Taking Hits..Open Ice?

[troybruins89 0]

Is there any good way to take an open ice hit or even a hit in front of the net? It seems like Im getting put on my ass much more than I should be. Being a small guy could have alot to do with it, but thats not much of an excuse for getting throw around so much.

[swede 45]

1. Hit the gym

2. Learn how to eat for performance

3. Try to bend your knees more to get a lower center of gravity. Lower center of gravity = Better balance..

[Neal 41]

Don't be nice about taking the hit. What I mean by this is, make sure it hurts to hit you. If you see the guy coming turn into the hit and throw a shoulder into him. If he has his hands/sticks up make sure you do the same.

[BK 0]

Don't be nice about taking the hit.  What I mean by this is, make sure it hurts to hit you.  If you see the guy coming turn into the hit and throw a shoulder into him.  If he has his hands/sticks up make sure you do the same.

Listen to this guy.

Whenever I hit somebody open ice and it hurts ME more than him.. I avoid hitting him again (unless its a clean bodycheck).

Edit:

Last year, Utah State had this little asian kid. He was fast but liked to look at the puck when he was playing it. Our wingers had a scuffle between the lines and he ended up with the puck. I started up from our blueline, lined him up and got ready to smear him. As soon as I lowered my shoulder he turned a little bit an got a dirty spear shot right below my chest pad. We both hit the ice... he got up a lot quicker than I did. I didn't mess with him too much after that.

[Gongshow11 1]

you kiddin me? you dont go after a guy when he hurts you? there is no way to defend an open ice hit unless your stronger than the other guy, but still it might hurt. The only thing i do is if my head is down at the last second i will get my elbow up when i see him to protect myself. I know its dirty, but who wants a concy right?

[ktang 34]

Is there any good way to take an open ice hit or even a hit in front of the net?  It seems like Im getting put on my ass much more than I should be.  Being a small guy could have alot to do with it, but thats not much of an excuse for getting throw around so much.

Are you in your tripod stance, with your skates wide (for the front-of-the-net situation)?

[BK 0]

you kiddin me? you dont go after a guy when he hurts you? there is no way to defend an open ice hit unless your stronger than the other guy, but still it might hurt. The only thing i do is if my head is down at the last second i will get my elbow up when i see him to protect myself. I know its dirty, but who wants a concy right?

Yea.. if I take a spear to the chest and it hurts so bad that I am slow to get up, then yea.. I am going to be more careful.

[Chadd 916]

Open ice, get your head up. In front of the net, get your center of gravity as low as possible. Drop your ass, bend your knees and get your feet spread apart.

[Gongshow11 1]

you kiddin me? you dont go after a guy when he hurts you? there is no way to defend an open ice hit unless your stronger than the other guy, but still it might hurt. The only thing i do is if my head is down at the last second i will get my elbow up when i see him to protect myself. I know its dirty, but who wants a concy right?

Yea.. if I take a spear to the chest and it hurts so bad that I am slow to get up, then yea.. I am going to be more careful.

if you get speared, take his number, dont be a puss

[repus 0]

Back to the original question:

Being a smaller person, you never want to take a hit dead on. Make it so the person hitting you is not hitting you square. You see them coming, swerve out of the way so they can miss you. See the Flyers/Penguins game the other night where Malkin swerved out of the way to avoid being hit open ice.

While in front of the net, move more. Small guys simply can't post in front of the net without moving. This will wear the defensemen out more.

-dave

[MDE3 0]

There are two ways to deal with this....

As was said...exercise leverage and if possible explode into the hitter....using your legs as the primary driver....it all get's back to keeping the maximum knee bend so your "springs" are loaded. Plus it's a mental thing....you need to "feel" the explosion from inside. Larger guys assume that smaller guys will fold, and are rarely prepared for a leg driven explosion coming from them.

The second method is to be light on your feet...again using your legs as shock absorbers to absorb the impact, and deflect it, and get yourself in a position to where the blow simply helps "propel" you not flatten you....basic techniques of jiu jitsu...This get's back to "quick feet" and balance, as well as knowing how to use your legs to absorb the shock.

All of the above assumes you see the hit coming..so maybe "head on a swivel" is the first rule.

Assuming you are following the "first rule", it's all about leg strength(keeping a 90 degree leg bend while skating takes strength), technique and balance, and mass has far less to do with it than these elements.

[LkptTiger 1]

The only thing i do is if my head is down at the last second i will get my elbow up when i see him to protect myself. I know its dirty, but who wants a concy right?

How many times have you ended-up getting tuned for that?

[Gongshow11 1]

never actually, and i play contact

[HeatleyRules 0]

Keep your head up at all times, learn do avoid open ice hits by sliding out of the way like martin st louis does. Get low.

[LkptTiger 1]

i play contact

Understatement.

[willy0314 0]

basicly theres three points you have to remember

1) keep your head up - it will allow you to side step, duck, or whatever away from alot of the hits you would get if you where looking at your feet.

2) bend your knees - makes for a stronger base, lower center of gravity, and better balance.

3) when you are going to get hit, put your self in a posistion where the hit will do the least damage. You can't avoid getting hit all the time, but when you do get hit, if you "take it" the right way, the hits will just "roll" off you and you wont get tossed around. Dont try standing there and just absorbing the hit, because unless you are crazy freaking strong, or the guy hitting you is 5 years old, your going to get knocked out of posistion.

and dont be a dirt bag and scum people, because eventually someone bigger then you will pound your ass for it.

[DamnLocust 0]

In front of the net you want to be moving around a bit, pivoting, spinning, etc, especially if your team moves the puck across the ice well. You want to follow the puck and be between it and the goalie at all times.

This will do 2 things: It will distract and screen the goalie and it will tire the defenseman, espcially if he's slow and out of shape, like me.

If you're getting knocked down in front without the puck, penalties should be called. If you're getting knocked down fighting for rebounds, you need to pick and choose your battles a little better, and you just need to pounce on pucks quicker. Refs tend to let a lot of dirty stuff go on around the front of the net when the puck is there. Don't be afraid to dish it right back.

[Neal 41]

I kinda missed this in my response, but of course the best option is to avoid the hit. My response should only be viewed in the context of what to do when you can't avoid it. And please, don't read into it that you should elbow the guy in the head or spear him in the boys. Keep it legal, just don't make it a fun experience for the hitter.

[Gongshow11 1]

i play contact

Understatement.

you seriously sayin my league isnt tough?

[LkptTiger 1]

I am saying that the fact that you said "I play contact" is a bit of an understatement - meaning it's a pretty rough league.

[Gongshow11 1]

o hahah i know, makes the federal league look like house league

[#44wannabe 4]

What league you play in?

[LkptTiger 1]

He plays in the SUNYAC - D-III

[Koho is Dead 0]

i play contact

Understatement.

you seriously sayin my league isnt tough?

Yay for online bragging!

[Meathead 0]

Keep your head up. If you're about to get hit brace for it and take it like a man.