help with drills

[bullyx2]

Could anyone possibly reply with drills that can be done in very small spaces, ie. an empty 2 car garage? My 8 year old usually plays in the garage for hours each night, but I'd like to find some organized work he gan do, as opposed to just shooting at the goal (or the washer & dryer, wall, his brother, etc...). It's hard to duplicate what he woks on in practice in the garage, and people use our street to bypass a major intersection, so playing in the street is impractical for the most part. Thanks in advance for the help.

[straybullet007]

Since your son is of a relatively young age, if you do have him do drills keep them fun and simple. You don't want thim to get frustrated or bored. One simple shooting drill I suggest is that you tape suares to a wall, and have him shoot at the squares from various distances and angles. You can also have him do stick handling, or a little obsticle course. I also suggest he practice in inline skates, even if the area is confined. This will allow his feet to better develope. Also, you would be suprised how much your balance improves with this minor skating.
Hope this helps a little.
Nate K.

[bullyx2]

thanks, he's definately on his skates, from the minute he gets home until he goes to bed. it's all fun to him. he's played rec hockey for a few years and really never cared to practice away from the rink. he recently joined a travel team and ever since his first tournament, i can't get the skates off of him. i'm just looking for something a bit more constructive than wrist shots for 10 feet away all night. i'll either try the tape, or buy some targets for the goal.

[RichardGraham]

Hi Bullyx2,

I think 007 gave you some good ideas.

I'd also suggest taping an "imaginary" goalnet against the back wall of the garage with highlighted top corners for "roofin' goals," a small five-hole to take advantage of net-protectives like Brad "Five-Hole" Scholl (sorry, Brad, couldn't resist), etc.

You might also have him stickhandle with a heavy metal puck to improve his wrist and hand strength, though I may be off-base with this idea. I do know that Al Macinnis, famous for his slapshot for the St. Louis Blues and Calgary Flames, fired a heavy metal puck for hours and hours as a youngster. (You may want to have him do that against the NEIGHBOR'S house....)

Later :)



Sincerely,

Richard Graham
Editor
Inline Hockey Central

[bullyx2]

funny you say that because he plays defense and absolutely loves al macinnis. the metal puck sounds like a great idea. his coach put him on d because of his size and willingness to play the body if needed. his shots from the point are not as hard as his teamates so we'll try it. thanks to you and 007 for the advice. one question, where can you get a heavy metal puck, or what could i use instead?

<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by bullyx2 on 02/22/01 08:36 PM.</EM></FONT></P>

[morrisville75]

yeah where can i get a puck like that