Advice: What's your favourite on-ice stickhandling drill?

[HowToHockey]

When I'm out at pick-up hockey there are a few little drills I like to do to keep my hands silky smooth. I was hoping you guys would have a few that I could add to my collection. These are the ones I do

• Juggling pucks - Stickhandling two pucks at once while skating
• Mine field - Scatter pucks on the ice and stickhandle through them
• Sculling - Stickhandling with the puck, but keeping both skates on the ice while skating. I find this one helps me with quick movements and edges

Do you guys have any quick drills that you like to do?

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[Jarick]

Mine field, work on toe drags, etc.

One that helped was to put the puck say way out to my left, dribble, then push hard off the left skate and pull the puck way to the right, dribble, and repeat. That's excellent for deking defenders and controlling the puck from way out.

 

[malkinfan]

Set up 3 pucks in a triangle pattern. Stickhandle various patterns thru, around the pucks without touching the other pucks and with no predetermined pattern (improvise every rotation). Start slow... Then progressively go faster after a couple sessions. You can measure your progress by how fast you can go without knocking the other pucks.
The drill is great because it exercises all possible wrist movements. Make sure you include backhand toe drag, toe drag, short and long side to side... Also, back peddle back and forth around the triangle (if you can, probably expert level) while stickhandling.

A couple of Euro pros that I now play with showed me this when I was younger. I've been doing it a few times a week since I was 12. 10 yrs later, I can now tell you that I can weave through those guys with ease. I have never played against someone with better hands. Eventually I will put up youtube videos to show how to do the drill with maximum efficiency. This drill comes straight from what the pros in Europe did/recommend (both were NHL prospects).

 

[jw2]

2 things I thought were the best for me -
- minefield with cones (I think being able to move your stick anywhere with the pucks, eg over the top of a puck, started bad habits. Not as quick to set up, but more effective)

- Figure 8's with the puck at full speed

 

[deeman]

Set up 3 pucks in a triangle pattern. Stickhandle various patterns thru, around the pucks without touching the other pucks and with no predetermined pattern (improvise every rotation). Start slow... Then progressively go faster after a couple sessions. You can measure your progress by how fast you can go without knocking the other pucks.
The drill is great because it exercises all possible wrist movements. Make sure you include backhand toe drag, toe drag, short and long side to side... Also, back peddle back and forth around the triangle (if you can, probably expert level) while stickhandling.

A couple of Euro pros that I now play with showed me this when I was younger. I've been doing it a few times a week since I was 12. 10 yrs later, I can now tell you that I can weave through those guys with ease. I have never played against someone with better hands. Eventually I will put up youtube videos to show how to do the drill with maximum efficiency. This drill comes straight from what the pros in Europe did/recommend (both were NHL prospects).

Good stuff! A video would be cool too.

 

[jw2]