Week Two was particularly dedicated to the introduction of angles as well as ½ butterfly and pad extension save movements. Introduced one of the tougher drills for a goaltender called the Roy Drill, named after Patrick, after finding out (from a very good source) it is one of his favorite drills (more on this drill later in summary).
Briefly, there are three components to a goalie’s position as an impending shot is about to be released. They are angle, depth within crease, and body position. Each one of these carry different priorities depending on each scoring situation and for the sake of this summary we are concentrating on angles.
A few basic thoughts on Angles in relation to positioning-
Finding the Angle – goalies need to understand the triangle (illustrated below) of puck in relation to the posts and position themselves so they are centered with equaling amounts of net showing on either side of their body.
Play the Puck Not the Shooter – this is the hardest aspect of angles for younger goalies. Common mistake is goalie lines self up on player instead of the puck particularly if the attacking player moves the puck from directly in front of body to the side to load-up for a shot. Diagram below using the triangle illustrates the difference in angle with lining-up on attacking player and puck. The body position never matters – only the puck.
Shifting Angles – While tracking the puck the goalie must understand theangles are constantly shifting and only minor position adjustments are typically needed. Goalies of all ages make mistakes tracking pucks by taking visual cues from shooters and then over-committing thus being off-angle.
We introduced the Roy Drill, much too several goalies dismay, to demonstrate the need to play the puck (not shooter) and shifting angles. Briefly, the drill utilized some of our Thunderbird AAA midget skaters who were instructed to stick handle side-to-side a few feet above the crease while the goalie had to make sure he was following the puck. Sounds simple, but clearly was not for both sets of age groups within the camp. It is a great drill for angles, anticipation, footwork within the crease, and conditioning. Week Two is not the only time the Roy Drill will make an appearance at the 2009 Summer Camp.
As for save movements, the ½ butterfly and pad extensions were introduced during Week II. The ½ butterfly movement in used when puck is shot slightly off the goalie’s center while full pad extensions are used when the puck is aimed further out from the goalie’s body.
Week II Reebok Challenge
The Roy Drill was used for both groups during Week II Reebok Challenge after the goalies had a chance to practice it earlier in the session. Simply, the goalie had to follow the puck and make the save. If the puck was prevented from entering the net, a point was awarded. A total of 10 points were available to each goalie and this was the first week in camp history no goalie earned the maximum points (to be fair, this was the first time this drill was used in our camps).
Not many comments to make on it although a number of goalies became very frustrated while going through the drill. In fact, there were at least three instances where goalies began crying (to steal and slightly alter a great line from the baseball movie “A League of Their Own” – “There’s No Crying in Hockey”) because the drill became so frustrating. I’m convinced many goalies earned worse scores than they would normally due to allowing their frustration to effect their performance. As we preach regardless of situation all that matters is the next save opportunity. If a goal is scored, move on and prepare for next opportunity.
The Fleury Group Top Three
#1 – 31 Points – Smith and Munn
#2 – 30 Points – Avila
#3 – 29 Points – Jahde, Zurcher, Whalen
The Brodeur Group Top Three
#1 – 31 Points – Finley
#2 – 30 Points – Nash
#3 – 29 Points – Cavanaugh, Morgan, Parker
Homework questions already posted (typically they appear on the blog Wednesdays). If you haven’t seen them, the mental aspects of the game is the subject matter (get used to this). They are due Wednesday before 3.00 and please do not bring questions to turn-in. Answers most be emailed so they’re not misplaced and we have an electronic version.
Lastly, parents of youngest goalies, if your goalie needs help getting dressed, please make sure they are taken care of. Each week we have had to help goalies get ready to get on the ice. The staff has too many responsibilities to prepare for getting on the ice to worry about helping goalies get their gear on. Thank you in advance.
Until Week III,
Coach W
Elite Goaltending 