Practicing at Home

Now that you’re new to sled hockey, you are probably wondering, “how can I practice at home?”

While it may seem difficult, there are actually many easy ways to practice at home and grow some basic sled hockey skills, like puck handling. 

Familiarizing yourself with your gear

It might sound simple, but one of the problems that the youth players specifically face is getting their gear on in a reasonable amount of time. With there being a lot of gear, it can take a while. Finding a routine for getting ready and making sure you have enough time before practice or a game can really help you get into the correct mindset for playing sled hockey.

Along with that, some youth players also struggle with getting their helmets on and off. Practicing putting the helmet on, and taking it off will help with this. 

Hand-eye coordination drills

Practicing hand-eye coordination drills will really help with your skills on ice. One drill you can do to help this is practice different variations of throwing a ball against the wall and catching the bounce back. You can also have someone drop the ball in front of you, while you try to catch it. Practicing juggling can also help with this. 

Becoming ambidextrous

Sled hockey players use both hands/arms to handle the puck. So while not a requirement, becoming ambidextrous can be extremely helpful in playing sled hockey. Even being able to do more things with your non-dominant hand can help you out on the ice. Doing things like cooking, brushing your teeth, and cleaning with your non-dominant hand can really go a long way. 

Stick handling

Stick handling is one of the most important things you can practice. Many new players find it difficult to pick up their sticks on ice, and even struggle with the feeling of the sticks in the gloves. To practice stick handling at home, all you need is a pair of gloves and a set of sticks. Put on the gloves, and practice picking up your sticks. Practice sliding your hands up and down the sticks so that you can really feel completely comfortable with them. 

Here are video resources for picking up sticks and hand slides: 

Picking up a stick

Simple hand placement skill. Hand slides.

Side-falling exercises

One of the things most new players are going to experience is falling in the sled. There is no getting around it until you figure out how to balance in the sled, and even then, sometimes you will still fall. What’s important is figuring out how to get back up. It will require some upper body strength, and practicing getting up can help you when you eventually fall on the ice. 

Here is a video resource that might help with side-falling exercises: 

Practice falling, getting up static. 

Puck Handling

There are many different ways to practice puck handling. Some tools that can help with puck handling drills are synthetic ice or a sheet of plastic, a golf ball, or a puck. 

The synthetic ice or a sheet of plastic will help you with practicing with a puck, as it will allow it to slide like it would on ice. However, if you don’t want to spend the money on those things, you can practice puck handling drills with a golf ball on the floor. 

For specific drills, there are lots of different videos on YouTube that can help. These can familiarize you with different techniques and help you get a feel for what each one might look like. 

Here are some drills that can help with puck handling and stick handling:

Basic Left/Right Control

One handed wall pass variation, left and right example

Very simple puck slide, placement

If you don’t have a net at home, you could even use a piece of plywood as your goal.

Now that you’ve got some helpful tips and tricks for practicing at home, hopefully you are able to begin your sled hockey journey and find that your transition is easier. The coaches and other players will also be great resources for finding new, creative ways to practice.