psulion22

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.

Get the stacks as thick as she can make them. It will really help with stress on your hips. Yep! That's pretty much it. -Butt forward, as much as possible. It doesn't have to be completely perpendicular to the ice. The best way to explain would be far enough forward that your weight is still on your knees, not centered or more back over your calves/ankles/feet. Drive the knees together and down, towards each other. You're still going to go forward some, just not as much. -Feet wider. But knees still closer to shoulder width. Knees should be closer together in relation to the angle of your feet/legs. This will help with the point above because if your feet aren't wide enough, you can't bring your knees towards each other since they are pretty much already there. Those two things are tied together. If you work on them you'll really add to your already good foundation and really see improvement. A good way to work on that at pickup would be to get on a line - it could be the blue line during any free time or warm up, or the goal line to the side of the net if the play is in the other end. Stand in your wide footed stance, knees closer, both feet on the line. And practice dropping so that your knees land as close to on the line as possible. Make adjustments to your stance width, and drop direction as needed. This way you can see how changing things affects the direction your knees move. Good luck!

I'm not your coach, or there to see it in person. But from the video alone, I can tell you that much of your problems are simply because your stance isn't wide enough. Your feet are too close together, meaning you are too upright and having to bend too much. That is affecting your technique, balance, and ability to make saves on the ice and down movements. Simply, you are too high off the ice. Get your feet wider and bend your knees more (just doing one or the other won't help). Keep your knees closer together under your body, not as wide as your feet. If you keep your knees more in a straight line, you'll be leaving your 5 hole exposed, and not be as agile, just like your coach said. As far as the 5 hole, my pads won't cover mine fully either. You have to focus on bringing your knees together, not your feet. Even if the thigh rises don't touch, having your knees together and your stick in place will close up that space. If there is a little tightness in your hips when you go down with your knees together, bring your butt down a little, that should do help. Also, if you go to Sarah at PAW, she can make you a thicker landing block. The increased height, even 1/2", will help alleviate stress on your hips when your knees are together because it allows your ankles to drop lower than your knees. I know it's difficult to get your feet flared out. I have a narrow butterfly also. I'm not talking about widening your butterfly, it is what it is. But if you worked on dropping by bringing your knees together, even if your feet go back, you'll see improvements to your mobility and speed . You can't keep your butt up if you bring your feet backwards. You'd fall forward onto your face. They are linked with each other. I have an older goalie that I coach sometimes. He is used to playing the old stand up way, and had a very difficult time learning the new techniques. His stance was too upright, and his feet too close together. When he dropped, it was like you, his knees went forward and his feet back, and he would get stuck like that and become unable to make second saves or move around the ice. He also had hip mobility issues like you. We were able to get around them by loosening up his pads a lot, especially his toe ties and boot straps. And getting him to widen his stance so he can bring his knees together, but while still being able to drop his but lower to take the stress off his hips. Now he can drop into a regular butterfly, and move around the ice better. He needs to work on his weight transfers and such to really be able to slide around. But he's become pretty solid. His hands, stick, and angles were pretty good before. Now that he is getting wider and lower, he's become pretty solid because his pads are much quicker, combined with the rest of his game. I think you'd see these kinds of improvements also.

What are your skates cut at? If you watch your feet as you are getting ready to make a save, often they are sliding outwards and backwards.from under you. So as you get deeper in your crouch, they want to be wider apart. Get your feet wider, I know you don't think you can, but you can. They are trying to do it on their own. When you do that, you'll be able to engage your edges better. You'll stop slipping so much, and you'll find that your movements are a lot more powerful as a result. Get your skates cut to 1/2 or 100/50 FBV at the very least (I skate on 100/75), you need to make them as sharp as possible. Shuffling will be more difficult, but you can learn how to do it. You can't learn how to make your edges sharper if you are slipping. Also, watch as you drop to make a save. Often, you pull your feet backwards so they are touching behind you. That's leaving the 5 hole very exposed, and severely limits your ability to move. Also, it leaves your knees more exposed to being hit with pucks, and puts more strain on them. I'd say you are more likely to hurt your knees that way then by dropping with your knees in. If you get your feet wider, you'll be able to engage your edges and drop by bringing your knees in. I also just noticed that when you drop, you are dropping your butt and sitting down. That's why your feet go back. You're bringing your weight backwards over your legs, which puts strain on your knees and forces your feet backwards. Focus on keeping your butt and hips straight up. You want to drop forward, keeping your weight over your knees. You'll find there's a lot less strain and pulling that way. Your angles look good, and your reactions and battles are good too. Get your feet wider to get those edges involved and you'll really see an improvement.

