by Lincoln Hay

Created on: February 08, 2009

Ice hockey goaltending puts the "fun" back in "fundamentals". Being a good net minder requires speed, agility, strength, stamina... and proper equipment. Before you hit the ice, make sure you have preferably modern equipment. Sorry to all you people out there with leather equipment stuffed with horsehair, but achieving the maneuverability for goaltenders nowadays is essential. You may find skating with all that bulky equipment difficult at first, but the more you practice, the sooner you will become used to it.

Start off by understanding you must stay in your ready position at all times. This requires you to have your stick on the ice, gloves out and in front and knees bent. This ensures that you will be ready for the next shot if you were in a game situation. Next, move on to skating by doing some forward C-cuts. Simply put your foot almost perpendicular to your other one and push with your heel. Make sure to bring your foot back underneath yourself after and repeat with the other foot. Once you've got that down, do it in reverse. The ability to skate forwards and backwards quickly and efficiently is important for challenging (coming further out of your net).

Shuffling offers quick lateral movement so getting from post to post is a breeze. Just move from side to side while facing the same direction. A similar technique is the sideways C-cut. Bring your foot around so it is perpendicular to your other foot. Push off while leading with your hands. Use short speedy bursts instead of one big glide to be more efficient.

To make a save that is on the ice or close to it, your best bet is to drop to the butterfly position. This covers more area of the lower net than if you were upright. However, make sure your stick is on the ice and in front of you and that your gloves are in front of yourself. This ensures coverage of the five hole and middle of the net. Also, make sure you are square to the puck and at the appropriate angle when in your ready position. Angles are crucial if you want to make the save. Start in the middle of your net by tapping both posts. Next, skate towards the puck until you are at the top of your crease. Then make the judgement of whether to go into the butterfly or not.

The best thing for goaltenders to become better is to practice. The more you practice, the more you become comfortable with the basic mechanics. Like most sports however, the best feel for your skill level is to play in games. Think about two things you did well and at least one thing you can improve on.

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