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055 - Tips for Puck Handling and How Older Goalies Can Adapt to Modern Goaltending
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Show notes can be found at https://thediygoalie.com/pod055
This week we do a bit of a deep dive into how goalies can improve their puck playing skills and why it's important. We also evaluate how older goalies with older styles of play can adapt to modern playing styles to make it work for them.
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Transcript
Introduction to DIY Goalie Podcast
00:00:06
Speaker
Welcome to the DIY Goalie Podcast, where hosts and goalie coaches Nathan Park and Connor Munday share their insights on how to become a better goalie.
00:00:18
Speaker
Hey, goalies. Welcome to another episode of the DIY Goalie Podcast. And we are back together for another episode with myself, Nathan Park, and our co-host Connor Munday.
Modern Stick Handling for Goalies
00:00:32
Speaker
and uh we are going to be rocking another two segment episode today um so i'm going to be kind of diving into the stick handling side of things we kind of talked about it a couple weeks ago that we would be touching on it so we're going to do a bit of a deep dive into that and connor is actually going to dive into a segment geared more towards the older goalies out there the beer leaguers and kind of how uh how we can adapt our playing style to be a little bit more in line with the modern style of goaltending, but still make it work for you guys.
00:01:08
Speaker
that's kind of what we're going to be diving into today. We're ripe in the middle of the off season, end of April here, kind of a bit of a fresh perspective from my end. the The end of the hockey season gets to be a little bit of a grind and Now that we're kind of doing some of the off season stuff, it's kind of cool to get back into, you know, the content side of things that kind of, you know, having some breathing room, taking a ah look at what we want to do with some content and kind of the things on the horizon, the bigger picture stuff, which kind of.
00:01:41
Speaker
makes me a little bit more excited than i might have been two months ago in the middle of uh the end of the season grind so uh but yeah that's exciting how are uh are you doing over there connor the allergies holding up today i was wondering if you're gonna bring that up yeah uh allergies would kick in my butt and then in the last couple of weeks we had a really bad allergy attack today but uh No, I'm good. i am hopped up on Benadryl at the moment. So it's ah it's a grand old time for me.
00:02:11
Speaker
we're in for a doozy today. Yeah. yeah
00:02:17
Speaker
Breaking news, Connor Monday gets fired from the DIY goalie podcast. Yeah, but no, beyond that, i mean, you know, getting into the getting the watching some playoff hockey here, my Edmonton Oilers not doing so hot right now.
NHL Playoffs and Team Discussions
00:02:31
Speaker
And we could do a whole podcast episode on that, on Oilers fans are still blaming Stuart Skinner for every freaking goal that goes in. But that's besides the point.
00:02:40
Speaker
Yeah, well, by the time this episode airs, they might be either out or maybe they made a nice comeback and it's a close series again. Yeah, that'd be nice, right? But yeah, beyond that, I was watching a bit of the Maple Leafs and senators ah Senators game here and this game number three as of recording us.
00:02:57
Speaker
So far, 2-2 at the end of third here and it seems like Minnesota and Vegas are up 2-1 for Minnesota right now. So that's... interesting um i will say that game last night between the caps and the habs was an absolute goaltending clinic that game two montenbo and thompson that was a lot of fun to watch a lot of fun to watch i didn't get around to watching that but i did i did hear it was a it was a good one i was out to ah i was out at a banquet dinner the uh the other night but uh
00:03:28
Speaker
But yeah, no, i'm ah I'm good. I'm surviving right now. So we're going to do that. That's all we need. i mean like if I mean, if you guys saw me around this time last year when the allergies were bad, i mean, you can tell that like i just had to I just had my mic muted the entire time. just sneezing away, so.
00:03:46
Speaker
Yeah. Well, that's why this time last year you weren't a part of the podcast yet. So um that's the reason why. No, but yeah, no, I'm excited for, for my segment today. Cause I think it's like, um I feel like mine is just kind of a, like I told i told you over text, like it's a, it's a cut and dry type type segment that I don't think it really requires. I don't think it necessarily needs to require a lot of,
00:04:12
Speaker
in depth, but just more so just enough to like how to get by and kind of that aspect of it. But yeah, I think it's something that's not really talked about a lot either. I think ah like the older adult goalies kind of get left behind a little bit too. So, uh, I think it's good to, to give them some tangible things to, uh, to take home. is so Exactly. But before, but before we get into that, uh, um, we'll, uh, we'll start off with yours today and, uh,
00:04:42
Speaker
Talk about my favorite whenever I am in the middle. our Our stick handling. Yeah. Yeah.
Benefits and Techniques of Stick Handling
00:04:50
Speaker
Connor absolutely loves to get the stick handling work as a coach in their sessions.
00:04:56
Speaker
Um, hashtag sarcasm. Um, so yeah, this is I find it interesting because i will be honest. I was not a very good puck playing goalie.
00:05:09
Speaker
That being said, i'm coaching goalies and trying to get them to play the puck. Um, I shouldn't say I was like terrible, but definitely there is room for improvement there. But so the reason that we want to get into this and the reason why I think it's an important topic and some like an important skill to be competent in is that a goalie that can handle the puck properly can make a big difference in a game. Like it helps your defenseman out.
00:05:43
Speaker
ah It helps kind of you out, like the puck gets out of the zone quicker most of the time if you if you make the right play. um It just kind of overall puts your team in a better spot, puts you in a better spot.
