Goalie Training Tips: Rebound Control

With younger groups, we hear the term “rebound control” from team coaches and parents pretty frequently.  Is this what goaltenders really need to be working on during their goalie training sessions?

When booked for semi-private goalie training sessions, we like to implement our progressive development plan which enables our staff to integrate the R3E System into each lesson to build efficiency for each of our students.  As an added bonus, we add a personal touch and ask team coaches and the parents of each goaltender what they feel we should be looking for to customize the lesson.

A lot of the time, we’re told that their goaltenders need to be better at controlling their rebounds.  But where does controlling the rebound really begin?  Should every shot from the same location, be directed to the corners?  Is every situation that goalies face the same?  Should goalies attempt to hold onto every puck to get a whistle?  The answer may not be as simple as you think.

Skills

Of course goaltenders need to allow themselves to work on technical foundations during their goalie training sessions and team practices.  Areas, such as catching and retaining the puck with their glove, directing the puck with their blocker, directing the puck into the corners off of their pads, and with their stick should be worked on regularly.

But being skilled in holding onto or directing pucks isn’t quite enough for goalies.

Skating

Being a great skater in the crease opens so many opportunities for goaltenders to be in the right place at the right time enabling them to control where their rebounds will go.  But in order to do so, goaltenders need to push themselves during their goalie training sessions to push hard and stop hard with great balance and technique which aids in making reacting to each shot the simplest aspect of their game.

Goaltender-Specific Power Skating programs are a great addition to the goaltender’s training plan in order to become as effective and efficient as possible in this area.  But not all situations call for the exact same reaction from the goaltender.

Circumstance

When hearing that goaltenders need to work on their rebound control prior to a goalie training session, having an understanding of the situations which result in the perceived need to work on this area are essential.

This is because controlling a rebound is circumstantial, and the circumstances determine how the goaltender should attempt to handle their rebounds.

Thought Process

From a young age, many goaltenders are taught not to think, and to simply react instead during their games.  Therefore, it can be difficult as a team coach to ask goaltenders to think about how to handle the situation which may cause a rebound.  So it’s important for team coaches to place goaltenders in game situations within their practices in order for them to recognize how to handle these situations when faced with them during games at the earliest stages of their development.

Game Situation Theory

It’s never too early to introduce a goaltender to on-ice theory to help them understand that their actions will cause a reaction, and to help them understand the potential scoring threats around them.  Doing so ensures that the goaltender reacts in ways which enable them to play their own game of keep-away from the opposition.

Whether it’s directing pucks to the corners, over the glass, into the body to absorb and freeze the puck, or whether to remain patient or be aggressive with their stick, coaches need their goaltenders to take the given situation into consideration before making their move.

Understanding the Game

So many goaltenders are told that it’s alright for them to stay in their crease while the team’s coach explains the next drill.  However, the best on-ice theory is ensuring that the goaltender understands each and every team drill or exercise.  This enables them to build their understanding of what the opposition may look to do, and how his/her team may attempt to counter.

Essentially, understanding how each action from everyone else on the ice causes a reaction, and understanding what those reactions will be, allows the goaltender to see multiple steps ahead.  Through this process, goaltenders are able to anticipate the best method of reacting for shots based on the circumstances that they are faced with.

 

As you can see, rebound control is more than simply directing the puck to the corner or freezing it on demand.  And it’s just not as simple as having a goalie coach shoot pucks toward them for them to handle.

Instead, goalies need to combine their physical abilities with an understanding of the game which are learned during both goalie training sessions and their team’s practices.  They need to build an understanding of how situations which they will be faced with during competition will affect the flow of the game, and potentially create opportunities for secondary scoring chances.

All of our goalie training programs provide goaltenders with an understanding of how each exercise relates to a game situation that they’ll face at some point.  We supply our students with plenty on-ice theory in order to build their understanding of how to become as efficient as possible to give their teams better chances to win games.

Looking for more information about our upcoming programs?  Let us know.