When I feel pain I usually don’t think about it if it’s not really bad, as with the skates. So after you mentioned the back pain I’ve thought more about it during training, after training and when I do different movements. I have no idea how you figured that one out, but your’e absolutely right. I do have pain in my lower back. Especially the hours after training. It’s in the lower back, and it’s hard to stretch it out. It’s stiff. I look really weird when I’m moving around after training.

I started out without the upper eyelet and not so very tight, then after an hour or so I had to skip two eyelts. At the end I had to loosen the laces even more.

The soreness on the side of both legs disappeared when I skipped the upper eyelets. I guess that was caused by the rough edges then.

I’ve uploaded a picture of my leg ,in google documents(no sign-in needed or anything), with my finger pointing on the exact spot where it hurts the most. You can slightly see that the area is a bit swollen. The soreness is on the outside, right on the tibialis anterior tendon I think. But it feels like its on the outside of the tendon, and not actually the tendon. No pain in the bone.

https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B67UonROwnXzMWZmY2Y4NjgtZGI1Zi00ZGM2LWEyMWYtMGVlMDM4ZTQ2ZDgy

I’ve experienced pain in my back once, only a week ago actually, after I started playing hockey. It was in the muscles in the lower back. It appeared in the beginning of a training session, and I have to admit the warmup was rather bad. I couldn’t stretch out my back for a couple of days before I went cycling and jogging to get the blood running faster. Did that for two days, and it disappeared. I haven’t had any other kind of pain in my back.

Still chasing the real problem, can you tell me whether the leg soreness is on the outside or the inside? I’m not asking about whether it’s on the left or right side of a given skate, but whether the pain is on the surface of your leg, or if it’s inside on the bone or in muscle tissue, wherever.

If the pain is on the outside, we’re obviously talking about something rubbing against your leg. However, if the pain is inside, I think we’ll have to look elsewhere for a cause.

By the way, this may seem like an off-the-wall question, but… Are you experiencing any new back discomfort or discomfort in another area after recent skating sessions?

It’s the same pain in both legs. As I said, the pain is right on the inside of the upper eyelet, both in front of the legs and on the sides, so it might be that the boots is very stiff in that area and maybe they have rough edges that’s irritating my legs. I will watch out for that tomorrow.

I just came home from the ice, and this time I skipped the upper eyelet and loosened it a little bit on the top. The pain wasn’t that bad after that, but technically I like tight skates better than these loose ones. But then again, I can’t play with the pain, so I guess I can keep giving the more loose skates a try?!

In mentioning the difficulty you’re having with your skates, you don’t mention if it’s on just one skate or both. With that, I can only do some guessing here, and recommend you try or consider a couple of things…

- I would attempt to really study the way your boot hits the top of your foot, and attempt to spot the exact area — where the pain is, and how the boot touches the foot or ankle right there.

- I happen to own a favorite warm-up suit that has a big zipper down at the bottom of each pant-leg. Every so often, a zipper will slip down into the top of my boot, and it will take a few rubs of that on my ankle before the pain becomes awful. In other words, some light chafing might be going on for awhile, and it isn’t until the zipper catches me in a certain way that I REALLY notice it.

- You might not be concerned about a zipper, but it is possible that some small piece of your equipment is lose and floating around until it lodges in a certain place between the boot and foot. I would also check the small metal rim that goes around the eyelet where you experience pain. I’ve seen some of those bend out of shape, to the point where they could cause a problem.

- Try as they may, manufacturers can’t avoid creating some rough edges inside their skate-boots. Oftentimes, this is along a stitched area where a seam rises a little more than it should. I suppose this could be common with all of the skates in a given style, but it could also be a problem with just a single skate.

- Of course, boots are designed to fit some imaginary “Joe Average”, and none of us is built exactly like him. In other words, we all have differently shaped feet, or some areas of our foot that don’t exactly match the skate mold. That’s supposed to be the purpose of heating the boots, so that they will conform to the unique shape of each foot. Does that do the trick? I guess I’ll leave that to each individual skater.

- Again, Torje, you don’t say whether it’s just one foot or both feet that hurt after awhile. With that, only you would know if the pain is actually muscle soreness or the aftermath of an old injury.

Lastly, figure skaters have for years used small circular foam pads to place in an area where their boot causes some irritation. If you can locate some of those at a local pro shop, I’d recommend them instead of thicker socks or anything else. They are less likely to cause blisters due to their thin, flat, circular design.

Hopefully, something in the above helps you, new friend, and perhaps we can go back and forth on this.

I’m 21 years old from Norway and I started playing hockey only four months ago. I’ve done alot of other sports, like alpine skiing, my entire life, so the learning process has been really good and fast. I’m now actually playing the socks off of most of the team, and it feels really great:D

I have one problem, though. I’ve got the Bauer Supreme one 60 skates, and I’m tying them the way you’ve described at the top here. Slightly loose from the toe and over the arch, then I tighten the last four eyelets. I’ve baked the skates and I feel comfortable in them, except from around the leg at the top eyelet, and only there, right on the inside of the top eyelet. The pain becomes so bad that the last couple of times I’ve had to go off the ice like ten minutes before everyone else.

Do you have any suggestions? I guess there might be e better way for tying my skates, and maby have some kind of thicker sock in that area?