00:05:54
Speaker
And, uh, and just makes everybody's lives easier. So it's, it's kind of something to build off of last week's episode when we talked, uh, about communication. Um, they kind of go hand in hand because, you know, you're talking lots when you're playing the puck and all that stuff. But, uh,
00:06:11
Speaker
I find the biggest problem with stick handling is that too many goalies just shy away from it. um They're scared to do it. And a lot of that comes from the the perception of it. Like coaches seem to be very adamant that their goalies stay in the net. Fans, parents, whoever, they're they're all like...
00:06:35
Speaker
goalies should stay in their net because we have that bias view that when we see the big mistake happen where somebody muffs a pass and it goes right up the middle and the guy puts it in the wide open net everybody loves to jump on the uh oh he should have stayed in his net why are goalies playing the puck blah blah blah It's kind of the same, you know, when we see the um RVH get ripped apart, and they don't see the hundreds of times that it's fine. They see the one that, you know, was misused and was a bad goal or whatever. Right.
00:07:09
Speaker
Um, So the big thing is, is don't be afraid to play the puck. Don't be afraid to work on stick handling and puck handling. It is something that should be a part of your skill set, should be something that you're practicing and working on.
00:07:26
Speaker
And just like everything else, it just takes practice and repetition. The more you do it, the more you practice it, the better you're going to be and the more comfortable you're going to be.
00:07:39
Speaker
And those are kind of the two things. um It's about the confidence and the comfort as well as the skill set of being able to do it properly. um You look at guys like Mike Smith, Marty Turco, Marty Brodeur back in the day.
00:07:54
Speaker
they had the ability to change a game just based off of, uh, off of how they handle the puck. And nowadays goalies, you can tell are working on it more and more and are being more and more confident because we have seen an absolute skyrocket and goalie goals lately, um, both in the NHL and the AHL compared to what's been historically, um or what, what history has said.
00:08:22
Speaker
Um, so, I think that that's a good shift that we're seeing that goalies are being more confident with their ability to play the puck. They're practicing it more.
00:08:34
Speaker
I still find it absolutely absurd that Mike Smith hit that cross ice, um, like little hole in the all-star game. and but Well, no, okay. Okay. No, that, that, that wasn't the one I was thinking of. I was thinking that,
00:08:48
Speaker
uh the mike smith uh backhand pass to mcdavid with a whole bunch of traffic in front um that was pretty sick too the overtime winner against san jose yeah no i was thinking about the all-star game i think it was before he came to edmonton when he was still a arizona and uh they did that obstacle course with the goalies shooting into that small hole on the other end of the ice and he nailed it first try okay So yeah, it's pretty impressive.
00:09:15
Speaker
um So that's kind of why like being a good stick handler is important because it can help you impact the game.
Developing Puck Handling Skills Off-Ice
00:09:25
Speaker
So when you guys have some time, yes, we talk lots about skating, tracking, save execution, all that stuff. And those are still important skills to work on. But if you have some time,
00:09:36
Speaker
practice your stick handling too, especially even if you're at home. Like if you're not on the ice and you're like, oh, I kind of want to work on something, but I'm not sure what. Even just stick handling a ball with their glove and blocker is something that can help if you practice taking shots with, you know, a piece of wood in your back door, a backyard.
00:09:58
Speaker
shooting on the net or something like that with your, with your glove and blocker, or, you know, a piece of like puck board or something like that. Um, just on top of the grass or whatever, anytime you get a chance to work on it is not a bad thing.
00:10:13
Speaker
So, Couple tips, I guess. Did you want to chime in at all before I keep rambling here? i was i was i was i was just waiting my turn. That's all. yeah um i was um I was going to say just I got i gotta i got a knock on this.
00:10:33
Speaker
And mean, you know, it's me. I always got a knock on everything on this podcast. But it's I kind of blame Steve Dangle.
00:10:45
Speaker
with that term when he was at Sportsnet and then everybody ran with it for a while. If you're a goaltender, 10 the goal, which is 90% true. And, you know, like like you said, you know, we um you know you you you give up an absolute stinker up the middle with them with a bad pass or whatever, and everybody's going to tear that apart. and everybody's going to say, oh, he shouldn't have done that or whatever.
00:11:08
Speaker
But I think part of it when it comes to playing the puck is not necessarily playing the puck itself. It's more so about reading the play. right finding an open lane. We talk about it a lot and we know' when it comes to making saves and being able to anticipate the next movement and everything else.
00:11:23
Speaker
But it's the same idea. when when When you go out to play the puck and you're behind the net or whatever, you take that extra second to open up and scan the play that's in front of you. You don't want to just catch it and then panic and then throw it out the middle.
00:11:35
Speaker
You've got to take that time to open up, read what's happening in front of you, and then being able to make the right decision. So the best puck handlers in the world, not only control the puck, like we've seen, but are also able to kind of read the play and see what's happening in front of them. So I think that goes hand in hand a little bit there as well. And that's where that um negative perception comes in about no stay in your net. Don't touch the puck whatsoever. And then you get coaches on the same breath that wants you to come out and play the pocket. So it's like, you can't have, you can't have your cake and eat it too in that aspect. But I think that's where a lot of that panic comes from as well as that,
00:12:11
Speaker
Goalies go out and, you know, they play the puck and they don't know what's happening um the rent um at the rest of the ice because they don't want to be the one to give up the bad turnover.
