psulion22

If you are making a lot of shaft saves, try moving your hands further out in front of you. Maybe come out a few inches further also. You'll get a blocker on those instead, or they'll go high/wide because the shooter will see less to shoot at.

Still haven't had my "try-out". The captain keeps pushing for it, but i won't go out of my way to do it. Season starts next Wednesday and as of now, I'm their goalie. I continue to tell him that if we don't get out together that we'll just have to go into the season and he hasn't said anything contrary. So I guess that's good. I was at the rink while they concidentally had a game, so i watched their goalie. He's a kid, not an older guy I thought when they said he didn't move well. He's pretty technical, but doesn't seem to have any feel for the game or whats going on around him. He makes good butterfly pushes and such, but really seems to be doing them just to do them. Not reacting to the situation. For example, there as a play where the puck was being battled for behind his net. Intead of anchoring to one post or the middle and looking back through the net for the puck, he just kept sliding from one post to the other. Not even really in following the puck. It would move in one direction by maybe 6 inches or a foot and he would slide all the way across the net. This happened easily 8 or 10 times. Eventually it came out on the side he wasn't on and he had to get all the way across into the angle and made a really extended blocker save that could have been an easy controlled save if he just stayed put. It also could have easily resulted in a goal. I don't know really how to explain his play. Something was just off. Though he looked ok, nothing in his play ever inspired confidence. He allowed 2 or 3 bad goals where he wasn't set for a shot, almost like he wasn't ready or expecting it. Just strange. I ran into the director and told him what was going on. He said not to worry, that I'll be fine and the captain thinks every game is game 7. But the rest of the guys are pretty cool. Indeed, I was talking to some guys I knew while I was there. Some of them were on my team and when I told them I was going to be their goalie they were genuinely excited. And said the same thing about the captain. Other guys I knew there were upset they were going to be playing against me, especially since this team was very good and I would make them very hard to beat. Meanwhile, I've allowed a total of 5 goals in my last 3 games filling in for the other team that moved me to D, including a 3-2 win in a game that went to a 5 round shootout where I didn't allow any shootout attempts. One game the only goal came with under 30 seconds left on a breakway where the player completely fanned on his shot and it dribbled under me because I had reacted to it. I lead the league in gaa with a 1.89 right now in the 2 games I've played this season. I'm playing really well right now and hopefully won't be going into a bad situation.

That's the messed up thing, yep beer league. We have A/B1, B2, C1, and C2 at that rink. There is a large separation of skill level between them. I would be above average in C1. One of the guys who recommended me to this captain was putting a team into B2, where I was going to be the goalie, but that fell through. This team is in C2. I'm well above the skill level. But this league would work out best for me because I have friends on other teams, and it doesn't conflict with other nights i already play. It's all too much for C2 beer league.

What is it about low league that creates so much drama with goalies? So as I mentioned before, I lost my starting job on the team i was playing for. We started shaky (partly my fault, partly not), and once I moved to D and had a different goalie, we pretty much only lost one or two games. That was deceiving because we had me skating out and added another solid dman friend of mine, so I don't think the goaltending was the difference. We would have won all the games we won with me in net too. I had spoken to the captain about this season, and they said they knew I wanted to play net. Well, I'm now playing D full time. I don't mind, I like the team and the league and just want to play. But It means I'm not playing goal full time again. The first game of this season, our goalie had an emergency, so i had to fill in last minute. We won 3-2 in a 5 round shootout. Neither goal in regulation really could have been stopped. One was a rebound off my pad that I put to the corner and my defenseman put it into the open net behind me for some reason. The second was a PP goal that my defense let a guy come in alone to my right and when I shifted to play him, he passed it back door to a guy streaking in alone for a tap in. It would have been a pretty spectacular play to even have a chance at it. The game went into a 5 round shootout, where I didn't allow any. That included a highlight reel save on the first shot after I got complete deked to the right and made a diving sprawl back to my glove side. The guy thought he had an empty net and put it right into my glove along the ice. It also included a pretty sweet windmill on the very last shot (I actually didn't have to move my glove. He deked, I stayed with him, he shot it right in, and I windmilled after) to preserve the win and shootout shutout. Luckily, a team at a different rink needed a goalie. I got an email from the captain after the director gave him my info. But this guy is making me jump through hoops like I'm trying out for the Panthers. He said he got a list of goalies from the director and wanted to vet all of them and have an evaluation. I know most of the list, I'm better than all but like 2, by a lot. He wanted to know the highest level I've played, how old I was, how well I moved. They felt their goaltending was below average in the past, and were looking for an upgrade because their goalie was leaving. I checked. This team went 8-4. Their goalie had a sub-2.5 GAA, and was tied for league lead in wins and GAA. One of their losses was in a shootout. I'm not really sure what kind of uprgrade they are looking for. The captain said they lost those games because of the goalie and he allowed a lot of bad goals. But how many can it be? He allowed 30 goals total in 12 games and had 2 shutouts. He did lose 2 games in OT after allowing 5+ goals, and another loss was 5+ goals also. So it may seem like they lost because he allowed a lot of goals. But still. They won 8 of 12 games. I feel like they want to blame to goalie for their problems unreasonably. And I feel they will do the same to me. The captain had asked a few other people he knew about recommending a goalie for him. My name came back from both of those people. So the captain said he would go with me. But they are still stressing over having me skate before the season starts. And it's becoming frustrating and worrysome.

