How to hold the stick

How is the stick to be held? The top hand, start by shaking hands with the stick and place the butt end in the back of the palm with last two finger  on the very end together and firm. With the wrist slightly down. The little finger and the third control the stick. 

to be continued

Between practices, games on dry land

What can I do at home between practices and games. One stick and one puck on
a  rough dry surface a player can develop strength and touch by using the top
hand position on the stick handle. Push the puck to the right and roll  the wrist and cup puck to catch and angle the blade toward the direction of the path of the puck
then push right and cup . Start six inches  wide and extend to thirty inches.
Change hands and keep the new hand on the top of the stick.
Rolling  the wrist and  cupping the puck. The length from the center of the body
should be as far out as one can control the puck glide.

Under construction

How to hold the hockey stick

Next to come

How to hold the hockey stick

Passing / receiving the puck

Sweep pass, snap pass, and flip passes to follow.

Some things learned this week

I have played shinny hockey in Red Lodge many time this winter.
We play with next to no pads. The body is free to flow without
competing with bulky pants, elbow pads, shin guards, and shoulder
pads.My personal game has increased mobility. This allows me to
be more competitive. Now for my big surprise, in Billings wearing
full equipment I struggled to obtain the free flow I gained in Red Lodge.
I need to give this some farther thought.
January 24,2012.

How to play left wing

The left wing in ice hockey

1.     The game begins with a face off at center ice. The left wing is to cover the opponent’s right wing until one team takes possession of the puck.

If the opposing team takes possession, then defensive play is put into action.

2.     The left wing playing defense in (his or her) area will be to move within the neutral zone to the top of his or her left defensive circle. Task is to play their opponent’s right defense player at the blue line and cover any player in the left wings 12 to 20 ft distance from the left boards.

See attached drawing

3.     Never go into the corner unless you can take 100% possession of the puck.

As you team gains possession of the puck the left wing changes to an offense foreword. Skating fast along the left boards with these options

4.     Skate fast to be in a position to receive a pass

5.     If the left wing has control of the puck

6.     Look for a player in a better position and pass the puck ahead

7.     If No player to pass to, skate with the puck

8.     * never make a pass for the sake of making a pass

9.     Last resort shoot on goal and go for a rebound

*The line (center and two wings) should have a pre plan for entering the offensive zone.

10.   If the Puck is in right  offensive corner or side

11.  Take the position 15’ out from the goal post on your side and 15’ to the boards. Try to bring the right defense men away from the net.

12.  The puck is in the left corner go get it and fight hard for ownership

13. Your team loses the puck in the offense zone ,quickly back check, back check to pick up and cover the opposing player on your side.

What is fore checking for the left wing? If possible impede the puck from coming out of the offensive zone. Create a turnover.

The object of ice hockey is to shoot the puck on goal: shoot, shoot, and shoot. Many goals are scored on rebounds.

When you shoot follow the line on the puck for a rebound and a second attempt to score.

The Skate

Today way a wonderful day to skate on my 12 x 28 rink. My thoughts went to the blades
and the boot with laces.Look at your skate. What is the radius hollow, blade radius, and
blade pitch. How high do you lace up, how firm are laces?

From my friends wisdom, lets talk. Laces, extra lace should never be wrapped around the
ankle. As you lace up your boot have the bottom  2/3 laces firm with the top 1/3 some
what tighter. The height of the top lace should facilitate  your style of skating. At public
skating try different heights.

I use a western boot pullers to tight lace on a cold day.

My skate sitting flat on the ice only touches the diameter of a dime. I chose quick,
sharp turning over speed.

A flat small stone or a copper penny can remove nicks on the blades.                                                             
Rub from heel to toe along each side of the blade.

Where the game begins.

The Pond

Henry David Thoreau went to Walden Pond to live deliberately.
Let us go to the pond to play ice hockey deliberately.

If you play ice hockey you never grow up.  Billy Smith , New York Islanders

The Face-off

Face-off tips
1.Watch the refs hand and move quickly, aline your stick 6 inches above your opponents
stick, as the puck drops move your blade quickly forward,then turn the blade toward the
side to be drawn.