00:12:22
Speaker
You know what I mean? i've done I've done a couple of drills, particularly towards the end of last season, where we touched on that a lot. You know, you do the simple dump and dump and chase or dump drill or whatever, and goalie goes out, plays the puck behind him.
00:12:37
Speaker
And I tell them this. take that extra second to open up, scan what's happening in front of you. They know that they're gonna be making that pass to the guy along the half wall, which is a safe option. But it's you open up and you you open you turn around, you open up, you have the play in front of you, and in you're basically quarterbacking the entire breakout in that aspect, right? And you're able to scan the ice, see what's happening, and then be able to make the appropriate play.
00:13:03
Speaker
So I don't know if it's necessarily about not being a good puck handler, right? I think it's more so about just our goalies being able to read the play properly or rebate being able to generate the offense going the opposite way.
00:13:17
Speaker
Yeah. So that's a good starting point.
Improving Puck Control Techniques
00:13:21
Speaker
If we start diving into kind of the, the actual technical side of things and, and like the tips and advice head up is so important.
00:13:31
Speaker
And, I see lots of goalies when we do these drills, their head is buried down at the puck at their stick. And I get it.
00:13:43
Speaker
I was there. I like and as soon as I could become a goalie, I did. I had no player skills whatsoever, which is kind of why and I was not a very good puck handler near the end of my career when I was working on a little bit more, it got better. But I get it.
00:14:02
Speaker
I had my head buried down at the puck too, but as best you can, when you guys are working on your stick handling, when you're working on receiving a puck or a ball, if you're doing it at home or whatever the case is, and you're dishing it to do your best to keep your head up.
00:14:18
Speaker
The more you practice that, the better you're going to be when you actually get into that position on the ice is have the head up, be able to scan the ice and make decisions quickly.
00:14:32
Speaker
a lot of times goalies get themselves into trouble when they hold onto the puck a little too long. They try and make the cute play or they, they try and fake out a, a guy who, um,
00:14:44
Speaker
has a lot more mobility than you do in your pads. The forecheck are coming towards you. Or trying to saucer pass it like straight up the ice or even then. Yeah. um You know, like I had i one kid ask because like i when we again we were doing that drill, kind of that, you know, breakout kind of behind the net option there.
00:15:02
Speaker
And I was just like, keep the puck on the ice. Just put it right on the tape. don't Don't need to saucer pass it. And I literally had a goalie ask me and say, why can't we saucer pass it when the guy's along the half boards? It's like, well, because he's not going to control the puck.
00:15:14
Speaker
Right. Like why, why are you throwing it two feet in the air to a guy that's barely two feet in front of you? Yeah. You know, so it's just keep it kiss method. Keep it simple. Stupid.
00:15:25
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah, for sure. So head up is a big one. um the other thing too, is I don't know why, like, so when we play out rebounds at our goalie sessions, um,
00:15:40
Speaker
a lot of goalies, they're so excited to play out the rebounds too. Like if they're not in the net and that's fine. Like I totally encourage that. But what baffles me is like probably quarter of the goalies that I work with when they do that, the first thing they do is drop their glove to the ice and then go and play out the rebound.
00:16:02
Speaker
And I'm like, yeah, do you do that in a game? Like if you stop a puck behind the net and you go to pass it, do you leave your glove in the crease? Go back to stop the puck.
00:16:12
Speaker
Like keep your glove on, work on stick handling with your glove on and find the proper way for you to hold that stick with that glove, whether it's kind of twisting the wrist back a little bit or holding it down. But keep the glove hand down on top of the stick for leverage, for power.
00:16:34
Speaker
And as best you can wrap that glove around the shaft to actually be able to get some sort of control on it. Like a lot of goalies, they just use their blocker hand. Like the glove hand doesn't even touch the stick.
00:16:47
Speaker
And it's like, that hand is more so just for, you know, the control, like the wrist action to be able to control where you're making that pass or that shot.
00:16:58
Speaker
And the glove is where a lot of the stability and the power comes from. Right? So, Get comfortable using the glove when you're stick handling, when you're passing, when you're shooting and find what works for you. If you need to test out a couple um different break angles on your glove to figure out what works, do that.
00:17:21
Speaker
um The other thing, too, is when and since we're talking about gear a little bit, I found personally, and I know lots of goalies have said the same thing, the shorter your stick is, the easier it is to make those passes.
00:17:37
Speaker
And for some reason, there are a lot of people out there that are dead set against cutting down the shaft of a goalie stick because of balance or whatever the case is.
00:17:48
Speaker
But I know it's been proven that or it's like companies have come out and said that there is no real like balance point on a stick. You can cut the shaft of a goalie stick down a little bit.
00:18:00
Speaker
Obviously, if you cut it right down to like where you're holding it That's a little too much, but you can cut it down a little bit and it makes it a whole heck of a lot easier to handle the puck and make that proper pass and shot.
00:18:15
Speaker
And I don't know if Connor wants to come in, you know, I guess rebuttal that a little bit. but Well, I mean, I don't have the science to back it up, but I know I'm.
00:18:27
Speaker
I am one of those guys that are like, no, don't, don't mess with the integrity. You're a feel guy. Hey, you just like the feel of a brand new manufacturer.
