Tyler Dittmer is a Skill Development Coach who covers the gamut of on-ice development from his home rink in Brandon, Manitoba. At TCS Live 2024 in Ann Arbour, Michigan, Dittmer provided a full in-depth on ice presentation on shooting the puck, specifically on changing the angle with toe deception.
Dittmer takes great pride in teaching shooting and has found that the best way to beat a goaltender is by changing the angle immediately prior to the shot. This can be accomplished by using the toe of the stick as the main point of deception. Before getting into specific shooting drills, Dittmer spent time getting his players focused on simple stickhandling drills on both a player’s strong and weak side of their body. Taking time to engage in full range stickhandling and passing drills allows the players to fully activate their upper body and the grip on their stick which prepares them for shooting specific drills.
Once the shots get underway, Dittmer guides his players to hold the puck behind their feet and delay in order to disguise their shot. When a player is stickhandling and brings the puck back to arm their shot they are indicating to the goalie that they are going to shoot, which gives the goalie the ability to get set and make the save. By not giving the goalie an indicator of when a player is going to shoot, more often a player can catch a goalie by surprise.
Dittmer also works on shooting drills that focus on under-handling the puck, or limiting stickhandling. Being able to receive a puck off a pass on a player’s forehand and being able to get a quick quality shot off is a key focus in Dittmer’s shooting drills. Along with Dittmer’s focus on a player’s shooting mechanics, he also preaches to his players about getting their eyes up while maintaining full range of motion with their hands to be able to move and shoot the puck with accuracy and precision.
Noteworthy Timestamps;
- 00:45 NHL game examples
- 03:30 Preparing the body
- 06:40 Shooting drill
- 10:10 Forward pass to shot drill
- 12:15 Defence pass to shot drill