2.Lean on your stick and hold tight and block your opponents stick and then draw
the puck back.

3.If she slaps at your stick just lift yours and then gain control of the puck.

4.Once a game block the center and have your wing retrieve the puck.

5.Push the puck through the legs of the opponent and skate around to retrieve the puck

How to play the off side wing

Hello  A short trip to New York City and Madison Square Gardens  to view  Rangers vs. Senators
Quite a few players chose to play the off side wing. How they player their chosen position was to face the location of the puck. The stick face was against the boards. What makes playing this position  well is knowing your team mates and having talked the options in difference situations. At this position you can take a pass on both the forehand and back. A big plus is seeing more of the goal opportunity when breaking in on the net.

This will be a new drill  

The Hockey Stick

The Stick. One size doesn't fit all players. Does your stick feel like it is apart of your arm extension or is it like a club? Unbalanced,weighty,too sift,to long or short,with the wrong lie for your skating style.

The shadow test, set your body in line with the sun as it crosses the ice. With the stick at a 90 degree angle to the line of the sun.Take your hockey stance. Look to see if any light appears from heal to toe.the blade should flat on the ice with no light appearing.
 

Stickhandling for my friends in CC

Speaking of Stickhandling … 4-Jan-12

The act of sliding the puck foreword at acceleration, then manipulating the puck to avoid opponents and deceive the goaltender, this is the art of stickhandling.

”Know thyself”…and your equipment.

Inspect equipment for any part that does not allow free flow of hands, shoulders, and forearms. Gloves must have soft with pliable palm. Elbow pads and shoulder pads are other areas that restrict flow…

The stick must be the extension of the arms with sensitivity of the tips of your fingers.

Page 26

Practice Rock around the Clock drill and the triangle drill.

Lets press on

 Notes from "Born to Run"

Eat like you are poor…85 % vegetables

Smile and play while you are running

Practice abundance by giving back

Improve personal relationships

Show integrity in your value system

Live lean/build in your soul

Think easy and soft with quick feet

Don’t fight the trail or course

Take what it gives you

Use pity pat steps. When running steep grades use two short steeps and running with rocks three steeps

Back must be keep straight

Beware of tricksters

Travel

· Light

· Smooth

· Fast

· Tippy toe steps

“To live with ghosts requires solitude.” Michael Anne

The best runners leave no footsteps Tao Teh Ching

Speed work on the track every other day

“The only thing going on is pure flow.”

Just finish the run

Your shoes must be light and flexible

Shoe block pain, not impact

Pain teaches us to run comfortable notes from Born to Run. Christopher McDougall

My game/ revisited

The Detroit game August 30, 2011

“He shoots… and he scores,” than turns to see who get the assists while skating to the scoring table. That was Detroit ice Hockey of the 60’s, what a game. Full body checking with heads up action. The rule: a player could take two strides and check a player with the puck or if he passed it away he was liable for a body check until the puck was touched by one of his players. Also two strides were allowed for a board check. The players who choose keep the puck and not pass was the target of five defensive players. The hands, stick, and elbows are in the down position. The player skated with the head up. The amateur game off no checking has lost the beauty and necessary team skills.

Stretching is not warming up

1. You have to be hot to stretch.

2. Strength, not gravity develops flexibility.

3. Sports do not get us in shape. In fact sport gets us out of shape.

4. All injury is sport is caused by structural and muscular imbalance (save contact with other).

5. Muscular imbalance and structural irregularities don’t fix themselves.

6. Even iron will bend if you heat it up.

7. Stopping training doesn’t correct imbalance.

8. No matter how fit you are at what you do, when you start something new you have to ease into it.

9. Stretching does not equal warming up.

Works Cited

Birch, Beryl Bender. Power Yoga. New York: Fireside, 1995.

Sunday, January 01, 2012

It is Thanksgiving the wonderful game ice hockey begins

Handle the puck daily

Turn off volume and watch ice hockey on TV. Visualize the player’s moves, where do they look, and pass.

This winter team play will return. The Montreal Canadians were the best passing team in the original six 1950’s-60’s this equated to many victory, Stanley Cups, and inducted Hall of Fame players.