00:18:38
Speaker
Everything that you'll hear is just, I feel safe. Yeah. No, I mean, like, I don't know my way. Well, um yeah, I mean, like, i don't know. Like, I don't like, I don't necessarily have any science or anything to back this up. And like, I'm not, I'm not a gear head whatsoever, but that's, that has just been,
00:18:57
Speaker
um you know, one of those things that like I've, I've heard throughout the entirety of my career is don't cut the stick. And so, i can't so I can't say yes or no on it. I can only say that I am one of those negative Nancy's that would say, no, don't do it.
00:19:13
Speaker
You've been indoctrinated.
00:19:18
Speaker
no freedom no No freedom of creativity whatsoever. Yeah. but no like No, I don't know. I just want i i i would just throw my two cents in there and like, I would just say no. um I would just say like if that's the case, i like I would just get a new stick entirely in that aspect when we go with like ah paddle size inch down or something but i know i i don't know just i think just i know i'm also one of those people that that that are like you kind of have you kind have to deal with and play the cards that you know you're dealt in that aspect so i don't i don't know if that necessarily applies but i would just say it's like because like i'm because like i'm six for one i play with a 26 27 inch and like
00:19:58
Speaker
paddle right and like I'm like, I'm not, I'm not going to the one to say that my pocket handling is the greatest because it's absolutely not whatsoever. But for me, it's more like I was, i guess, again, I feel that it's more so for me that it's more comfortable, you know, because of my height.
00:20:16
Speaker
And so the stick plays to the advantage of my height. And so I'm able to utilize it accordingly. it just, I and was never really one to really work on my stick handling or anything to have that, to have that control.
00:20:30
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, we also grew up in an era, though, where it was bigger is better on everything. Now, if you were to play, you'd probably be told to rock a 24 inch paddle as opposed to a 26 or 27. I'm five foot 10 and I used to rock a 26 or 27. And, you know, but that was the era we played in.
00:20:52
Speaker
Yeah, I know, right? Um, so and some other things, uh, when it comes to the technical side of things, a lot of things that I tell my goalies is, uh, the big one is to keep the elbows out off of your body in front and your hands.
Psychology of Playing the Puck
00:21:09
Speaker
A lot of times goalies try and tuck their elbows back. They're like, They have no real cushion to the puck. They don't have a lot of control because their hands are tight to their body. It's the same when you make saves, right?
00:21:22
Speaker
You're a lot more free to move. It's a lot easier to see. You've got more mobility when your hands are out in front. It's the same thing when you're talking about playing the puck. If you can have the hands out, the elbows out, you've got a lot more control. You've got a lot more ability to cushion a pass dump in or whatever the case is.
00:21:42
Speaker
And it just makes it a lot easier to actually make that play. So keep those elbows out in front, keep those hands out in front. And again, have that glove on that stick for when you are catching a pass or stopping a puck.
00:21:58
Speaker
If you need to, if it's a hard dump in you can even try and get your body in the way as well. Like seal the boards a little bit with your body. You got to be careful with that one just because of the weird bounces.
00:22:10
Speaker
um, But the big thing is just making sure that you can do what you can to give yourself the best ah ability to control that puck.
00:22:21
Speaker
So the hands, elbows out in front is a big one. The other thing that I say to a lot, and I know it's almost like novice or I guess like U7 hockey, but like kind of pointing your stick to where you want it to go, right? Like in your follow through of your pass, point that blade to where you want it to go. That'll help you be a lot more accurate.
00:22:44
Speaker
And as Connor said, try as much as you can to keep it on the ice, get that stick to or tape to tape pass right on the stick and not trying to sauce it all over the place. Right.
00:22:55
Speaker
The only time that you should really try and be saucing the puck is either a, you're going for a goalie goal or b you have to go for a high and hard rim because you just have no options.
00:23:08
Speaker
But that's the other thing is a lot of goalies default to the rim Don't do that unless you absolutely have to and you have no other options. It's way better to keep possession and make a tape to tape pass.
00:23:23
Speaker
And again, that goes back to the communication thing we talked about, but being on the same page as your team when it comes to a breakout um ahead of time can make such a big difference.
00:23:35
Speaker
But if you know what you're doing, 90% of the time, you probably won't need a rim. I just pulled that number out of the air, but roughly, you know, more often than not, you will not need a high and hard rim.
00:23:51
Speaker
Nine zero is like the, our favorite number today, but yeah, 90. yeah So I have a couple of things. um Not that you're wrong, um but it's, so what I say, you know, about that as well as, you know, you don't want, I would honestly say like, you don't, I've seen a lot of goalies where you have, like they basically have their hands, like, or like their gloves basically touching each other.
00:24:13
Speaker
right So they go into like this T-Rex mode here, and they're wondering why they're not getting any good passes off. yeah It's because you know you don't have any you don't have any control. right This is your power hand. this is your Top hand a power hand.
00:24:28
Speaker
Bottom hand is the control hand, basically. Same thing as we teach players you know when they're shooting. So you want your hands essentially spaced enough apart along the shaft of your stick that you're going to be able to get good power and good control in, in, uh, and when you're controlling that puck, the other thing that I talk about as well is just, you know, the weight transfer of it as well. You're basically when you're bringing, you're bringing that puck across your body, right?
