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Sharpen Your Skills This Summer

By Jessi Pierce, Touchpoint Media, 04/22/14, 12:15PM CDT

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Passing, shooting, stickhandling and goaltending are staples of hockey. The offseason offers players of all ages the perfect time to improve and challenge themselves in those skill sets and others.

And they get to do it on their own terms.

“I picture summer as a time for kids to be independent,” said Andy Shriver, District 15 head coach and Minnesota Hockey ADM instructor. “It’s a time where kids can carve their own plans on what skills they want to work on. Most of them they can do anywhere off the ice.”

Shoot More

“You miss 100 percent of the shots you don’t take.”

“The Great One” Wayne Gretzky was on to something. But it goes beyond taking advantage of opportunities to shoot in games. When working on your shooting this summer, repetition is key.

“If the only place you work on your shot is in a game, then you might get two or three reps in,” said Shriver. “If you expand that to practice, you maybe get in a dozen shots. But in the offseason you can grab a bucket of pucks and head to the garage and in a few hours crank out hundreds of reps.”

The simplest offseason tactic is to shoot the puck around while focusing mainly on accuracy. Work on picking each of the four corners. Try wrist shots, snap shots, backhands and one-timers. Make a game out of it and compete against yourself. Whatever it is, the more players get out and shoot, the better off they will be come hockey season.

“If you shoot thousands of pucks over the summer, you might end up with that one opportunity in the third period of the tournament game, and it could pay off,” said Shriver.

Out of Your Comfort Zone

While you’re honing your shooting skills, remember to try something new. Put yourself in different positions.

“Shoot off one foot, or try different angles,” Shriver said. “Lead off with your opposite foot. Just mix it up. It will make you a more well-rounded shooter.”

Sitting on a stool can be great practice. By taking away the base of your feet, it puts you in an awkward position, forcing you to work for the shot even when you’re uncomfortable. If you find yourself in a weird body position waiting for that rebound during the season, you will be able to react better because of it.

Stickhandling

By now, most have seen the video of Patrick Kane stickhandling. While it might take some extra practice to get to that level of expertise, you can train in a very similar manner.

“Go into your garage and just throw a bunch of random things on the floor to stick-handle around,” said Shriver. “It’s a simple way to work on quickness and control.”

Using PVC pipe on the shaft of your stick will improve hand control. By gripping your bottom hand on the pipe, you force your top hand to be in control and increase its strength, while loosening the bottom hand.

Another option is lining the driveway or garage floor with tape like a tic-tac-toe grid. Players can then work on narrow stickhandling, long sweeps and drags. Try it with different weighted pucks and balls, too.

Between the Pipes

If in the net is where you’re most comfortable, hand-eye coordination and quickness are among the most important skills to work on.

Grab a tennis ball and have someone throw it off the wall, or bounce it back and forth to yourself. Speed it up and make sure the ball hits different points so you react.

Using that same concept, goalies can work on recovery. Take a medicine ball and toss it off the wall. After you throw it, drop down to your chest and pop back up to your knees to catch the ball.

More goalie-specific on- and off-ice drills can be found here.

Pickup Games

The best way to learn is with your friends. Grab your buddies and play a game of basketball-style HORSE by shooting pucks at the net. Go 1-on-1 in the driveway. Start an impromptu game in the cul-de-sac. It can be with one friend or 15, just get outside and play. Be creative and learn something in the process.

“Now with friends you’re having even more fun and that’s where that passion sneaks in,” said Shriver. “Suddenly learning turns into just having a blast with your friends. That’s why you started playing the first place and is a reason you still are.”

“That never goes away.”

Different Skills Through Different Sports

And don’t forget, one of the best ways to develop skills in the offseason is by practicing skills in other areas besides hockey.

Different parts of your mind and body are exercised through different sports. In soccer, lacrosse and hockey, you will see a lot of similar game-time situations, but you will approach them with different strategies. Those will translate to each other.

And it will give you and your stick a break.

“You need to recharge that hockey battery,” reminds Shriver. “By doing that, you’re getting hungry for hockey and so when it comes back to hockey season, you’re more excited to play than ever.”

“Plus, you’re a more complete player by simply taking that break. And that is some of the best development for any athlete in the offseason.”

These are just a few suggestions of many drills available this offseason. Visit USA Hockey and Minnesota Hockey for more skills and drills.

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