It's a little frustrating, but my play has been more frustrating. It's difficult to get back into the flow of things when playing in real games. I have just not been good, and small mistakes are costing goals. Unfortunately, this is only my 4th or 5th game with them. They don't have any real loyalty to me. And what makes it worse is that there are two other guys on the team that are better goalies than me, including the guy who has been their goalie for a few seasons. I skated out last night. We were only supposed to have 10 guys (on Olympic ice!) and our best player has a pulled groin so he wouldn't be 100%. It was against our rival team, that also has one of my best friends in net, so everyone wanted to win. So we all felt that the best thing to do would be to have me skate out and have one of the other guys play net. It was a pretty good game, and we ended up winning 4-3. I don't know that we would have won if we had not switched. (I had 1G, 1A and pretty much shut them down defensively all night.) I talked to the captain and the other goalie after the game, and both assured me they had no intention of this being a permanent plan. This is for when they feel they need a boost if we are playing a good team or we will be short skilled players. As I improve in net, it will become less necessary. The good thing is that this was my last game for over a month. I'll have that time to try and get as much ice in as possible and work through things. The other goalie offered to come help when he can so I can have a shooter who knows how to work with a goalie.I'm pretty optimistic that if I can ge the ice time, I'll be solid again by the time we play again in January.

Well, I just lost my starting spot. My team wants me to skate out and have another skater replace me. They need the help on defense. And I haven't exactly been helping them in net either. Of course they say it's only temporary. We have some injured better players, and they say I'll go back in net once they don't need me out and him in net anymore. But we all know how that works. Once the team starts doing better, and they see me out and have solid goaltending they aren't going to want to switch.

