pick up hockey (shinny) pet peeves

[technophile 0]

Maybe he was pissed that you were doing breakaways in warmup? I hear some tenders really don't like that.

Edit: Not saying he would be right in that case, just wondering.

[TeamHonda401 54]

The couple of times I'v played net I hated when people were doing breakaways during warmups. After about two consecutive times I just quit trying to stop them and just stood there. They got the point shortly thereafter.

[hockeymass 11]

Next time I'll just take wristers at his grillpiece then, I guess.

[Law Goalie 147]

Breakways in warmups are simply to be ignored, right until the very end; in my experience, only morons and newbies will bother, and the reasonable players will offer to come in with the last couple of pucks.

If he took out your knees, just run him once and even things up. He'll bitch; all you say is, "OK, I admit it was a bit reckless, but based on you going in with your spikes up, I thought that's how this skate was going." Don't fall on him - that could actually cripple him - just 'lose an edge' and flatten him.

Shooting at his head isn't responding in kind, so you can't make the same sort of claim.

[IPv6Freely 2084]

There's 2 occassions when it's ok to use a stick bag. 1. When you're flying. You can cram way more sticks into one of those bags than you think. 2. If you're bringing more than 4 sticks with you to wherever it is you're going, and if you're doing that, there's a 90% chance you'll be on a plane.

I use one of those stick bags that just covers the blades, and thats just solely to keep the wax of my seats in the car. Yes, it comes on the bench with me, as it stays on my backup stick.

Breakways in warmups are simply to be ignored, right until the very end; in my experience, only morons and newbies will bother, and the reasonable players will offer to come in with the last couple of pucks.

Can you clarify exactly what you mean by breakaways in warmups?

[TeamHonda401 54]

It's when players skate in on the goalie during warmups and try and deke. It does nothing for the goalie to see shots like this during warmups. You would be doing more for the tender by throwing wristers on him from half ice.

The only thing I hate more than this when I play net would be when four players decide to shoot on me at the same time. I just stand there with my arms up like "really??"

[hockeymass 11]

It's when players skate in on the goalie during warmups and try and deke. It does nothing for the goalie to see shots like this during warmups. You would be doing more for the tender by throwing wristers on him from half ice.

The only thing I hate more than this when I play net would be when four players decide to shoot on me at the same time. I just stand there with my arms up like "really??"

And yet, what is the rationale for actually attacking the player? I understand not wanting to face multiple incoming shots, but I don't understand why you would get ANGRY about a player skating in. Goalies...

[chippa13 1844]

Because the idea of warmups is to warm up the goalie. Goalies want to see shots and feel the puck on their pads and gloves. The last thing a goalie wants to do is wrench a groin or knee because some clown finally learned to pick the puck up on his blade after 5 years of practice.

[hockeymass 11]

Because the idea of warmups is to warm up the goalie. Goalies want to see shots and feel the puck on their pads and gloves. The last thing a goalie wants to do is wrench a groin or knee because some clown finally learned to pick the puck up on his blade after 5 years of practice.

True, it's a well known fact that all shots in the game of hockey are taken from the blue line. Also, skaters are immune to injury.

[chippa13 1844]

Don't ask the question if you don't like the answer.

[Law Goalie 147]

Are skaters going to hurt themselves by skating around and taking reasonable, responsible shots?

The point of warm-ups is not to reproduce every possible game situation in two minutes. For goalies, they are supposed to accomplish two things: the actual warming effect of getting the heart rate, respiration and body temperature up, and settling the vision into 'quiet eye' mode to track the puck from the stick, to or past the body, and away to wherever it goes. Anything else - rehearsing specific movements, facing shots from different situations - is a frill, the privilege of teams with long warm-ups and extensive off-ice routines. Watch NHL goalies being shot on in warm-ups: the vast majority just stand there, moving their feet and hands minimally, but tracking everything with their eyes and heads. There are exceptions, but the rule and the reason explain why the exceptions aren't ideal. Sure, different routines 'work' for those guys, the way that daft idiosyncracies work for a lot of players, but the performance does not validate the practice unless you commit the fallacy of ascribing whatever is consequent to whatever is prior.