00:24:52
Speaker
So you're transferring your weight from your back leg over to your foreleg when you're following through. Right. And that's also where a lot of that power is going to be coming from as well. And then lastly, talking about rimming it around the boards, have a funny story because I can laugh at it now, but at the time I hated it It was one time where um I play when went out to go play the puck in the corner. I had one of the one of the opposing team's players coming towards me.
00:25:19
Speaker
And so I turned around, I go to try and play it along the back part of the wall behind net. And I got enough mustard on it that it was in the air, tried to rim it around the glass to just get it away just to just to open ice.
00:25:34
Speaker
And I ended up hitting the stanchion. right behind the net and so it hits the stanchion jumps over the net nowhere defense is nowhere to be found i'm all the way in the corner basically because there's no trapezoids and um ended up giving it away right to right to the next right to the uh to the guy who was uh coming to attack me and he ends up uh and he ends up scoring so that's probably a prime example right there why you don't want to rim it around especially around the glass as much as uh as best as you can but Again, just the boards in general because depending on what rinks you play at, sometimes those boards are hot soft. Sometimes those ah those boards are a little a little harder there.
00:26:13
Speaker
But yeah, that's going to be my two cents, at least when playing the puck in that aspect. Yeah, no, the weight transfer was going to be another point because that's a big one, especially when you're backhanding the puck. Definitely.
00:26:27
Speaker
The way to get power on a backhand – transferring that weight through from one foot to the other and really using your core to kind of help get that oomph on that puck.
00:26:40
Speaker
Cause if you just try and use your arms, you're not really going to get a whole heck of a lot. Um, the other thing you do even then, sorry, just and to kind of jump on that quickly, but not necessarily with the weight transfer, but I don't know. I I've heard it from, I've heard it from one other coach, um, that I used to do summer camps with,
00:27:00
Speaker
is that you're basically also like rolling that stick or rolling that stick, rolling that, um, rolling that puck across the blade of the stick. Yeah. And so I don't know how necessarily true that is. I mean, every time that I've done it, it worked, but you're basically, especially on your forehand, you're starting it at the heel of your stick and you're, and by the time it releases off of your stick, it's ending at the toe.
00:27:22
Speaker
Right. So that's, that's another thing to consider as well. Cause I think a lot of goalies as well is that, you know, the pucks at the toe with their stick, they're just kind of, flicking it there's slap passing it in a sense right there there's no again control of the puck in that aspect i mean even if they have everything right when it comes to how they're holding their stick and weight transfer across the body and such but i mean like if that puck if the puck's starting point on the stick is at the toe or even in smack dab in the middle ish then there's there you're still not going to get a good shot off for lack of better term
00:27:57
Speaker
Yeah. Well, and the other thing with that too, is I see a lot of goalies try the flick where like their glove is under the stick and they basically just try the little lift flick into the air.
00:28:10
Speaker
Um, and again, with that one, there's not a lot of control. There are not a lot of power. Usually like the younger goalies, they love to do it because they're like, Oh, look, I can raise the puck. And it's like the first time that they actually raised the puck and it's great. And that's a good, like stepping stone, but that shouldn't be like your fallback technique for playing the puck. You need to get used to like a regular hockey shot as best you can with that goalie glove.
00:28:36
Speaker
Um, And for those goalies that maybe shoot one way, but their goalie stick is the other hand, because, you know, you catch the other way as opposed to which way you shoot, try to avoid you know, the whole flipping your stick around and doing all that stuff, like as best you can work on the hand that your goalie stick is, um, because it just makes things awkward.
00:29:04
Speaker
takes more time when you're trying to do these weird kind of flip around things. And I know some goalies have made it work and that's great, but most of the time it's a lot easier to just work with what you have and build on that and make sure that that's part of your skill set because that's the stick that you have and that you're using and kind of the last thing that i have for the puck playing is go for it don't be afraid to make mistakes like the problem is i find like i've heard it's different like overseas kind of in sweden finland those areas um
00:29:43
Speaker
And I'd love to get more of a perspective on that. But for sure here in North America, we're so critical on mistakes that people are scared to make them. And this is not just goalies. This is, you know, defensemen forwards, whatever. um Yeah, life in general.
00:29:59
Speaker
But everybody's so afraid to make a mistake because like there's such a negative connotation around mistakes. But me, if I'm working with you as you know, a goalie coach, you know, you giving up puck in the middle of the ice in a you thirteen like, game,
00:30:24
Speaker
Oh, well, like it's a learning experience. Now you know what not to do, but it's not going to affect the whole trajectory of your career. I had a pretty solid career. I played four years of junior, two years of college. And trust me, I gave up the puck quite a few times throughout my career.
00:30:41
Speaker
And I still managed to make it to a pretty high level and play for quite a while. So um go for it. The best way to get better and to figure out what works and what doesn't is to do it in a game.
00:30:57
Speaker
Now, obviously, don't be trying anything like major crazy like Spinaramas and the Patrick Waddeke to like the, you know, Red Lion and all that stuff.
00:31:09
Speaker
But don't be afraid to go behind the net, stop a puck. If that's all you do to start before you're comfortable making plays, do that. Just get there, stop the puck, get back to your net and then work from there.
00:31:21
Speaker
Stop the puck, try a pass to the corner when your defenseman's there. Then from there, try and pass to the half wall or whatever the case is, right? Just, just build up that comfort, but there's no better time to see how it goes than in an actual game. And don't be afraid to make that mistake.
