For the fourth post I thought I'd do something special. After all, it's the number worn by myself. It has also been worn by legends such as Rob Blake, Scott Stevens, and Bobby Orr. So if you haven't read any of my other posts by now, check out the first three, then this post. You may realize what I did. Anyway, I've decided to do another post on checking. Though this one is not for open-ice hitting, but for checking along the boards. If you want to know how to do it, watch Matt Greene or Robyn Regehr play, because they're the best at it. There are a couple of differences between open-ice hitting and checking along the boards. First off, you don't try to lay people out along the boards. In open-ice, you try to lay someone out, but if you try to do it along the boards, you'll bounce off of the other player. Checking along the boards is more about trying to seperate the man from the puck. Notice how I call it checking along the boards, but I consider open-ice hitting a hit. Hits should be noticed, intimidating, and big. Checks, however, shouldn't be noticed. It's all about getting the puck from someone else, and you probably won't be rewarded for being good at it. The first thing about a good checker is that good checkers want the puck. That puck is theirs, and they know it. They don't get the puck and then give it away, they try to score after they get it, or give someone else on their team the chance to score; it is also important for checkers to not be intimidated by size, and to be willing to put forth the physical effort neccessary to do an unapprociated job. Now time for the tips.
Checking is an important part of any hockey team. Good checks can stop offensive rushes, create turnovers, create chances, and ultimately lead to a goal. A check is simply seperating a player from the puck, no matter how big or small they are. There are two types of checks: a simple push, and a regular check. The first thing to do in a regular check is to get low when you go to hit someone. Unlike on open-ice hits, you shouldn't explode up. You stay low, and this lets you take as much space as possible. When you go to check someone, you should aim between them and the puck. I like to try to hit their logo, or the top of their stick. When you hit their logo, you can stop them cold, and when you hit the middle of their stick, they lose control of the puck. Try to skate into them as quickly as possible. Be aware that you shouldn't be checking someone on a rush where you are skating backwards. You should be skating the same way they are so that you can come up from behind and surprise the puck carrier. Don't kill the puck carrier, just get between the puck carrier and the puck. And remember to use angles. Take away the slot, and make it so that the puck carrier has to go through you to get to the slot (See the post on open-ice hitting for more information on angling.) Don't go straight at the puck carrier. When pushing someone however, it's more for when the puck is down along the boards, and you're along the boards too, but don't really have an angle, or when the other person is protecting the puck in open ice so that you can't reach it with a poke check, and you're too close to them to hit them (See picture for an example). Simply push someone with one hand. It's not a hard push or anything, it's just a push to distract someone while you take the puck. Try to push more than once too. If your fighting with someone along the boards while they eat the puck, it also works for that too. Just push them laterally, and move them, distract them. If your trying to get the puck, just push them four or five times to move them, and keep them distracted. If someone is protecting the puck, push them so they lose control or can't get to the net. Pushing someone, if utilized properly, can be an effective defensive tool. Also, if you ever feel like you're not getting the most out of your strength, make sure you're more on your heels when you make a hit, not your toes. Your weight when you're about to hit into someone should close to the back of your blade, not the front, but you also shouldn't be leaning back. Try experimenting with this to find out where you are most comfortable.
Breakdown
- Checks should seperate a man from the puck, not send someone to the hospital.
- Be interested in doing something with the puck when you get it, don't just throw it away.
- Stay low when you hit someone. You shouldn't be exploding upward.
- Aim for the logo, or the top of the stick.
- Skate fast when you go to check someone, and keep your feet moving until the last second.
- Only check someone when you are both skating the same way.
- Try to overtake someone from behind, and skate into them.
- Use angles; don't go straight at someone.
- Use the push
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| When you should push someone center ice |
