Mike McKenna

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InGoal Magazine contributing writer Mike McKenna gets the hard luck award for Friday night’s 3-2 overtime loss. With 1:23 left in the extra period and Monarchs Captain Marc-Andre Cliche camped in front of the net, Linden Vey sent a wrister from the left circle on goal, but before it got to McKenna the puck bounced off Cliche’s left skate then off his right skate and between McKenna’s pads and into the net. 

Vey put Manchester up 1-0 in the first when he grabbed a rebound from the left circle and fired a one timer into the net.

The Senators tied it at 17:39 of the second period when Mike Hoffman took a pass from behind the net and beat Jeff Zatkoff high glove side from the top of the right circle.

Manchester went up 2-1 at 14:17 of the third frame whem Dwight King redirected a Brandon Kozun shot past McKenna.

Not to be outdone, the Seanators knotted the score at 2 a piece just 14 seconds later when  Jack Downing skated in all alone and lifted a high shot past Zatkoff.

 Zatkoff (14-8-1) picked up his 14th victory of the season stopping 30-of-32 shots.  McKenna (13-13-0) took his 13th loss of the season making 26 saves on 29 shots.

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Another great mask painted by Daveart.com today–this one for 6’1″ goaltender Philipp Grubauer who hails from Rosenheim, Germany. Grubauer was drafted in the 4th round by the Caps and now plays for the ECHL South Carolina Stingrays – both the Caps and the ‘rays are represented on this hybrid design mask.

From Daveart’s Dave Gunnarsson:

Philipp wanted a really classic and clean design, with strong connections to the teams. One side is dedicated to the Capitals, and the other side to Stingrays with the logo as a swimming stingray with underwater scenes.

It was very fun to create this so called 2 in 1 design, the closer you get to the design the more details and 3-D effects you will discover,and a new design is created in front of your eyes. Some of the details you cannot even see in the photos…

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Cam Ward

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Cam Ward picked up his third shutout of the season with a 3-0 win Thursday night over the Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins thus giving the Carolina/Hartford franchise their first ever series sweep over Boston.

Carolina may be dwelling in the cellar of the Eastern Conference but they have had Boston’s number all year out scoring them 14-5 in their four victory’s

Boston peppered Ward with 47 shots, 22 in the first period and 20 in the third but seemed to be asleep at the wheel during the second as they only managed 5 shots in that frame. Not only did Ward quiet the sellout crowd with his performance, but a series of boos started emanating from the stands by the end of the game.

“I felt really comfortable,” Ward said. “I felt like I was seeing the puck well and for the most part I was really happy with my rebound control and we had to get off to a good start because we know that they play extremely hard, especially in their building. To walk away out of the first period with a 1-0 lead, we felt good about that and improved our play in the second period

Carolina scored in all three periods with Eric Staal starting it off in the first with a one timer past Rask. Tuomo Ruutu netted his 15th goal of the season in the second followed by Brandon Sutter’s 11th tally in the third.

Rask, 0-3 in his last three starts, played well all night, making a couple of highlight reel saves but was unable to overcome a lack of support up front.

“It’s tough,” Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask said. “They’re a good team. You look at the standings and they’re not where they want to be, but they, especially against us, they play some good hockey. And they seem to have our number. But, you know, still giving credit to them they’re playing good but we, in these four games we’ve played, we haven’t played our best either.”

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Vancouver backup Cory Schneider raised a few eyebrows and turned a few heads at the Canucks’ morning skate Thursday when he rolled out wearing a new set of customized Reebok P4 pads.

Even Detroit All-Star Jimmy Howard, who wears Vaughn equipment, popped his head out of the locker room to take a look.

Schneider also typically wears Vaughn, at least on his legs. His gloves have long been Reebok, and he recently switched to the new P4 model in games (he is wearing the older P3 version in these pictures because they are his practice set, complete with the thicker-palmed glove NHL goalies typically use to avoid stingers while facing hundreds of shots from teammates).

Schneider has always preferred stiffer gloves and softer pads, and maintained in conversations with InGoal that his “mutt” look wouldn’t change just for a sponsorship, smartly insisting he’ll always make more money stopping pucks than looking good doing so. So the switch is far from written in stone, but the fact he’s trying Reebok for the first time — and suffering some good natured heat from playing partner Roberto Luongo, a long-time Reebok goalie for doing so — says something about the customization options available in the new P4 line, including a softer boot break and a variety of inner leg channel options.