ugh. My glorious return between the pipes has not been very glorious. After the 4-3 loss to my best friend's team in my first game, we lost 7-1 last night. The first game was my first in a few years, so I was understandably very rusty. Nothing felt right, and I can describe my movements as "statue-like". Just bad. I was expecting some improvement for my second game, but not as much as I got. From the start of warm-ups, I felt great. All of my movements were good, I could slide well, my angles were better. I stopped all of the shots in warm-up cleanly and confidently. I know it's not a big achievement, but I thought it was significant given how off I was the game before. And then the game started. My team dominated play early, so I didn't see my first shot until halfway through the period. And from then on it was an onslaught. I made some great saves to keep us in, saves I wouldn't have made the game before. Backdoor pad saves (and a sweet blocker one on a puck that got passed out front from behind the net), no rebounds into the kill zone, saves through screens and on deflections. But through all of it, my puck tracking was a little off. So with about 2 minutes left in the period, I let a knuckleball get through me. I thought I was squeezing it between my elbow and body, but it slipped down, hit my leg, and went in. I guess I didn't track it all the way in. The second period was a nightmare. I got not much defense and let some bad ones in at the same time. Second goal was on a PP. After a flurry of saves, a puck got back to the point and I never saw it until it was going through my 5 hole. It went through 3 guys before it got to me. third goal was a guy coming at an angle from the circle after beating my dman wide (we play on Olympic ice). I may have been off my angle a little and the guy put it far side under the bar. I got a piece of it with my glove, so I'm upset I didn't get more as i was a little deep in my crease. But it was a pretty nice shot. 4th was a 2-1 that my defender didn't play either guy. The puck carrier came all the way in with a good shooting angle, so I had to stay square with him. He passed the puck before killing his shooting angle back up higher out. It was a soft pass out of my reach, so I couldn't drive hard to the far post because the guy would have had a chance to settle the puck and cut back. 5th goal was a pass from behind the net into the crease that got tucked 5 hole. I played it poorly and was still standing instead of going to RVH. I tried to get a stick on the pass, but once it got through me, I had no chance. If I were down in the RVh, I may have had more coverage against the pass and would have been down to make a blocking save on the shot. Too easy for them. 6th my defenseman kept backing in and just let the guy walk into the slot, cut across, and shoot. He put it against the grain as I moved across with him. I stil should have had it. That's how the second period ended, with us down 6-0. We scored on the PP to keep the clock from running. But then they scored with about 5 to go on another 2-1. This time I got across and made the save, but just like the first goal the puck trickled through me and the other guy put in the loose puck behind me. Overall, I felt like I played better and actually looked like I had played goal before. But my puck tracking just isn't there. Other than the ones that went in, I had 3 or 4 more that squeezed through me and didn't. It's a frustrating start for sure. My team was upset with themselves for "leaving me out to dry". Even though there wasn't much that I could have done to make a difference in the outcome (we only scored 1 goal), I was still upset with myself for the goals and shots that got through me. The progress is encouraging and I know I can and will be better. I just have to remember to keep my eyes on the puck, which is the opposite of what I do as a defenseman. I'm still happy to be back in net.

Well, that was a rough night. We lost 4-3. My team thoroughly outplayed them, but my friend played great. They scored first, a bomb from the point that went bar down. I maybe should have had it, but still an unbelieveable shot. We tied it on a rebound a minute later. The second goal I definitely should have had. Their player came in and undressed my defenseman in the faceoff circle, so I didn't have time to come out and establish position on a breakaway. He deked me and i bit, and pulled the Forsberg on me. I was not in the right place or moving the right angle to make a play on it. It didn't matter what he did, I think he was going to score. What a mess. Another rebound, another tie game less than a minute later. Third goal was a play where their player got a shot and 2 rebounds before putting in the third. He came in from the front, and shot low. I made a left pad save and wanted the puck to go to the corner, but it hit my boot instead and came right back out to him in front. Another shot did the same thing, and the next went off my shin to my left and he jammed it in around my pad. I should have had better rebound control. His shots weren't really hard or they would have deflected off my pad further away from him instead of right back to him as he was moving. Fourth goal te same guy came in at the faceoff circle to my right and moved to the middle forehand. I thought he was going to shoot so I guessed and he cut backhand across my defneseman. I couldn't move across as quickly as he could. He shoveled a backhand on net and I dove and got a piece with my glove, but it hit the wrist instead of the pocket and bounced in. We scored on a scrum in front to get within one. But with me pulled at the end, there was a huge scramble in front of their net and the puck just wouldn't get home. I know the loss was on me. My teammates said no, but I know they were discouraged. Everything was so rusty - crease movements, hand positioning, shuffles, butterfly slides. It all felt off. I'm sure that's to be expected after being off for so long. And I know that I'll get better as I play more consistently again. The good news is that this league is awesome. I was pretty unsettled because I felt horrible about leaving my other team midseason. But this one game washed that all away. Both teams passed the puck all over. It was great team play through the whole rink, even break outs. My team hustles and backchecks harder than most beer league teams i've ever seen. The puck movement made me want to play out instead of goal. And they are all a good bunch of guys. The game was fast and competitive, and yet friendly and casual. The crazy thing is apparently there is bad blood between my team and two guys on the other team who had caused problems on my team last season and then switched. You never would have known. There wasn't even a hint of it. I didn't find out until after the game. Contrast that to the other league where the cops had to be called last night because a fight broke out in the handshake line. One player separated his shoulder after being punched in line, and a player was arrested because he removed a guy's helmet and hit him with it. He is looking at charges and a possible jail term. Clearly I made the right choice.

