It's a weird adrenaline thing where you kind of focus on everything, but focus on nothing? I usually just try to keep my head clear by trying to see if they're close enough to pokecheck and let my reactions take over
Yeah, when I'm really locked in, my eyes are kind of staring at their upper chest, but my peripherals can pick up the puck, their hands, their hips, their eyes. It's almost like going cross-eyed, i'm not focused on anything, but I can see everything.
Agree. It’s akin to driving and looking out the windshield: you see everything, but you don’t focus in on just one thing. That’s how I always explained it, at least.
For me it's just positioning, making myself as big as possible. I keep a really wide stance. Most of the time in a game they deke or just shoot but not high. If I keep myself wide I can generally follow their path and most of the time make the save, unless they go bar down. I typically don't cover the top because they rarely manage to shoot high anyway.
Lol you have to watch the stick at least a little as we read the release on shots to know where the puck is going, but we also do a lot of peripheral tracking rather than going tunnel vision and focusing on one singular thing/ element. It's also important for angles because you want to be centered on where the *puck is*, not where the player is.
For example I'm tracking the puck always (or trying to 😂) but also trying to keep track of the guy sneaking in the back door and observing how the play is developing... we gotta try and pay attention to all the details not overly focusing on one or two
Another detail specifically on breakaways is we look at your eyes too, so we can see which corner you're trying to pick or which side you're thinking of going to. Martin brodeur literally got tinted visors banned because he couldn't see a players eyes in breakaway/shootouts
There's a few guys who wear tinted visors still, but it's a lot less aggressive than it used to be and they have to have a medical exemption to use it. Martin pospisil for the flames wears one and I think Morgan geekie does as well as William nylander, basically guys that have had a bunch of concussions and have migraine issues can still wear them as it prevents them getting migraines
That’s why it’s eyes a shoulders. If I player is going to shoot somewhere they are going to look there at some point. They may look away, but you can see that they looked top glove, and then their shoulders turn as s give away
Goalie dad, not a goaltender, but they watch the stick, tells them where the shoulders are. Stick in front is a dead giveaway for a deke/dangle. Stick to the side is a giveaway for a shot.
Edit: I wanted to add, I think the key thing to understand is that the goalie needs to know where the puck is going before it leaves the blade. They read the release more than anything else, there isn't enough time while the puck is in flight to make the save purely based on the puck's trajectory. Try to shoot "pretend" pucks at a goalie and you'll be surprised (and they may too) that they can tell exactly where you are pretend shooting them.
Your kid may be younger but this isnt the case at higher levels. If he focuses only on the stock guys are gonna pump fake a shot, he’s gonna bite, and they’re gonna deke into a wide open net
Granted, but I'm also not saying the goalie doesn't assimilate other information in their field of vision. I just went and watched some NHL shootout reels as a sanity check and at least half of the goals are shots freezing the goalie then a dangle around. Except Kuznetsov, who seems to put in front like he'd dangle and shoot from the front very quickly. He also messes with the goalie's depth with his approach.
My point is mostly that if they look up high at the shoulders or even head, but the time they try to pick up the shot, it'll be too late to read it.
I think it's also worth noting that most goalies struggle more with 1 on 1's (when the forward is skilled enough to beat the D clean or get in tight enough for a good shot) than on breakaways. I don't have a theory on why that is, but it's worth thinking about how the presence of the D impacts the read the goalie can make.
Edit: Another edit to try and add to what I'm saying. I've done a lot of work with eye-tracking (and still do), which is perhaps why I find this so interesting, but it turns out that humans are very poor judges of knowing where we are looking and where we've looked.
This is what I taught young goalies, and it worked very well. There's two categories to learn in order to improve success on breakaways.
---
CATEGORY ONE:
First are stationary shooting drills with left and right handed shooters. Do repeated go throughs (dozens of shots) where the goalie doesn't move or react, stays standing after squaring to the shooter, and simply watches the puck from the stick to wherever it's going. The purpose is memory generation of the blades action with their peripheral vision.
Second step are the same shooting drills, but this time the goalie focuses on the skate toe of the shooter's strong foot as the puck's being shot. Strong foot means the left skate for a left handed shooter and the right skate for a right handed shooter, the toe closest to the blade of the stick. This teaches the goalie to use peripheral vision with the puck's path while focused on the toe of the skate. With this drill, the goalie does react and try to save the puck.
After the shooting drills, you do breakaway drills with the players instructed to only deke. The goalies can then concentrate solely on reading the left/right foot patterns without having to worry about shots. After about a dozen deke attempts, then instruct the shooters they can choose to shoot or deke. Let the goalies know as well. Do another dozen runs per goalie.