InGoal will have a complete breakdown of Reebok’s new P4 line and options in the second edition of our magazine, coming out Monday. In the meantime, enjoy these photos of Schneider’s P4 test run from the Canucks’ morning skate Thursday (and don’t forget to enter our contest, brought to you by the Hockey Shop, to win your own set of Reebok P4 equipment):

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Craig Anderson

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A funny bounce of the puck completes Boston’s comeback from a 3-1 deficit to to take  the 4-3 victory over their division rival Ottawa Senators.

While Dennis Seidenberg’s idea was to just get the puck into the offensive zone, the end result was the game winning goal. Seidenberg launched a one time timer from center ice that just happened to take a funny bounce on the way to the net, glance off Craig Anderson’s stick and through the five hole for the winning score.

 ”It took a one-bouncer and it hit my stick and went in,” Anderson said. “Just one of those things where I’ve got to make the save but, at the same time it took a crazy bounce.”

Ottawa outplayed the B’s for most of the first 2 periods mounting a 3-1 lead but the momentum started to swing the other way with 45 seconds left on the clock in the second frame as Milan Lucic saw an opening from the slot and went top shelf past Anderson’s stick side.

Zedeno Chara, fresh off his Team Chara victory in the All-Star game, got Boston on the board first but the Senators countered with 3 tallies of their own starting with Colis Greening’s 12th goal of the season at the 18:40 mark of the first period.

Ottawa controlled the second stanza out shooting Boston 12-5 while lighting the lamp twice with goals from Kyle Turris and Erik Karlsson to take a 3-1 lead.

Boston’s third goal of the night came when Brad Marchand grabbed a rebound at the top of the crease and wacked the airborne puck to the back of the net. 

Craig Anderson (25-17-4) took the loss, his fourth in a row. Anderson’s last win was 1/19 over the San Jose Sharks.

Tim Thomas (21-9-0), who has received a considerable amount of non hockey related press recently, chalked up the win. The Boston fans showed their love for Timmy with a standing ovation to start the game.

When asked after the game about it, Thomas replied, “Yeah, I was happy to hear the reception from the fans. It was just good to hear, you know? And I wanted to get them a win real bad. When we got down there in the second I didn’t know if we’d be able to pull it off, but we found a way again”.

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Jason Power works with one of his goaltenders with the Springfield JR Blues

I am Jason D. Power and over the next few weeks I will be writing a series of articles for InGoal designed to help you navigate the waters of Junior Hockey. Over the last decade, I have had the good fortune to work with goalies from the Pros down to Mites. One of the most common issues I am approached with from High School goalies is that they and their parents for the most part are in the dark as to what the next step in their development process is. As a Junior Coach, hundreds of Potential Goalies try to market themselves to me each year and roughly 80% don’t even get consideration-because they don’t look after a few simple details that I can show you how to fix. Im going to present you with a carefully designed system over the next few weeks that will get you maximum attention…so stayed tuned and I’ll help you get the recognition you deserve and provide you a guide for your travels.

Parents, make sure you read this too. This after all is your child. As a parent myself (of the worlds greatest two kids of course!) I personally always take the approach “What if this was my son?” In essence, your son is going to be living with a new family in the care of a Coach you may have only met once or twice. Just as your son needs to, you should do some homework on the potential program he wishes to play for. The internet knows no ends…do your research, it’s free after all!

So at this point in the year, your hockey season has reached its halfway point and is starting to wind down headed for playoffs. Like most aspiring goalies, you have worked very hard over the last 4-6 years mastering your craft and feel as though the next level is calling. Last year’s team captain is off in a distant city living a new life in the Junior Hockey world, he keeps you abuzz to everything via Facebook and Twitter. The goalie on his team just committed to a D1 school for the following season, and you only have a few months before your hunt begins. Keep in mind, it is rare in today’s game for an athlete to go straight from High School and play College Hockey. Colleges want players to spend a year or two in Junior Hockey to develop, both physically and mentally.