Nice job, Beedee! To conserve energy, I was taught a 3 stage approach. It helps keep you focused and engaged, but not wasting energy when you don't need to. Stage 1 - low shooting threat. This is when the other team has the puck, but is not in an area that they have a likelyhood of scoring. That can be bringing the puck through the neutral zone, or over the blueline in a transition situation, or as the puck is moving from low in the zone to the point, or point-to-point, without a one-timer available. Basically any time the other team has the puck but is not going to shoot it on net. In these situations you should be in your "ready" stance (feet shoulder width apart, knees slightly bent, more upright) and be moving and staying on the angle and telescope out to the proper depth. This stage doesn't require much energy as you are more upright. Don't confuse this with being nonchalant or not being ready for a shot. It's more that you are in a position where the shot is far enough away that you would still have time to react and make a save, without having to be all the way into your crouch. Stage 2 - high shooting threat. Now the other team has the puck with possession in the zone, and have the ability to get the puck on net. It could be transition where a player is trying to get around a defender, or a pass to a point man where a one-timer is available, or moving the puck into a higher scoring area. Now you should be in your normal goalie crouch, knees bent , feet wider apart, hands in an active position. You should be at the proper depth and angle and be ready to stop a shot. But, you still be relaxed and fluid, ready to move or reposition as needed. This stage requires more energy to be used because your knees are more bent. Stage 3 - shot imminent. This is as it sounds, there is a shot coming. A player has wound up for a slapper, or is in a scoring area in a shooting posture and is going to shoot the puck. You should be deeper in your crouch to get lower to the ice, with your weight over the balls of your feet. Your muscles should be tight and ready to explode to make a save, edges engaged into the ice. You should be focused on the puck. This stage uses the most energy and you should try to only use it when a shot is imminent and you are going to have to make a save. Now it is possible that you will go through all 3 stages on the same play, in both directions. But doing this will allow you to conserve more energy than if you just stayed deep in your crouch the whole time. For example, a player gets the puck and comes out of their zone 2 on 2 with your D. As he gets towards your blue line you should be in Stage 1. Now that player accelerates and tries to beat your defender wide. Now you go to stage 2 to be ready in case he shoots. He beats your defender at the top of the circle and comes in alone to shoot. Obviously now you are at stage 3, deep in your crouch, ready to make a save. So you went from 1 to 2 to 3 as the potential for a shot increased. You can go the other way too. Take that example. The guy now shoots and you make the save. Your defenseman hammers the rebound out of the way off the boards trying to get it out. You should get up and back to stage 1. The other attacker turns to the boards to get the puck and grabs it, but he is facing the boards and can't really shoot (1). He backhand passes the puck to his point guy who can shoot (2). But your defender gets in the lane so he passes it D to D (1). That guy gets it and can shoot (2). He winds up (3) but pulls off to change the angle (2), then walks a little and takes the slapshot(3). You make a save and send the rebound back towards the boards on the same side. There your Dman and their forward battle for the puck on the boards (1). Their guy wins it (2), comes off the boards into the circle (3), but passes it across the slot (2) to no one (1). Your team then collects it and breaks the puck out of the zone. So you can see that in that one possession you went 1-2-3-1-2-1-2-3-2-3-1-2-3-2-1. And you would have saved a lot more energy than staying in your crouch, in either 2 or 3, the whole time.

On every whistle that isn't resulting in a faceoff in my end, I skate to the right (always the right) corner and just stare into the glass. I just want to clear my head and not focus on anything that has happened up to that point. I certainly don't want to watch the other team celebrate, or my team hang their heads or glare at me if it was one they *think* I should have had. It also doesn't let them see when I am burning holes through them with my stares after they do something glaringly wrong. You can't let the bad third goal, which was seemingly a big one in the game, affect your play later. It doesn't matter if it was your fault, their fault, no one's fault, just forget it and focus on making the next save. Always making the next save - as opposed to "not letting in any more goals". Late in close games, I will literally continually say to myself "stop every shot". Goalie is a much more mental position than skating out. Success is built from trying to ignore momentum, rather than harnessing it like a skater. Every shot is unrelated to the one before it, and the one after it. You need to have a short memory and the ability to ignore everything but the puck.

That made it too tight in the neck and armpits. The shirts are cut tighter in the shoulders and looser in the chest and stomach. So the correct size was right in the shoulders and looser in the body, as it is meant to be. I just prefer a tighter fit all around.

I wear the 37.5 long sleeve shirts (though i wish they were a little tighter). And also the 37.5 skate socks. I agree that it does work better than the materials in the past. I feel drier and cooler in these shirts. They are definitely worth the money. I went back and forth about the jocks, but went with the CCM because the Bauer 37.5 ones just didn't provide enough compression.