Thank you in advance. You’re doing a great job:)

You can save some money by shopping on-line, and you can save some when shopping at a major chain. However, nothing beats the special attention you can get by entrusting important equipment purchases to those who run a small shop.

In my case, I send my students and parents to a local shop where most of the young workers actually skated with me, while the others know exactly what I recommend for various pieces of gear. Again, they may pay a few dollars more, but they’re seldom dissatisfied.

Thanks for the update, and good luck the rest of the way!

And, yes, the main concern is that a broken stick can be dangerous.

I suppose that we could argue that the wooden sticks used through most of hockey’s history were extra-dangerous, because they almost always split in ways that left the two pieces jagged and pointed. The aluminum shafts from a few years back didn’t break in that manner, nor do the one-piece, composite sticks used by most players nowadays. Judging by what I’m hearing from some minor pro levels, we’re liable to see a resurgence of the wooden sticks sometime down the road.

Another thing also struck me about that rule as I was thinking on this subject… If a league permitted its participants to continue playing with a broken stick, it may be (unintentionally?) sanctioning some pretty weird modifications. In other words, how about if a player chose to use both pieces of the stick — one in each hand? That game wouldn’t look much like the hockey we know, huh? Of course, that would probably even open the door to a player using two half-sticks, each having a blade. And, as absurd as I’m sounding, I’ll bet there are hockey players and coaches out there with a whole lot more imagination that I.

All that aside, Maxine, you’re correct about a stick being dangerous once it’s broken, and I believe that’s the true intent of that rule.

As for your question, it truly is a good one, especially since I sense a lot of Squirt/Atom level coaches prefer that parents not be in the lockerroom prior to games, this obviously necessitating young kids tie their own skates.

To begin, I doubt your son is going to experience the exact same difficulty that pro has had. Still, the pro’s feelings probably do suggest the good and not-so-good qualities of waxed laces:

- Waxed laces may be a little difficult for your son’s little hands to pull on and get snug.

- On the opposite side of that, I’d suggest that once the waxed laces are drawn snugly, they’re likely to stay.

With that, perhaps the best advice I can give is to have your son experiment at home with the wax laces. If they work for him, great. At least it shouldn’t cost too much to give them a try.

More than anything, I advise you to instruct your son on the way I suggest tying skates… It should make things easy that he doesn’t have to pull them snugly except for about the top three eyelets. And don’t forget the part about doing that double maneuver just before tying the bow, because that should really ease things for him.

As for your concerns about a potential ankle injury, hmmmmmmm… To be honest, today’s synthetic boots are overly stiff, so I’ll suggest that they would have to be left pretty loose — like almost untied — before there would be any danger of that.

Thanks again for the great question, Jim. And, as always, I’d enjoy going back and forth on this should you have any further thoughts or questions. Actually, I (and other members) would love to know how things work for your son.

This year the coaches are using their top players alot more than the rest of the teamwith certain kids getting only one shift in a period.
My question is at what age does it become about winning at all costs and development of still young players.

Your question is a great one, but it’s far off-topic for this area. So, what I’m going to do is address your positional problems and decision-making in a new article. It’ll take me awhile, so look for that over the next day or so.

As for my family, both grandparents on my dad’s side came separately from Italy. My dad is now gone, as are his older relatives, so it’s now (sadly) difficult to do much tracing. I believe my grandmother came from Genoa, however. (Again, it’s sad, that a lot of family history died with those older relatives.)

I’m glad the skate tying experiment went well. And, yes, hockey parents DO tend to make a lot of mistakes as they move up the hockey ladder with their young players.

As for your injury, it does sound like something that could have happened during the skating motion — or during a typical game playing situation. However, I think I have to steer clear of giving medical advice on that one.

Great talking with a fellow countryman, Stefano, and please stay in touch.

That said, I have these comments on the way you’re currently tying your skates…

- I recommend tying the lowest eyelets the way you do now, mainly because there is not supportive value in that area of the skate boot.

- I’d say the same about the area over the arch of your foot (or in the middle group of eyelets), then adding that there might be a danger in cutting off blood flow to the foot by tying the skates too tightly in that area.

- All the support from the skate boot generally comes in that area surrounding the ankles, or in the area involved within about the top three or four eyelets.

Now, why do you feel like your “skating is flowing better” since you’ve changed your way of skate tying? I’ll suggest that it’s because you’ve freed your ankles a bit — so they can travel through a full range of motion, and provide a little snap at the end of each stride.

So, here’s my suggestion: Try tying your laces as I describe above — loosely down below and across the arch, then snugly around the ankle. However, at the very top, skip using the last eyelet altogether. That should give you the same freedom of ankle movement you’ve had lately.

Try that, Stefano, and let me know how you like the new feel.

As a coach, I’ve been aware of that stuff for probably the last three quarters of my career. So I take my goaltenders into consideration when I design each practice plan, and I even consider how they’ll get rest between some of the more intense drills. What I’ve also done is (whenever I can) have a goalie coach present at all practices. (With young goalies, this doesn’t have to be a true specialist, but someone who can still dig through texts to help the kid/s.) This ensures my goalers are getting attention for the entire practice, and it also ensures that I don’t have to make every drill in an hour be a shooting drill (whatever).

As a parent, I guess it has always been easier that my two guys (a son and then a grandson) were skaters. So, while I bit my lip most of the time and just shrugged at wasted practice times I had to watch, I knew I could help the both of them away from their team practices.

