Very interesting article by Fluto
It wasn’t Tuukka Rask’s fault.
The next big save: How the 'lateral release' can give...
David Krejci had committed the primary mistake up the ice by losing the puck to Mitch Marner. By the time Marner accelerated to the red line, Zach Hyman had jumped aboard for a two-on-one rush. The outcomes of such situations do not usually go in a goalie’s favor.
Rask, however, could have given himself better odds of foiling the goal that Marner scored during the Bruins’ 7-3 playoff win on April 14.
Rask is a slider. He is exceptional at hitting the deck smoothly and closing nearly every opening along the ice. The 6-foot-3 Rask’s posture is so skyscraper-straight that when he drops into the butterfly, enough of his torso remains upright to blot out soft spots upstairs.
One of Rask’s strengths, however, is at risk of exploitation. Shooters are weary of thudding pucks into the goalies who have turned ice level into private property. They have adapted.
Now, shots go high. Cross-ice options are considered. Skaters pass when goalies expect them to shoot.
So when Marner saucered the puck to Hyman, Rask slid from left to right to deny the shot. He did it well.
The slide is the preferred alternative to the old-school two-pad stack, a desperation save from which a goalie has little chance to recover.
But instead of shooting, Hyman returned the puck to Marner at the far post. Because he slid, Rask had taken himself out of the play. By the time he recovered, Marner put the puck in the net.
A simple technique
The lateral release is a technical term for a straightforward maneuver: shuffling along the ice. If a goalie is tracking the puck from left to right, he pushes off his left leg and holds the ice with his right edge. It is the vanilla base for exotic toppings to follow.
After executing the lateral release, a goalie can drop into the butterfly — trail pad down first, followed by the lead pad — and shutter the five-hole. He can glove the puck or punch it out with the blocker. If a cross-ice threat materializes, a goalie is in better position to react, perhaps with a desperation slide or dive.
The lateral release, in other words, is a less sexy but more practical foundational tool than the slide. When executed correctly, the lateral release leaves a goalie big and square to the puck and exposing less of the net.
It wasn’t Tuukka Rask’s fault.
The next big save: How the 'lateral release' can give...
David Krejci had committed the primary mistake up the ice by losing the puck to Mitch Marner. By the time Marner accelerated to the red line, Zach Hyman had jumped aboard for a two-on-one rush. The outcomes of such situations do not usually go in a goalie’s favor.
Rask, however, could have given himself better odds of foiling the goal that Marner scored during the Bruins’ 7-3 playoff win on April 14.
Rask is a slider. He is exceptional at hitting the deck smoothly and closing nearly every opening along the ice. The 6-foot-3 Rask’s posture is so skyscraper-straight that when he drops into the butterfly, enough of his torso remains upright to blot out soft spots upstairs.
One of Rask’s strengths, however, is at risk of exploitation. Shooters are weary of thudding pucks into the goalies who have turned ice level into private property. They have adapted.
Now, shots go high. Cross-ice options are considered. Skaters pass when goalies expect them to shoot.
So when Marner saucered the puck to Hyman, Rask slid from left to right to deny the shot. He did it well.
The slide is the preferred alternative to the old-school two-pad stack, a desperation save from which a goalie has little chance to recover.
But instead of shooting, Hyman returned the puck to Marner at the far post. Because he slid, Rask had taken himself out of the play. By the time he recovered, Marner put the puck in the net.
A simple technique
The lateral release is a technical term for a straightforward maneuver: shuffling along the ice. If a goalie is tracking the puck from left to right, he pushes off his left leg and holds the ice with his right edge. It is the vanilla base for exotic toppings to follow.
After executing the lateral release, a goalie can drop into the butterfly — trail pad down first, followed by the lead pad — and shutter the five-hole. He can glove the puck or punch it out with the blocker. If a cross-ice threat materializes, a goalie is in better position to react, perhaps with a desperation slide or dive.
The lateral release, in other words, is a less sexy but more practical foundational tool than the slide. When executed correctly, the lateral release leaves a goalie big and square to the puck and exposing less of the net.
