any way to improve offensive awareness

[flaming_june 2]

any drills or mental notes / things i can learn to gain more offensive awareness, instincts, going to the right place right time kind of thing?

thank you

[eagan09 0]

It is kind of an expierence thing the more expierence the more instinct you have when it comes down to it you work on your skills but awareness is something you have to pick up as you go along

[cobrAA 0]

*HEAD UP*

[DamnLocust 0]

With the puck, you pretty much react to what's around you- defenders, goaltenders, your teammates. Look for open and streaking linemates, but be ready to take a shot if nobody can get open. Most importantly, keep your legs moving as long as you have a defender on you. If you get some space it's not a bad idea to pull up and wait for something to develop, but be ready for pressure from the defender almost immediately, and know what you want to do with the puck if he does pressure you.

Without the puck is a bit harder. A lot of it just comes down to chemistry and knowing the tendencies of your linemates, but you can make things happen on your own as well. By skating hard without the puck through the defense, you can open up a passing lane. It is important to keep moving, as it's easier for the puckcarrier to find a moving target, and it's harder for the other team to defend against you.

If the puck doesn't come your way, and you expect a shot from the puckcarrier, head to the net looking for a tip in/rebound. If it doesn't look like a shot is coming and the puckcarrier is experiencing pressure, move to an area where he can easily dish the puck off to you, especially near the boards.

Even without the puck, know where your teammates are, and know which ones you wil be able to pass to quickly. When anticipationg the puck, try to know what you want to do with it BEFORE it gets there. Asses your time and space, and know beforehand whether you will pass, shoot, or keep the puck. This counts for all zones, not just on offense.

[biff44 0]

Smart offense players "know" where the puck is without having to look at it. They are busy looking at the defenders and figuring out where the puck will be and where a passing lane might open up. They are trying to be open for the pass.

Many forwards that have trouble with positioning seem to be mesmerized by the puck. They stare at where the puck is all the time and forget to do their real job--going to where the puck will be a few seconds later! Have someone watch you durning a game and have them report back on where you are looking.

Another common trait is for a forward to be racing up the ice but not bothering to look back for the outlet pass from the Dman. In this case you have to be really ready for that pass and anticipate where it will be and to get there in time. I wish I had a dollar for every beautiful pass that I saw a Dman sail up to mid ice to have it whiz by his forward's stick by 1 foot.

[DamnLocust 0]

I guess it's better when the forward doesn't see the pass than when the forward sees the pass, moves his stick for it, and still misses it. I know a few who just don't have the hand-eye to catch a long pass.

[Chadd 916]

any drills or mental notes / things i can learn to gain more offensive awareness, instincts, going to the right place right time kind of thing?

thank you

A big part of it is knowing the tendancies of the other players on the ice with you. Who are the shooters, who are the passers, what kinds of things do other guys do with or without the puck.

[pantherfan 0]

I think the main way to gain offensive awarness is actually playing other then that maybe breakout drills could help

[thenextone96 0]

watch hockey. go to games, watch on tv. watch where the good players go. thats the best way to learn

[Meathead 0]

Throw the puck at the net.

[chk hrd 164]

become a student of the game instead of just another player. Watch as many games and videos (all levels) and see what the big picture of the game is. You will start seeing things that you never realized about passing lanes, positions, strategies, etc. Use these while your watching your team play and start trying to use them on the ice. Experience is the best way to learn, once you start to see the hole game you will go from thinking to insticts.

But don't try to overthink everything. Hockey is a fluid game and changes every second. I tell new players or kids to try and not think just do. Thinking to much causes hesitation and that will hurt your game. You will learn to read and react (mostly by trial and error) but that is how you build experience.

[Meathead 0]

Old school hockey system:

Your blueline and in: Pass

Your blueline to red line: Skate

Red Line to opponent blue line: Dump

Blueline and in: Shoot

[willy0314 0]

become a student of the game instead of just another player. Watch as many games and videos (all levels) and see what the big picture of the game is. You will start seeing things that you never realized about passing lanes, positions, strategies, etc. Use these while your watching your team play and start trying to use them on the ice. Experience is the best way to learn, once you start to see the hole game you will go from thinking to insticts.

exactly...... Watch the game, but dont just watch it as a hockey game. Watch how the players play the game. What they do with the puck, where they skate to, what the guys do without the puck, How a team sets up, how they break out, how they back check. Study the game, dont just watch it. As you get better try to anticipate what is going to happen before it dose, how things are going to develop.

[Larry54 243]

Make it a habit of constantly looking around and keeping track of where your team-mates are even when you don't have the puck.

Keep your distance from oponents to become a preferable target for a team-mate's pass.

And a very simple fundamental thing that nobody mentioned is to keep your stick blade on the ice to give your team-mate a target to pass to.

