Blueline Agility Reps is a drill that helps defenders practice their agility on the blue line and getting shots to net. The drill also helps forwards practice retrievals along the wall, passing to the point, and tips in front.
Setup
- Net setup on the goal line.
- Defenseman at the point with forwards in the slot area (as shown in the diagram) or over in the other face-off dot (as shown in the video).
- Part 1: F1 chips the puck into the corner and retrieves it, curls towards the boards and passes to the point.
- The defenseman takes the puck, walks the blueline and gets a shot between the sticks. F1 looks to tip or deflect the puck.
- Part 2: F2 chips the puck on net, the goalie stops and sets the puck for F2 to get the puck, curl, and pass to the defender at the blueline.
- The defenseman walks the blueline and gets another shot between the sticks. F2 looks to tip or deflect the puck.
Coaching Points
- Forwards should shoulder check before retrieving the puck. When they are in front of the net they should work on screening the goalie by taking their eyes away and tipping the puck.
- The defender should work to move along the blueline as soon as they get the puck to create space and a shooting lane before quickly getting the puck through the sticks.
Variations
- Can set this up as a station (as shown) or a half ice drill with the net in the normal crease area.
- Can add light pressure (by a coach or other player) on the forwards and/or defenseman so the players need to keep their head up.
