This is a half ice skating drill that is great for most age levels. It emphasizes quick feet and quick changes of direction. To set up the drill have the players line up in the middle of the ice on the blue line facing the net. The players will go in groups of two or three. The players skate to the bottom of the circle and around the circle back to the middle and to the inside of the cone then back outside around the top of the next circle. See the diagram and animation for clarity. Switch directions each time.

Coaching Points

• Players should never stop moving their feet.
• Make sure players are skating hard all the way through the blue line.
• When skating around the circle player should stay low and get a strong push from the cross-under.
• Rotate the chest towards the middle of the circle.

Progression

• Peanut Skating Drill with Pivots (Half Ice)

Here is a good warm up drill if you only have 1 goalie.  It is similar to the origial three lane shooting drill but adapted to shoot on one net.  Set up the players along the boards at the blue line.  The coach or another player  has all the pucks just inside the other blue line.

On the whistle P1 skates along the boards and swings to the other side of the ice to receive a pass from the coach. P1 stays on that side of the ice and shoots from about the top of the circles.  When the pass is made P2 skates along the boards to the red line and then swings into center ice to receive a pass from the coach.  P2 stays in the middle of the ice and shoots from about the top of the circles. Once the pass to P2 is made P3 begins.  P3 skates up to the far blue line and opens up (inside to outside) to receive a pass from the coach.  P3 stays on the near side of the ice and takes a shot from the top of the circles.  It is also nice to allow P3 to go in for a close range shot or deque so the goalies get two long shots and a close range shot.

After their shots, players line up on the other side of the ice.

Thanks to In The Crease Goaltending for contributing to our list of goalie drills! This goalie drill for hockey allows goalies an opportunity to work on playing the puck as it is rimmed behind the net.  The goalies need to control the puck, be aware of the outlet pass, make a hard accurate pass to the forward, then get back in position as quickly as possible.

To set up place a line of players at the blue line with pucks at each side along the wall.  The drill starts by the player rimming the puck around the net and then going down to the hash marks to be available for an outlet pass.  The goalie has to get behind the net, control the puck, and make an outlet pass to the player that rimmed the puck.  When the foward receives the puck they skate out around the cone and come back on the goalie 1 on 0.  Instruct the players to get their head up as they go around the cone and take advantage of the shot if the goalie is out of position at all.  Part of the challenge for goalies is to get their bearings as quickly as possible after making the pass so they are in perfect position by the time the forward in the slot.

This drill focuses on tight control turns while maintaining control of the puck.  Set up the drill as shown in the diagram with the pucks (or cones) arranged around the circle with each puck about a stick length apart.  In order to make the control turns players will need to work on using their hips to reverse their direction.  This can be a challenging drill to do at a fast pace. It is good to start slow and work on the technique and then work up to where they can do it at a faster pace.

This is a drill for goalies but fun for players who want to work on their scoring touch as well.  Place wo players along the goal line, one on each side of the net just outside the face off dots. Place the other two players just off the posts in the high slot.  The coach or another player should be behind the net with the pucks.  The goalie starts the drill on their stomach.  At the start of the drill, the coach will slap the stick on the ice (to let the goalie know the drill has started) and make a quick pass to any of the four players.  The goalie needs to find the player with the puck and get in good position as quickly as possible.  The player who receives the pass must move in for a close shot or deque on the goalie.  This forces the goalie to come to play the shot and yet maintain good position as the player moves in closer.  It is challenging for the  goalies but it is a great workout.  It can be more fun if it is turned into a game as well.

To make it even more challenging, have the the coach point out a second player after the pass is made.  it then becomes a 2 on 0.  

Oreo 3 V 3 Game from Jason Lammers is a continuous game that is competitive in nature as it forces the defense to work to pass the puck to the next players in line, while the offensive team is trying to score.

Setup

• In this example, 3 players line up on the blue line. The players behind them are on the opposite team.
• On the whistle, coach dumps a puck into the zone to begin a 3 on 3.
• The offensive team is trying to score, while the defensive team is trying to pass the puck to the next players in line.
• When the defensive team passes the puck to the next players in line, the team that was previously playing offense, is now on defense, and the players who just got the puck are now on offense.
• The game is continuous, keep score!

Coaching Points

• Offense - support your teammates and be an outlet when you do not have the puck
• Defense - keep sticks on the ice to block passing lanes and angle the offensive team to the outside of the ice
• Everyone - communicate with your teammates

Variations

• Can set this up in different areas of the ice and make it 1/2, 1/3 ice, or 1/4 ice
• Can have this be 1v1, 2v2, 3v3, 4v4, or 5v5
• Can require the defensive team to make a pass to a teammate before they are able to pass to the next players in line