Coaches Wrap: How to Run Half-Ice Practices
Once a week our Pee Wee team splits our practice ice with another team and we are having a difficult time running a practice on half of the ice. What would you suggest to make these practices more beneficial? --John P., Pee Wee Coach
Splitting ice for practice is a great thing as it helps cut down on the cost for the players. It also allows teams to get on the ice for a practice that they might not otherwise have, plus with more players on the ice, the practice has the potential to be more up-tempo, lots of energy and less down time for players resting, provided that you are smart with your ice usage. If possible, try to run the first 15 or 20 minutes of some warm-up drills with the team you are sharing the ice with. You can do some skating warm-up drills, plus some full-ice stickhandling, passing and shooting drills to get the players handling the pucks and the goalies warmed up. You can even do some full-ice one-on-one or two-on-one drills if time allows. Aside from that, anything else you want to work on can be done on one half of the ice. If you think about it, in a game, the puck is typically in one end zone or the other, which means all skaters on the ice are inside the blue line at one end. There is no reason why you can’t break down game situations and create drills in a small area. In fact, they will be much more game realistic. There is plenty of room for several different skill stations. Small area games are one of the best tools coaches can use to allow players to develop their skills and learn new concepts related to the game. As far as skating/conditioning drills go, half a sheet of ice is more than enough. Skating the length of the ice in a straight line might be the easiest, most unproductive skating drill that you can do. Quick stopping and starting drills, directional changes, pivoting, tight turning and quick feet crossovers can all be done in a relatively small area and are way more game realistic and useful in terms of developing skating skills.
Splitting ice for practice is a great thing as it helps cut down on the cost for the players. It also allows teams to get on the ice for a practice that they might not otherwise have, plus with more players on the ice, the practice has the potential to be more up-tempo, lots of energy and less down time for players resting, provided that you are smart with your ice usage. If possible, try to run the first 15 or 20 minutes of some warm-up drills with the team you are sharing the ice with. You can do some skating warm-up drills, plus some full-ice stickhandling, passing and shooting drills to get the players handling the pucks and the goalies warmed up. You can even do some full-ice one-on-one or two-on-one drills if time allows. Aside from that, anything else you want to work on can be done on one half of the ice. If you think about it, in a game, the puck is typically in one end zone or the other, which means all skaters on the ice are inside the blue line at one end. There is no reason why you can’t break down game situations and create drills in a small area. In fact, they will be much more game realistic. There is plenty of room for several different skill stations. Small area games are one of the best tools coaches can use to allow players to develop their skills and learn new concepts related to the game. As far as skating/conditioning drills go, half a sheet of ice is more than enough. Skating the length of the ice in a straight line might be the easiest, most unproductive skating drill that you can do. Quick stopping and starting drills, directional changes, pivoting, tight turning and quick feet crossovers can all be done in a relatively small area and are way more game realistic and useful in terms of developing skating skills.
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