1. Question: I am a young aspiring goalie coach. This season I will be coaching the goalies for our small hockey organization. Do you have any advice? Where do I begin? Answer: Welcome to the ranks of coaching. While everyone will have their own “style,” overall, I have a 4-step approach for coaching goalies. Here it is.
I. Assessment This is the first step. You must determine the goalie’s strengths, weaknesses, physical efficiency problems, etc. This gives you a “starting point” and should help dictate your “game plan.” Remember, no two goalies play alike . . . so do not try to make them!
II. Preventive Maintenance This process is ongoing. Regardless of the strengths and weaknesses, this aspect works on “physical skills” specific to the position. A great deal of time should be spent on moving and skating like a goalie. Next, the ability to close holes, and make saves with excellent physical efficiency is drilled. Help them develop “muscle memory” Other skills like stopping hard-arounds, rebound control, breaking up centering passes, etc., should not be ignored. If the skaters practice their “basic fundamentals” each practice, so should the goalie!
III. Developing a Relationship This is so important. The goalie must trust you and believe that you are credible. Goalies, more than any other position “turn-off” those they do not believe to be credible goalie coaches. If a solid relationship is fostered and you are trusted, then you can get into the mental aspects and confidence issues. You become someone they can talk to. You can pat them on the back, but also provide “hard love” when it is necessary.
IV. Corrective Phase This phase can also occur while doing preventive maintenance, but is difficult until you have done a good assessment. How does the goalie work? . . . react to certain situations? . . . handle pressure? . . . read plays? . . . close hole?. . . etc . . . etc . . . The use of video, charting, specific on and off ice drills, etc., will hopefully right the wrongs.
2. Question: I’m a 16-year-old high school goalie who has always used a lie 13 goal stick. I am having a terrible time trying to find a 13. What’s going on with the stick manufacturers?
Answer: Not that many years ago you could find goalie sticks ranging from lie 11 (yes, 11 was the lowest you could get) and lie 15. The lie was very precise because the heel of the stick come to “point” further defining the lie, or angle of the blade.
3. Question: It used to be where a 90% save percentage was great. Now, it’s closer to 92 percent. Are goalies that much better today? Can you explain it?
Answer: Yes, goalies are better today. They are bigger, stronger and smarter. They have had better training and their equipment is far superior. The game has changed a bit, also.
Let’s start with equipment. Even the legal width of a goalie pad (12 inches) is wider than the 1977 rule of 10 inches. The arm and body pads, along with the gloves and pants, are lighter, wider and far more protective. The “fear” of the puck is gone, and the ability for the goalie to move without the restriction of heavy bulking equipment is a reality.
Goalies are far more athletic. No longer is the “fat kid” put into the net. Their flexibility and muscle tone are better than ever. The average size has increased as well. They fill more space.
Growing up, these goalies have had more training than ever before. The advent of goalie schools, regardless of who runs them, provides the netminder with a great edge. Goalie coaches at all levels help youngsters and parents with valuable training and feedback. As a result, styles are different. Goalies use their pads more, close holes better, and scramble more efficiently.
Television, whether satellite or cable, has brought an increased number of games into a goalie’s home. Now, a youngster is exposed to more goalies, more styles, more situations and more saves. This can only help a youngster become better at “reading the play” and developing mentally.
Finally, the game is different. Power players are fewer, the goal crease is larger and protected by video replay, and there is a greater emphasis on overall defensive team play.
10. Question: My 9 year-old son has been a goalie for one year. He loves the game, and eats, breaths and sleeps hockey. He has just moved up from the mites to the squirts. He has always shared goaltending responsibilities with another goalie, and is on his own for the first time against a group of older kids. The problem is that he puts so much pressure on himself that he gets headaches and stomach aches, and has even cried in frustration in the net when he lets a goal by. The program that we are in does not train their goalies well, and has them do the same drills as the other skaters, and basically just uses the goalies for target practice. He will be going to a training camp this summer, but we would like to know what we can do in the meantime to increase his confidence in his abilities and to learn some coping skills. Thank you for your time.
Answer: Wow . . . are you sure he is not about 28 years old!!!!
I am not a psychologist, but it is not healthy, nor is it fun to play with those feelings. Hockey should be fun. Why is there pressure? Parents? Siblings? . . . teammates? Does he feel the same anxiety in school at test time, or during speeches? This is not healthy and will make him lose interest in the sport. He really needs to talk to a professional counselor because I bet this will manifest itself in other areas.
11. Question: My son is interested in being a goalie. He’s a natural right, i.e. righthanded/shoots right . . . in baseball he catches with his left hand and bats right. His inclination as a goalie is to be a left handed goalie holding his blocker in his left hand and catcher in his right. He says this is much more comfortable, presumably because he shoots right. Question: Should we force him to be a right handed goalie (i.e. blocker in right and catcher in left, shooting left). He’s 9 years old. Before we invest in equipment, I need to get this right. Any comments or advice would be appreciated.
Answer: That’s a good question. Most goalies would rather catch a puck, like a baseball in their left hand and “learn to shoot left handed” (I did as have so many like me), rather than handle the stick in the normal right handed way. Since the Goalie’s job is to save the puck, not shoot it . . . I’d opt for holding the stick in the right hand . . . and catching with the left. |
