Warm up -- do you let someone (team or coach) dictate how your warmup should go?

[puckmeethoof]

Hey guys...

Looks like I may be playing for a real team after all. This will be my first season in net outside of drop in/scrimmage hockey.

It's a low level women's team and I'm going out to the team meeting/practice later this week. The coach will be there (who has coaches at low level hockey but women's teams? it's gotta be someone's husband), and the team "manager" (as she calls herself) wants to get me familiar with how warm ups are going to work.

My general feeling is that the warmup should be tailored to what everybody needs (goalie included) not at goalie's expense. The team can warm up the same with or without me.

Even at drop ins, I always do warmups however it feels right. I skate a few laps (the crease is a puddle anyways), stretch out a little bit more, take a few shots (depending on who's taking them and how I'm doing). If I'm feeling good and confident, I might only take a couple of shots. I'm not going to stand there and let 10 or 15 people take repeated shots at me. Not interested in wearing myself out.

Now, I'm getting a bit ahead of myself considering I haven't even been to the meeting yet, but I want to know what's normal so I don't get backed into doing something I don't want. How do I avoid that? (And how can teams be so ignorant to try and make any one goalie fit a mold?)

The good part is my game has come back in the last week or two, I'm playing quite well, and I'm not committed to this thing yet.

[influenza]

You tell her you're the most vulnerable person on the ice for injury. You need to warm up your reflexes in your own way, or you won't be as effective. Let her know you guys need to work out something that works for not only yourself, but the other players as well.

[leaferguy]

From my experience, I could never be warmed up from a couple of shots. The guys on my team needed to shoot to warm up, too, so it worked out. A good warmup got me sweating, moving/pivoting, and tracking visually.

My best suggestion would be to find out what the warmup is first before you worry about changing it.

Most teams I've been on will do slapshots around the horn, then maybe snapshots from in close, followed by a skate-out-of-the-corner drill, finished with an odd-man rush drill. Some teams go for a short scrimmage or just a bunch of shots. I've never really seen a goalie take 5 or 10 shots and then just stop, but that's only my experience.

[puckmeethoof]

Originally Posted by leaferguy

My best suggestion would be to find out what the warmup is first before you worry about changing it.

I know, I know... I'm just known for not being able to say no and getting backed into a position I don't want to be in.

I am still super out of shape, so too much warm ups just kill me. Then again, this won't be a 90 minute drop in either (they used to be two hours, holy cow).

[leaferguy]

Originally Posted by puckmeethoof

I know, I know... I'm just known for not being able to say no and getting backed into a position I don't want to be in.

I am still super out of shape, so too much warm ups just kill me. Then again, this won't be a 90 minute drop in either (they used to be two hours, holy cow).

You're fresh off a knee injury, so I can see why you'd want to make sure things are at your speed.

I'd just take it one step at a time. Make sure your requests are reasonable (no head shots or situations that would lead to them, etc) and that you don't make it seem like your knee will hold you back when explaining the low shot amount in warmups.

[Raptor]

Most teams I've been on do warm-ups the same way that Leafer has said.

If you're feeling tired, feel free to skate out of the net during the drills and have a stretch. On your way out just say to the coach that you don't want to tire yourself out, you want to do a couple more stretches etc.

On my current team the coach asks me how I want the warmup to happen, which is great. The coach has to understand that if you aren't warmed up the way you want to be, you're not going to play well and the team will suffer. If you're having difficulty convincing him to change the warmup routine or let you stay out of net for part of it, let him know that you're not willing to risk being cold and at risk for injury during the match. He should understand.

[hamstercaster]

Originally Posted by leaferguy

I've never really seen a goalie take 5 or 10 shots and then just stop, but that's only my experience.

You haven't seen Ray Emery warm up before have you

Back on the subject at hand... I don't play leagues or anything like that, just drop in and I find that warm ups lack a bit in that type of situation. A warm up for goalies, aside from stretching and making sure that your muscles are warm and loose, is to feel the puck. You need to take shots to feel the puck hit you, find it's way into your glove etc. Too often to I see guys picking corners during warm ups when I'm in net and that frustrates me. You pick the corners when I'm out of the net stretching. Warm up are there to warm up and build confidence before the game no matter what level of hockey you play.

[Slapshot011]

Originally Posted by hamstercaster

Back on the subject at hand... I don't play leagues or anything like that, just drop in and I find that warm ups lack a bit in that type of situation. A warm up for goalies, aside from stretching and making sure that your muscles are warm and loose, is to feel the puck. You need to take shots to feel the puck hit you, find it's way into your glove etc. Too often to I see guys picking corners during warm ups when I'm in net and that frustrates me. You pick the corners when I'm out of the net stretching. Warm up are there to warm up and build confidence before the game no matter what level of hockey you play.

I agree.

I love the corner thing too (sarcasm implied). It always seems to me that it's just another opportunity for them to beat another goalie and feel cool, not to actually warm up the goalie. Their excuse is always "I have to warm up too, he should be able to stop it" If I see I have one of these on my team I'll track his move then just let the puck go in without even trying to make the save. They usually get the point and it takes their little thrill away.

