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Shooting Like an NHLer with Scott Bjugstad

By Minnesota Hockey, 10/27/15, 11:00AM CDT

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Scott Bjugstad knows a thing or three about scoring goals. As a member of the University Minnesota Golden Gophers, he was college hockey’s leading scorer in 1982-83 with 43 goals. During the 1985-86 season, Bjugstad scored 43 goals with the Minnesota North Stars.

Now, the Saint Paul native runs the Scott Bjugstad Shooting School, teaching youngsters proper technique for firing the puck.

“I love to see the kids get better,” said Bjugstad, who has given shooting lessons for about 20 years and is the uncle of Florida Panthers sniper Nick Bjugstad. He also tries to help with the mental side of shooting.

“Kids are unrealistic when it comes to scoring goals,” Bjugstad said. “It takes Zach Parise 11 shots to score one goal. If I tell that to kids, they say, ‘You’ve got to be kidding me. I thought it would be nine out of 10.’

“Instead of thinking about how many goals they’re going to score, think about how many shots they’re going to get.”

Generating more shots over the course of the season will not only lead to more goals for your player, but it will create rebound opportunities that give teammates more chances to score as well.

Bjugstad has a philosophical approach to shooting and it starts with the tool: the hockey stick. The former NHLer gives youngsters five tips to becoming a better shooter, starting with the stick and moving onto the motion.

Selecting the Proper Twig

The length

“The first thing parents have to do for their child is get the proper length,” Bjugstad said.

The stick should come up to a child’s nose when standing in tennis shoes. This is a standard length for Mite- and Squirt-aged players.

“The stick should not force them to bend over too much or stand up too much and bring their hands too high,” he said. 

The lie 

No, Bjugstad doesn’t want dishonest hockey players. The lie of the stick is the angle between the bottom of the shaft and the blade.

“There should be as much blade on the ice when they’re shooting and passing as possible,” Bjugstad said. In a relaxed position, the heel of the blade should rest on the ice because this is the area where players will catch and begin passes from.

The curve

Sticks today are a lot different than the blades used in his heyday.  

“When I was younger, they told me to get used to a smaller curve and then you can get a bigger curve because the thought was a bigger curve is harder to handle,” Bjugstad said. “The curve can actually force them to get everything in the right position.”

The right position sets up the next tip …

Pull, Don’t Push

Rather than pushing the puck ahead, like the blade of a bulldozer, and trying to flip it into the air, players should pull it from the back foot to the front foot. The puck should be in contact with the blade of the stick until it is released.

“When they have trouble, they’ll push the puck when they should be pulling it,” Bjugstad said. “Then they’ll try to push it up at the end [trying to raise the puck] instead of following through to the target.”

“You watch the pros shoot the puck,” Bjugstad added. “Through the strong part of the shot they’re just pulling like crazy while pushing down on the toe of the blade and the entire stick is flexing.”

Finish at the Target

Regardless of technical advances in hockey sticks, this is the one component of the shot that should always remain: the follow-through. Point the toe of the blade where you want the puck to go. Bjugstad adds a caveat.

“The blade should be past upright and turned over,” Bjugstad said. “For a left-handed shooter, if the blade is open, it will be pushed left every time.”

Bonus Tip: Catching Passes

In order to score, you must first have the puck on your stick. Bjugstad said the final tip might be the most important. Players should be catching passes with the four to five inches on the heel of the blade.

“The back five inches of the blade is the strongest part,” Bjugstad said. “If the blade is straight up and down, and they put downward pressure on the shaft, the puck won’t move when it hits the [heel of the] blade.” 

“If the first touch on the puck isn’t good, they won’t score a lot of goals.”

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