Strapping on the pads in game for the first time in a long time tonight. After the situation in the rink I mentioned the director of earlier became intolerable, I learned of a team at a different rink in need of a full time goalie. I took it as an opportunity I couldn't pass up and left my team mid-season. I feel really badly about it, but sometimes you have to do what you have to do. If I waited until the season ended, I'd end up playing months worth of miserable hockey and may even miss the chance to take that spot. I know it's a crappy thing to do. Rink management created a situation where I don't want to give them any more money (I paid for the games I played) and I don't wan't to play 2 of the other 4 teams in my division because there's a safety issue. They already caused 3 of my teammates to quit this season. Unfortunately, that rink is 5 minutes from my house and the new rink is 25 minutes. I'm kind of nervous. I haven't played in a game in a looooong time. The few times I've played in a clinic recently, i've been terrible. I'm not comfortable in my new pads at all, It's a new team that won the Championship last season with one of the best goalies in the league. He moved to a different league and the guy he got as a replacement wasn't good enough so they didn't want him. So there's some pressure. Plus, I played 3 games (skating out) last night, including one that started at 10:30 getting me home after 1. And to make it the worst, of course the first game I'll be playing is against my best friend in the other net. So if I suck I'll have to hear about it. Maybe I'll just fight him at center ice on the opening face off so I get kicked out and don't have to embarrass myself. lol

This guy sounds like my rink director. I used to volunteer my Sunday nights to coach the adult learn-to-play clinic, for no pay. The head coach got paid, but I did not. But we were the only two and it was difficult for him to run it on his own, so I came out. I enjoyed it because it was free ice time for me, and I could work on my own things while the skaters scrimmaged or were in break, and such. I also was allowed to stay on the ice afterwards for as long as I wanted, as long as I put the nets away, which was great. I was also playing in the B league which was very competitive. Well, they couldn't get enough A teams for a league, so all of those guys dropped down into our league. Other teams all added some of these guys, and we didn't. Two full teams came in as well. So the league quickly became lopsided. It wasn't the same league we started in, and it wasn't fun as a bunch of B level 30+ yo adults, chasing around a team of all the 22-25 yo kids that had all been on the rink's junior team. So we asked him to move down a league. And he refused. He said that if we wanted to get better then he had A league guys to give us. We said we didn't want to kick anyone off to add better players, and didn't want to play in this league. He told us too bad. So we comitted to the competing rink to play in the comparable league we wanted on the same night. After i was boarded from behind in a game against those junior kids and left the game, i was talking to the assistant hockey director, and talking about the problems with this team in particular. I told him we couldn't compete and weren't happy, and would have to take the spot at the other rink if he didn't at least do something to even things out. Well the next day, the guy who coaches the clinic with me got an email saying I was not to be admitted on to the ice anymore because I had a spot at the other rink. Seriously? You're going to hurt the clinic that ll these people come to because you're too incompetent to manage your league correctly and my team left? of course, I got an email 6 months later when he couldn't find a coach to fill in for a night.

Try to focus on Y-theory- the idea that you will come out of the crease as far as possible, and then retreat as they come close and driving towards just past the post when you hit the top of the crease and have forced them to make a move. Your pattern would look like a reverse Y. Here is what (current Caps) well-known goalie coach Mitch Korn says about playing breakaways. http://www.mitchkorn.com/breakaway.html Y-theory If you are getting beat on multiple moves on the same play, you are probably backing up too quickly. They shouldn't really have enough space to make more than one deke once you start to move. The biggest thing is getting out of the crease so that you can match their speed backing up and will have enough momentum to create a strong push. Some NHL tendies, including MAF, have started using a hybrid, almost VH, stance on shootouts where the player doesn't come right down the middle. He will start normally, but as he backs up he will drop the inside knee lower to take away a 5 hole shot and get one pad closer to the ice. I almost forces shooters to the far side and he explodes of the upright leg to that side. If they go to the short side, he has to go a shorter distance so he is able to use the down leg to push. I can't find a pic of it, but maybe if you look at enough videos you can see it. He is just screwing around in this video, so it's not his real movement, but if you watch the first few saves, you can see him drop his knee, then push.