00:31:39
Speaker
And if you're one of those goalies out there that your coach is going to absolutely rip you for making a mistake, I'm sorry, you're in that situation. That shouldn't be how it is. You might have to adjust things a little bit then, yeah,
00:31:54
Speaker
as best you can go for it. Right. Connor and I give you the green light, just have fun with it and go for it Um, I guess just a message to the coaches out there.
00:32:07
Speaker
Um, again, we talked about it. I've talked about it beforehand talk about incorporating goalies into practice and, um, and, having a goalie friendly practice this is this is another one of those aspects where you can include your goalies in your practice especially if you're doing breakouts right pucks dumped in you can have your goalie stop it before after the goal line and then they can be essentially that quarterback like i talked about earlier in that breakout option right so
00:32:41
Speaker
that like That's being handed to coaches on a silver platter, basically. If you want a goalie that's comfortable playing, the or if you want a goalie that plays the puck, or if you want to incorporate your goalies in playing the puck.
00:32:55
Speaker
Doing a breakout drill is probably number one option in that aspect in terms of doing that. Right? so
00:33:05
Speaker
there's no reason really for coaches to get upset at goalies in that, in that aspect for, for, for playing the puck, because i mean, again, like you watch, I mean, um, you get, you watch as well, you know, NHL games and, um, let's say the Toronto Maple Leafs, cause I was watching them earlier, we're on a, are on a penalty kill and they go to dump the puck in or just to throw the puck in the, uh,
00:33:28
Speaker
the Ottawa zone, you'll have some goalies that'll come out basically couple feet before the blue line just to stop that puck a little bit shorter so then the defense can turn around and attack again the opposite way, right?
00:33:41
Speaker
Coaches, incorporate your goalies in your power plays, incorporate your goalies in and your penalty kills, incorporate your goalies in your breakouts because those, for me, would be the three best options to incorporate them in and for your goalies, again, also to be able to get comfortable in terms of playing the puck at the same time.
00:33:58
Speaker
Yeah, that's a classic one too. Yeah. And the power play is coming out and hitting that guy who's posting up at the far blue line on the opposite side of the benches because everyone's doing a wholesale change and you never know when you can spring a guy like that. Like we've seen Shuster can have a couple nice assists over the last couple of years, just, you know, springing guys like that. And i know like, obviously we talked about him, but Mike Smith too, that one with McDavid, um,
00:34:26
Speaker
The good old Dwayne Rolison bat out of the air back in the day. Backhanded up the yeah. For McDavid breakaway and he scored. Yeah, but that's ah that's kind of the tie-in to like what we talked about last week with communication and getting everybody on the same page ahead of time so that you're comfortable in those situations and you can go out and make a difference.
00:34:49
Speaker
And coaches incorporate your goalies, but also allow them to make mistakes. They'll happen. Don't berate them for it. Just say, let's do it again. Try it again.
00:35:01
Speaker
you know, hit your spot better or whatever. Like don't, don't discourage them from doing it. That's handy. Being handed it to you on a silver platter. Yeah. It's, it's there for you. We've outlined it.
00:35:16
Speaker
Yeah, exactly. All right. Well, if you have any questions about it you can email us at goalies at true north goaltending.com. But yeah. Any. All right. That's all I got. Take us away, Connor. right. Sounds good. Well, thank you so much for watching. Yeah.
00:35:30
Speaker
Connor is going to go ah have a sneeze attack. Yeah. Honestly, there was a couple of times throughout that whole monologue where where where I thought about it. But, um, okay. So yeah. So talking about older, older goaltenders, um, kind of a tribute or, um,
00:35:48
Speaker
attributing themselves or getting used to rather playing the newer style of goaltending. And like I said at the start of this episode, there's like, I'm not like, it's kind of cut and dry for me in that aspect because I, for me, I think there's only two or three things that older goaltenders need to focus on the most.
00:36:15
Speaker
And for me, it's getting getting more used to the idea of tracking the puck, getting more used to the idea of proper rotation, and getting more used to the idea of better save execution.
00:36:29
Speaker
okay and We talked about it a lot. with our younger goalies and in other episodes and stuff. But I mean, like a lot of, a lot of beer league is a lot of older goalies will have played the, will have played like the, the, the old Martin Broder, the um I'm blanking on everybody else's name now, Roberto Luongo.
00:36:51
Speaker
um Basically the 1990s to 2010s ish style of goaltending, you know, the, the leg kicks and the Dominic Haseks and everything else and such.
00:37:05
Speaker
For me, older goalies right now, like they're at the stage in the game where like they're set in their ways. they're there They're used to doing what they're doing. And that's and and that's fine because it's working for them.
00:37:18
Speaker
And we don't you don't want to change what works. But I think you can just build on that more where getting more used to the idea of tracking the puck, okay, which is watching the puck into your body, watching it out, getting used to the better idea and getting used to a better idea of movement.
