Pro Drills with Michael Lawrence
- Medicine balls are used in drill 2 to reinforce muscle memory for the Holding Feet stance, helping goalies feel comfortable making saves without widening their base.
- The Holding Feet stance preserves the lateral movement benefits of a narrow or tall stance while solving the common problem of being unable to save from it.
- Shooter timing is critical in this drill — delays must be deliberate so the goalie builds correct muscle memory and movement progressions.
- Taller goalies in particular struggle with upright stances, making this drill sequence especially relevant for that demographic.
- When Lawrence references goalies 'pushing out' or 'drifting,' he means widening the stance — a habit the Holding Feet concept is designed to prevent.
Michael Lawrence introduced us to his concept of a “Holding Feet” stance two weeks ago with a breakdown and explanation video that detailed how it built on the popular concept of adopting a narrow stance by eliminating problems associated with it.
Lawrence, who is currently with the OHL Sudbury Wolves after 10 years in Switzerland’s top pro league and twice winning the Spengler Cup with Canada, followed that up last week with a simple drill designed to get goalies more comfortable with the concept, with the promise of more drills to follow. This is drill 2 of 3, and it incorporates medicine balls.
Before we get to the video, a reminder this series is designed to help goalies find a “Holding Feet” stance that allows them to maintain the benefits associated with a “tall” or “narrow” stance — the ability to maintain good lateral movements being the main one — but still be able to make saves from it, something many are struggling with from a less thoughtful narrow or upright stance. Also, when you hear Lawrence talk about “pushing out” or “drifting” in the video, it’s what others might call “widening” out the stance.
We’ve got more keys and notes below, including talking about how some goalies might be better starting with this rather than last week’s drill, but first watch Part 1 of the video:
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