All that said, I promise to think more on this from a goaltender’s perspective, as I also hope others might jump in here. Help!!!

Goalies should be treasured & developed and looked after as there is an awful alot of pressure on them during a game and they are very much a one man band at the end of the day who are trying to pull back a game if their defence isn’t so hot!

So I guess what will be will be for this season. We’ve pulled him from training for a couple of sessions, as the last time one of his team mates ran into him & causd him to injure his shoulder – something else that doesn’t get addressed – players getting into his crease!! aaarrgghhh!

All this really can’t be good for his mental edge… can it?

Ok – that’s my rant over!

P
Hockey Mum / Player / Manager!

Now, I think you have to understand that the steps I described up above are really the right ones to take when tying skates. And, so are the reasons I provided aimed at getting the absolute most out of your skate tying, without causing pain or other problems. So, I would try those a few times, maybe during a few consecutive free skates or practices — just give this method a good, fair chance. That said, I would not avoid using the top holes: 1) because I suggest that for really advanced skaters, and 2) because it’s going to bother you mentally, even if not physically.

Last, while you say you can’t seem to tie your skates tight enough for your liking, I see many not-so-strong hockey moms tie their kids’ skates in this way all the times. If you think about it — and if you go by the way I’ve described above, it’s only necessary to really pull on the area spanning about 3 holes.

Thanks again, Mishal. I hope that helps you, at least somewhat.

I highly recommend you try-on whatever skates you’re thinking of buying. It’s a costly purchase, and one we don’t want to make a mistake on.

Let me know how things are going, huh?

Before we get into the skate-boot last shapes, I’d like to recommend to you and to others that it’s always a good idea to strike a good relationship with a local pro shop. Once the folks there get to know you, you’re going to be able to gain an awful lot of extra advice.

That said, I’d like you to check my answer — and what you’ve heard — with someone who is a little more up-to-date on such things. Still, over many years, my understanding is the same as yours (that CCM’s are narrower, and that companies like Bauer make a wider boot). I happen to have a wide foot and a high arch, so I long ago had to switch from over-the-counter CCMs. (I say over-the-counter because I’m sure custom boots can be made by any company. I’m also sure that all the “extra wide” and “extra narrow” boots are available through any company; they might just have to be special-ordered.) Again, however, do check with someone for the latest on this, or perhaps one of our members could also add to this conversation.

As for the way your skates are lacing-up, hmmmmm… ??? This really has me scratching my head. Many years ago, poorly made (and inexpensive) leather boots could distort quite easily. However, the synthetic boots of today are pretty sturdy, seemingly no matter the price range. Of course, I am suggesting that something is wrong if I’m understanding you correctly. The boot’s eyelets should line-up, just like any shoe or sneaker.

Summing this up, I know I haven’t answered you directly on either question. However, since I can’t be looking over your shoulder to inspect things first hand, I don’t want to send you spending good money without being sure you’re doing the right thing/s. So, I suggest this: 1) check with a local (rink) pro shop to gain advice on the manufacturers who make the narrower skate-boots; 2) since you’re obviously going to need new skates, the second question is probably moot (just be sure you check the way your new skates lace before you leave the shop).

Then, let me add this note — for you and for anyone else passing through… I know there’s a trend nowadays towards saving some money by shopping on-line. I don’t blame anyone for doing that. However, a good friend who runs a local pro shop offers the opinion that the head and the feet are the major concerns when outfitting any player. I totally agree. So I might suggest that the skates and helmet/mask be purchased at a rink pro shop (where guys know far more than equipment chain store clerks), and save your money by purchasing other gear wherever convenient and cost effective.

Again, Brandon, thanks a lot for two good questions. And don’t be shy about writing me again.

Without being able to see those tendon guards, it’s hard to truly understand the kind of protection you may have lost with them having “snapped”.

Actually, with them seemingly breaking so easily, I’m wondering what kind of protection they’d have ever provided had a skate blade forcefully sliced across either one. Of course, with those skates now being at least a year old, you might not be able to get any satisfaction from the manufacturer, but I’d have tried to return them long ago with the first failure. I’d would be interested to know what your skate shop manager has/had to say about this.

As for the purpose of those guards… I seem to recall that, as a kid, I heard about the great Maurice “Rocket” Richard having his tendon slashed by a skate blade. And it also seems to me that tendon guards began showing on boots around that same time. (I’d love to hear from a true historian who might tell us if these two events are, in fact, connected.)

Should you be concerned about not having complete coverage now? Well, I know it has to be a one in a million chance that you or anyone else would get slashed by a blade in that area. However, I’d hate to be that one guy in the next million.

Thanks again, Gregg, be safe, and please let me know how things go from this point onward.

There are still fully attached, however the plastic has snapped right across each tendon guard. I’ve been using them for training and games at a recreational level for almost a year with no problems. Should iseek to have them repaired or do you think i will be ok to carry on with them as they are?

I notice that Bandy skates dont have a tendon guard like a hockey boot, so is the tendon guard purely to protect against skate blades?

many thanks for your time.

Gregg

As for you, Foreigner, I’m glad you’re still finding ways to stay positive, and remain loving our wonderful game. (Others might find it interesting that kids aren’t the only ones who need an occasional boost.)

Hopefully you’ll come back often, and maybe you’ll even join us as a member someday (there are tons of adult members here). I’d love to be able to help you with your game!

