A little stick work

Chipping away, it's the little things that add up. You'll hear your coaches constantly remind young players to keep their stick on the ice. Some young players tend to carry their sticks like pitch forks or even brooms. For some reason young and older players alike even hang the tip of the blade down. I guess if you're really quick it might not matter, but usually players don't even realize they're doing it. Anyways, I don't think you should always keep your stick on the ice. Keep it near the ice, but mostly we want you to be ready to quickly get your stick on the puck, whether it's a pass, a poke check, or a quick shot. Avoid leaning on your stick on the ice, or against your knees. It's not that heavy, and if you're that tired then why are you on the ice? Go rest up on the bench. Sit and rest, not stand and lean against the boards. Anyways, getting back to the main point of little things adding up during a shift and/or an entire game. One of the things we want to see is your stick on the puck. Take the puck off your opponents stick, dig the puck out off the boards, poke check to get the puck, and stick handle (not over- handle) the puck well enough to maintain control. Use your stick and go after the puck. Don't expect it to come to you if the other team has it. Don't just hang your stick to your side, or use it to reach out when you should be skating fast to the puck. It's not an extension of your gliding skill. By the way, is gliding a skill? Probably not, it just means your feet aren't moving. Somebody probably paid a lot for that stick, so use it the right way and work to get that puck.

Location:NY