Learning Tips

Stick Handling by Coach Vinny

Stick-handling is a key to your success as a hockey player. Passing and shooting are obviously important, but these skills are reliant upon your ability to "HANDLE", or control a puck well. All great stick-handlers, passers and shooters can control a puck while looking up at from their puck.

Here are some tips to help you to improve your stick handling skills.

The pictures should help illustrate this tip.

• Keep your hand off your body (sound familiar ?)
• Try not to slap or "manhandle" the puck. Try to feel the puck by cupping the puck with every touch. You should not here chopping when you stick-handle.
• You don't have to constantly dribble the puck. sometimes pushing the puck is all that is needed. Remember, you increase your chances for error the more dribbling you do.
• * Handle the puck out in front of you, under your chin, so that you can SPLIT your vision. ( Try to look up and keep the puck in your peripheral vision below the area that you are looking at.) looking up from your puck and still seeing it is the key.
• You can practice this with a ball or puck off the ice. Be creative and PRACTICE, PRACTICE,PRACTICE