Last Updated on Thursday, 07 August 2014 13:02
By Chris Pryor
The basic concept of hockey is skates, a stick and a puck. BUT when ice isn’t available, there are other surfaces that you can still use to work on your game. Tennis courts, basketball courts, paved roads or just a good old driveway will be more than sufficient to practice your stickhandling or to shoot pucks.
We all “say” we are willing to work at getting better, but how many of us actually do it? Yeah, yeah, I know, ice time is expensive and I agree with the logic of having some “off” time during the year and get away from the rink. However, if you want to improve as a player, you need to work at your game.
This doesn’t mean being on the blades for 12 months. It does however entail shooting pucks and stickhandling a ball. Both things, if done for a continuous period of time, will help you see improvements in both your shot and puckhandling.
It doesn’t take a brain surgeon or rocket scientist to tell you that if you go out and shoot 100 pucks a day every day throughout the summer, your shot will get better OR stickhandle around the driveway with a street hockey ball, your hands will improve.
I can guarantee you this. If you were to make a commitment and do both of these things all summer, you will see improvements in both areas, and that is what you want to see as a player. The work you put in is paying off. The more you do, the better you will get, plain and simple.
Chris Pryor is the director of hockey operations for the Philadelphia Flyers. He is in charge of the amateur and pro scouting departments. A native of St. Paul, Pryor spent eight seasons as a scout for the Flyers. He played parts of six seasons in the NHL with the Minnesota North Stars and New York Islanders. If you have a question for a pro hockey scout, e-mail it to editor@letsplayhockey.com.