In short, the goalie 'gets angry' about the playing dekeing irresponsibly in warm-ups for two reasons: one, because it's a disrespectful waste of his time, and two, more generally, because he now has to ignore the chance to face a meaningful shot in order to watch you, and make sure you don't do something stupid.

Does it excuse taking your knees out? Of course not. He should have just said something, or done something innocuous but unsettling to get the point across. Does it explain why he was upset with you, without respect to the lack of measure in his response? Yes, it does.

Reim, what I mean by dekeing in warm-ups is a player who skates in early in the warm-up, without asking first, generally looking like he might shoot but throwing a deke as he gets closer. If the goalie goes with him, which he may instinctively, he risks injury both from inadequate prep and from exposing his flank to the majority of the ice in following the shooter to the post.

I generally just ignore them, and let other shooters hit them until they get the message. I'll generally brace up so that if the moron runs into me with his head down because he thinks I'm backing in, he'll take the worst and stop being foolish. In short, I'll sacrifice my warm-up to let the idiot put himself in harm's way.

What really pisses me off are the shots from the blindside that thoughtless, toe-gazing players like to throw when I'm focusing on someone who can actually place the puck. With those guys all bets are off: they've deliberately opted to selfishly endanger other players, and if they don't hurt me, they'll hurt someone else. They're to be driven off the ice immediately.

[Axxion89 32]

Because the idea of warmups is to warm up the goalie. Goalies want to see shots and feel the puck on their pads and gloves. The last thing a goalie wants to do is wrench a groin or knee because some clown finally learned to pick the puck up on his blade after 5 years of practice.

Pretty much this

True, it's a well known fact that all shots in the game of hockey are taken from the blue line. Also, skaters are immune to injury.

When a player pulls a muscle, he goes to the locker room and you are a man down on the bench. When a goalie pulls a muscle, you have no Goalie and either:

1- Lose the game if its a game because you don't have a backup

2 - Play with no goalie and ruin the skate for everyone else

So it should be in your entire teams best interest to keep the goalie intact. If you want to practice breakaways, go to stick and puck or better yet, earn one in a game against the other goalie. In a game situation, how many breakaways does a team really give up, 2 a game if your team actually plays decent hockey? If its more, than you should practice defense and not scoring on your own goalie. For myself and many goalies I know, in a game, most shots will be from further out where angles are more useful than highlight reel reactions. Therefore, I want to face shots where I can read the puck, get comfortable in the crease, and get ready for the majority of shots and then when I'm set, I am ready for a few breakaways to get the guys amped and to get moving.

[hockeymass 11]

Well, I apologize to all of the tenders out there for my inconsiderate actions. I still think you're all a bunch of weirdos, but I will refrain from skating in on the goalie during pickup warmups. He's still a dick for laying me out and I would have Ryan Miller'd him if he wasn't 10 years older than me.

[mhkehoe 1]

Well, I apologize to all of the tenders out there for my inconsiderate actions. I still think you're all a bunch of weirdos, but I will refrain from skating in on the goalie during pickup warmups. He's still a dick for laying me out and I would have Ryan Miller'd him if he wasn't 10 years older than me.

Every goalie I have ever met hates breakaways during warm ups. I know the goalie for my team when we are out at a stick and puck will go into his stance when a guy is skating in, and when it is clear he is going to try some deke, he just sidesteps and leaves the net open.

[rachael7 1]

Well, I apologize to all of the tenders out there for my inconsiderate actions. I still think you're all a bunch of weirdos, but I will refrain from skating in on the goalie during pickup warmups. He's still a dick for laying me out and I would have Ryan Miller'd him if he wasn't 10 years older than me.

Wow, I thought this was pretty much common knowledge. I hope you're not actually saying this with the snide tone that comes across in your post. Have you ever actually talked to a goaltender about how they like to warm up? They'll tell you if you ask them. Or played on an organized team with a coach and a proper warmup routine? The way you warm up a goalie, unless they tell you otherwise, is to shoot pucks they can see and stop, when they are ready for them, and only when they are ready. If you're a good shot, you throw your shot right at their pads so they can feel the puck and get their groove on. If you're real good, you throw your shot at a different pad than the last guy threw at. How do you suppose that deking your own goalie out of his/her jock/jill during warmup is going to do your team any good? Psyching out your tender before the game starts or possibly injuring him/her? Brilliant.

