laterally, we work on the shuffle, the T push and the hop-step.  Finally, we work on forward and backward skating as well as stick jumping and body control.

Angles

Playing angles properly takes time and experience.  Even advanced goalies have to work on this part of their game in every practice.  We encourage goalies to challenge the shooter whenever possible.  By challenging, we mean that the goalie should get out onto the white ice and challenge the shooter as quickly as possible. By doing this, the goalie takes away three things that are crucial to the shooter=s success; these are time, net, and ice.  Once these are taken away, the shooter=s options are drastically reduced.  Great goalies know how to limit the shooter=s options by challenging at the right time and in the right way.   In doing this, they can actually force the shooters into certain moves.
Another fundamental rule for goalies to follow is to never give away the side of the net he or she is moving from.  Trying to kick back against the grain is a very difficult save.  So, when challenging off the post, they should make sure that they are protecting the short side.  Finally, the goalie must be aware of what the shooter sees and what the puck could see if it had eyes.  A left handed shot might see more to the glove than actually exists from the vantage point of the puck.  The natural tendency for most shooters is to shoot at what they see.

Stick Saves

We encourage goalies to have Aactive@ hands and sticks.  This means that the stick should make contact with the puck on most shots along the ice.  If the puck is shot directly at the goaltender, he or she must keep the stick on the ice and angle it slightly so that the puck is directed to the corner and away from the front of the net.  On shots along the ice to either the stick or glove side where the goalie extends the leg, it is important that the stick is used too.  Often, it is the stick that actually makes contact with the puck and directs the shots to the corner.  At our goalie camp, we strongly discourage the trend on putting the paddle on the ice unnecessarily.  This move causes goalies to lose the ability to use the stick leg on shots low to the stick side.  The paddle down should only be used in scrambles and on wrap arounds.  Using this move on direct shots might be successful some of the time but it comes with lots of Abaggage@ and causes some very bad habits that will ultimately come home to roost.

Pad Saves

Goaltender must have the ability to use their pads on shots from in tight.  In order to do this, we teach goalies to make a commitment to the save.  In other words, we discourage the use of a complete butterfly style.  Goalies that simply drop on both knees and flare their legs never learn the important skill of being able to Afire the legs@.  Many goalies today have trouble making saves low to the stick side.  This is due, in large part, to the blocker down style.  Goalies who go blocker down, first buckle the stick knee in order to bring it to the ice.  If goalies rely too heavily on this save, they soon lose the ability to buckle the glove knee and extend the stick leg.  We encourage goalies to use both legs equally well.

Rebound Control

Controlling rebounds is a subtle skill.  It is done by angling the equipment so that the rebounds are directed away from the front of the net.  It also involves the ability to make the puck stay close to the goaltender where it can be quickly covered.  We encourage goalies to use their hands and sticks in controlling rebounds.  It is especially important for goalies to develop active hands on long shots.  Today, many goalies simply allow pucks to hit them in the chest or high on the pads instead of using their hands to catch and control the puck.  This is due in large part to the fact that today's equipment is so protective.  Today, taking a slap shot off the mask does not hold the same risk of injury that it once did.  Unfortunately, this has caused many goalies to lose their hand dexterity.

Glove Saves

All great goalies have the ability to catch the puck cleanly and consistently.  In order to do this, goaltenders must have excellent eye and hand coordination.  We recommend that goalies play games like table tennis and badminton as part of their off ice training. The glove hand should be held in a slightly forward position to take away the shooter=s angle to the top of the net.  We recommend that goaltenders hold their glove with the wrist curled down and not up.  They should also hold the glove slightly above the knee while in their stance.  It is important that the glove intersect with the sight line of the puck to the top corner.  By holding the glove too high, goalies sacrifice the lower part of the net and in actual fact, they cover almost nothing in the upper part of the net.  Finally, we encourage young goalies to increase the range of their glove on long shots.  They should learn to cross the glove over all the way to the blocker shoulder on shots from extended range.  They should also be able to catch pucks that are shot directly at the mask from far out.  Remember, that active hands are the best way to control unnecessary rebounds.

Blocker Saves

The blocker is used primarily on shots to the upper part of the net on the stick side.  In order to make this save, it is important that the blocker be held in the proper position and not along the ice.  Goalies should work on angling their blocker to direct rebounds to the corners.  It is important that they let the puck do the work.  There is no need to punch at the puck.

Pad Stacks

The pad stack is an important save when a long and quick lateral move is required to stop the man charging to the net to redirect or tip a pass.  The goaltender must first be aware that a man is coming to the net.  He does this by assessing the entire situation as the attackers approach.  Next, the goalie must explode to the pass by staying low and getting either a good C push or hop-stepping laterally to wear contact is to be made by the player.  As the goalie does this, he extends the leading leg and sweeps the ice with the bottom leg.  The top leg must be used if the shooter tries to roof the puck and the bottom or sweeping leg is used to defend against the shot along the ice.  It is also important for the goalie to position his or her hands properly (glove open or blocker up) as he or she moves into the save

Recovery

Recovering well is one of the most important parts of the game for the goaltender.  It requires control and agility as well as power.  It is important to keep your recover as simple and efficient as possible.  This means that in many cases, the goaltender will get up most quickly by pulling the extended leg in after making a low save and getting up on it instead of changing legs.  The changing of legs is time consuming and awkward

Breakaways

Breakaway are an exciting part of the game.  The goalie must have excellent skating ability and be able to follow the shooter back as he approaches the net.  First, the goalie must concentrate on taking away as much net as possible by challenging the shooter.  As the shooter approaches, the goaltender must judge his speed and retreat accordingly without backing in too far.  Eventually, the shooter runs out of ice and must make his final move.  At this point, the goalie must have the ability to ready the deke and follow the shooter to the post while staying relatively tight to take away holes.

Screens

Most screened shots that get to the net are either along the ice or slightly off the ice.  For this reason, we encourage goalies to get low and use their legs to get maximum coverage.  Some goalies like to go blocker down in these situations and it too is an effective way to cover low.  It is important that goalies do their best to see the puck on the shooter=s stick at the time of the release.  This will give them a general idea of where the puck is going.  They do this by getting as close as possible to the screening player and either peeking around or through him.  Goalies should rarely get involved in attempts to move the man from in front of the net.  This causes them to lift their stick off the ice and lose focus.

Deflections

If traffic permits, the goaltender should get as close as possible to the stick of the deflecting player.  He or she should stay as tight as possible and keep the elbows locked in to take away holes.  As well, the glove should be held slightly forward and wide open.  Some goalies let the glove drop behind them and this is a dangerous habit.

Aggressive Poke Check

The aggressive poke check is an important move that can be used on a left hand shot attacking the net from the goalies stick side.  If the shooter is attacking with speed, the goalie has the option of retreating with the shooter and following the move across the net or he has the option of staying out, beyond the top of the crease.  If the shooter is under enough pressure, his natural move will be to lean to the inside and protect the puck.  This will commit the shooter to a move to the front of the net.  When this happens, the goalie must slide his hand all the way up to the knob of the stick, drop to the glove knee and stack the pads to the short side.  As he does this, the stick is extended along the ice and into the path of the puck.  This is a very important move that has tremendous application.  Today, many goalies in the NHL don=t know how to execute this move properly.  It is a move that is very aggressive and it should not be done once the goalie commits to retreating with the shooter.