[Raptor]

Originally Posted by Slapshot011

If I see I have one of these on my team I'll track his move then just let the puck go in without even trying to make the save. They usually get the point and it takes their little thrill away.

That's what I generally do when asshats are trying to show off during warmups. Makes me feel a bit petty though.

[cwfunk]

I play in an I league and it seems that the guys on my team always want do skate in close as in a break away situation and take shots right on top of me (great for them, bad for me). This drives me crazy because I don't get much of a warm up like that. I have found that the best type of warm up for me is to have one guy get about 8 pucks in the slot and rip them off relatively quickly with little recovery time between shots (kinda like a game situation dealing with rebounds, etc) and moving on to drills much like others have posted on this thread. Being able to see shots from the tops of the circles is going to give you a good opportunity to get into a rhythm making saves and also warm up your eyes by tracking the puck.

[habs-fan]

Originally Posted by leaferguy

The guys on my team needed to shoot to warm up, too, so it worked out.

That's why rinks have about 400' of boards.

A good warmup got me sweating, moving/pivoting, and tracking visually.

Which can be achieved by skating and taking a few shots.

Most teams I've been on will do slapshots around the horn,

Good for warmups

then maybe snapshots from in close,

Good for injuries

[quoye]followed by a skate-out-of-the-corner drill, finished with an odd-man rush drill. Some teams go for a short scrimmage or just a bunch of shots. [/quote]

Good for practice, not warmups.

I've never really seen a goalie take 5 or 10 shots and then just stop, but that's only my experience.

You've never see me play. Warmups are just that, to warm up. I skate a few laps, stretch, then take some shots from the blue line. LOW shots. It's all about ME. I need to get a feel for the distance and angles. When I see guys moving below the top of the circle, or trying to deke, I move out of the way. And the first head shot signals the end of warmups.

[5hahv1r1]

Originally Posted by Slapshot011

I agree.

I love the corner thing too (sarcasm implied). It always seems to me that it's just another opportunity for them to beat another goalie and feel cool, not to actually warm up the goalie. Their excuse is always "I have to warm up too, he should be able to stop it" If I see I have one of these on my team I'll track his move then just let the puck go in without even trying to make the save. They usually get the point and it takes their little thrill away.

Damn, I have this one guy who'd try to pull a 360 Sidney Crosby move and I was like wtf are you doing? You're not even going to do that in the game without getting leveled out.

But tell your team to shoot at you for the first couple of shots as another guy said, if you're making saves early on (even because they're being shot right at you) get a good sweat going.

I know whenever the puck drops after warmup though, and I make a few saves early on (like even 3 or 4 lol), I get a good sweat going and then I'm pretty solid in net for the rest of the net. So try what I said above it'll help

[leaferguy]

Originally Posted by habs-fan

That's why rinks have about 400' of boards.



Which can be achieved by skating and taking a few shots.



Good for warmups



Good for injuries

Good for practice, not warmups.



You've never see me play. Warmups are just that, to warm up. I skate a few laps, stretch, then take some shots from the blue line. LOW shots. It's all about ME. I need to get a feel for the distance and angles. When I see guys moving below the top of the circle, or trying to deke, I move out of the way. And the first head shot signals the end of warmups.

I'm a very mental goalie. My success hinges on how well my mind is working. I love having those shots to really get going. I've failed to mention that I skate around for 30 minutes before the game and that I play roller, so those dekes and cherry picker breakaways are part of the game

[Cujo_64]

Originally Posted by cwfunk

I play in an I league and it seems that the guys on my team always want do skate in close as in a break away situation and take shots right on top of me (great for them, bad for me). This drives me crazy because I don't get much of a warm up like that. I have found that the best type of warm up for me is to have one guy get about 8 pucks in the slot and rip them off relatively quickly with little recovery time between shots (kinda like a game situation dealing with rebounds, etc) and moving on to drills much like others have posted on this thread. Being able to see shots from the tops of the circles is going to give you a good opportunity to get into a rhythm making saves and also warm up your eyes by tracking the puck.

whoever your I league coach is, you should tell them you want the players to take shots from a semi circle first to warm you up, then at the end do about 3 -5 breakwaways to get yourself warmed up... Y theory and etc... after that you stretch until the puck drops. I have all the goalies I work with do this... including I leaguers.

Rob

[puckmeethoof]

I went. I left. I'm not going back.

It was exactly as I'd feared. What I would do doing warmup was dictated to me. It's a good warmup if you've got two goalies switching out every minute or 30 seconds, but I can't do 40 shots in 2 minutes then drills. Also, the girls had their eyes glued to the ice/puck, so they weren't able to wait and see if I was ready for any of the drills. The shots never left the ice, so it was the same low speed flat shot coming close to the net every time.

I was nervous about the way it was described to me before I went out, but I was really hopeful about playing with a team. This was no different than my previous experience with low level women's hockey

Thanks guys, I appreciate the input.