I am an adult learning hockey and playing for a university’s reserve side. Our coach is supercritical and doesn’t exactly inspire. On the other hand, some of the players in the team are really encouraging and that’s why I continue to train.

Looks like a good site and blog, by the way.

Now, you are describing a problem I’ve had since I first laced on a pair of skates. (Yes, I’ve felt your pain!) I mean, I have extremely high arches (which I suspect always helped my speed in running). And, like you, I suffered some real pain in the early years, not realizing there were some options for me (or for us).

I don’t know if you and other members are aware, but the different skate manufacturers produce boots with very different shapes. This should be evident in the fact that many brands don’t even match-up in sizes (in other words, a size 7 made by one company might be a 6 1/2 or 7 1/2 compared to another company’s design).

That said, I’m a little out of touch with the different brands nowadays (because I’m locked into a pair of skates that I’ve had for years). However, I do know that some companies make boots that will fit wider or narrower feet, higher arches, etc. Perhaps a really knowledgeable skate shop in your area could advise you on that, and maybe some members might be aware of a brand that would suit your needs. (Feel free to jump in here, guys or gals!)

I’ll tell you another thing we old-timers used to do (and figure skaters are also famous for)… I know that cobblers aren’t as common as they once were, but a good one will have special equipment that can spot-stretch given areas of a boot. I’m not sure anyone ever tried to stretch the area around an arch before, but it’s probably worth asking. (Aside from your problem, Ross, other members with bunions or other small protrusions on a foot could have the spot around those areas stretched-out.)

Then, I am wondering one thing, Ross… I’m guessing you made a conscious choice to perfectly fit your current skates to the smaller foot, rather than the one with the higher arch? I’m wondering, though, if it would have been better accommodating the high arch with your skate-fit, and then trying to endure the other boot being just a hair looser in the arch area. (Really, that’s just a thought.)

Oh, and I almost forgot… Although a rec skater usually doesn’t want to invest the kind of money this might take, I can assure you that most elite players have their boots custom made, these taking into account the uniqueness of each foot. (Yes, I’ve even known players who have worn a size 10 on one foot and a 10 1/2 on the other.)

Well, that just about exhausts my thoughts on the subject. I wouldn’t mind a follow-up from you, Ross. And, once again, I welcome members to jump-in here; there’s the probability that several of you have experienced similar problems and found other ways to resolve them.

Actually, if we think things out, it seems to make more sense that greater flexibility in the ankles — facilitated by not tying a top eyelet (or two) — is going to allow the skate to longer contact with the ice, and an ultimate snapping motion at the end of each thrust.

I don’t know, but does anyone want to argue that with me? I (and probably Howard) wouldn’t mind other opinions on this.

Ross

Thanks for that, John! I love that kid of approach!

On his own, he started playing around on a balance ball — one of those 30″ exercise balls in a room with a medium pile carpet.

He started by sitting on it with his feet off the ground, then progressed to kneeling on it. Then kneeling on it while moving around the room. Then kneeling/hopping. Then standing on it.

All in all, it took him about 4 weeks to get to this final stage. All his idea — just playing around with it.

The improvement to his balance on skates was remarkable. The falling stopped. In fact, his ability to recover from being hooked/tripped became quite spectacular. He would come out of crowds on one leg while still carrying the puck–great to watch!

Hope this helps.

- Any time you’re going to make an equipment adjustment — of any kind, do it during down-time. I mean, the time to experiment with a different kind of stick is during the spring or early summer. I’d suggest the same when it comes to breaking-in new pads (especially if they’re very different from the old ones), as well as new skates. (I cringe when one of my high school guys trains all spring, summer and fall with me, and then decides to get new skates just before going to his high school team’s tryouts… Geeeeeeze, he could have broken them in way back months before!)

- As for something like a different skate tying, perhaps you and your son could both try it during a practice (or, better yet, during a public skating session or outdoors on a pond). There would be time to experiment, re-tie the skates if you need to, whatever.

The last thing I ever want to do is have a player feel even the slightest bit uncomfortable when he or she is going to play a meaningful game.

Hoping that helps, Joe, and thanks for your Comments here! (Actually, why not give us some feedback once you and your son have tried the new method?)

For young players (in their first or second year), I’ve followed pretty much the same rules for lacing that you’ve given.

With one addition….

Because most of these players are not tying their own skates, the lace-tyer (is that a word?) cannot feel how tight the laces are being tied, especially around the critical lower foot portion.

Laces that are too tight along the lower foot cut off the blood flow and turn their feet into cold blocks of wood.

So I always:
a) Fully loosen the player’s laces all the way down to the toe;
b) **Tell them to scrunch their foot up into a ball (“make a fist with your foot”). This makes their foot a standard/repeatable size;
c) Gently pull the slack out of the laces until I reach the ankle bend;
d) Tighten them fully through the ankle bend area;
e) Tighten them moderately at the top eyelet. If it’s a tall skate boot (like some Bauers), then I don’t use the top eyelet.

No tape. No lace-wrapping.

I’ve had kids stop me at places other than the rink and say “hey, you’re the one who taught me how to tie my laces!”.

The benefits are:
- feet that don’t get cold;
- toes that can still wiggle (and help control edge pressure);
- a *consistent* tightness between skates, and between skating sessions. Their skates feel the same every time they step on the ice.

