I recently had a small Twitter thread on rethinking warmups off the ice before the game. (click tweet to open entire thread)
This would be a great change in our off ice warmups, hours before the game. What if we took it a step further…
Better on-ice warmups in pre-game.
Everyone does some version of:
forwards pass in circles, D pass in NZ, 1 guy shoots on goalie
3 line shooting
the horseshoe thing
2v1 from corners
breakout 5v0
shoot around until you’re out of time
Is there a better way?
Ideas for Improvement
Rondos instead of half-hearted passing around the circle, waiting for the goalies to warm up their hands
Junior teams with warmup jersey sponsors that have to change jerseys anyway… So, what if you wore 2 colors and played a couple of 1 net small area games in warmup?
If you can’t change jerseys, you could play 2v2 small area games where you only have to know 1 other player(only pass to your teammate)
Replace the horseshoe shot drill with anything else
Ask why you’re currently doing the warmup you’re doing? Examine each part.
Is everything in the warmup intentional? Done on purpose?
Just filling time?
The way we’ve always done it?
Does it not matter?
The last question is a legitimate one. Is the on-ice warmup at a functional minimum where it is “good enough?”
I’m not sure, hence why this post now exists.
Food for thought.