Here are the total amount of faceoffs in the BCHL’s first round playoff series between the Cranbrook Bucks and the Trail Smoke Eaters.

• Game 1: 68 (overtime)
• Game 2: 67
• Game 3: 53
• Game 4: 106 (triple overtime)
• Game 5: 66
• Game 6: 53

106 faceoffs in one game! The game ended early in the third overtime, it was basically 106 minutes long.

A faceoff every minute. That’s the most important takeaway already - if your team can start with the puck every segmented minute of the game, your players will haver a lot more fun. Attacking is always easier than defending.

Most coaches set up faceoff plays to score a goal or break the puck out immediately. While that’s clearly the goal of every draw, the other team is trying too. Just having a plan is enough sometimes. It focuses the players whether the faceoff is won or lost.

Pre-Faceoff Meetings

Every faceoff should be preceded by a 20 second player meeting. Throughout our series with Trail I knew our players were mentally dialled in when they huddled for a moment prior to the faceoff. Our centres are veterans, they’re detail-oriented, and they have good memories. They did a great job collecting their teammates before each faceoff and reminding everybody on the plan, win or lose. Mostly a win, of course, because that’s how they’re wired.

And they knew who they were facing off against.

• Game 1: 63% (3-2 OT Road Win)
• Game 2: 58% (5-1 Road Loss)
• Game 3: 55% (3-1 Home Loss)
• Game 4: 55% (3X OT Home Win)
• Game 5: 55% (4-2 Road Win)
• Game 6: 53% (1-0 Home Win & Series Clincher)

Game 4 Faceoff Goals

Back the bus up a bit more and there are more meetings. We broke down each opponent prior to the series starting, but things always change. Trail had a fantastic centreman, Cade De St. Hubert, who was dominant on the dot to the point we changed our lines. We knew exactly what he was trying to do but he still did it. That’s true skill.

Sam Lyne Game 4 vs. Trail

As the series went on there were fewer meetings because you see the same player so many times. It became more about intuition for me when trying to decide who would be able to beat who. That’s where the preparation a week or two prior came in handy.

Some players have one move they go to every time. Some like to mix up their toolbox depending on what side of the ice they’re on or who their opponent is. Trail’s Judah Makway, Jason Stefanek, Brayden Sinclair and the aforementioned De St. Hubert were all dangerous in the dot for different reasons, and it took everything we had to try and match up against them. A couple 60% + nights were huge accomplishments.

Now we get to do it again!