Transition, Poke, Shoot

This is a drill designed for defensemen to work on footwork and quickness.  Place a tire or cone near the top of the circles aligned with the face off dots.  For younger players it makes sense to move the tire down closer to the offensive zone face off dot.  The first player (D1) starts just to the inside of the tire and skates to where they are even with the face off dot before tranistioning backwards as fast as they can.  The transition should be towards the middle of the ice.   When the player gets back to the tire they open up and attack the puck along the boards with a poke check.  When players transition around the tire they should not cross over, the focus is on opening the hips and exploding to the  boards.  On the poke check, then player should focus on making good contact as though they are trying to keep the puck in the zone.  After the poke check the focus is again on opening the hips and sprinting back to the middle of the ice.  They will receive a pass from the next player in line right after the tire.  Challenge players to get the shot off as quick as possible after they receive the pass.