Failing to create a zone entry, or winning a neutral zone battle but then turning into a failed zone entry, can be a headache for any team, and a hair pulling experience for a coach.
I see this in the youth levels a lot when players are only ever focused on moving the puck forward and are afraid to pass the puck back, regroup, and make another or better attempt.
This is why I put a heavy focus on regrouping and making sure players know early on that it is a good thing to know when your options are not there, and to send the puck back to the defense and give the zone attack another effort.
This can be accomplished with a good mix of full ice and half ice drills, depending on what you have available for your team.
Drills created with Hockey Coach Vision.
Half Ice Regroup
The red team starts with the puck and sends a pass behind the net, the defensive player then enters the zone and can pass or skate it in, whatever option they choose. They can then attack the net in a 3-on-2, but if they lose possession, the puck has to be cycled again.
When yellow gets the puck, they pass back, make the D-to-D pass, and then they start their 3-on-2 attack (which is a temporary 3-on-3) as the player cycles back to the top, and can attack the puck carrier. Once they gain possession, the puck carrier moves back behind the net and starts the cycle again.
Center Ice Regroup Game
The nets are moved to center on the blue line and the game is played 3 on 3 with 2 defenders per team behind the net.
In order to score, you must make a pass to one of your defenders behind the net who then makes a D to D pass. The pass receiver can now enter the play and that team can score.
Should the attacking team then lose possession, the defender must return back to behind the net, waiting again for another passing opportunity.
The small area forces players to be smart about their plays and find good ways to get the puck back to their defense without turning it over along the way. Losing your defender suddenly forces you to go back and regroup as a team before mounting your next attack.
Full Ice Regroup Passing
This is a great warm up drill that you can run in both directions and get a flow going. You start with four lines at each face off dot in the zone, with pucks at opposite dots. Player 1 makes a pass to player 2 next to them and they both skate down the ice. At center, the puck carrier makes a hard pass to player 3 in front of them, who then makes a quick pass to player 4. From there players 1 and 2 cross paths and player 4 makes a hard pass to player 1 and along with player 2, they go down for a 2-on-0. The other side can begin going once the other players have crossed the red line for the attack.
This warm-up reinforces the quick, hard passing of neutral zone regrouping and forces them to keep their speed for the drill to work. Once they start losing their speed or making bad passes, you will see the drill begin to fall apart. That’s a good time to remind them they need to keep speed and make tape-to-tape passes.
Winterhawks Full Ice Regroup
In this drill, the forward makes a pass to the defenseman, who brings it slightly back into their defensive zone before moving it to another forward (or could be a defenseman offering support), and then coming in with speed to execute a 3 on 0 break-in. This drill is a favorite of mine because it forces them to remember that going back is always an option and allows another player to find the speed to then enter the zone with less resistance.
You can also add a coach to the blueline to mix up how the players then enter the zone, rather than allowing them the same path each time.
With these four drills, and the knowledge that making mistakes is okay and part of learning, your team will begin to trust that sometimes, moving the puck back is the better option to create scoring chances and that forcing pucks forward can sometimes lead to turnovers and scoring chances for your opponent.
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