[Chadd 916]

I think the main way to gain offensive awarness is actually playing other then that maybe breakout drills could help

Breakout drills do nothing to improve awareness. It's simply a matter of being more observant. The only way to truely improve awareness is to work on being more observant. Try to notice as many details as you can in day to day life, then process those details as quickly as possible and observe more.

On-ice awareness is knowing where everyone is at any given moment, where they're heading, how fast they are, if there stick is on the ice as well as what they're going to do next. That includes your team as well as the other team. Either you can process it all or you can't it's very hard to improve your on-ice awareness.

Keep your distance from oponents to become a preferable target for a team-mate's pass.

It's not just being alone, you also have to make sure there is a passing lane as well.

[pantherfan 0]

On-ice awareness is knowing where everyone is at any given moment

And if you practice offencive drills like breakout drills with the people you play with, you will get a sense of where they are what they are doing and what they want to do

[xMenace 0]

Some stuff to consider: One of the keys is to know the opposition's forwards' defensive tendencies and posture.

Centers - should be the fifth defenseman going after the puck in all zones. If he's louzy at this, i.e. won't chase it down, then work it deep in the corners with two men. If he's good, then key off the wingers.

Wingers - have to cover a triangle: along the near boards, the high slot, and the point. Many wingers and coaches typically only aim to cover the points. If that's the case, look to drive from the corner inside the winger to the high slot. The lane will almost always be there. If they like to collapse to the net, feed your points and go to the net.

PP - if the box is collapsed, let your D quarterback the PP and work a high shot. If the box is expanded, let a winger qb the PP and work it in low.

[willc7786 0]

To answer your question, it also depends on the kind of player you are. Yeah, offensive awareness helps everyone, but its best to be tailored to what you do best. If you're going to be a rock around the net, thats different awareness needed then if you're a permiter player that waits for the right timing to jump into a passing lane, and vice versa.

[All Torhs Team 0]

This may not be a good answer to your question because I am not all the way finished yet. But I am in the middle of a book called "Hockey Tough" by Saul Miller. Its an amazing hockey book mainly about mental attitude. Im not sure if its what your looking for but its deffidtnly worth reading.

[Chadd 916]

On-ice awareness is knowing where everyone is at any given moment

And if you practice offencive drills like breakout drills with the people you play with, you will get a sense of where they are what they are doing and what they want to do

It doesn't help you know where the defense is and that's somewhat important. If you know were your guy but have no idea that there's someone between you, that's not awareness. It really is one of those things that can improve somewhat but it's really a matter of being born with it.

[Dante2004 0]

People said watch games...

I take this one step further. Go to a game and watch a PLAYER. Ignore the rest of the game. Just watch the player. (Try to pick their big scorer). Watch his eyes, body language. Even when he is on the bench. Watch his eyes. Watch him as he breaks down the opponents defense even from the bench. When he gets on the ice, watch him follow the play. If you are looking for "offensive awareness" you should be more concerned about what he does BEFORE he gets the puck, than what he does WITH the puck. What did he do to get open? Be in the perfect position to catch a pass, or a one timer? How did he read the deflection off the boards.

Gretzky used to say something about "I don't beat my opponent to the puck, I beat him to where the puck is going".

[sonsplayhockey 0]

There is a guy on our team that has consitantly gotten goals off of rebounds. He knows where to be on the opposite side of the goal when a shot is taken. If the shooter misses, he's there in the corner or behind the net to pick it up, if it rebounds off the pads of the goalie, he's there to take it in with one shot. There are other guys who look like dear in the headlights and hang in the high slot covered by D who look for a pass that never comes because A) they are covered B) They are skating behind the player with the puck C) Even if the player with the puck got it, they are in no position to pick it up.

I have often times freeked and passed when the D got close only to pass to someone who was either not really open, or was not in any better position to shoot. It's something I"ve been working on.

If you are even thinking about it, that's good. Thinking about somethign before a game and actually doing it is 2 different things though.

[Adam91 0]

This may not be a good answer to your question because I am not all the way finished yet. But I am in the middle of a book called "Hockey Tough" by Saul Miller. Its an amazing hockey book mainly about mental attitude. Im not sure if its what your looking for but its deffidtnly worth reading.

Ya I'm about halfway through that also, its a great book.

You might want to look into it actually. It has guys like Paul Kariya talking about there thought process in the offensive zone and things like that so it could be helpful

[biff44 0]

Dante is right, you can see a lot by just watching!

I like to watch NHL games in High Definition. I have a comcast replay system, so I can go back after a great move and step it forward in slow steps. It is a real eye opener. Some of the stuff you can see, especially down low, is simply magical! A lot of time it is just one player's determination to get that puck into the net no matter what that makes it somehow find a hole.