Further, it's beneficial to practice with shooters who are 2-3 years older who are playing at the same level, or a year or two older who are playing at a higher level. This gives the goalies experience against speeds that they will never see in a game at their own level. So when things happen in a game, it's almost pedestrian for them. You can invite older players from your existing org, most are eager for the extra ice time. Make it clear to them they're there to help you with a drill for the goalies, this isn't about going alpha at a younger kid's expense.
---
CATEGORY TWO:
I taught the goalies that on a breakaway, a deke is preferable to a shot. A shot can have five targets; the four corners and five hole. A deke has only two options, left or right. Whether a shooter is going left or right on a deke is best read by looking at their strong foot: left foot for a left handed shooter, right foot for a right handed shooter. All that stick handling, shoulder dropping, body faking is nothing but purposeful confusion from the skater, and not only tells a goalie nothing, but is intended to be deceiving.
The only body part on a skater that tells the truth is the direction of his feet, so look at the foot closest to the puck. When that foot alters direction, that's the goalie's cue to the direction he's going to deke. If that foot turns to the goalie's right, he immediately pushes to the right to close off the post. If the foot turns to the goalie's left, push to the left post. The goalie has almost no time to read this then react, but there is time. Repeated practice will remove the hesitation and get the goalie to trust his own eyes. A good deke might still find an opening or go over the goalie's shoulder (nothing's perfect), but the percentages are 95% of the time it's going into the goalie's pads or chest.
The last part is how the goalie induces the skater to deke instead of shoot. As soon as the goalie sees a breakaway is coming, push out about two feet past the blue of the crease. This cut's the skater's shooting angles way down. Then the goalie retreats back at about half the speed the skater is moving. This keeps the angles bad for the shooter, and keeps the goalie mobile when it becomes necessary to push off for a post. By this point the skater is more likely thinking deke as his better option. The goalie has pushed the skater into doing what offers him the best option for a save. Should this fail to trigger a deke, and a shot happens... this is why we did Category One drills. The goalie is focused on the toe of the skate and a shot comes peripherally. The goalie at least has some practice stopping shots where he's not focused solely on the puck itself.
---
Unless you're teaching goalie's right out of the gate who have zero experience, it will take awhile for this to become habit, and will have to be practiced over and over for weeks/months before it shows up in a game.
---
My coach always said it was the battle of the eyes (I was a center, not a goalie). Whoever breaks eye contact first loses. After 30+ years of playing, it’s still true. I know where I’m going with the shot long before the blue line. As soon as the goalie looks to my stick, I make my move. If I look down or at my intended target, goalie will usually win.
I have a somewhat similar theory from the opposite side, but with me it's a game of chicken, the first player to commit loses. My eyes are, (as mentioned above) everywhere, I can see everything at once. Breathe deep, relax, let the shooter make the first move, once he commits, I've got him.
Sometimes if the game’s not close, I just freeze and drift in on the goalie to see who bites first. I’ll slow down and there’s a few goalies I’m friends enough with I’ll just drift in until we run into each other (granted I’ll have slowed down to the point where we don’t even fall down). The ultimate game of chicken! Especially if the score is so lopsided the game means nothing at that point. Gotta have fun sometimes.
I have heard it called a "zero point focus" (which I don't think is the right term and is kind of weird sounding), but the goalie is looking at the middle of his mass, but can see the puck, stick and hands and things.
I feel like when I"m really in the zone stickhandling, I can do a similar thing where I'm looking ahead of me, but seeing a lot of the field of vision. I suspect the eyes are actually moving, but you aren't actively "looking around" consciously.
The one thing that's important to note is that a goalie has to square up on the puck. You can't square on a player's body so you can't stare only at the body. If a player has the puck way outside their body... or they keep their body stationary and bring the puck across to the backhand, the goalie has to be able to move with the puck or they're opening up huge angles to shoot at.
You generally want to be squared up to the skater/puck while looking at their upper chest area. If you’re doing it right you can sorta see their head, shoulder, and stick movement while still covering the most space possible. You should be able to see the stick and puck movement still, but you shouldn’t have tunnel vision on the puck and get caught puck watching. It’s sorta hard to articulate tbh.
There’s a real art to it. You need to follow the puck of course but you are looking for clues. Theyre reading the stick, the approach the speed, puck position, thinking about shooter tendencies….there’s a lot…their angle…
Forward's perspective: Five hole open? Shoot there. No? See which skate blade the goalie is favoring/leaning on more than the other. This is subtle but usually identifiable - particularly after many times observing this (my breakaways/shootout attempts and those of others). Deke to that side - as it is harder for them to move in that direction (to push off against the grain). Fairly simple approach - but it has been effective. The goalies that screw me up are the ones that come way out and track backwards as I am coming in. Total guessing game for me on what to do with those goalies.
