Ideas to Quicken the Wrist Shot

A few years back I started noticing that my team was missing out on a number of close range scoring opportunities, and I just knew I had to find a way to quicken their wrist shots. A number of times, my guys actually got stripped of the puck as they were readying to shoot. Not that this doesn’t happen occasionally to every player. But, from my point of view, this inability to get their shots off quicker happened too often with my kids. So, I created a number of very different kinds of drills to speed my players’ reactions (besides the few I’ll show you now). But I’ll suggest that no single one is any more effective than another, if you’re looking to quicken something like the wrist shot. No matter which I’d use, though, the main idea was to recreate an urgency typical to normal game conditions.

That urgency is something I often talked to my kids about. For example, in the first drill you’ll see here (since I plan to show you even more in the future), I’m asking them to envision a rebound suddenly plopping out in front of them. There’s no time to waste in a situation like that, because every split-second they delay is time the opposition goaltender can use to re-position. Then, before we get to that video, I’d like to share a few slightly related ideas:

• I’d like you to notice that I often have my players spread along the boards and working on their own. In this way, they’re going to get far more shots than if they had to wait in a line. (We also regularly practice our slapshots this way.)

• If you see a ton of pucks or balls spread around a given practice area, it’s because I’d carry at least 2 or 3 for every player. (I’d carry about 80 pucks to every practice.) Looking to get as much accomplished as possible within a given time frame, I didn’t want anyone losing valuable time waiting for or searching for a puck or ball.

• I earlier hinted at the fact that there’s a mental component in speed or quickness training, when I described what I tell my kids prior to the upcoming shooting drill. As a matter of fact, I recall an elite level coach once mentioning at a seminar that, “In order to BE fast, a player has to first WANT to be fast!” (Yes, speed or quickness training does require the right kind of thinking.)

• Then, because part of this discussion stems from a long time Twitter friend’s comment — about weighted pucks and such, let me note that adding resistance to a movement can enhance strength, while lighter-than-normal gear makes it possible for a player to practice quicker than normal. That said, I will quite often use lightweight (blue) pucks and even foam ones when working on quickening the wrist shot.

• One final point that Twitter conversation reminded me to share with you… I think a player has to consider the “big picture” when choosing training aids or nontraditional training methods. For example, I wouldn’t worry about any slight negative effects (like a loss in shooting accuracy) during the off-season, or if I was working with a rather young player. In other words, I see the long-term gains in those situations far out-weighing any negatives. However, if we’re talking about a serious high school, junior, college or pro player, I’d wait for the off-season for that kind of training, and not risk losing shooting accuracy or a feel for the puck.

Now, in the first off-ice segment you’ll see, my young players have 3 pucks each (they’ll rest briefly and rearrange those pucks between sets), and they’ll move their hands as fast as possible to put them home. Also notice I have the kids stationed fairly close to the boards, this so they don’t worry about power. (Of course, as shown next, the same form of drilling can be taken to the ice.)