00:37:34
Speaker
rotating around the body bringing the legs underneath um and then again same thing as well as you know save execution you know where do you want your rebounds to go necessarily right so i mean like it like i don't i don't necessarily have anything on that front i would just say like that's if if there's anything to upgrade in your game as an older goaltender i would just say it's those three things that what you would, what I would suggest for them to focus on because they know how to skate. They know relatively how to move there. They know how to make saves, but it's more so at that point now, just kind of maybe just fine tuning or getting, or just throwing away the idea of just throw a leg kick out there and say, I hope this hits me, you know, or throw a, you know, somersaulting around in the crease or whatever. It's just like, if we're able to,
00:38:28
Speaker
um streamline how you're moving in the net, getting more used to the idea of tracking the bot or tracking the puck in front and making your saves in front of you, bringing them head and back shoulder down, leaning, shifting into your saves.
00:38:46
Speaker
ah For me, I would say like, there's not, there's not much really more to say beyond that.
00:38:54
Speaker
Yeah.
Adapting Older Goaltending Styles
00:38:55
Speaker
I, I, I boil it down to one word and it's efficiency, right? yeah um But the thing is, my advice when it comes to the older goalies is pick your battles.
00:39:12
Speaker
Um, and it's, it's going to be situational, like figure out how it works for you. Like, for example, we have a 62 year old client who at some point in his life had some skydiving accident and broke his back.
00:39:27
Speaker
So he has a lot of mobility issues, but good for him. He plays goal. He plays out. He does mixed martial arts. He does motocross. Like, I don't know how, but he didn't, he makes it work.
00:39:41
Speaker
um but when we work with him, like he just, he can't butterfly like, or very seldom can he get both knees down at the same time in a butterfly.
00:39:53
Speaker
So obviously we're not going to go to him and try and work on just butterflying until he can. Cause it's, it's probably not going to happen. So in his situation, it's okay.
00:40:09
Speaker
How can we make what you're doing work a little bit more efficiently or be a little bit, you know, smoother, a little bit better, whatever. Right. Cause you and I both grew up in era where we would go to goalie schools and they were still teaching the half butterfly and it was on its way out. But I remember going to goalie schools where we learned the half butterfly and pad stacks.
00:40:38
Speaker
yeah And the thing is, is the way goaltending has changed is it's become a math game. It's become the percentages. It's become the efficiencies, how, you know, we can get the job done with the least amount of movement possible.
00:40:58
Speaker
And so that would be my suggestion is to figure out how you guys can play your current game in a more efficient manner. Cause the big thing for me, like with the half butterfly as an example,
00:41:12
Speaker
If you and just even at home, if you go down on both of your knees and you lift one leg up, so or lift one knee up. Feel how your body moves, your body actually pulls away from that leg you lifted up. But more often than not, as goalies, if we were making a half butterfly save that knee, that's up is the side that the puck is shot to.
00:41:39
Speaker
So that means if you're making that save selection with one knee up, your body is moving away from that puck, which is now making it harder for you to make that save because now you have to reach farther.
00:41:51
Speaker
And if you do make that save, it takes you longer to get to your rebound because now you have to bring your body back over to where your rebound is and make that movement. So in that instance,
00:42:05
Speaker
How can we figure out a way to make that a little bit more efficient for you? Do we maybe figure out like so in the case of our our 62 year old client, what we kind of try and work with him on is trying to get the leg down that's on the side of where the puck is going to instead of having that leg up. Right.
00:42:26
Speaker
Because then at least you can shift your body a little bit more and be able to track that puck and find that rebound a little bit more. And then, yes, the rotations is huge and all of that stuff, like your lines through the crease.
00:42:40
Speaker
So basically is if you can figure out a way to make your game have less unnecessary movement to it and figure out a way to be more efficient and getting to the puck and getting to your spots, you can still make it work with kind of the old school style, especially playing like beer league with kind of older school style players as well.
00:43:10
Speaker
um You know, that's, that's fine and all that stuff. The big thing is though, is just understand that, There's a reason why goalies, like goaltending is how it is now.
00:43:23
Speaker
And we aren't seeing skate saves and standing saves and half butterflies anymore. And there's a reason for that. It's a numbers game. It's a percentage game. And it's all about the efficiency. So find ways to kind of make that work for you and your current situation.
00:43:43
Speaker
Yeah, efficiency is a great word to to kind of capitalize that on. just efficiency in your movement, if able, and efficiency in your save execution.
Maintaining Mobility for Older Goalies
00:43:53
Speaker
And that's, I would say that's just across the board in general. doesn't matter what age per se.
00:44:02
Speaker
That being said, big props to all you guys, because I was there too. the athleticism I find from kind of that past generation, big props. i As much as it makes my goalie coach side of me cringe.
00:44:21
Speaker
The like, just goalie and fan part of me is like, I love it. I love the head first dive across big C. I played in a, I played in a Memorial game the other night and you know, it was, it was like a it was a fun, just kind of not necessarily free for all game, but just kind of like gentleman's game.
00:44:45
Speaker
And, uh, Yeah, watching um watching the other guy down the other end just kind of do what he did. Because he was obviously like an older style-ish goaltender, but the way that he was able to get across purely on athleticism alone made me... yeah made me excited down on my end and then they would come down to my end and then think it would get scored on. But we don't talk about that.
00:45:10
Speaker
But, but yeah. It's a little bit of a lost art. The, the whole athleticism side of things. It is, it is. And that's where the, the, the desperation.
00:45:22
Speaker
Yeah. Well, I would just say like the, the stigma about robotic goaltenders comes from, but I've, I've talked about that in the, Yeah, I'm sure we will again. oh absolutely. 100%. But yeah, I don't know.