We’ve all experienced the problem of wearing skates where one skate is too tight, or one is too loose. This gives a consistent skate feel every time you (or someone else) laces them up.

It makes a world of difference.

…/john

Getting back to your little guy, though… You really want to give him all the help you can. Yes, just starting-out is a difficult time, and there’s even probably some foot pain involved for some beginners (kids and adults).

That said, I really would steer clear of wrapping anything around the ankles — tape or laces. (Sure, one wrap of tape around an older player’s ankles — just to prevent the laces from coming undone — is okay. But that tape needn’t be wound tightly or overdone.)

As for wrapping the laces around the ankles to supposedly get more support… I think I have to ask you (and others) something: if the top three-ish eyelets are pulled snugly, can any more support really be achieved by wrapping a lace around that area? It doesn’t make sense to me, at all.

Oh, the above discussion and question comes with a couple of presumptions:

1) that the skate boot is made of quality material (which isn’t as much of a problem nowadays, in comparison to the times when old leather boots would break-down);

2) that the skate boot is fit perfectly to the skater’s foot.

That last one, of course, is a biggie. And, while I’m guessing your skates and your son’s are fit properly, I want other readers to make note of what I just wrote. For, no extra socks or wrappings around the ankles are going to make-up for a poor fitting (or poor quality) boot.

Hoping that helped, Joe, and thanks so much for your input.

First, thanks for the wonderful website.

I’m a 30yo father of a hockey-crazed 4yo boy. 26 years ago, I was that boy, and my father me. A lot of what I do now comes directly from what I learned early on Saturday mornings back in 1984. That includes things like stick taping and skate lacing. In fact, when I look at my dad’s old sticks, the tape yellowed from lack of use, I notice that our sticks have identical tape jobs at the top. I changed my blade-taping approach from his when I was in HS, and I now tape the entire blade like my sharp-shooting cousin did back then.

Back on the topic of skate-tying, it’s a similar story. I don’t recall exactly, but have to imagine that back in ’84, my dad, wanting to help out my skinny ankles and legs, tied an extra loop of laces around my ankles, topping it off with a strip of hockey tape around my ankles. My skates became an extension of my leg. And I was slow. In high school, I skipped the taping step, instead placing my shin pads over the tongue of my skates and loosely putting a piece of tape around my mid-shins. This freed my ankles, with a noticeable speed increase. This is the method I use to this day (still wrapping an extra loop of laces).

But back to my 4yo. He’s just now learning the proper stride. I tie his skates exactly as you prescribe above, mainly because the laces on his current pair of Size 10′s aren’t long enough for that extra loop. He is doing well, but part of me wonders if he’d have an easier time of it if he had more support. Like me, he has very skinny legs. He stands straight up on his skates without flexing his ankle too much, so maybe he’s fine. Then there’s the part of me that remembers the Russian kids we played against one year in youth hockey, and how they learned to skate with no laces at all, to build their calves.

I guess what I’m trying to say is that while your advice up there is no-doubt correct for middle-schoolers right up to professionals, does it change at all for the toddlers just learning? Is there any benefit to keeping the ankle tight to the boot for those kids who won’t know what ankle thrust is for another couple of years?

Looking forward to your reply.

You might find it interesting that one of my jobs today is to coach a young AAA Mite Major team, and those little rascals — only playing their third game the other day — changed pretty much to my satisfaction. (Oh, one forward thought he’d stay on a little extra, but I sense that his missing the next few shifts has probably solved that. Not that I’m into punishing little guys; but I know I’ve helped him for the long run, and I’ve probably also pleased a lot of his teammates.)

As for a quick suggestion on helping your kids right now…

I actually take the time to practice something like that, and we’d do it for a 10-minutes per practice over the late summer and early fall months (both off- and on-ice). I mean, we’d have a group break from their own end, they’d gain the red line for a dump, and then they’d practice the exchange at our bench. The unit coming on would hurry to form their forecheck, and then they’d retreat to breakout and get their own change. (Absent opponents, it’s easy for a coach to inspect where the dump-ins go, how cleanly the exchanges are made, etc.) And, within 10-minutes or so, you can get a lot of changes accomplished.

Ironically, I addressed the line changing issues with my Mite parents just recently, explaining that we’d have to establish three things in order for the kids to move on to new tactics and strategies. And, getting good changes was one of the three.

Hoping that helps, Terry, and thanks so much for your contributions.

Quite some time ago I told members about my “Russian Half-sticks” (and there’s a video in that article which shows my guys using theirs in an off-ice setting). My guess is that I’ve been using those for about 20-years or so, and for the very reason/s you suggest: so that players spin their passes from heel to mid-blade.

Also, while I’ll have to check to see if I’ve shown that idea yet — about teaching my defensemen to cut the net closely, I tell them to do this so that a check must fall in line behind them (and there’s hardly a chance for that checker to overtake the D because he can’t take the shorter, inside route).

As for your other things you mention, I’d like to address them a little later (I’m readying some new content for this site right now).

Awesome stuff, Jeff, and this is stuff I hope members are paying very close attention to.

As for me — personally, I know a few good reasons why players SHOULD send passes from their backhand when the intended receiver is on that side…

1) Turning to make the play on the forehand tells the entire world a pass is imminent, as well as where it is headed. (Nor can that kind of pass be disguised within a puckhandling move.)

