Bunting the Hockey Puck
Okay, by now you probably know I like to be descriptive — or maybe colorful — when it comes to hockey technique. That’s the teacher in me, really. And I’ve done that with the following skill, because I want my players to picture a given kind of movement as they practice. But then, you’ll soon see what I’m talking about...
From the above photo you can probably already guess that I’m talking about my players learning to tap the puck out of the air and into the goal. And, you might also guess that I use the “bunting” tag because I want the kids to think of the movement as a rather short rap at the puck, not a wild swing.
Also, you might notice from the way I set-up this drill (and numerous others) that I like to have control. In other words, players needn’t be moving all around or dealing with pucks that aren’t placed right in a good area to practice with. In fact, the way I arrange this — and a lot of other drills — ensures my kids get far more repetitions than do players I see in other practice formats.
The Basic Drill From the above picture you should see how I like to organize this drilling… Pairs of players are very close to the boards, with one partner kneeling and holding about 3 or 4 pucks. That “feeder” must take care to lob the puck — between waist-high and chest-high — so that the “bunter” can practice tapping the puck towards an imaginary net. Now, when ready, you can watch a short video of that pair in action. These are actually two pretty good young players, yet the one doing the bunting is achieving so-so results. You might also notice that he needs reminding to shorten the stroke, and to be sure to keep his stick down. Batting the puck out of the air (on a regular basis and with some accuracy) really is a skill. And, as such, it should be practiced often. Also, I’ll suggest that all the tricks players do with a ball or puck — like keeping it balanced in the air for a good length of time — will also help with stick dexterity.
A More Game Related Drill The set-up in the next drill is exactly the same as the previous one. This time, however, I’m going to have the bunter jog in place as he attempts to bat pucks towards an imaginary goal. The purpose is to get my players moving and to cause their hands and eyes to bounce a little, thereby making the focus and contact with the puck a little more difficult. I say this form of drilling is more game related because, in a game, players only get a quick glimpse at the puck and only an instant to swipe at it, and they don’t get any time to really focus their eyes are pretty their posture. That said, when you’re ready, click on the second video to see some players jogging in place and attempting to bat (or bunt) the puck out of the air. (By the way, we could create similar game-like conditions by having a player step back and forth over a low obstacle, or by having him or her spin a different way just prior to each toss.)
Now, having seen the two videos, I’ll bet you know how you’d have corrected the youngsters who appeared in them. I give them credit for just starting to learn that skill. However, I think we can see where they made some nice “bunts” or where they swung a little too wildly, and we can both likely recognize when they needed to carry their stick a little lower. Finally, and as I suggested previously, this really is a skill. And, as such, it requires lots of practice.
