Puckhandling Lessons from Mike Smith – Part 3
- Mike Smith practices puckhandling skating drills for 10 minutes at the start of every ice session, making consistency a cornerstone of his elite puck-handling ability.
- Footwork and skating skills are identified by Smith as a primary differentiator between average and world-class goalie puckhandlers.
- Even five to ten minutes of focused skating drills per ice session can produce meaningful improvement in a goalie's puckhandling game.
- This session is part three of a four-part series from NET360 camp, with earlier parts covering stick grip, reading the forecheck, communication, and purposeful practice.
- Smith spent 30 minutes on ice personally coaching two young goalies, offering rare direct access to an NHL-level puckhandling system.
Mike Smith graciously spent 30 minutes on ice at the NET360 camp with the two youngest goalies on the ice going over some of his keys to being a world class puck handler.
We’ve broken it up into a series of four shorter videos to share with our InGoal Premium Members.
Part one of the series included a look at purposeful practice, accepting mistakes, the importance of skating beyond traditional crease movement patterns, and getting your defensemen and coaches on the same page about where to go on the ice.
In Part two Smith answered a few questions, talking about how he holds the stick, reading the forecheck and the vital role that communication plays.
Today we present part three as the Oilers veteran takes his students through a few skating drills emphasizing the footwork skills that help set him apart from his peers – and note that he mentions practicing these every day when he gets on the ice for 10 minutes or so.
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