But, what do you need to do? Over the next few articles, I am going to give you a guideline…and most importantly, some do’s and don’ts that I see over and over year to year! What may seem common sense to you, might be the lifesaving facts someone else was unaware of. As a proud member of the Goalie Nation, I personally like to see everyone get their chance and fair shakes. Like in everything in life, take lessons from those who went before you and learn from their mistakes!

With the exception of the CHL, every junior league in North America allows you to keep your NCAA eligibility. Keep in mind, there are tons of leagues out there from the USHL and NAHL in the US, and the BCHL and Ontario Provincial in Canada, just to name a few. Many people are unaware as to why young athletes lose their Eligibility by playing in the Canadian Hockey League, or Major Junior as its commonly known. The answer is twofold: for one, the players receive a stipend to play and cover their daily costs, and also the fact that many of the players have signed contracts after their drafts with respective NHL clubs. In the eyes of the NCAA, those particular players are considered Professionals, and thus the league gets professional status and affects all that play.

What you as a goalie need to do is sit down, and give yourself an HONEST assessment of where you feel is your best option. Remember, don’t set the bar only at the top and refuse to play below it. This is the next step in your development, you may have to start a level below where you feel should be to work hard and get there. When setting your bar, be realistic. Are you the top goalie in AAA hockey? If so, then yes leagues like the USHL and NAHL are attainable. If you are a senior backing up your High School team from say somewhere like South Carolina…odds are not terribly in your favor for achieving that same goal. Keep in mind, there have been MANY of goalies that have started out in Junior C or Tier 3 and moved all the way up the ladder and earned Scholarships to College to play hockey. Hard work does NOT go unnoticed.

No matter what avenue you take, the entire process is about marketing, and marketing only. You are marketing YOU, so take pride in it and give it 100%…if you are putting out 50% effort, coaches take notice. Remember, as coaches, we typically see hundreds of requests yearly from goalies wanting to make one of two or three roster spots on our teams. Our jobs rely on two things, winning and moving young athletes onto College. Some programs are notorious for being a pipeline to University hockey due to their traditions and their coach’s connections, while some programs are just the opposite. Do your homework and begin to figure out which programs are going to help YOU for YOUR future, and provide you with the best training to get there.

I am going to discuss over the next few articles ways of communicating with the coaching staffs of teams you are aspiring to play for. Naturally, like every great marketing plan, you need to have a path that goes step by step. To blitzkrieg a coach with lots of information about you will drastically hurt your chances…so let’s go step by step, article by article, and help you achieve your dreams.

This week I am going to discuss Step 1, the Email. Emails are a fantastic way to reach out to coaches and introduce YOU. Remember, an email needs to be a lot like a Mini Skirt; short, grabs attention, and most importantly leaves the coach desiring more. Here is a list of things to include in your email and some helpful hints:

1. Your name and all of your contact info. You would be amazed how many people forget this, no joke. I get emails from aspiring goalies almost hourly towards the end of the season, and it never amazes me how many I move to the delete box because of this. One time, I had a parent ask me why I don’t spend a few more of my precious seconds to email back and ask for the info…I simply asked why they didn’t spend more of their precious seconds and send it to begin with? Also, remember, it is an email…as in a letter. You are not tweeting another kid with acne…use proper English and punctuation for heaven’s sake.
2. Keep it short. No one will read anything over 2-3 paragraphs…a wall of text does not correlate to stopping pucks! Keep in mind this email is all about introduction and touching base. Your email should not read like you are scared, when writing it pretend you know the coach or he knows you. If you make the team, you have to virtually live in each other’s lives daily for the next 9 months…make friends early!
3. Highlights. Go ahead and attach a few YouTube clips…those are always fun to watch and take up only 30 seconds of our time. Make sure there is no Rap music…100% of the coaching staffs out there are over the age of 28, I myself am in my early 30s…many are much older. If it is something that would offend your parents or school, it will offend me too.
4. Stats-Keep your stats honest. If your team is one of those that keeps stats separate from what Pointstreak says, good luck. And remember, goalie coaches know how to read through stats…we understand that the historical misrepresentations of goalies known as GAA and Save % are indicative of the 5 players’ mistakes in front. Don’t be afraid to attach other stats like your bounce back win percentage, penalty shot/shootout percentage, and off-ice stats as well.
5. GRADES!!! If you don’t have solid grades…then what are you even hoping for? Colleges want athletes with good grades (sorry boys, a 21 on your ACT is not great). Keep in mind GPA is nice, but not the whole story. Kids from the worst public school in the country taking remedial classes and 5th grade level math can still get a 4.0.
6. References. ALWAYS add 1-3 powerful references in your email. If possible, use your goalie coach from summer camp…this has helped me the most. This past year I called Joe Messina from Bandits, Robb Stauber, and Jim Johnson from the University of Minnesota about kids that emailed me. What is nice about talking to guys like that is we all know each other and can compare you to others. In essence, it gives someone like me a solid foundation to know what I am looking at…love you or hate you, no one is willing to risk their reputation to one another by lying.
7. Camps. I like to know where you train, if even at all! It amazes me that some kids do ZERO training over the summer. By letting me know what camps you attend, it gives me a solid idea as to your style of training and shows me your level of dedication. Also, don’t forget to put down anything prestigious too! District and National camps are GREAT EXPOSURE, and it also lets a coach know you have gone through the refinement process and been identified amongst your peers.
8. PICTURE! Just remember, is the picture you are sending magazine worthy? Would you see it featured on InGoalMag.com? If not, then go get another one. You are trying to sell yourself! Include both an action shot and a head shot. Kids that are clean cut and serious get the correct attention. Having a mop for a hair cut hanging in front of your eyes with a goofy look on your face makes the delete button all that much easier.
9. This may be the most important of all – be personal! Each week, I get an email from a goalie that says along the lines “Dear Coach, I want to play for you.” Great lead-in right? Problem is he sent it to me and 60 other coaches CC’d in the same email. Will this lead me to believe that you really want to play for me? NOT so much! Again, you want me to spend a solid minute or two with my undivided attention on you and your email…do the same when crafting it! If you have to send 300 separate emails, so be it…turn off your cell phone, turn off Facebook, and focus on your future!

Stay tuned for my next article, I will be going over the recruiting DVDs and Showcases. Trust me, there are some major do’s and don’ts when we get to those!
As always, follow your rebounds and keep your stick on the ice!

Jason Power currently coaches with the Springfield JR Blues in the North American Hockey League and is an evaluator for USA Hockey at both district and national festivals.

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This newest helmet will be a perfect match as the home version of last season’s mask which has a white base suited for the Hawks’ road unis

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Wait for "the Glide" - all but the very best players in the world stop moving their feet when they are about to release a shot. Scott Slingsby Photo

As goaltenders we are always looking to get the upper hand over our goal-scoring rivals. We look for certain clues and patterns to their game. With players we face on a regular basis in our respective leagues (if intelligent and a student of the game), many of us keep notes to remember their favorite moves, shot-type and location from which they most commonly like to release the puck and have the most success. This article will address the skater’s glide as a shot release clue for goaltenders.

As mentioned, there are many clues that, over time, goaltenders are taught to look for as a clue that the attacker is about to do something requiring an alert goalie. Here are some of the common clues that successful goaltenders use to gain an “upper hand” during competition:

1. the attacking player lowers the head
2. the attacker drops the shoulder
3. the attacker stops dribbling the puck
4. is the take away a high one or low one suggesting a certain type of shot?
5. is the follow through a low one or a high one suggesting puck trajectory?
6. is the stick blade open or closed in combination with the other two considerations which once again suggests trajectory?

But what about watching the skates and feet of the attacking player? How many players in the world can release an accurate high velocity snap shot in full stride?

Sitting and watching players (in flow drills) at all levels of hockey from novice to major Junior, I coined the simple phrase “wait for the glide!” Simply put, this means that all but the very best players in the world stop moving their feet when they are about to release a shot. In flow drills , the attacker moves across the offensive zone blue line and sooner or later starts to glide and releases a shot. If the goaltender understands this is an indication of something about to happen you can accomplish a few things during a game:

1. You can readjust yourself from a semi-relaxed upright stance to a full-ready crouch position to face a shot. The former stance allows you to conserve some energy appear big and move quickly laterally, if needed.
2. The glide suggests a quick need to read the play for the presence of off-puck passing options and the presence/location of trailers and back-checkers. This decision making is essentially instant and frequently relies solely on peripheral vision.
3. If no passing options are available, the glide also allows the goalie to quickly gain an extra bit of depth by taking a step out towards the shooter. However, the goaltender must be confident not to overplay the situation and that the weak side of the ice is protected by teammates.

