Stickhandling is one of the most important aspects of hockey. If you’re interested in becoming a better hockey player, this post will provide some helpful stickhandling tips.
Practice Stickhandling
Not all hockey players are blessed with natural stickhandling ability. For some players, learning to handle the puck takes a lot of dedication and practice. Even an expert hockey player can benefit from achieving more perfect control of the hockey puck. Good stickhandling is essential in order to pass the puck effectively to your teammates and to get the puck in the right areas of the ice to score.
Get the Right Stickhandling Rhythm
When you practice with the hockey stick, you need to get a rhythm going. Any spare time you have on the ice, you can use to practice just hitting the puck on one side and the other while you are standing in one place. Aim to create a very soft sound when the stick hits the puck. This is a sign of greater control. The best stickhandlers will also spend time off the ice with a puck or ball to create efficient muscle memory.
Simple Stickhandling Tips
If you are right-handed, keep your right hand about halfway down the stick. Your left hand can then be holding the stick closer to the top. If you are left-handed, then just switch your hand positions.
Dribble In Other Positions
When you practice dribbling the ball or the puck, practice dribbling in some uncomfortable positions. In this way, you will learn to control the ball or puck when it is off to your side or slightly farther away. Do not only practice dribbling the puck right in front of you.
Don’t Look Down
Remember that the Great One said he always pays attention to where the puck is going to be, not where it is right now. That means you have to keep looking up and don’t focus only on looking down at the puck. Keep the puck very near to your body and cup the puck with the center of the hockey blade.
Strengthen Your Wrists
If you are new to stickhandling, you will notice that it requires wrist strength. In order to increase your wrist strength, you can make your hockey stick heavier and your puck heavier than normal for your practice sessions.The hockey stick can be made heavier by taping some pucks on the shaft close to the blade. For details on how to make your stick heavier see the article by our friends at How to Hockey. This will increase your muscle strength and when you play with a normal hockey stick and puck, they will be easier to handle.
Practice Every Day
Be sure to practice stickhandling when you are away from the rink. This is extremely important! You will only become an expert stickhandler by hours and hours of practice. Get a stickhandling ball and your hockey stick and play in your driveway or any other level surface. Do this practice every day.
Speed and Efficiency
To improve the speed of your stickhandling, you need to push yourself to move your hands faster. Keep increasing the speed of your drills to train yourself to be faster.
Why a Hockey Training Program Can Help
Practicing without help can prove to be harder than you expected. That is where the personalized training programs from HockeyOT come in handy. Our popular training programs are customizable to meet individual needs. Therefore, if you are looking for specific exercises that will improve your stickhandling, look no further than HockeyOT.