2) While a backhand pass can be made fairly lateral between two players, the puck has to be drawn rearward quite a bit to send a forehand pass, which drastically increases the angle between the passer and the receiver, which in turn makes that pass all the more difficult to catch.

3) The pass from the rear (as I just described) can occasionally get the potential receiver run over by a freight train as he looks behind him for the puck.

Adding to the above, I discourage players (mainly defensemen) from turning drastically towards a puckcarrier so they can catch the puck on their forehand. The problem with this is that the potential receiver ends-up only being able to see a small portion of the ice, and he’ll have to collect the puck, turn and look around before making the next play. In other words, turning towards the inside of the rink prevents him from seeing checkers and open mates up-ice, and thusly slows the next move.

So, ya, I think we are VERY much on the same wave length, Jeff.

My school coaching experiences were similar (7-years at the college level, and 3-years in high school). I’ve also created a number of training aids — probably a lot like you did, mainly out of necessity.

Then, a lot of years ago, I heard that I won a hockey teaching contract after someone in a meeting said something to the effect that, “Dennis’ son is the best player around, while the rest of these candidates can’t ever teach their own kids to skate!”

All that said, I’d enjoy you getting involved here whenever you have the time. Members here are great people, they all have a serious thirst for more knowledge or suggestions, and it’s up to guys like you and me to help them in any way we can.

And, can I presume that you are Jarod’s dad, or related in some other way?

In a nutshell, though, breakout problems almost always boil down to the very basics. In other words, you’re not going to advance the puck out of your end very often if your D aren’t beating the first forechecker and making good passes, and if your forwards aren’t moving through high percentage pass-receiving patterns and then catching passes.

As an aside… In a way, I have to laugh when I hear parents in the stands calling for young defensemen to send the puck “Up the boards!” This causes the kids to just put their heads down and fire the puck blindly, so that it’s quite often grabbed (as you say) by opposing D or forwards.

Of course, it would be difficult to get too deeply into such a subject in this space. However, what I might at least suggest is that you look at the roles played by each player during a breakout. Picture what each defenseman should be doing, how you want your wingers and centerman to move, and then make drills out of each of these… Put moderate pressure on a D and have him move away from the pressure to make a good pass (and do it over and over again until the D somewhat master it). Have the forwards practice skating their routes with stick-targets held out front, and eventually feed them passes until they can control each one.

Again, as fancy as an effective breakout might look, it’s really made-up of very basic — maybe even simple — moves that need to be mastered.

Hoping that helps, James.

My guys are having real trouble with their breakouts and generally can’t get the puck out of the defensive zone and get a good breakaway.

Do you have any good advice on this?

What is the best spot for the wingers in our end? I have 1 or 2 at the point around the blueline and the center acts as a 3rd defenseman. Is that the best spot for them?

My defense often blindly shoot the puck once they get it and give it away to the opposing D or forwards.

Then, as far as “Now what?” Hmmmmmm… I just hate that kind of pressure — . However, if you (or any others) let me know your latest challenge, I’m sure I’ll find a way to solve it with you.

Thanks again, James!

Just wanted to thank you for your great advice. I spent a few weeks working with the kids and teaching them the L forecheck (using mainly your excellent MP drill) and also the basics of the backcheck and breakout and line changes.

We had our first two games and won both, and as a bonus one of those new players, scored his 1st ever goal! It was amazing to me how well those kids took what we practiced and implemented it in the game. I coached tyke and novice for the last few years and have mainly used Hockey Canada`s C.H.I.P. and novice manuals and found that while they are excellent for information on basic skills and great for more advanced and older players, a lot of the drills are lost on less skilled players.

The great part about your methods are their intuitiveness, which really helps those less skilled or newer players.

Thanks!
P.S. Now what! LOL

Thanks again.

Then, two FYIs…

Ya know, wives’ tales can be awful in hockey, and I can tell from all you’ve said that you’ve heard your share of them. Anyway, it sounds like you have a better head on your shoulders than some of those who had advised your previously (in experimenting the way you’ve explained).

That said, I’d suggest that you view my video, “YOUR Stick“. I think you’ll get a lot out that (and it’s minus the wives’ tales).

Fortunately, I got the cheapest wood stick my LHS carried for the lefty experiment, so I didn’t waste much money on gear. I did blow $25 or so on a lefty blade that never made it into one of my old shafts, but at least I didn’t invest in a pricey OPS before deciding to switch back. Although that experiment is over, I’ve decided to try something else new, which is to experiment a little with different flexes and blade patterns. (Initially, I was considering a flat blade since that’s sometimes recommended for figuring out which side is more natural, but those are harder to find than I expected.) Besides just wanting to experiment with different feels, it also feels like the right time because I’ve ended up as a defenseman for the first time, and the stick I used as a forward doesn’t seem quite right anymore. I always heard it’s best to try lots of different combinations to find what you like, but the cost of sticks made that impossible advice to follow. I found a decent deal on 2-piece composites and blades, so for less than the price of a fancy OPS, I got two shafts and two blades that will let me try at least four different combinations, and if I want to try even more variety, more blades will cost less than more sticks.

Thanks again for your tips and feedback. Guys who started young and had coaches may take it for granted, but for guys who took up the game as adults and have only ever played in beer leagues with no coaches or practices, this kind of advice is invaluable, and the next-best thing to on-ice coaching that we never had.