You can wash the Sham sweatbands too, just not put them in the dryer. They absorb way more than a regular terry band, and they are a little grippy when they get wet, so they hold your mask in place a little better as you sweat.

I use the Sham sweatbands (I made at home). They are awesome. Even with my Maltese padding. I find the padding isn't absorbant enough to go without a sweatband.

I have your 9/50/9 right now. I could go to 60 without a problem. I fully trust in the knowledge and abilities of your shop, so this isn't an issue of mismatched radius. If I buy new steel (and I anticipate to once LS4 is more available and the known issues have been fixed for sure) and send it to you, which will be a better option? Assume I know that the radius will not be accurate and you will have to fix it, and I am aware of the cost of that. Wouldn't CAG be better because you can place that flat where it's best suited for me?

Lookin good, OR. Your stance is much, much better. I'm sure you feel more mobile and agile as a result. I'd maybe bring your glove hand a little down and a little more in front of you. It's hard to tell from the behind angle for sure, but I think you're covering too high based on the aerial angle of the puck. If you bring the hand down a little, and more in front, you cover the aerial angle while at the same time shortening your required range of motion to increase speed and reducing fatigue. The other thing to consider is the newer idea that a goalie should be trying to get their head behind the puck as much as possible (termed Head trajectory). So on a shot, you should be dropping by bringing your entire body behind the puck instead of reaching with hands or legs. There are several perceived benefits of this. According to InGoalMag, the change to this technique is what was responsible for Devan Dubnyk's improvement this season. You can read the article, which has a good explanation of what it means, and decide if you want to try it. I've been adding it, and think my rebound control is better because I'm trapping a lot more pucks in my chest. http://ingoalmag.com/technique/dubnyk-bounces-back-head-trajectory-and-more/ You definitely have to work on those feet clicking backwards behind you. It's making you immobile. And it's actually more dangerous because if you get hit with your feet that far behind you, you won't be able to roll out of it and risk a knee injury. I know you say it's a flexibility issue. But you aren't doing it on every save. It's mostly on low shots towards your 5 hole. You're not confident in your ability, so you're pulling your feet back to try to keep the puck from sliding through. On higher shots, you use a wider flare. Check out Maria Mountain's Butterfly challenge to work on your flexibility. It's free http://hockeygoalietraining.com/wordpress/butterfly-intro/

I was assuming that the 9' radius was known to be correct. So I'll clarify. If I send you my steel, what is the fundamental difference between your 9/60/9, and having you put a 9' on and then CAG the 60? Wouldn't the second option actually be better because you could customize where you are putting the flat for each skater? This isn't just hypothetical. If I have to send you my steel, I'd like to know the best option for me.

Hey Jimmy. I'm sure it's been asked before, but I'm a little unclear. What's the fundamental difference between a CAG profile added and your triple flat radius? I know you guys have templates for putting the profiles on the blade, but is a CAG 60mm section on a 9' radius the same as, or similar to, your 9/60/9?

I got called to fill in for a private team practice last night. You want to talk about no defense and bad habits? For the first hour or so, there was no defense. Literally, the drills didn't have defenders. So for nearly an hour, I faced some variation of uncontested 2-0's. Of course the players ignored the instruction to get a shot and go far a rebound instead of dekes or backdoor passes. So I played the shot until they got into the circle. If they didn't shoot by then, I moved out of the crease and got ready for the next pair. Then I got a defender and got to face 2-1's. Woo Hoo!! But that was really just the defender overplaying the shot and leaving the back door open, then coming all the way across following the puck and leaving the first guy open for the return pass on the other side. I just practiced either trying to make the backdoor save on the first shot, or having an active stick and breaking up the pass. There's no reason to go crazy trying to make every save, and doing things wrong in the process.

