Protecting the Puck

Boys,

I wanted to discuss puck protection as it is a crucial skill that will allow us to win the puck possession battle in games and create longer offensive zone shifts. It is important when you are working in tight spaces not to over handle the puck. Using your legs, skates, stick, and hands to shield the defender are all effective ways of maintaining possession. Watch Crosby in the following youtube compilation:

Link

• Crosby is incredibly effective at keeping his body positioned between the puck and the defender. 

• When Crosby does makes a move facing his defender, the puck is in close to his body/feet. 

• Crosby is always moving his feet and uses the cut back to tire out his defender and create space. (note: when Crosby cuts back, the puck is always facing the boards ie: protected)

• When Crosby fore-checks he does not blow guys up. His primary concern is taking away the defenders stick. He does this using the stick life, body positioning, timing, and hunger. Rarely do you see Crosby take a penalty in the offensive zone.

• When retrieving the puck, Crosby uses many shoulder fakes and then turns the other way hard. This is an effective way to get the defenders feet moving the wrong way. 

• I love how Crosby braces for impact by placing himself square against the boards. This ensures that he will not get blown up and can maintain balance. He also leans into defenders to initiate the contact (Doyle has learned to do this when battling for a puck) See 5:38. 6:03.

• Last thing! He just stays so low. One of the keys to superior balance is to load up your power in your legs and stay low to the ice. The more your knees are bent and your butt is low, the harder it will be to push you off the puck.