Activities/Drills You Feel Have Helped you Improve the Most

[UvBnDatsyuked]

For me

Shooting Power : Weighted pucks

Puckhandling: Wooden stickhandling ball and Floor hockey (My puckhandling has gone up another level since playing floor hockey on a regular basis)

Skating: Video taping myself skating. It really showed that my knee bend was not quite as deep as I thought

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[RangersAM99]

i think one crucial thing in hockey is balance, like many coaches say hockey is played off balance, a good drill is to try and skate the rink while jumping over obstacles, this will really strengthen your ability to play hockey off balance, use your outside edges to pick up speed you will fall the first couple of times but once u get the hang of it, it won be hard. It took me a couple of tries then i got used to it

 

[Redden Hogalot*]

RedWingFan your activities are actually the same as mine. I always play Street/Floor hockey with a bunch of people and it really helps your cordination a lot, and the Swedish Stickhandling ball is excellent also.

 

[XweekendwarriorX]

I love to throw tennis balls and that at a wall and react i no im not a goali but it helps get my quickness down and also trying to keep a better memory of what players like to do or pass. ive been concentrating more on focus and a quick first step to pick off a pass or step up in the play.

 

[CuriousGeorge]

I found that I was able to increase my foot speed and skating ability by riding a bike and doing sprints.

I also used to stickhandle with a golf ball. It works because the golf ball bounces off the blade of the stick and you have to react quicker than with a puck.

 

[SoundwaveIsCharisma]

I love to throw tennis balls and that at a wall and react i no im not a goali but it helps get my quickness down and also trying to keep a better memory of what players like to do or pass. ive been concentrating more on focus and a quick first step to pick off a pass or step up in the play.

I kinda do the same thing, except I stand about 5 feet away from a wall and shoot the ball and try to tip it. It's the closest thing I can get to actual tipping drills sometimes and plus it helps out the speed at which you are reacting.

 

[PensFanInCBus]

This may sound stupid...but yoga has helped my game greatly. It is a great core body workout, and my flexibility went way up. I also found that I was able to focus better. I get to the rink early and do some stretching that is in the yoga program...nothing too crazy. The important thing is to control your breathing, and visualize.

 

[Kevin Wey]

Functional training, plyometrics, and sprint interval training.

One's conditioning and the functionality of their body is the key to everything. If one does not have the leg strength to skate properly... or the core strength... or the flexibility. With shooting, most people just think about forearms. Well, a good wrist shot starts in the legs, then up to the pelvis, then to the core, then to the shoulders, then the arms, then the forearms, then the wrists, hands... It's like cracking a whip. And the muscles need fire in that sequence if you're going to have the best shot possible and reduce your risk of injury. This is the same for throwing a baseball. This is not to say forearms aren't important, but it is to demonstrate how important total conditioning is, especially the legs and the core for hockey players. No amount of upper body strength (while it is important) will compensate for a weak lower body and core.

Mike Boyle has some great books and DVDs about functional training, plyometrics and agility training, etc, that I would highly recommend. Weightroom strength can be entirely different than functional strength on the ice. Beach muscle is nice for picking up chicks, so to speak, but it does not guarantee functionality on the ice.

In addition, it's important to begin functional training when you're 13 to 17. It's not a lost cause if you don't, but it's a distinct advantage for your entire hockey career if you do. The nice thing about functional training is that it utilizes body weight more.

Think about bench press. You're lifting weights from a lying position. If you're lying on your back as a hockey player, you're probably not a very good hockey player. (An old football analogy). A lot of the classic training we're all familiar with is more geared toward body building and looking good, which is actually the goal of most people. But the goal for athletes is functional strength.

If you're not doing plyometrics, agility drills, and sprint intervals, you're probably not developing your fast-twitch muscle fibers. If you start this when your 13 to 17, you're more able to influence the composition of your body in terms of fast-twitch muscle fibers for life.

So, those are my recommendations. If a player is still in high school, I'd encourage them to also run track for their high school and do sprints and perhaps jumps, too. You'll go a long way toward developing your fast-twitch muscle fibers, as long as your coach knows what he's doing training you. If not, find a good track club in your area.

 

[Burgmania]

What I've been doing for most every day the past couple of months is skating up at my town's tennis courts (this is for roller hockey), with a ball, and just working on skating with the ball, stickhandling, and shooting. The courts have a nice high fence around the perimiter, so I'm not chasing the ball all over the place.

I'm starting to be able to skate and stickhandle with my head up, and my slapshot is coming around.

 

[spoon*]

Stickhandling non-stop around the rink and I don't stop myself until it hurts.

It has helped me at the point where when I tried to stick-handle without looking I did it with ease.

My skating technique is good, but i'm average at speed. Not slow, but not fast either. I haven't fixed that though.

My shoiting is great and all, my only problem is my speed. If I was faster I can't even imagine how much better I'd be