been in a slump all week, and last week

[the travler 0]

sundays game was a blow out, our team spent most the night short-handed.

mondays game was much better, won in a OT shootout.

but for the past 2 weeks my mid week practices have been AWFUL.

it seems i cant stop a puck till the last 15 mins and my 5 hole seems to be ever growing. my glove is non-existant and thank god for the helmet, its getting a lot of work recently.

im usually a level headed goalie and dont get upset on the ice. but the way ive been playing the past 2 weeks is really getting to me. i threw a stick for the first time since.... hell, i cant even remember when the last time i threw a stick was.

i start with a clean slate, i stay focused in the locker room, warm ups are good, but thats cause i know the team is aiming for me. after that it all goes south.

it is soooo frustrating and the next person that says i played well im gonna poke check them in the eye socket

grrr....

/rant

[indaslot 0]

What level do you play? Is it possible you need a break? (I realze this may not be possible)Maybe getting to the gym and changing your workout?There are periods of the season when you slump-could be mental fatigue...

[gman 0]

it is soooo frustrating and the next person that says i played well im gonna poke check them in the eye socket

grrr....

/rant

Sorry about your slump. It sounds like you need a little break. If you cannot, change your routine on your off days. You might just be in a major rut. Change your workouts, or take a week or so off of your workouts and just play hockey.

Also, I love that last line of your post. I haven't laughed that hard since one of Mack's last posts.

[the travler 0]

i play mens A on monday, wensday, and friday nights.

on sundays i play for an over 35 team and they are just horrible. i think they might be the cause of my woes.

sunday's....

its so mixed with talent (and no talent) its hard to play good. i mean, a good shooter knows how to shoot and knows where the puck is going, but i swear some of the guys in and on this team/league close their eyes and prey they smack the puck, who cares where it goes. most have never played organized hockey, ever. fair play, but it's frustrating as hell when your defensemen can barely skate backwards, let alone, skate forward. i only made it to jr a, so im not wizard between pipes, but come on. learn to skate before you play, yeah?

monday, wensday and friday is great hockey. a complete 180 from sunday.

nice and fast, good shooters and good play makers. but for some reason i just cant get it together. my angles are off, my 5 hole is a canyon and i think my glove has concrete in it. pucks that i know i can stop just squeak by. thats mainly what its been, squeakers.

goalie morale killers.

it 0-2, us, up till the middle of the second period on monday night.

slap shot from the point, over my shoulder, off the cross bar, off my back. i get up and hear 'TURN AROUND'. as i turn around i feel the puck get kicked by my skate and look over my shoulder as it crossing the goal line.

after that i had one sqeak through the 5, and one just past my skate because i wasnt on the post.

we won in the shoot out but not without letting one run ride up my stick shaft and underneath my arm.

....and then today i think i over extended my knee. it doesnt hurt, its just a bit sore, so it might be time for a break, or at least limit my playing.

whoa....

sorry about the rant.

:takesbreath:

i feel better now.

[indaslot 0]

Maybe you should drop that Sunday league.Sounds like it is just causing frustration.Maybe it's a good day to do something else and take a mental break.Your knee could probably use a break as well.

[Hordie Gowe 17]

As my dad told me when I started hockey as a child "Son, there is no such thing as a bad goalie"

[jjalb29 0]

I had to take a second look to make sure it wasn't me that started this thread. I hear ya..going throught the exact same thing. I play twice a week, about a 1/3 of the guys that play in my sunday league (the better one) also play on my tues night (even teams both have A line and B line).

For about the past 5 or 6 games on tues night....first shot always goes in. I figure why have the added pressure of the shutout on your shoulders, get it out of the way nice and early.

Sundays have been no better...been on the loosing side of some big blowouts.

and people say its not the goalies fault which can be true, but every goalie feels it when the puck goes in no matter how, good or bad.

So thats my story, pretty similar? But still lace on the skates and try to start every game on a fresh note.

[CCC8190 0]

Maybe you should drop that Sunday league.Sounds like it is just causing frustration.Maybe it's a good day to do something else and take a mental break.Your knee could probably use a break as well.

that seems like a good idea. even though im sure you love hockey as much as the rest of us, a break is sometimes needed, especially with an injury.

needless to say, the slump has gotten to your head. if im in a scoring drought, i try try to work as hard as i possibly can, because something good is bound to come out of it. im not sure how you can relate that to goaltending, but maybe you can find a way.

[the travler 0]

you guys are right.

im not gonna skate the practice sessions wensdays and fridays for a week and gonna get a sub for the sunday game. good thing my crappy defensemen is a roller goalie ;) aka: backup!

i think ive built it up so much in my head that its, erm.. too heavy for me atm. so ill just cut back. ive got a trench to dig in my back yard for drainage, so that will be my exercise this week.

gotta skate monday nights.

i skated tonight (monday) and we won 4-2 (18 saves) still felt 'off'.

knee feels good.

[hockeyplyr814 0]

My brother is a goalie, and he plays on two teams. He plays on one of the worst travel teams in the history of hockey, and he also plays with me on our high school team. He says that sometimes he has trouble readjusting to the speed of the high school level shots, after playing with the travel team. He closes his glove too early, slides too far, or just generaly overreacts during travel games, but then is a little slow during the high school games. He recently dropped the travel team, and is playing much better, so maybe you should consider droping the sunday team all together.

[acollette49 0]

i play mens A on monday, wensday, and friday nights.

on sundays i play for an over 35 team and they are just horrible. i think they might be the cause of my woes.

sunday's....

its so mixed with talent (and no talent) its hard to play good. i mean, a good shooter knows how to shoot and knows where the puck is going, but i swear some of the guys in and on this team/league close their eyes and prey they smack the puck, who cares where it goes. most have never played organized hockey, ever. fair play, but it's frustrating as hell when your defensemen can barely skate backwards, let alone, skate forward. i only made it to jr a, so im not wizard between pipes, but come on. learn to skate before you play, yeah?

monday, wensday and friday is great hockey. a complete 180 from sunday.

nice and fast, good shooters and good play makers. but for some reason i just cant get it together. my angles are off, my 5 hole is a canyon and i think my glove has concrete in it. pucks that i know i can stop just squeak by. thats mainly what its been, squeakers.

goalie morale killers.

:takesbreath:

i feel better now.

i have a friend who has played some minor pro as a goalie. when he was home a few years ago he was playing in the mens league that i played in. he said he had difficulty in adjusting to the slower speed of the mens league. ie: the puck took much longer to get to him and he was anticipating shots that never came. it sounds as though you may be having the same type of problems. if you can, id drop the slower league.

[NorthStar 0]

you need a slump buster.