First instructional league practice last night and first time wearing full goalie gear! It was fun, but I've got a long ways to go in technique and conditioning.
They were psyched to have a goalie turn up even though I'm sure I looked awful on the ice. There were at least a dozen people with varying skill ranges, but I was the only one that looked like bambi on ice.
What was tough was practicing shuffling around the edge of the crease. And the coach in charge of the practice had one of the most hated and probably nearly useless drills for a new goalie. I'm sure is has a name, but I'll call it the firing squad. Two groups of skaters taking shots at about 10 second intervals, one to glove side, one to blocker side. Meanwhile I can only shuffle around with all my gear on and didn't get a chance to practice T-pushes. I actually made more saves with the butt end of my stick than the blocker. Also most of the shots were on the ice and not in the air (wrist shots) and the better players were holding back.
Next session I'll ask the coach to not do the firing squad drill. I think it would make more sense for a few shooters at a time so I can get into position, make a good block, track the puck, recover, repeat.
Conditioning wise I need to strengthen my lower back muscles, up my endurance, and do lots of cardio.
Technique-wise, I really need to get T-pushes down. I also need to be more flexible to do a proper butterfly.
Gear question though. My reebok pads have these two flaps that extend from the top of the pad by 4 or 5". Do they get tucked in under the pants or should they ride over them? If they ride over, how can I stop them from sneaking under my pants?