Shooting Off The Pass - Point

By: Ben Eaves

A great skill to help you increase your chances of scoring a goal is to learn how to quickly shoot off a pass! In the example above, we show you a simple exercise to practice this skill by jumping to open space and getting off a quick shot, coming down the wing. You can also set this up in the offensive zone corners.

Why is this skill beneficial? Alone, a quick-release shot can surprise the goaltender. However, if a quick-release comes off of a pass, it is even harder for a goalie to stop because they will be moving from wherever the original pass came from.

The goal of this is exercise is to get a goalie moving (from a pass) and getting a shot off quickly so the goalie does not have time to set up. On the flip side, if a player receives a pass, takes 2-4 seconds to settle the puck, the goalie has a better chance to get set up, get their angles correct and make the save.

Setup:

• Players and pucks are lined up at the point.
• A "Passer" is set up at the slot.
• The "Passer" jumps to open space to the point, which begins the exercise. 
• Player # 1 passes the puck to the "Passer" at the point.
• Player # 1 jumps to space heading to the net and receives a pass back. Player # 1 should work shoot quickly. Work on One Timers, or One Touch Shots to quickly get the puck off of your stick and to the net. Accuracy is not the key here, the goal is quick release and hitting the net. As time goes on, accuracy will come.
• After Player # 1 gets a shot off, they become the next passer.
• The Passer goes to the end of the line.

Coaching Points:

• Players should work on verbal (calling for the puck) & non-verbal communication (stick on the ice showing a target for the pass).
• Both Player # 1 and the Passer should work on quickly jumping to open space.
• Players should work on getting off a quick shot. They can also work on the following shots:
  •  Catch & Release Shot
  • One Timer
  • Strong Side One Timer

Goalie Notes:

• The goalie should not cheat and only line up for the shot. This is a great opportunity for the goalie to practice their T-Pushes & Shuffles to track the puck from the point to the wing.

Variations:

• Coaches can add various objects that the "Passer" must pass over or though. Make it more complex for higher skilled players. You can even add a stick that players must pass over to practice their sauce.
• The coach can set up Player # 1 and the Passer to be in different areas of the ice to work on shooting off of a pass. For more skilled players you can work on greater passing distances and angles.
• Practice Shooting Off The Pass From The Corners