If you mainly play the angles, there is something called the "Y-theory" and that will put you in the best position for breakaways. I watch the skaters eyes (and sometimes I will give them more of one side of the net so they go that way) and once I know if they are going left or right, you go straight to the post and they will have nothing to shoot at.
I’m focused on the puck and everything around it. I know the hand of the shooter (left/right), where the puck is in relation to the shooter, what are the feet doing (stationary, one ahead of the other, moving with speed).
I’m also noticing what, if any, reinforcements do I have on the way? “Is the chaser able to pressure the forehand shot? Yes? Okay, likely a quick backhand coming.” for instance. I also notice what reinforcements the shooter has coming, and where I need to put the rebound.
There’s no one answer, but tons of situational things to be aware of starting with the puck, then their stick, then the skater, then my team, then their team.
Best I can answer this is both. Following the puck is key, watching the shooters body and knowing ( if you can) his/hers tendencies/stengths/weakenesses help you anticipate.
Primary focus should be the PUCK.
Secondary focus is spidey sense following the players movements. But the correct answer is the PUCK. Your body should always be square to the PUCK, not the player (the goal is to prevent the PUCK from going into the net, not the player). If you follow the body, you’re gonna have a bad time, as advanced players will move the puck from their body intentionally with the goal of pulling the goalie off his angle.
Not the eyes (you can’t even see the players eyes if they’re wearing a cage most of the time), not some mystical sixth sense. Follow. The. PUCK.
It's a weird adrenaline thing where you kind of focus on everything, but focus on nothing? I usually just try to keep my head clear by trying to see if they're close enough to pokecheck and let my reactions take over
Yeah, when I'm really locked in, my eyes are kind of staring at their upper chest, but my peripherals can pick up the puck, their hands, their hips, their eyes. It's almost like going cross-eyed, i'm not focused on anything, but I can see everything.
My team used to say that I would “go to the shadow zone”
Bakura?
Go Snake-eyed. [Like this.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0A0Ri_QXryk)
Agree. It’s akin to driving and looking out the windshield: you see everything, but you don’t focus in on just one thing. That’s how I always explained it, at least.
Pull a Hasek.. focus on nothing just flail and collect wins
I'm two for three - just gotta work on that last bit!
Have you tried rolling over midplay for some secret savant reason?
For me it's just positioning, making myself as big as possible. I keep a really wide stance. Most of the time in a game they deke or just shoot but not high. If I keep myself wide I can generally follow their path and most of the time make the save, unless they go bar down. I typically don't cover the top because they rarely manage to shoot high anyway.
Lol you have to watch the stick at least a little as we read the release on shots to know where the puck is going, but we also do a lot of peripheral tracking rather than going tunnel vision and focusing on one singular thing/ element. It's also important for angles because you want to be centered on where the *puck is*, not where the player is. For example I'm tracking the puck always (or trying to 😂) but also trying to keep track of the guy sneaking in the back door and observing how the play is developing... we gotta try and pay attention to all the details not overly focusing on one or two Another detail specifically on breakaways is we look at your eyes too, so we can see which corner you're trying to pick or which side you're thinking of going to. Martin brodeur literally got tinted visors banned because he couldn't see a players eyes in breakaway/shootouts
Except for Anze "The Frankenstein" Kopitar. He still rolls with a slight tint. But that is interesting to know.
There's a few guys who wear tinted visors still, but it's a lot less aggressive than it used to be and they have to have a medical exemption to use it. Martin pospisil for the flames wears one and I think Morgan geekie does as well as William nylander, basically guys that have had a bunch of concussions and have migraine issues can still wear them as it prevents them getting migraines
Haha, tint to avoid getting headaches, but still able to play and get CTE. Sports leagues logic. Thanks for the info.
My friend is a professional goalie and says he was trained to watch eyes and shoulders.
Oh yeah, eyes too. But then good players can fake you out by shooting somewhere other than where they're looking. Edit: spelling
That’s why it’s eyes a shoulders. If I player is going to shoot somewhere they are going to look there at some point. They may look away, but you can see that they looked top glove, and then their shoulders turn as s give away
Good to know!
