Move Your Feet

Keep your feet moving and your eyes on the play. That means look around, not just at the puck. You can’t stand flat footed on the blue line waiting to cross over after the puck. Get some speed up by moving forward to backwards or arching in with some strong strides so that when you do move forward you move fast and catch the other team off guard – including the goalie – off balance or out of position. Move the puck quickly by making good crisp passes. Get the puck out your defensive end quickly and pick it up in the neutral zone. Everyone should be ready to go on the attack at any moment. If you want the puck out of your zone then back check, don’t wait for the other team to shoot or pass the puck. Make them cough it up. If you check, then you and your team should be ready to take the puck and go on the offense quickly. Don’t drift or glide too much. Use your speed; skating, passing, shooting, and checking. You’ll need to be aware of what is going on around you, and you’ll need to know how to move in sync and to balance your team’s positioning on the ice. You don’t want to leave a large area of the ice open for the other team to run through, and if the other team leaves the ice wide open, then take advantage of it. Look for that open ice, and know where the puck is going so that you can stay on top of the play. Control the puck, and control the flow of the game. You don’t do this by standing still and watching the game – you get in the game and you keep moving.