00:45:36
Speaker
um i've ah there was it was It was an eye-opening experience for me yesterday. ah Last night, rather. just
00:45:47
Speaker
I don't know. Just, it was, it was, it was eyeopening to say the least. And, uh, it was little frustrating. He's like, Oh man, I'm out of touch and out of shape. Yeah. Yeah.
00:45:58
Speaker
Basically. And, uh, the frustrations came out, but, uh, it was still fun. Did you break a stick or, uh, I did not. I came close. There was already, there was chips coming off of the stick. So I'm sure it's on its last legs at this point, but yeah, that's, uh, that's besides the point. Um,
00:46:16
Speaker
Yeah, um I don't know. Like like like I said, like I didn't really have much for that particular segment. I think it's i think for me it was just kind of ah focusing on or building on top of the the the building blocks that older goalies have, and it's just fine-tuning more so and being more streamlined in terms of those three things that I had talked about, tracking, movement, movement slash rotation. i would say rotation more so.
00:46:45
Speaker
Um, and then the save execution part of it afterwards, which the tracking kind of comes in hand with that. But, uh, that's, that's just kind of my three things there. So, you know, I mean, like there's, there are, um, kind of ways to deal with it. I mean, again, like just some of that off ice stuff as well, you know, um,
00:47:07
Speaker
ah you know, you got like the visual edge and, and the NHL sense arenas, you know, if you are able to do those. And then you even then in terms like the movement or getting used to the, to the rotation side of it. i mean, if you have some open space in the living room or something, you know, get used to kind of rotating those hips a little bit more than maybe you could. Cause that, that can, it will translate into the game if you are,
00:47:34
Speaker
mobility able, I guess is not the word that I'm looking for. Mobile. Mobile. but physically If you are physically able, then that's what's... You just combine the two. Yeah, exactly, right? I mean, it's the same thing. Everybody knows what I'm talking about.
00:47:47
Speaker
yeah Yeah, I don't know. like it does it like It doesn't need to be NHL caliber by any stretch, but I think just if that would that would be just the main thing. if you are but If you are able to be a little bit more mobile in your game, I think would just go a long way.
00:48:02
Speaker
Lord knows I wasn't. Yeah. And take care of that body too. I give full props to you guys out there. Like I'm 30 now. haven't played a game since, well, I haven't suited it up aside from making the videos for the course in six years.
00:48:18
Speaker
And, uh, I just, I, I couldn't do it. So props to you guys for sticking it out, the older guys. Um, and, uh, you know, keep doing what you love. Like I love hearing stories like that. We have clients who, you know, started playing hockey and they just hopped right into goaltending in their fifties.
00:48:38
Speaker
And it's like props to you. And I know like when I first started true North goaltending, I initially had more interest from adult goalies than youth goalies. And, um, a lot of people kind of chuckle when I and said that to them, or they'd laugh a little bit, but it's like, Hey,
00:48:55
Speaker
it's no different than and trying to learn how to play guitar or play piano or whatever when you're, you know, in your fifties or sixties or whatever. Right. It's just like a hobby or an activity or whatever.
00:49:09
Speaker
And, um, you know, everybody wants to get good at the things that they love doing. So seeking out that, uh, that goalie coach and help to like, A lot of goalie coaches out there will accommodate adult goalies, even if they don't necessarily advertise it or anything like that. So if you guys are looking for the help, reach out to whoever is local to you.
00:49:30
Speaker
um We work with adult goalies. So if you're in the Edmonton area, come check us out. But props to you guys. ohla I'll give you lots ah lots of love. I love those stories.
00:49:42
Speaker
Yeah. I was going to say, like we haven't done, like I don't think you and I have done like a proper adult goalie session in a while.
00:49:49
Speaker
Well, like how we used to in the summer or in the every Sunday. No, like 7 a.m. or 6 a.m. Yeah, we don't do the group ones anymore. That's because we have the facility. We don't really do the group youth ones anymore either.
00:50:01
Speaker
right. Well, bring us home. Okay, sounds good.
Podcast Wrap-Up and Engagement
00:50:05
Speaker
Well, anyways, thank you very much for watching. If you are watching over on the YouTube side of things over at the DIY Goalie, make sure you go follow us on our social media platforms. Everything at some point will be under True North Goaltending. So go just go check us out over there, over on Instagram as well. and It's all Y-E-G Goalie Coach.
00:50:26
Speaker
um Make sure you guys go head over to our website as well, www.truenorthgoaltending.com. A lot of exciting stuff there. I believe we still have some open spots for our summer camp that is happening in both July and August.
00:50:39
Speaker
I think more so for the August one. Yeah, our five-day one is half booked already. So I was going to make a post about that. but see yeah There you go. we're ah we're we're We're halfway there. We're living on a prayer. So it's...
00:50:52
Speaker
all fine and dandy there um and yeah just make sure you go follow me on instagram as well at monday gc i'm terrible at posting stuff but you know i try to as much as we can um beyond that make sure you like share subscribe um the more goalies that we're able to bring in our little community here or even just kind of bringing or just being a being part of the goalie union in general just getting having an extra voice out there is always welcome as well.
00:51:22
Speaker
As always, goalies, make some saves. This was the DIY Goalie podcast brought to you by True Grounds Goaltending. We'll see you guys next time. Take care.