"These concepts stay the same. They're not different - they look different. But they stay the same."

One thing I've learned from watching Kim McCullough's presentations is how to add and remove pressure based on the core fundamentals of a skill. Whether it's breaking out of the zone or getting the puck off the wall or defending a zone entry, hockey players need to establish balance, composure, and power relative to their opponents. Don't get me wrong, I do lots of phsyical drills in practice. Small area games are intense, fast, and often pretty brutal. No one gets heard but we sure bash each other's bodies around. 

What I'm missing, though, is the core concepts of physicality. It's like we've skipped five steps. Watching Kim run simple drills with U9 girls and u18 players, and how the concepts stay the same, they just look different, is an important lesson. When I run 1on1 battles to transition between drills, it's chaos. Guys are falling all over the place. It's old school, sure, and it toughens people up, but I'm starting to wonder whether or not they're actually getting stronger on the feet, getting better at scanning, or finding a way to get inside body positioning. 

What Kim is teaching is purposeful, deep practice. It just involves some phsyicality and colourful language. 

Coaches tend to take the core concepts of physicality for granted in the third act of a player’s minor hockey journey. Once the bodies have matured and strength has developed, much of the game relies exclusively on those traits - size and strength. It’s actually a benefit to smaller players to learn how to check and defend without those benefits, and it’s a detriment to bigger players who succeed just because they’re bigger, stronger, and faster. Body positioning is owed to no one, however. I’ve seen talented players come to junior hockey get frustrated because they show the puck to their opponents, they don’t turn away from pressure, or they chase people down like Chucky from Child’s Play. It’s a puppet! Just kick it away?!

Anyways, commit to deep practice with your players when it comes to physicality. Physicality should be taught with the puck as much as without. Work on winning lanes and owning your ice. Start with simple races to the boards to establish body positioning. Build a wall with the body. 

The hidden benefit is that while you’re working on these concepts, by default you’re working on puck control, edges, and awareness at the same time. Like Kim shows here, it can be done with any age group, because the skill discrepancy amongst players is relative. I don't know about you, but I'm screaming for efficiency in my practices. I'm on the ice every single day and I still feel like it's not enough. Adding and removing pressure in these physical situations is an effective way to teach the fundamentals of not only checking, but the entire game. 

1on1 Win the Lane Body Positioning

Here's a drill I worked up to practice Kim's concepts. This is an easy way to start practice while the goalies are getting shots in the far end. 

• Two players start on a knee or face away from the boards
• On the whistle, players turn and race for puck
• Player who retrieves puck protects and cuts back and forth
• Progression: start with passive pressure and let players get comfortable 

Check out this snippet from McCullough's presentation and view the full video here a membership to The Coaches Site.