Tips for an accurate shot?

[badger_14 601]

Forewarned: this may be a stupid question, but ...

I'm a beginner hockey player, and have taken to practicing my shot (such as it is - wristers and snapshots, no slapshots or anything) in my basement. However, I'm having some serious trouble figuring out the mechanics of actually aiming the dang puck. I'm a righthanded shot (for what that's worth), and consistently can only manage to hit "glove side", or have the puck ending up wide to (my) right. The furthest (to my) left I can hit is approximately "five hole". I'm trying to point my follow-through where I want the puck to go, but I definitely feel like I'm missing something in the execution.

Anyway - any advice? Tips? Tricks? Suggestions for offerings to the hockey gods?

Thanks. :)

[fatwabbit 93]

hey man, welcome to the board.... and I dont think its a stupid question.

I'm the same, having spent many years just aiming for the glove side (just a preference). I've started to really practice my shooting a few years ago.

Just to ask, do you shoot directly facing the goal? or are your feet perpendicular to where you are shooting.

[maxamillion 3]

shooting common glove is the easiest shot for righties because that's the side of our body the puck is usually on. shooting across your body is much more difficult. I found that time and experiance helped me more than anything. there will be a few times where you need to make that shot and you won't, but each time it gets closer, then one day you make it. at least that's how it went for me.

[Chadd 916]

Without seeing you shoot it's hard to guess where the problem is. It could be alignment, it could be face angle, it could be a number of other things as well. Getting a private lesson with a local coach should help you solve your problem, it's most likely something simple.

[Jordan 13]

Okay, you say that you are trying to follow through, finishing by pointing at the desired location; yet, you also say that you can only really get to the middle of the net and to your stick side.

Sounds like you are keeping your upper body "closed". You chest should finish square to the target. In other words, it sounds like you set up, and the only thing that is finishing towards the target is the stick. That is happening because if your body is not moving from a closed position to an open position, you lose power on your follow through when you try to get across your body.

Beginners typically have a problem rotating the trunk/torso independant of their lower half (hips and legs). Try practicing in the driveway so that you don"t have to worry about the skating. Set up in a balanced posture, puck even with your back foot. Left shoulder should lead. As you start moving the puck forward keep the blade closed, open your shoulders as the puck moves forward. Finish with your chest facing towards the target. Follow through completely - as the puck passes your front foot, the blade will naturally open. While you follow through, roll your wrists to close the blade. Finish with your stick pointing towards the target.

Once you have it figured out in the driveway take it to the ice. Start practicing with a simple t-push and follow the above instructions. Once comfortable with shooting from the t-push, then try it on the fly.

Oh, one more thing: the puck should start near the heel of the blade and roll off of the toe.

You might want to post your location, I am sure that someone knows of a good instructor/shooting center in your area.

Good Luck!

[armada 0]

All of these tips are on point. What helped me was to practice and trying to figure out each detail at a time, instead of doing too much repeatedly. Rolling your wrists and following through sounds a lot easier then done to a beginner.

[chk hrd 164]

new players have a habit of sweeping the puck and not following through. So if you are right handed the puck goes off to your right (glove side on most goalies) Your bottom hand should move like you are trying to throw a fast pitch softball underhand and finish wear you want the puck to go. Make sure you turn the blade over (so it is down) in your finish, that keeps the puck spinning. The puck should go from heel to toe. Remeber the stick is a lever with the fulcrum being your bottom hand, so as you are throwing your bottom hand the top hand gets pulled back to youfor added power.

It's a basic explanation, but it's a start.

[badger_14 601]

Thanks everyone for the advice. I'll see about putting it into practice. :)

Fatwabbit - my feet are perpendicular to the goal.

Chadd - wish I could afford a lesson with a local coach... they seem to run a bit steep here.

Armada - yes, it's definitely easier said than done. :(

[Chadd 916]

new players have a habit of sweeping the puck and not following through.

I often see players smacking at the puck as opposed to holding it on their blade at the start of the shot.

[Machinehead2k5 32]

x2 Chadd.

