Lerg: Bad angle/short side/behind net option drill

From guest writer George Bosak, Future Pro Director in New Jersey and Princeton’s goalie coach –

This drill is designed to work on bad angle play integrated with in the crease movement when the puck goes behind the net.  This will help you gain confidence with your net awareness.  Many errors in technique can easily occur which can lead to preventable goals. Goalies should limit their amount of time in the post leg up position or reverse vh when the puck is more than a stick length away.  Trust yourself to stay on your feet and square up to the shooter.  If there is a back door option, then weight can be distributed (while still in your stance) on your outside leg to get a strong push.

Here are the specifics of the drill:

1. The coach has the puck in the middle, and the goalie angles out and drops to a butterfly.

2. Coach passes to the half wall, goalies recovers and angles back, but stress not directly to the post.

3. The player has 3 options:

Option 1: Step out to the top of the circle; goalie must angle out, as opposed to over, and coach drives for the rebound which forces the goalie to control the shot.

Option 2: Player drives below the dot, shoots from bad angle with coach driving the front. If the player is more than a stick length away, the goalie should be on his feet, a step out off the post. Idea is to swallow puck up, let shot go wide if no weak side presence, or put the rebound either to strong side corner, or worst case, right in front of them.  Make sure to not flare on shots that are going wide, and put a rebound in the slot.

Option 3: Player can go behind. Cones are to show goalies their stick range and to not let a player through their crease area. If player swings out wide, get to their feet.

Video:

Jeff Lerg is the head director at Future Pro USA Goaltending.