Puck protection along the boards

Setup

1. Full equipment for everyone: helmet with full cage, mouthguard, neck guard, gloves, elbow and shoulder pads, pants, shin guards and skates.
2. Mark a strip about a third of the rink long and three or four strides wide along the boards in the neutral zone, with a cone at each end. Use both sides of the rink for a big group.
3. Pairs wait at the start cone: a carrier (P) with a puck and a defender (X) on the inside.
4. Contact level: body contact, not body checking. Stick on stick, rubbing along the boards and leaning on the hips are allowed. No hits, nothing from behind, nothing to the head, and the carrier is never pushed into the boards.

How it runs

1. On the whistle the carrier skates along the boards and tries to reach the far cone with the puck under control.
2. The defender skates alongside on the inside, plays the puck with their stick and tries to win it by angling the carrier along the wall.
3. The rep lasts about 15–20 seconds or ends when the defender wins the puck or the carrier reaches the cone.
4. Swap roles, go to the back of the line, and get water every few reps.

Coaching points

• Carrier: wide base, knees bent, puck on the far side of the body from the defender.
• Use the hip and lower body to shield, with the head up and shoulders side-on to the boards, never face-first into them.
• One hand on the stick lets the carrier reach the puck away from the defender; the free arm stays down.
• Defender: stick on the puck first, then stay shoulder to shoulder and squeeze; no shoves.

Common mistakes

• Carrying the puck out in front where the defender's stick can reach it.
• Turning to face the boards with the back to the play.
• Defender reaching in with the stick and lifting it high, or leaning in from behind.