Now, I think you may have read my suggestions a little wrongly. For, while I did mention that I’ve noticed “most” players holding their dominant hand at the top of their hockey sticks, I also said that wasn’t by any means a rule.

In fact, I think the best answer is for a player to hold the stick in any way that feels natural.

Of course, it’s too late for you to start over as a true beginner (grabbing a stick for the very first time). Still, I might suggest that you now flip a stick back and forth — between both lefty and righty grips, and just try to gain a sense of which way feels more comfortable. Again, I want you feeling as natural as possible as you handle a stick and puck, and I think that’s what you want for yourself.

Again, that dominant hand at the top thing is not a rule at all, and I don’t want you or anyone else changing what comes naturally just to copy what some others might be doing.

As for older players making a switch after a few years of playing, perhaps we can toss that out to others who have tried it. I’m sure we’d both love to hear about their experiences.

Thanks for the article. I wish I’d seen it when I started playing in my late 20′s. Since I didn’t, I assumed that as a right-handed person, that would mean I shoot righty, and picked my sticks accordingly. A few years after playing, I finally heard about the dominant-hand-on-top thinking like you describe, but by then I felt it was too late to start over with learning stickhandling and shooting. I continued to shoot righty, even though I wondered if my “natural” side was lefty.

I played that way for 5 years, and then for various reasons having nothing to do with hockey itself, stopped playing for about 8 years. I have now started over with a brand new team (rec league, no check, beginner level) and no “reputation” to uphold as far as skill level, so I decided to give lefty a try. I’ve played three games that way now, and while I see some improvement, it still doesn’t feel anywhere close to the “feel” or skill I had playing righty. I’m struggling with whether to continue the experiment, in the hopes that my lefty skills will improve and eventually surpass what I could do as a righty, or to just revert to the old side because I’m too old a dog (41) to learn that particular new trick. (I’m just a once-a-week recreational player, not a young player with lots of practice time and/or a coach to refine skills during practice or clinics; games are my practice.) I’m already leaning toward switching back because it’s frustrating to hobble my play when I’m not that great to begin with, but if you know of players who switched after a few years and really think it paid off, that might encourage me to be persistent. I’ve even considered trying to find a flat stick so I could switch back and forth in the middle of a game, but my control is bad enough even with a curve.

To this point in our season we are lucky to be playing several weeks of an interesting, experimental 3 versus 3 format before we switch to regulation games. Behind the scenes, though, I’ve given my kids the very simple “L Forecheck” described in a video found under Thinking the Game — Defensively. And they are doing pretty well moving the puck in a simple breakout. With that, I’m hoping their take to the full ice fairly well.

Probably the distinction between your team and mine is that my kids already have most of their basic skills in place. So, when I work skills with them, those skills are more game related or position specific. As for your kids, it sounds like the best thing you can do for them is to begin at Square One and really upgrade their skills. Try to help them all become comfortable and agile on their skates, and also try to greatly upgrade their puckhandling skills.

I think a coach develops a feel for when to get a change (and you hope your players ultimately do, too). In other words, even though we might like to stick to something like every 40-seconds, a gut feeling can tell us that a unit might have to get-off a little early — if they’re in their own end, they’re moving towards the opponents’ end, and then at some point they might have to come back hard to defend against a rush. And it’s that being able to come back hard awhile from now that might cause me to call for an earlier change as they move towards the offensive zone.

(I actually get a kick out of my watching my college playing grandson “thinking the game” nowadays. He was taught well on my NEHI teams, and I almost always see him getting off the ice early, just because he knows in his head that he’s not going to be able to backcheck hard 15- or 20-seconds later.)

As for when players should know they can come to the bench, I always use the expression, “Make sure the puck is safe!” In this way, a tired player can look for an opportunity to get-off no matter which zone the puck is in. (For example, a forward covering the point right in front of our bench might be able to sneak-off, even though that’s not necessarily a prescribed way of changing.)

That expression — about making sure the puck is safe — covers an awful lot. For example, while we might want to our guys to change with the puck located deep in the opponents’ end, a rival player might gain possession early and present a long-bomb threat to a teammate up-ice, which means it’s NOT a good time for our guys to leave the ice. I make sure my players also know that that expression advises them to watch the puck as it’s dumped. For, even though that instant might normally be a good time to head for the bench, it’s the wrong time if the puck doesn’t get safely through all our opponents and look like it’s pretty surely going deep into their end.

As for what a puckcarrier can or should do in order to accommodate a change, I think it really depends on the playing level, as well as the puckcarrier’s individual skills.

With young kids, I’d just teach them how to make effective dump-ins and to change properly.

At the other end of the spectrum, at least two other options exist… 1) A really good puckhandler can sometimes “rag” the puck — or move through open spaces and protect it — as linemates change. 2) This year I’ve experimented with my high school guys sorta “cycling” the puck down low in the offensive zone to get some changes. In other words, they’ll keep moving the puck down low — in the so-called “safe areas”, as the high guys change one at a time.

Hoping that helps, James, I’d surely go deeper into any of this if you have further questions. Also, as you might notice, there are some things I’d do differently according to the level I’m working with. So, if you need more specific ideas, please do let me know what caliber of player you’re dealing with.

I have a few questions.
1. When is the best time to call for a change? Should the puck always be in your teams posession, and should it be in a particular zone?