[Jarick 5]

Here's my thoughts on shooting accuracy:

Wrist shot:

1. Puck behind the back leg

2. Keep blade square to the target

3. Sweep blade across body, push with lower hand, pull with top hand

4. Keep puck on blade as long as possible in follow through by rolling over wrists

5. Power comes from stick acting as a lever and spin on the puck

The longer I keep the puck on the blade, the more accurate my shot is. If I concentrate solely on having the puck on the blade through the entire shot and an exaggerated follow through, I can pick corners. If I get sloppy with the technique, it gets erratic. If you can get to the point where the puck leaves your blade as the blade is pointed right at the target in the follow through, you should have pinpoint accuracy.

[Jordan 13]

Oh one more important thing...do not look at the puck, you will shoot where you look; so in the beginning look at your target while shooting.

Later, when you are more proficient you can sometimes misdirect the goalie by looking one way and shooting another...but that's another story.

[Chadd 916]

One other thing to remember, most people lose accuracy when they are trying to rip a puck at full speed with any type of shot. Most people find their best accuracy using about 50-75% of their power.

[badger_14 601]

Jordan, Jarick - excellent advice. Thank you.

Chadd - Not much power on my shot to begin with, but I'll bear that in mind. :lol:

Practicing today I can already notice a bit of improvement - I'm getting better at at least picking a side of the net to hit.

Thanks all. :)

[CTK30 0]

Sean Avery has horrible accuracy and hes plays in the NHL, not everyone is a a sniper

[n3ss 0]

thanks for the tips guys.

i find that my shot likes to go perfectly to the top left corner of the net most of the time. still working on that.

i shoot right handed, by the way.

[djinferno 2]

practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice evrytime you touch the ice at full speed, like the pros do, if you practice this way, you will be able to hit the net in a game...

[jbyun04 7]

I've been taught to aim with my top hand.. pretend like there's a dot in the middle of the back of your top hand and aim with that.. so far it's worked well for me and others that have been to this guy's shooting class.

Also, as Chadd said, a lot of accuracy is lost when you try to rip the puck so if you want to get really good accurate shots all you can do is practice good technique.

Like anything else, practice the technique first and once you get it down, work your way up by putting a little more power each time. Of course, everyone has different ways of shooting so I guess you really gotta figure out what works best for you. Just remember, practice doesn't always mean you have to be on the ice.. one of the best ways I learned how to get the technique down was shooting a ball at a net.

[westcoastsniper 0]

that's funny because it seems the only way I can hit the net is if I just close my eyes and hit the puck as hard as I can. The second I take a little mustard off of it, I'm not the same shooter.

so there ya go kiddies that's my advice grip it and rip it.

[Rayzilla 0]

practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice practice evrytime you touch the ice at full speed, like the pros do, if you practice this way, you will be able to hit the net in a game...

Did somebody say "Practice"?... :lol:

Sorry, I just had to do that. It was the first thing that popped into my mind.

There are some very good tips on here. Thanks guys!

[farhanshak 1]

practice as much as you can. what i do is i try to hit corners on the net. when i can hit one corner 5 times straight, i move to the next.

i also have a shooter tutor that came with the net (a full plastic sheet with a goalie in the middle) it only leaves the top and bottom corners and the five hole open. i shoot at it alot.

i try to do 100 pucks 2 or 3 x a week. sounds like a lot but it only takes like 30-40 minutes. great for accuracy. its helped mine alot.

hope this helps. :D

[gxc999 7]

One other thing to remember, most people lose accuracy when they are trying to rip a puck at full speed with any type of shot. Most people find their best accuracy using about 50-75% of their power.

I find that to be completely true. Another thing to remember is that different people are naturally more accurate with different shots. I honestly can't explain it completely because practice helps a lot but it's not just that. E.g. one of my teammates was great with a wrist shot but could not take an accurate slap or snap to save his life, despite weeks of practice. For me, my snapshot is probably most accurate even though I have spent the least amount of time on it. So I (avg. C league player, so what do I know really...) would say practice, don't try to shoot so hard and see what type of shot you are naturally best at.