5 Hole and Low Corner Shooters?????

[Jbear 113]

Hey All,

  Been playing forever (seems) and now I seem to have a lot of time on my hands😠.  Historically, I'm a defenceman, and in college it was all about top-shelf wristers and boomers for me. That's where I scored...consistently.  Now I'm playing in several leagues.  Some are fairly intense and I can still shoot "my style."  Some are more "rec-level" and the last thing I want to do is hurt somebody!  I am trying to use this downtime we all seem to have to strengthen my weaker areas...for me...stickhandling, low corners, and 5 hole!  Stickhandling...I got that...a lot of..uhhh...stickhandling practice.  That one is a pretty straight return...I'm doing it a lot...it's getting better.  On the other hand...I have a mat...a net...and a backstop in the garage.  The net has a tarp on the front...cutouts for the corners and 5-hole.  I can hit corners high all day with my eyes closed.  I cannot consistently keep pucks low, and I can't hit the 5 for money! I'm all around it...inches...It's driving me nuts.  I'm trying to follow through as close to the ice (ground) as possible, rolling my hands, transferring weight, back foot, front foot, being mindful of mechanics...I am getting better over the past few days keeping them low-er...but zero accuracy.  

Any suggestions short of asking my teammates to watch what I am doing and coach me...cuz that's gonna be a while it seems.
Thanks folks!

Edited March 31, 2020 by Jbear

[YesLanges 127]

Sean Walker recommends aiming for a target no larger than one square of the net mesh. Visualize a laser beam coming from the toe of your blade and consciously aim that laser beam right at the center of the 5-hole, or in your case, maybe at the bottom edge of the middle of that hole. Take a video of your follow-through and see if it's really staying as low to the ground as you think it is. If it isn't, maybe try tying a string across your shooting lane a foot off the ground and follow through with your blade under the string. Lower the string as much as possible. You could also check the video to see where your stick actually is when the puck comes off the blade and see if you can release it a little bit later in your shooting motion.

[Fiveholeonly3555148 0]

For me when I shoot five hole where I’ve scored all my goals I usually do it like a silent pass.  Mine are never usually off the ground when doing so and it’s unpredictable for goalies to stop.  Other low corners not so sure about.

[BTSyndrome 8]

sorry to bump an older thread... 

I too play D on main team but also play up on invite pick-ups/ drop-in's. The way I fixed the same problem is having different stick curves for each position....(less to think about) 

ex: On D I use a True w/ MC curve to keep the puck lower on shots from the point. But when I play up as a winger I use an TC2.5 (much easier to hit top corners from in close with the added loft. 

But really it's just another reason to explain why I have close to a dozen sticks. lol

 

[IPv6Freely 2093]

On 12/14/2020 at 6:02 PM, Fiveholeonly3555148 said:

it’s unpredictable for goalies to stop

I love when players assume things like this. It's right up there with suggesting black stick tape "hides" the puck.

[MLSman 22]

I coach this quite a bit in 10U through 14U, and is a learned skill that comes from practice on shooting technique and muscle memory. Every kid wants to "bar down" and pop goalie water bottles, but in a game, there is too much traffic and inaccuracy to produce any consistent goal scoring with high shots. Most goals scored in the 8U-14U level are secondary shots coming from low shots that leave rebounds in the blue paint. Young goalies over the last number of years from my observation have become far more skilled with their glove hand to trap the puck, and to use the blocker to deflect the puck out of the crease. The skill I see most challenging that separates the really skilled goalies is rebound control off the pads from low shots.

The coaching technique I use is to place players at the top of the circles, and have them focus on point of contact with the puck (contact point) as well as the follow through. The contact point should be parallel to the body (slap or snap shot), or behind the body (snap or wrist shot). That gives the player the best angle of contact with the puck and allows the flex of the stick to provide the necessary whip with the core muscle engagement (using the hips vs all arms and hands) to increase the velocity of the shot. The second area of focus is on the follow through - if the hands release high...the puck will elevate. Focus on reducing the release upon contact with the puck, and the shot will travel low. Once those fundamentals are achieved, it's time to bring in shooter tutors and targets to progress to shot accuracy.

Edited December 31, 2021 by MLSman