Dan Replies:
Dear Nick: What are you thinking? Are you on drugs? Who in a rational moment would like to block shots (or be a goalie)? Just kidding… partly.
The most important thing to do if you would like to become shot blocker is to review your equipment and see where it protects your body. If you do that you will see that the back of your legs, your back below your shoulder pads, your butt… all of these areas have little or no protection from your equipment. So, it’s important to remember to block the shot with those parts of your body that have protection --- the front of you. So, if you want to learn to block shots, it’s very important to learn to position your body to face the shooter so that your protective equipment absorbs the force of the shot, not your back or your sides. You need to discipline yourself not to turn your head and not to turn your body, but rather take the shot head-on so your protective equipment can do its job and you can avoid painful injuries.
It’s also important to know when to go down for the block. Timing is critical because if you go down too early, the shooter can skate around you while you’re down. If you go down to late, you will miss the shot and may screen the goalie momentarily so he can’t see the puck coming.
Another important thing is to have adequate, well-fitting gear. For example, make sure your kneepads come up to the pads in the front of your pants and I don’t think I need to tell you that a protective cup is important.
Knowing where to go down to block a shot is also important. If you drew straight lines from the point where the shot was taken to each side of your body and extended the lines to the goal, there should be no chance a shooter was going to score because the whole net should be blocked. Remember to block the shot, not the shooter.
The best position to block shots is facing the shooter going down on one knee because you remain skating. You can also go down on both knees. This is better than going all the way down because you can get back up on your skates quickly. You can also let the shooter think he has a lane to shoot and then try to block it with a two-pad stack, but shots can get over you and you are down on the ice which means you will be slower to get back on your feet.
Blocking shots is a good way to prevent the puck from going in the net and also from getting into the danger zone around the net. It can also be painful if not done properly or without well-fitted protective gear. It’s also not for the faint hearted. But if you really want to block the shot (not just look good) and you do it as I’ve described, you can prevent some goals and you will avoid getting hurt.
