Pro Drills: Flash Screens (and Rebound Battle) Drill (and Game)
- Set up the drill with a shooter at the top of the face-off circles and two players starting at the edges of each circle, just outside the crease corners.
- Timing the shot release to coincide with the screen cut is critical — the puck should be released just as a player flashes through the goalie's sightline.
- Goalies can start each rep from multiple positions — standing, on their knees, or at the post — to simulate real in-game recovery situations.
- Players cutting through the slot should attempt to tip the initial shot, adding a second threat beyond just the screen itself.
- Goalie coaches Fred Brathwaite and Paul Schonfelder endorse this drill because players describe it as significantly more game-like than stationary screen practice.
Managing screens isn’t easy for goalies, and perhaps the toughest type to manage is the flash — or moving — screen, where a player cuts through your vision right before the shot.
Like any situation, practice helps, so after seeing Fred Brathwaite run a two-player flash screen drill with Vegas Golden Knights prospect Jiri Patera, we wanted to share it for others to try.
“It’s about that flash screen and trying to find pucks through traffic,” said Brathwaite, who was sure to acknowledge he got the drill from Carolina Hurricanes goaltender coach (and fellow friend of InGoal) Paul Schonfelder last summer. “I’ve done it with all three goalies (including Laurent Brossoit and Michael Hutchinson) and they all like it because they said it’s game like, or more game-like than having someone stationary standing in front of them in practice.”
It’s a simple drill, with a shooter (in this case former NHL forward Joel Ward) set up between the top of the face-off circles, and two players starting at the edge of each face-off circle just outside the corners of the crease. Here’s a quick sample of one repetition with Patera:
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