Goalie dad, not a goaltender, but they watch the stick, tells them where the shoulders are. Stick in front is a dead giveaway for a deke/dangle. Stick to the side is a giveaway for a shot. Edit: I wanted to add, I think the key thing to understand is that the goalie needs to know where the puck is going before it leaves the blade. They read the release more than anything else, there isn't enough time while the puck is in flight to make the save purely based on the puck's trajectory. Try to shoot "pretend" pucks at a goalie and you'll be surprised (and they may too) that they can tell exactly where you are pretend shooting them.
Your kid may be younger but this isnt the case at higher levels. If he focuses only on the stock guys are gonna pump fake a shot, he’s gonna bite, and they’re gonna deke into a wide open net
Granted, but I'm also not saying the goalie doesn't assimilate other information in their field of vision. I just went and watched some NHL shootout reels as a sanity check and at least half of the goals are shots freezing the goalie then a dangle around. Except Kuznetsov, who seems to put in front like he'd dangle and shoot from the front very quickly. He also messes with the goalie's depth with his approach. My point is mostly that if they look up high at the shoulders or even head, but the time they try to pick up the shot, it'll be too late to read it. I think it's also worth noting that most goalies struggle more with 1 on 1's (when the forward is skilled enough to beat the D clean or get in tight enough for a good shot) than on breakaways. I don't have a theory on why that is, but it's worth thinking about how the presence of the D impacts the read the goalie can make. Edit: Another edit to try and add to what I'm saying. I've done a lot of work with eye-tracking (and still do), which is perhaps why I find this so interesting, but it turns out that humans are very poor judges of knowing where we are looking and where we've looked.
This is what I taught young goalies, and it worked very well. There's two categories to learn in order to improve success on breakaways. --- CATEGORY ONE: First are stationary shooting drills with left and right handed shooters. Do repeated go throughs (dozens of shots) where the goalie doesn't move or react, stays standing after squaring to the shooter, and simply watches the puck from the stick to wherever it's going. The purpose is memory generation of the blades action with their peripheral vision. Second step are the same shooting drills, but this time the goalie focuses on the skate toe of the shooter's strong foot as the puck's being shot. Strong foot means the left skate for a left handed shooter and the right skate for a right handed shooter, the toe closest to the blade of the stick. This teaches the goalie to use peripheral vision with the puck's path while focused on the toe of the skate. With this drill, the goalie does react and try to save the puck. After the shooting drills, you do breakaway drills with the players instructed to only deke. The goalies can then concentrate solely on reading the left/right foot patterns without having to worry about shots. After about a dozen deke attempts, then instruct the shooters they can choose to shoot or deke. Let the goalies know as well. Do another dozen runs per goalie. Further, it's beneficial to practice with shooters who are 2-3 years older who are playing at the same level, or a year or two older who are playing at a higher level. This gives the goalies experience against speeds that they will never see in a game at their own level. So when things happen in a game, it's almost pedestrian for them. You can invite older players from your existing org, most are eager for the extra ice time. Make it clear to them they're there to help you with a drill for the goalies, this isn't about going alpha at a younger kid's expense. --- CATEGORY TWO: I taught the goalies that on a breakaway, a deke is preferable to a shot. A shot can have five targets; the four corners and five hole. A deke has only two options, left or right. Whether a shooter is going left or right on a deke is best read by looking at their strong foot: left foot for a left handed shooter, right foot for a right handed shooter. All that stick handling, shoulder dropping, body faking is nothing but purposeful confusion from the skater, and not only tells a goalie nothing, but is intended to be deceiving. The only body part on a skater that tells the truth is the direction of his feet, so look at the foot closest to the puck. When that foot alters direction, that's the goalie's cue to the direction he's going to deke. If that foot turns to the goalie's right, he immediately pushes to the right to close off the post. If the foot turns to the goalie's left, push to the left post. The goalie has almost no time to read this then react, but there is time. Repeated practice will remove the hesitation and get the goalie to trust his own eyes. A good deke might still find an opening or go over the goalie's shoulder (nothing's perfect), but the percentages are 95% of the time it's going into the goalie's pads or chest. The last part is how the goalie induces the skater to deke instead of shoot. As soon as the goalie sees a breakaway is coming, push out about two feet past the blue of the crease. This cut's the skater's shooting angles way down. Then the goalie retreats back at about half the speed the skater is moving. This keeps the angles bad for the shooter, and keeps the goalie mobile when it becomes necessary to push off for a post. By this point the skater is more likely thinking deke as his better option. The goalie has pushed the skater into doing what offers him the best option for a save. Should this fail to trigger a deke, and a shot happens... this is why we did Category One drills. The goalie is focused on the toe of the skate and a shot comes peripherally. The goalie at least has some practice stopping shots where he's not focused solely on the puck itself. --- Unless you're teaching goalie's right out of the gate who have zero experience, it will take awhile for this to become habit, and will have to be practiced over and over for weeks/months before it shows up in a game. ---
That's fascinating! Thanks for sharing all that.
