Practicing at home

[rwclifto 0]

I'm not going to get much ice time this summer (probably none at all), and I think I'm going to do some work at home. I've got a nice big garage, and I was thinking about buying a decent net and possibly one of those small synthetic shooting pads. Any suggestions or recommendations? I've seen the ice hockey training pucks that supposedly work well on smooth concrete; how would these compare to regular pucks and a shooting pad?

[AnthonyJTa 0]

I'm not sure which one you're referring to, but most of the 'training pucks', and Smarthockey balls, etc. I've seen are usually just for stickhandling. I nice weighted puck will do fine on a synthetic surface (see the last few video clips in the "Videos of yourself" I think his username was Adam91... for shooting, I'd just use regular pucks.

[chk hrd 164]

get a good stick handling ball and work on your hands. IMHO a shot is alot easier to come by than soft hands. Toss on some inline skates, set up some cones and go to town. If you have the room for a net just use regular old pucks with your inlines on

[thejackal 46]

for a smooth cement surface, try cutting a tennis ball into slivers and stuffing them into a whiffle-ball to practice stickhandling. get a nice metal net and some targets, and u can practice shooting it too.

[AnthonyJTa 0]

get a good stick handling ball and work on your hands. IMHO a shot is alot easier to come by than soft hands. Toss on some inline skates, set up some cones and go to town. If you have the room for a net just use regular old pucks with your inlines on

...Or even a golf ball. I find a golf ball to be nice and lively. The only issue is it fits through the chain link fence at the park I go to near my house...

[AndTheySayChiCity 0]

what i'd do to 'train' at home..

i had a decent metal net (that eventually fell apart because the metal warped and deformed in shape.

but i'd just skate around in my driveway on roller hockey skates.. gloves and stick (heavier wood) and a tennis ball or hockey ball or roller hockey puck and skate around, stick handle and shoot at the net.

i think franklin still currently makes a heavier hockey ball (there's a light one and a heavier one)..ive found that the high density ones are generally heavier than the normal orange ones.

or you could always do what sidney crosby did.. set up a net in the basement and shoot the puck

(towards the end of the vid)

[rwclifto 0]

What I really want to improve on is my slapshot. I've played roller for most of my life, and I just transitioned to ice this past year. My stickhandling and wrist shot weren't much of a problem, but my slapshot is still fairly weak. I've got a decent slapshot playing roller; I think my problem is that I am still not used to the heavier puck. Can anyone recommend a good synthetic shooting pad?

[biff44 0]

Yes, shooting practice is a good thing. But you want to simulate real hockey as much as possible. I would recommend not just shooting at an empty net, but giving yourself some sort of visual cues. Maybe one of those corny "holie goalies" to drape over the front of the net. That way you at least get some visual clues and can practice shooting "where the goalie isn't". Another ok tool is to get corner targets like they use in lacrosse training.

You would prefer a shooting surface big enough to try shooting from all sorts of weird angles/stances, including switching to back hand.

If you don't want the neighbors calling the police, you can drape a big old carpet from the ceiling hanging down behind th net, standing maybe 6 inches before the wall. That way it will absorb the sound of the pucks before they hit the back wall.

[rwclifto 0]

Does anyone have any experience with this shooting pad? Looks pretty good, and its definitely in my price range.

http://www.hockeyshot.com/HockeyShot_Shoot...ing-pad-004.htm

EDIT: $60 for shipping! Can someone recommend something similar from a US based company instead?

[frankie56 0]

Most are made of polyethylene. Same material as a cutting board. You might be able to find some at your hardware store.

If you are in a dry place, that hard, brown, smooth masonite board works fine and is pretty cheap, just add a little baby powder.

[english15x 3]

is there a large difference between plexiglass and polyethylene

[xaero604 0]

my friend has a cool set-up that his dad made for him back in highschool: instead of a metal cage or net, he had a retractable tarp (the blue kind that you see at construction sites) secured to the ceiling and walls of his garage. It's just like the one that LeCavalier shoots on in the smarthockey promo.

Maybe you should try that out. I would if I could; it sure would have prevented all those mishaps to the drywall....

As for a synthetic surface, a decent sized polyethylene sheet is probably your safest bet. If your garage floor is smooth enough, you probably don't need a sheet...

[frankie56 0]

Plexiglass crack too easily.

[TheBert 0]

Plexiglass crack too easily.

I'm glad it's not used in hockey rinks then.

[english15x 3]

Plexiglass crack too easily.

I'm glad it's not used in hockey rinks then.

it's what our "glass" is made up of at the rink I work at.

[frankie56 0]

But the plexiglass you buy at the hardware store is usually around 1/8 inch thick.

But I guess it's your dime.

[english15x 3]

But the plexiglass you buy at the hardware store is usually around 1/8 inch thick.

But I guess it's your dime.

Oh, this is about inch 1/2 thick.

[pdat13 0]

If you have a non-carpeted floor, you can use furniture polish (e.g. pledge). And stick floor protector sticker/pad thingies on the puck to make it slide better.

[ashtonhutch05 0]

I found a special puck on some website, I can't remember where, but it was designed for puck handling off-ice and wasn't supposed to wobble or flip around like a normal puck does, has anyone tried this, and does it work? Sounds like I might have to pick one up if it does.