What makes a good defenseman in hockey

A defenseman must be as comfortable going backwards and sideways as forward. Young players all the way through college must continue to practice these skills as their bodies grow and change. Defensemen must gain confidence in cross-passing and in carrying the puck to open up the attack, allowing their forward to get open. Check only for purpose. Checking just for the sake of a hit is seldom of value and creates risk of self-injury, missed checks and open opposition players, as well as penalties.

Communicate — with your partner, to goalkeeper and your forwards. It is an important part of teamwork. Do not communicate with opposing players — it seldom is of value and exposes your emotions. Follow your attacking forwards closely 20 to 30 feet and move quickly into the offensive zone after the puck goes into the zone. Many defensemen are lazy moving up the ice and allow the puck to turn around before they get over the blue line.

The blue lines are critical. Always clear the puck over the defensive blue line as a first priority — then move up to the blue line quickly. Defend both blue lines with as much vigor as is reasonable as the opposition attacks down the ice — they are natural points to stop the attack. Learn the critical skills of flipping the puck out of the zone and deflecting the puck off the glass out of the zone at the earliest possible age.

They are key puck movement skills. In this article I will be going into detail about the roles and responsibilities of the Defensemen. Your basic duties as a defensemen are to keep the other team from getting good shots on your goalie.

There are many other roles you will play, but all of them lead back to this. A good defenseman will:. This is a list of some of the main qualities of a good defensemen.

Defense is a thinking position so if you like to hang back, read plays, and control decisions it may be for you. The defensive zone is where all eyes are on the defense. Defense is played in pairs left D and right D and in the defensive zone it is crucial to work with your defensive partner and cover your own zone. The best scoring opportunities for the other team will happen when a defenseman is pulled out of position. There are two areas that the defense will find themselves the most. The corner, and in front of the net.

As a defenseman, these are the zones you need to know about. In this situation we will assume the puck is in the right corner left corner in the picture, but right corner of the rink for the defensive team The check zone is the area within 5 feet of the puck carrier, usually the defense plays in this zone.

The support zone is about 5 — 15 feet from the puck carrier, usually the center stays in the support position. When the puck goes into the corner, the defenseman responsible for that side should be the first on the puck. You need to get your feet moving fast and win puck races. If you can beat the other team to the puck and win possession you can start a breakout.

The hit zone suggests you are going to hit the player, but a check is not a hit. A check refers to angling, lifting a stick, poking the puck, pushing and contacting the player without throwing a full on body check. Keep your stance low and wide, get in the corner, lift sticks and tie up the puck carrier. Below is a rule you should memorize.

Good containment can lead to pressure. Some coaches may prefer to always pressure, but this usually only works when everyone on your team can skate and check, and they all understand and play a system. Pressure — This is when you leap into action in an attempt to get the puck. You have to think and act fast to decide when the right time to pressure is.

You can apply light pressure to players even when they are in possession, this is when you should be angling them and blocking passing lanes. There are two good ways to angle a player, you can angle them into a low percentage scoring zone or to their backhand.

Most players are weaker on their backhand, so if you force them along the boards to only be able to make a pass out on their backhand, you increase the chance of them losing the puck or making a bad pass. The last scenario when you can pressure hard is if the puck carrier loses the puck. Act quickly, tie up their stick, get good body position, and then grab the puck.

The defense will sometimes find themselves in this zone. When in support you have two jobs, help out if needed in the corner AND have your head on a swivel to cover a player if needed.

This means their team has the puck and is looking to make a play, so you need to know where the open player is the one your centermen normally covers so you can stop a pass out to them. You can rotate from the support zone into the hit zone — Your position is not set in stone. A good team knows when to swap spots. This is probably the most important zone for the defense.

Just outside of this zone is the high percentage scoring area. In the high percentage scoring area we want to always outnumber the opponent. I have two simple rules for defensemen in front of the net. I see defensemen get pulled into the corner and unaware of an opponent that is now wide open in front of the net.

With your head on a swivel you will recognize this threat, and stay assigned to your 1 role, protect the front of the net.

My second rule is to keep the other teams sticks off the ice. We continue the series here by building the ultimate defenseman from 16 different skills and characteristics of players around the league. See more: Forward Goalie. He is only a rookie, but it's hard to find another defenseman who is as creative and crafty a skater as Hughes.

He uses his edges as well as anyone else in the game today. His ability to change directions and create space is at an advanced level for any defenseman and especially for a rookie. Going north-south, there are not many defensemen who can skate with the explosiveness Makar has. He gets up the ice quickly and has become a weapon in transition. He has been the king for a while, and it's hard to argue with his continued dominance in a specific category. The slap shot has become a little less utilized, but no one does it better or with more power than Weber.

According to the NHL's shot type data, Weber has scored goals via the slap shot since That's 42 more than anyone else in the NHL has. New Jersey 's P. Subban has made this a trademark part of his game, but I think the crown currently belongs to Burns. The former forward shoots well in all situations and especially off the pass. I think right shots are typically more adept to the one-timer, and Burns can absolutely let it fly. Over the past three seasons, Carlson has ascended into the elite of the elite when it comes to production.

He has more points than any other defenseman in that span, and he leads in both total assists and primary assists.

One of the reasons Alex Ovechkin can't be stopped from his spot on the power play is because he has an elite distributor at the top of the point. Carlson finished fourth among all players in assists this season, with The one-time default answer for best offensive defenseman is slowing down a bit, and injuries have stacked up.

But one thing that you can't take away from Karlsson is the way he sees the ice and processes the game. No defenseman has as many as Karlsson's assists since he entered the league in There are defensemen who have more points than Josi, but few are more skilled.

With Karlsson on the downside of his career, Josi appears to be surging. He's third among all defensemen with points the past three seasons, and there aren't many who use the entirety of the ice as well as Josi does. Range is so important in a defenseman, and Hedman is one of the absolute best in that category. He's difficult to get around because of his long reach, and his feet are so fast for a man of his 6-foot-6 size.

It's as though he were designed in a lab to be a defenseman. How does one get to be one of the league's best defenders without taking a ton of penalties? Anticipation and a good active stick help Slavin.