gotten bad

[Dainsleif]

hi there!
last weekend we had a tournament and i was pretty good. newspapers said that i'll probably be in the german national team. so far, so good...
my problem is, that ever since those articles i've played really bad in practices... why's that? i don't feel pressure or anything, i just tend to let in more soft goals...

[matvell]

Yea.. I know EXACTLY what you're going through. First few games I was probably the hottest goalie on the planet. I was almost impossible to beat on my glove side or anywhere for that matter. My GAA was extremely low for Roller hockey. Now the last few practices and games I've also been letting in goals I'd normally stop 99 percent of the time. I think deep down inside I care more about my stats and Im worried that im going to ruin them, so Im letting in these goals. I think if I clear my head a bit, I'll get my game back.... Plus I dont feel as active in net anymore.... Im not doing those little finesse moves that I was doing earlier in the year... anyways..... Im sure you're just in a little goaltending funk. Just keep working at it and im sure you'll start stopping the puck again. You're just probably worried deep down that you wont make it if you screw up you wont make the national team....

[Numbski]

When I get into those types of spots I generally do 3 things...

1. Try to slow down my breathing, and try to find some level of peace with what I'm doing.

2. Tap off, step out, challenge, keep the center of the net to my back.

3. Mentally close off all holes, make myself as big as possible.

When I do those things I generally make the stops I need to. If I think too much beyond that then I get myself completely hosed up. If my mind's already in the game and not on the numbers then these things come kind of natural and it's much easier.

[Dainsleif]

thanx alot! it's 5:53 am in germany, didn't sleep, today's another tournament and i feel quite confident! although i hope i won't need it, wish me luck !

[Twozine]

hi guys,

What you guys are talking about is classic sports/performance psychology. Don't feel like you are strange... this is probably one of the main obstacles any goalie has to face.

I won't go into it too deeply, but there are lots of studies on the phenomenon, in both psych and neuroscience. Anyway, we all know about beginner's luck? The reason a beginner does so well is that they don't clog their abilities with thinking too much! THey don't know what they are supposed to be thinking of, so they just do it and can sometimes beat a pro. This is the basis behind choking, and this is why so many of us perform brilliantly at the beginning of a season and tail off later. This is why Jose Theodore had a brilliant rookie year and then followed it up with a ****e season. And this is why Giguerre might be a big choke next year in Anaheim.

So Numbski is right... breathe deep, tap off, concentrate on your technique, and DO NOT THINK ABOUT YOUR PERFORMANCE. Stop thinking about how you are doing... as those stupid Nike commercials remind us: JUST DO IT!

[Botts]

Not that I'm suddenly an apostle of Jiggy, but his approach of only dealing with one shot at at time makes good sense. Don't worry about the last one or the next one. Just the now.
(Great now I sound like Yoda!)

[Twozine]

Right are you, Botts. Concentrate, must you. Here and now, focused on you should be.

Ya, I'm a dork.

But I totally agree. That's how I keep myself focused in a game. The more important the game, the more I not care about the results.

[Dainsleif]

thx again for all your comments! i played pretty well again, much better than in any practice. there was some scout-guy watching and he invited me to tryouts for the national team. damn, i'm happy! i'm very confident right now, because i feel that performances in practices don't mirror performances in games. one more reason to work harder!

[BroomballGoalie]

Routines and mental things can help, too, keep you zoned. Banging your pads, squaring up to every face off, whatever it takes to keep in the game wherever the ball/puck is. Shouting lots works too - it means you're paying attention to the play, not just letting it happen around you.

I shout even when I know there's no-one around who can hear me. But, then, I might just be loudmouth

-BBG "Different sport, but it is all attitudes anyways"