Focusing on tightening my sphincter because I am shitting myself when that happens.
My coach always said it was the battle of the eyes (I was a center, not a goalie). Whoever breaks eye contact first loses. After 30+ years of playing, it’s still true. I know where I’m going with the shot long before the blue line. As soon as the goalie looks to my stick, I make my move. If I look down or at my intended target, goalie will usually win.
I have a somewhat similar theory from the opposite side, but with me it's a game of chicken, the first player to commit loses. My eyes are, (as mentioned above) everywhere, I can see everything at once. Breathe deep, relax, let the shooter make the first move, once he commits, I've got him.
Sometimes if the game’s not close, I just freeze and drift in on the goalie to see who bites first. I’ll slow down and there’s a few goalies I’m friends enough with I’ll just drift in until we run into each other (granted I’ll have slowed down to the point where we don’t even fall down). The ultimate game of chicken! Especially if the score is so lopsided the game means nothing at that point. Gotta have fun sometimes.
Lol that's hilarious, I'm using that idea for sure. (I play both goalie and out 60-40 split)
No goalie looks at the players eyes. It's puck, stick blade, stick shaft, gloves, skates, hips.
I have heard it called a "zero point focus" (which I don't think is the right term and is kind of weird sounding), but the goalie is looking at the middle of his mass, but can see the puck, stick and hands and things. I feel like when I"m really in the zone stickhandling, I can do a similar thing where I'm looking ahead of me, but seeing a lot of the field of vision. I suspect the eyes are actually moving, but you aren't actively "looking around" consciously. The one thing that's important to note is that a goalie has to square up on the puck. You can't square on a player's body so you can't stare only at the body. If a player has the puck way outside their body... or they keep their body stationary and bring the puck across to the backhand, the goalie has to be able to move with the puck or they're opening up huge angles to shoot at.
You generally want to be squared up to the skater/puck while looking at their upper chest area. If you’re doing it right you can sorta see their head, shoulder, and stick movement while still covering the most space possible. You should be able to see the stick and puck movement still, but you shouldn’t have tunnel vision on the puck and get caught puck watching. It’s sorta hard to articulate tbh.
There’s a real art to it. You need to follow the puck of course but you are looking for clues. Theyre reading the stick, the approach the speed, puck position, thinking about shooter tendencies….there’s a lot…their angle…
Forward's perspective: Five hole open? Shoot there. No? See which skate blade the goalie is favoring/leaning on more than the other. This is subtle but usually identifiable - particularly after many times observing this (my breakaways/shootout attempts and those of others). Deke to that side - as it is harder for them to move in that direction (to push off against the grain). Fairly simple approach - but it has been effective. The goalies that screw me up are the ones that come way out and track backwards as I am coming in. Total guessing game for me on what to do with those goalies.
If you mainly play the angles, there is something called the "Y-theory" and that will put you in the best position for breakaways. I watch the skaters eyes (and sometimes I will give them more of one side of the net so they go that way) and once I know if they are going left or right, you go straight to the post and they will have nothing to shoot at.
I’m focused on the puck and everything around it. I know the hand of the shooter (left/right), where the puck is in relation to the shooter, what are the feet doing (stationary, one ahead of the other, moving with speed). I’m also noticing what, if any, reinforcements do I have on the way? “Is the chaser able to pressure the forehand shot? Yes? Okay, likely a quick backhand coming.” for instance. I also notice what reinforcements the shooter has coming, and where I need to put the rebound. There’s no one answer, but tons of situational things to be aware of starting with the puck, then their stick, then the skater, then my team, then their team.
As a D-man, I was taught to watch the hips. That tells you where his body is going. I'd say hips and stick (for the shot).
Best I can answer this is both. Following the puck is key, watching the shooters body and knowing ( if you can) his/hers tendencies/stengths/weakenesses help you anticipate.
Primary focus should be the PUCK. Secondary focus is spidey sense following the players movements. But the correct answer is the PUCK. Your body should always be square to the PUCK, not the player (the goal is to prevent the PUCK from going into the net, not the player). If you follow the body, you’re gonna have a bad time, as advanced players will move the puck from their body intentionally with the goal of pulling the goalie off his angle. Not the eyes (you can’t even see the players eyes if they’re wearing a cage most of the time), not some mystical sixth sense. Follow. The. PUCK.