[hockeymass 11]

Jesus Christ.

No, I wasn't actually trying to be snide.

I had skated with this group before, a while ago, and back then it had been commonplace for people to skate in on the goalies. I have never played with a goalie that has actually gotten upset about it. The guy had been warming up for a good 5-10 minutes, I figured it wasn't a big deal, he laid me out. Most of the time I was just taking shots from the blue line. I'm not real worried about "psyching out" a goalie in pickup and I didn't think he was likely to get injured stopping a puck. Yes I've played organized hockey, and yes, part of the warmups included 2 man rushes and breakaways.

Like I said, I didn't know this was some kind of big deal and there is no excuse for him taking me out. Won't do it again.

[technophile 0]

I think it's a regional/contextual thing. At least on the team I'm playing on, once the tender's seen a round or two of medium-long range slap/wrist shots, people seem to come in for (fairly casual, not full-speed) close-in shots without getting in trouble. But it's definitely something I wouldn't personally do without a heads-up/conversation with the goalie. Some care, some don't.

[Joshison 1]

I just rip them at his glove/blocker/pads let him feel good before the game.

[goblue9280 33]

Wow, I thought this was pretty much common knowledge.

It is. Every team I was on as a kid, the coach emphasized the importance of taking shots no closer than the high slot during warmups.

Most goalies I've seen will simply stand up and step out of the net on the 2nd occasion that you come in like you're going to deke. Taking out a guy at the knees seems pretty extreme... unless he didn't pick up on the hints the first few times he came in and deked.

[IPv6Freely 2084]

Got it. I don't go in and deke... but I usually do skate in and take a quick wrister from about the hash marks. Though TBH I only do this because I don't know how to take a slap shot.

Wow, I thought this was pretty much common knowledge.

It wasn't, but now I know :) I guess it falls into the category of "I had no way of knowing that wasn't okay".

[wrangler 157]

Interesting. Whenever I've played, I just follow whatever seems to be going on. The goalie gestures with his stick to the guy he wants to take the next shot. That guy may slap one, or bring it in on net. If the goalie ignores someone bringing it in, I won't. If he plays it, then I may. Whatever he shows me that he wants is fine with me. Where I've played, this usually involves a lot of guys bringing it in, and goalies playing it.

[IPv6Freely 2084]

It is. Every team I was on as a kid, the coach emphasized the importance of taking shots no closer than the high slot during warmups.

I wasn't on a team as a kid... I started playing at age 29. Can't expect everyone to know this kinda stuff. I think this falls into the "if I'm doing something wrong, tell me, or I'll never know" category.

[goblue9280 33]

I wasn't on a team as a kid... I started playing at age 29. Can't expect everyone to know this kinda stuff. I think this falls into the "if I'm doing something wrong, tell me, or I'll never know" category.

Fair enough... not everyone knows common knowledge for a host of reasons, being new to the sport being one of them. If someone doesn't let you know about certain "unwritten rules" then you just have to be observant of cues that you're doing something wrong... such as a goalie taking you out at the knees.

[tareatingrat 4]

I wasn't on a team as a kid... I started playing at age 29. Can't expect everyone to know this kinda stuff. I think this falls into the "if I'm doing something wrong, tell me, or I'll never know" category.

I'm with you. I always assumed a goalie wanted to warm up the same way he'd play a game. Took me a few warmups when I first started playing to realize when I deked in, he just stood there and looked past me.

Now, I just shoot low and right at his pads. After a few minutes of that, I'll put them a little higher at his glove and blocker.

Honestly, I prefer to use the warmup to warm myself up now. Get my hands going.

[IPv6Freely 2084]

Honestly, I prefer to use the warmup to warm myself up now. Get my hands going.

TBH I thought thats what the warmup was for... never even thought it had anything to do with the goalie. I always looked at it like a mini 5 min practice.