Learning how to lift the puck off the ice is an essential skill when starting out in hockey. Many of us (including myself) started playing this sport late, starting when your over 20 years old doesn’t make learning all the basics easy. With this tutorial, I show you how to learn this useful skill which will guarantee you score more goals.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b5UXbiUz9rs[/youtube]
Holding the stick
You want your top hand at the top of your stick and your bottom hand around half way down the shaft as a rule of thumb. Your top hand normally does the majority of the work
Puck position on stick blade
First and foremost you want to cup the puck
You want the puck around the heel of the sticks blade, this will give you more control over the puck and also make it easier to get the puck onto the sticks blade to lift it off the ice.
Stick blade motion
You’ll need to use your top hand to roll the stick blade open. By rolling your top hand wrist over, you can change the position of the stick blade by doing this.
Stick blade open
Stick blade closed
Another motion that is important to get use to is your top hand pulling back and your bottom hand pushing forward. This is what controls how much power and speed goes into your shot. Another aspect of shooting that is controlled by this is the follow through, this controls where the pucks goes. Simply keep in mind following through high, means the puck will go high and vice versa. Point the blade of the stick towards the intended target.
Key points
- Good hand placement on stick
- Puck sits on the heel of the stick blade
- Cup the puck
- As you prepare to release the puck, open the stick blade up
- Top hand pulls back, bottom hand pushes forward
- Following through to the intended target
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What do your skates do?
With any shot on the ice, its important to use your edges. This will not only give you more control and power, but it also the best way to stay on your feet when shooting. I recommend standing on both inside edges of your skates. The skate that is furthest away from the goal will be the one you need to use to dig into the ice for “grip” and also to push off of for more power in your shot.
Standing on inside edges for “grip” while about to shoot.
Using back leg inside edge to push off the ice and generate more power.
