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Original post by The Wall33 - The FSP is not, I repeat not, a concept that most goalies fully understand. It seems exceedingly simple in theory yet in practice too few goalies use it properly, if at all. And I include goalies who think they have developed well past this core skill.
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As we work more and more with aspiring and established elite goalies in Saskatchewan it is increasingly obvious to me that David is right; the FSP is not a concept that most goalies understand completely, among other concepts.
The first thing goalies need to realize is that the centre of the net is located on the middle of the goalline between the posts. Some goalies have expressed their understanding of the centre of the net being the middle post in the net. There is a significant difference unless the puck is exactly in the middle of the ice. Centre of the net is the most important aspect of the FSP. There are many goalies that have been brought up to believe that depth is the more important part of being on angle when they are very different ideas. Basically, do you want a very aggressive goalie who has longer to travel to lateral plays to stay on the centre of the net or would a conservative goalie that is always on angle be the better goalie? When Ed Belfour made his dramatic overhaul early in his time with Dallas we saw a less agressive Belfour who was always on angle which lead to a much more efficient game. Sean Burke is another great example of a goalie that learned the importance of being centre of the net and not just being agressive in regards to depth.
**NOTE: When trying to be centre of the net the goalie must make an imaginary line from the middle of the goalline that intersects them completely up the middle of the body and continues on to the puck. Think of James Bond strapped to a table and a lazer that is in line to cut him in half right up between the legs. The goalie is James Bond and the puck is the lazer.**
The idea of depth has many misconceptions. Depth is always used in conjunction with the idea of being agressive. Many times goalies are told they must play way out of the crease because they are too small. This idea can often exacerbate the problem of trying to be on centre of the net while tracking the puck. Overly agressive goalies have a complex pre-shot routine because they have further distances to travel, laterally and back towards the net. Another complicating factor with over-agression is that excessive depth often leads to excessive fades which can cause the goalie to open holes prematurely and can carry too much momentum which must be stopped in case of a surprise. It is important to note that fading back after initial depth is a key component of a goalie's understanding of depth. Not only must goalies understand how far they must come out in a given situation but they must also know when and at what speed they must retreat. Goalies who do not understand both sides of depth, the coming out and the fading back, are going to struggle with angles, puck tracking and squareness leading to extra work or extra goals.
An important idea to finish with is knowing that the FSP changes depending on each situation.
The FSP is always dependant on the situation (i.e. If a goalie is one foot outside the crease, on the centre of the net, but has an open player to the side at the top of the crease, the goalie is not in the FSP until they are deeper than the open player)!
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Original post by The Wall33 - As many of us realize, the ability to read and anticipate the play is what separates the men from the boys and is what makes the concept of FSP so powerful.
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