2. What should the puck carrier do? Just dump it or keep possesion and wait for fresh players to change?

And I’m glad your son’s coach isn’t really pushing the issue. Actually, it sounds to me like my suggestion — for you to help your son get better with the way he currently holds his stick — is an option left open by the coach (and it’s the one I’d surely recommend).

Darn, but I did read your first post wrongly, seeing the 2-years (ago), and thinking it said your son started at 2-years old. Still, my feelings wouldn’t change one iota. The way his is holding his stick right now must be what came naturally to him, and I wouldn’t want him to change that (especially because a team needs more lefties or whatever).

Then, not to push a product on you, but… I have a very easy to follow home course called “Incredible Stickhandling”, it’s very inexpensive, and it might be something you and your son could work together on. I promise it will work.

However, we experienced some difficulties with customer downloads yesterday, so I might suggest you give us a day or two to make sure things are working properly again. Here’s a link to that video if you’re interested:

http://www.hockeytipsandtricks.com/uncategorized/store-digital/

Good luck, Alex, and please keep me posted. I like to see happy endings.

Sorry for the double post, and please merge them if you can.

Regarding your answer, you simply reassured my gut feelings about this whole changing the stick idea. I never played hockey, but I played a lot of baseball and tennis since I was a youth, and it just doesn’t make sense to change sides after you have developed a good amount of muscle memory. If there is something lacking, it would make more sense to correct the problem and improve the skills from that same side.

And honestly, the coach is not putting too much or if any pressure on us. He has merely thrown the idea out there for us to decide if we want to try it or not. He said that if my Son is not comfortable after a few practices, then he can go back to shooting right. So, we’re not worried about a conflict. As any parent, I am open for helpful advice to improve my Son’s skills development. On the same note, I realize the risk of messing with my Son’s confidence and love for the game.

I do have a concern that the change is being suggested because the whole team shoots righty, except two lefty players who are forwards, and maybe he wants another defenseman, like my Son, to play lefty to have a physical advantage to cover the left boards with his forehand. Although I am all for winning and supporting the team, I am not willing to risk my Son’s development and confidence for this reason alone. They’re only 8 years olds.

Again, thanks so much for your help!

Again, it’s not a rule; it’s just seemed to happen that way as I’ve observed thousands of players over the past 40-years. At the same time, however, there have been plenty of star players who’ve placed their dominant hand at mid-shaft, and seemingly controlled the stick from there.

Come to think of it, Alex, I think it’s good that you made me just repeat all that. And it’s probably especially helpful to every reader for me to say that there is no right or wrong way to hold a stick. And my personal feeling is that anyone can become a great puckhandler IF he or she works at it.

As for your other questions, all I can provide are my (fairly educated) feelings…

1) When it comes to making a change — especially after your son has been holding his stick in the same way for 6-years, I say DON’T DO IT! God, he is going to take so many steps rearward in his game, almost to the point of being a beginner when it comes to handling a puck. Moreover, I hate even thinking about what this would do to his confidence.

2) The question of how long it could take for your son to become comfortable as a lefty is probably moot (if you DON’T DO IT).

3) That said, let me offer a compromise… For sure, it’s not a great idea to battle with a coach. However, it might be a very good idea to make a deal with him. From your side of things (and just for the sake of argument), let’s guess that it would take your son several years to really act naturally as a lefty shooter. So, why not make a sincere pact with the coach, and promise him that you will help your son get better as righty? If he’s a fair guy, he should buy that. And my guess is that you could greatly improve the boy’s puckhandling within a matter of months.

Finally, I’ve been kinda chuckling as I’ve been typing, because my grandson started out always wanting to shoot off his backhand. In fact, he could rip bullets that way at about 4-years old, and a guy who is now an assistant coach in the NHL nicknamed him “Smoke” from the way he fired pucks in our hockey school. I never tampered with young Anthony’s stick-grip, though. Like your son, his dominant hand is at the top, and today he is known far and wide as “a stickhandler” (I mean, a REAL good one).

I’m hoping that helps, Alex. Still, I wouldn’t mind going back and forth here in the event you still have more questions. One way or the other, however, please let me know what you think, and especially let me know how everything turns-out.

My 8 year old Son is a natural left hander, and has played with a right handed stick in the house league hockey for about 2 years. He is now on the Mite A team, and the coach wants him to switch to a left handed stick. He claims that it appears he favors his backhand, etc. He tried a lefty stick for one practice and felt very awkward, often switching the new lefty stick back to his right side. The Coach insists it looks better for him and he should continue with the new lefty stick for a little while longer to see how it goes.

The coach is very experienced and coached AA & AAA hockey for many years, but other parents found it strange to be changing sides after he has been playing righty since he began 2 years ago. Also, I have read that the dominant hand should be at the top of the stick. However, he does swings from his left in Golf, tennis, and baseball.

I would like a second opinion on this and would appreciate your thoughts on this matter?

Also, if he does make the change, how long would it take him to get up to speed on the new side ? I am worried it will slow down his development.

Then, hmmmmmmm… Some of those things probably aren’t all THAT unusual (I actually taught myself to throw both ways, I was a switch hitter in baseball right through to semi-pro, and there are a number of other things I can do with either hand). Still, I think you’ll probably agree that neither you or I are the norm. No, most folks will settle on one side or the other and never vary.

All that said, I think it’s a good thing that others get to see how you’ve arrived at the way you currently hold a stick. So, thanks for that input, and let me know if I can ever help you with anything in your game. Thanks again.