These are what I wear. I like the extra elastic strips that are tighter. http://www.icewarehouse.com/descpage.html?pcode=CR5J Bauer makes goalie specfic pants that have padding in them too. http://www.icewarehouse.com/descpage.html?pcode=BEPGP

Yeah, sounds like a little over work. Do you wear compression shorts or pants? I find that compression shorts, especially the new CCM ones with the tighter rubber strips, really help with fatigue and injuries like pulls and strains from over use. I used to get groin strains when I would play a lot before I started with the compression shorts. Now i don't get them anymore, and I'm playing more than I have in years (sometimes 5x a week, including 4 consecutive days and 2x on one of those days).

I like Cory Wogtech's videos for goaltending. He has a newer DVD series available for sale, but there are some videos on youtube. He does a good job of explaining and demonstrating basic technique and philosophy in a way that will help you translate it into your game. It's not just - "do this". It's - "do this. Here's how, and here's why."

Those looking for not bulky, comfortable knee pads might want to consider Maltese KTPs. Yes they are expensive, but they are flexible and light and just as protective as the big boys. http://maltesesports.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1&products_id=3&zenid=2289e55e3e852a7000776d1f1c6c6d9c It's tough because it's counter-intuitive. Your thought would be to get your body going to where you are moving. But in reality, you want to keep your weight on the push side and behind your movement. So on pushes, T-pushes, and even shuffles, you want to keep as much weight as possible off your lead leg to reduce friction. This is important on T-pushes because you can't pivot your foot as well with the weight on it. So you can't turn it to point it were you want to go, and it's even harder to get it back to straight to stop once you start moving. It's also helpful to think of it in terms of consecutive movements. You're not just doing something to make one save. You have to do it to set up the next save if you have to make it. If you put your weight in the front of your movement, you have to do that much more to get it back centered and going the other way. If you keep it trailing, it's centered and requires less time and energy to change your direction. You can use your momentum to load the push leg.

Biggest thing to remember on butterfly pushes is to get your weight on to the push leg, When I coach adult goalies, all the ones that have problems with butterfly pushes are all because they don't get their weight onto the push foot and then don't control it in the slide. They want to get the weight onto the front leg which increases the friction on the sliding pad by a lot, and shortens their slide and/or causes them to spin in circles. The nice thing about this section is that most people are novice goalies. It's not a board for experienced goalies. So things will be more constructive and less 'dude, you suck."

I was taught that your hips, waist, and upper body should be in the exact same position when you drop into a butterfly as when you are in your stance. To accomplish this, you have to have your feet wider than your shoulders and a deep knee bend. If you keep your back straight (sitting in a chair as Badger said), then you will bring your knees together and down to the ice, and theoretically everything from your waist up shouldn't move. You should be driving your knees down to the ice, not just dropping and relying on gravity (as Hills said) and your knees should move in an inward, not forward, direction. Picture it this way, if you get in your stance with your feet on the blueline, when you drop your knees should end up on the blueline, not in front of it. This will improve balance and closing the 5 hole. It is also important because you have to keep your back straight and shoulders back to be able to do butterfly pushes and get around the ice once you are down. Beedee, you look good. The first goal, other than dropping forward instead of down, your depth was a little shallow. You could have been at the top of the crease there. At that spot with your stick on the ice, there wouldn't have been anything for the guy to shoot at. If you think about what I just posted, and look at how you drop to make the save, you can see how your knees went forwards. That essentially created a hinge where you dropped "over" the puck - as your knees went forward, your pads ended up almost parallel to the ice, and the puck went under the pad. That's why you couldn't figure out if/how it went 5 hole. In your mind you dropped quickly (which you did) and your pads should have been there in time. But the direction of your movement meant that your pads were there, but not on the ice. The second goal, was as you said, you just didn't get over in time. But you made one fundamental mistake that is what caused the problem. You got up on the wrong foot. The puck went around the net to your left, but you got up with your left foot. That means you were heading the wrong direction and had your weight on the wrong foot to get moving where you needed to go. Then you had to switch feet and stand all the way up onto your right, so you could move left. Watch the video and you'll see what I mean. Practice standing up on both feet using the foot that puts you the direction you want to move. A good way to practice this is to get up on the foot you want to go every time you get up, so on whistles for faceoffs, get up on the foot the moves you towards the faceoff dot.

Get your knees bent more and your feet wider to keep your butt down and back more straight. You look like you are leaning past your toes which will put you off balance and limit your range of motion. Also, your glove doesn't need to be any higher. It's in the right place based on the aerial angle of the puck. But, you do need to get your hand square to the puck and have your fingers either pointed out or up. It looks like they are pointing down in the picture which means that any puck shot towards the bar will miss your glove since the line would be almost parallel.