The problem with flow drills in minor hockey (from my goalie coach perspective) is that it is not realistic to have players skating and shooting on the goalie in non-confronted scenarios. Without confrontation, the forwards repeatedly take these long takeaways and never learn quick release shots which become vital as time and space decrease with improved skill level and speed. When they transfer this habit to games, the D-man steps up into the gap and the shot never gets off. For the goaltender, it is unrealistic to be facing shots with clear sight lines in shooting lanes. However, in the presence of a defenseman, the above-mentioned factors will benefit forwards, defensemen and goaltenders regardless of whether it is a 1-on-1, 2-on-1, 3-on-1, or 3-on-2.

During competition, as the glide begins, the defenseman can step up and close the gap, sweep the puck away or knock down the attacker. The glide may also be a transient move to stall the defenseman with subsequent quick acceleration around the D-man. This can be followed by a quick-release shot, a net drive or pass to a trailer or to the weak side. The astute goalie will be familiar with all options and know how to handle them appropriately.

I see the glide at the ‘AAA’ level all the time. I stand by the boards in flow drills, assess my goaltender’s depth, save selection and how they compete. I see the forwards skate by me, enter a glide phase, take a long wind up and waste effort with big slap shots that will not get through at higher levels of competition. ( I will discuss this more in a future article titled “Shoot through the Screen Stupid !”).

In conclusion, remember that no clue is foolproof. However, with non-professional players, “The Glide” is a certain warning sign that something is about to take place. Add this to your personal bag of warning signs, use it and you will hopefully make a few more saves! Let me know if it worked for you!

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Last season the Calgary Flames star goaltender Mikka Kiprusoff received a new mask design which was an evolution of the flaming skulls design he has worn throughout his career – this time with a black base – again designed and painted by Kipper’s longtime artist Todd Miska of Miska Designs. Miska sent us studio photos as soon as the mask was complete as well as shots of an old-school Mike Liut style mask he painted for Kipper.

InGoal’s Scott Slingsby captured these images of Kipprusoff’s black game mask recently. Let us know in the comments what you think of it…do you prefer the red mask that established his personal “look?”

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In this week's article Maria Mountain talks about preventing sports hernia

The other day I sent out a tweet on “The Twitter” (because that’s the way I roll) with a quick tip for those hockey goalies who want to reduce their risk of sports hernia (which is every single one of you). The tip…strengthen your adductors.

“Great tip Coach – oh so helpful. Only one thing – what the heck are my adductors and how in the name of Martin Brodeur do I strengthen them?”

Details-details. First let me explain the term ‘sports hernia’. Basically, this is more of a syndrome or collection of symptoms rather than a discrete injury. A hernia – umbilical or inguinal will have a protrusion of tissue through the abdominal wall. What they call a sports hernia on the other hand can be attributed to a number of surgical findings without an actual protrusion of tissue through the abdominal wall.

Essentially, if an athlete is having pain in the lower abdominal or upper groin area that does not respond to typical treatments that resolve muscle strains, they may be diagnosed with a sports hernia.

If we think about the postures and movements required to play in goal, can you see how tightness in the front of the hip can contribute to a reduction in the ability to extend at the hip? Can you also see how trying to skate with tightness in the front of the hip will put more stress through the abdominal wall as the lower back extends to compensate (I describe this a little better in the video)?

Does it make sense that skating and even some training programs, which emphasize the development of the abductors (skating muscles), leaving the adductors (groins) relatively weak can set up a muscle imbalance that is found in athletes diagnosed with sports hernia?

Now that you have some background and understanding of sports hernia in hockey players, let’s look at a quick routine that will help reduce your risk of these injuries that will leave you sitting in the stands if not lying on the operating table.

• ½ kneeling groin w rotation
• low cable hip shift w rotation
• cable adductor – front and back
• plate pull
• TRX squat lateral

Maria Mountain is the strength and conditioning coach to Olympic, World and Stanley Cup Champions. She specializes in off ice training for hockey goalies. Visit www.GoalieTrainingPro.com to learn more or click here for your free copy of the Ultimate Guide to Durable and Flexible Hips for Goalies

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