I'll also add that it is also possible to take a stupid situation like it isn't a stupid situation and get work out of it. Like LG said, most drills are not goalie friendly and cause a lot of stupid situations. As a goalie, you have to break down the drill or play and understand what skills will be helpful to you and what won't. For example, if you keep getting 2-0's in pick-up, pretend they are 2-1's. Play it like there is a defender back with you. Focus on not getting beat on the shot, and forcing the pass. Then try to make the save on the pass play. Getting caught in the middle or cheating one way or another is where you develop bad habits from pick up. Along that line is rebounds. Often you will position yourself to be able to make a rebound save because you don't have defense back to help. Don't. Practice your rebound control instead, so there is no rebound. If there is going to be one, play it like a game. Make the first save, and then get in position to stop the next. It's worse to get beat on the first shot than the second, or third, or fourth. You don't HAVE to make every save in pickup (and you probably can't anyway). Trying to is what hurts how you play in games where the situations are a lot different.

Is anyone going to the Caps' sale at Kettler on July 11th?

In your crease while the puck is in the other end. There are very basic drills you can do by yourself to teach crease movements that can just be done in the crease for a very short time. Make a T-push to your right. Then one back to your left. Then back and forth until the play comes back down to you. It's not a real practice, but it's still a few reps. Or stand on one post like the puck is in the corner. T-push up to the top of the crease (as if puck is in the circle), then over to the top of the crease on the other side (went to other circle), then back to the post (back to corner on same side). Then go the other way. That's 3 T-pushes in one direction simulating a game situation. It's good practice. You could do the same by going across the crease (right post to left crease to right crease back to left post). And this same exact drill can be used for butterfly pushes. Just sit on your knees. Make one push to your left. Then one push back to your right. Then go from one post, to the top of the crease, to the other post this way you learn to rotate your head->hands->hips. Then you can do a combination of T-pushes and slides using those 4 points. Post->T-push to top of the crease->slide back to the other post. You don't need a full sheet and a lot of time to get reps in.

I wouldn't go that far! lol It's full of immature douchebags posting the same annoying crap over and over. But it is also a good place to buy and sell used gear.

LOL I wanted to mention it before you used the pads just in case you wanted to return them. search for "Goalie Gear Sluts United" (otherwise known as GGSU) on facebook. A lot of used gear goes through there. Have fun in whatever pads you decide to go with.

Congrats on the new pads! I don't want to rain on your parade, but there is a facebook group where you can get used gear for pretty good prices, and probably could get the better or even pro model of that pad for the same thing. The problem with low end senior pads is the materials break down faster and they won't give you the best performance. You'll need new pads sooner, and will end up spending the same over the same period as you would have for better pads and have the worse performing pads the whole time. Unless there were major structural changes, I'd say even last year's pro pad will be a better option long term than the 3rd highest option this year. If you like that more flexible, closer to the leg fit, You could also look at Vaughn Velocity (usually abbreviated V*) or Brian's Gnetik's (I have Gnetik's - they are awesome). They are your pads and your money, so I'm not trying to make you doubt your decision. I just wanted to make you aware of the online used gear market (brick and mortar used gear stores usually suck) because you are a newer goalie and may not know what else is out there. Generally the used route is going to be better for someone looking to spend less than $500 on pads. And how tall are you to be fitting into a Bauer 32+1" pad? I'm 5'9" with short shins for my height and I'd fit into 33 at least. I'm 32/33 in Brian's and those usually run big.

Lol, you're not going to believe me, but I think you look much better. Your stance is wider, which is engaging your edges. Your movements are more solid and you look more explosive. You made some good saves where you got a pad out really quickly. Faster than I had seen you in the first video. I know it doesn't feel like it because you feel like you played poorly, But I'm saying you looked much better. Watch the save at 8:40. Nice wide stance, knees in. You dropped very quickly and got the stick down and deflected the puck away. Can you see how much more fluid you are in that save? same at 2:21, 2:31, 2:45, 2:49, 2:56. Even the play at 3:09, you moved across well and just missed the puck. That was a great movement and then quick pad at 4:15. You just missed the puck again. 4:35 was great movement on a breakaway - deep knee bend, to one pad down, and a push across with the other leg. I think you moved better and had better push there because you were deeper in your stance. If you think about it, by getting your feet wider and a deeper knee bend, you can move your leg further and generate more power. Just like bending your knees as a skater. If you stay straight-legged, your shorten your stride and limit your power. There are other things to work on, obviously. But don't be discouraged by a bad night or the changes you made. Stay with them and build on them.