Years ago I coached a goaltender named Beck Warm. If you looked him up right now you'd see he's spent time in the American Hockey League and different stops at the pro level. The story in question occured when he was about 14 or 15. Everyone was excited for the first day of practice, but 5 minutes in (probably less, actually), this kid despised me. 

Why? Well, when I was young and brasdh I was of the opinion that the goalie should try to stop the puck no matter what the situation. If the first drill in practice is a 3on1 with rebounds, then the first drill is a 3on1 with rebounds. The goalie's job is to stop the puck, right?

I haven't completely softened on that over the years, but a big part of my philosophy as a coach is to empower the players to take ownership of their development. It wasn't until I saw Jeff Lerg's presentation at TCS Live '24 that this philosophy and how it affects goalies really reared its ugly head with me. 

According to a study conducted by Lerg, 80% of goalies want goaltender-specific drills at the start of practice. 

This was kind of a no shit moment if I'm being honest. My first thought was that this is difficult unless you have a goalie coach every single day, which a lot of coaches don't. 

Or is it that difficult, or is the obstacle simply showing us the way forward? Can goalies not run 5 minutes of movement drills on their own in each net while the team works on passing or skating? Of course they can, and the age doesn't matter. If you don't have a goalie coach, then there are plenty of resources like this one and this one or all of these! It's an easy way to show your goaltender that you're on their side even if you didn't play the position at a high level. Give them time, show them that you care, and they'll reward the team with work ethic and habits just like any skating member of the team. 

All of that said, I still believe it's the goalie's responsibility to hit the ice for practice stretched and warm. And Lerg agrees, so I'm good there. 

"The goalies do have to be prepared, they have to show up ready to practice."

A lot of people cast goalies aside like they're different from everybody else, but we're doing our team a disservice. A 2on1 against is actually a 2on2. Killing a 4on5 penalty? You actually have 5 players on the ice. The goalie is not only a member of the team, they're the most important position in hockey, and they should have dedicated time and attention every practice. 

Give them a net at the start of practice and then blast them with odd-person rushes, and chances are their perfomance and habits will reflect the extra work. 

Check out this snippet from Lerg's presentation and start a 10-day free trial to The Coaches Site to watch the entire thing!