The RinkFor the not so ready for prime-time players, coaches, referees, and the people that have to live with them. Discuss experiences in local leagues, coaching tips, equipment, and training.
I thought this was worthy of a separate discussion topic.
After watching the video Dump and Chase linked to yesterday, I went and shot some pucks (unfortunately the camera died), and really liked the increase in power I was getting from engaging my core.
Mostly I had some success starting with my hips more facing the net and rotating my shoulders back and away. Especially with the wrist shot, as I would almost reach behind me for the puck. This actually worked really well to increase backhand strength too.
Today I started thinking about a baseball swing and found there were FAR more videos on YouTube about swing rotation and hips. It's like there's a lot less voodoo in regards to baseball than hockey, where it seems like less of an exact science (or at least not yet universally accepted and taught?).
Here was an interesting video about rotational swing in slow motion, specifically the shoulders and hips:
What I saw was that he has his hips perpendicular to the target and brings his shoulders back to engage the core.
Another video that shows a lot of power from torque, and using the step to open up the hips.
Here are some hockey videos:
Okay Shawn Thornton isn't the king of the slapper, but he takes a quick step to open up the hips, then rotates the shoulders. The position of the hands and arms is different, but the body itself is kind of similar...right?
Another one...Heatley, hard to see, but he opens up the hips, then rotates the shoulders. He's more on top of the puck, but similar motion.
Again, not the prettiest motion, but opens up the hips, then rotates the shoulders. I think I'm seeing a pattern here. Also notice how he keeps his top hand close to the body and the lower hand away, drives through it to flex the stick.
So am I on the wrong track here? Any of you guys play baseball and have a good slapper?
Exactly. It is an athletic movement that translates through many sports. Baseball is a perfect example because it is a really aggressive movement. Watch a video of a big power hitter explode through ball.
You don't really get the same time in hockey to load up like you do in baseball or golf but you still create your power from the ground up.
Just a bit, not quite there yet. Although I'm only 5'8 175 and am used to playing with 67-75 flex sticks and took a few wristers where I really felt it load up and ended up ripping the crossbar about as hard as I used to take a slapper
I didn't put the two and two together about the hips though until today, so hopefully in 30 minutes I'll be taking some more video!
Edit: oddly enough, there's so little talk about the hips in hockey that when I did a Google search for "slap shot hips shoulders" this thread is the first entry on the second page.
You can also see on this video how the back foot turns to drive the hips...and sure enough, that's how you can tell the hockey players are doing the same thing.
This probably explains why the guys who are "natural athletes" I play with are so damn good at shooting, because they've learned this motion before, even if they've only played for a couple years.
Alright, got back from the range and uploading video now.
Here's the new clip:
There were times I thought the stick felt like it was breaking, but I think it was just being flexed a lot more than I'm used to. Also, I usually use 65-75 flex, but I'm pretty amazed I was able to flex an 87 this much (I'm only 5'8").
There was an interesting Sports Science segment in the middle of the Homerun Derby last night that talked all about the mechanics of a baseball swing and the power produced. http://espn.go.com/blog/sportscenter...home-run-derby
Went shooting today and came across something interesting, has anyone kind of tried to lean away from the shot while shooting? I.e. after you make contact with the ice and load the stick, you pull your upper body away from the direction of the shot?
I tried it and sometimes it worked really well and sometimes it didn't. On slappers it made them all stay nice and low and had great velocity a lot of the time. On wristers it was more hit or miss. Either way it helped really load the stick a lot more.
Went shooting today and came across something interesting, has anyone kind of tried to lean away from the shot while shooting? I.e. after you make contact with the ice and load the stick, you pull your upper body away from the direction of the shot?
I tried it and sometimes it worked really well and sometimes it didn't. On slappers it made them all stay nice and low and had great velocity a lot of the time. On wristers it was more hit or miss. Either way it helped really load the stick a lot more.
I'll try that the next time I play. I'm curious to see how it works for me. I've got a problem of shooting it high a lot.
I would say there are 2 sports I've played extensively that have similar "swinging" motions that I have tried to apply some elements of when doing a slapshot: baseball and tennis.
Both tennis and baseball require one to transfer weight from their their back leg to their front, turning their shoulders and rotating their hips, but the motion, its follow-through, and ending, are going to be somewhat different to a slapper.
This is because for a slapper, unlike the other 2 sports where the strike point should always be belt-high, the strike point is just above the ground. This would mean a weight/energy transfer not only forward, but downward.
Perhaps the closest sport motion would be golf, since the motions are much more similar, and the strike point is at a similar location?
I am not a golfer though, so I could only study video to make an educated comparison.
Went shooting today and came across something interesting, has anyone kind of tried to lean away from the shot while shooting? I.e. after you make contact with the ice and load the stick, you pull your upper body away from the direction of the shot?
I tried it and sometimes it worked really well and sometimes it didn't. On slappers it made them all stay nice and low and had great velocity a lot of the time. On wristers it was more hit or miss. Either way it helped really load the stick a lot more.
I wouldn't say I lean away from the shot, but I do something kind of similar. At the point of impact with the ground, I'll push my lower hand down towards the ground to flex the stick while my top had pulls the knob up and away from the ground, similar to wrist shot mechanics. Perhaps this was subconsciously what you were doing as opposed to "leaning away" from the shot?
