I don’t care for the term “sport-specific.” To me, this buzzword is a clever way to market strength and conditioning programs to parents who don’t know any better. With that being said, I do believe there are certain areas that must be addressed in order to improve performance and reduce the likelihood of injury in every sport.
I would like to offer some ideas that have worked for me while training high school level hockey players. This article isn’t an attempt to market myself as a hockey expert. I do what makes sense to me. I’m fortunate to work in a facility with great coaches who I learn from (and steal ideas from) on a daily basis.
Joint mobility drills for hockey
Ankle mobility is extremely important for hockey players, especially at the high school level if they are multi-sport athletes. I have several athletes who play hockey in the winter and lacrosse in the spring. These kids are basically going from having their foot and ankle in a cast (i.e. ice skate) every day for four months and then asked to sprint on the lacrosse field. This is a disaster waiting to happen. Our ankle mobility work typically consists of dorsiflexion and plantar flexion drills.
I’ve learned over the years that when one of my hockey players refers to another as a “bender,” this means that when they are on skates, they are unable to control inversion and eversion at the ankle joint. The kettlebell pass is a correction for this. Although this isn’t a mobility drill per se, I include it in this portion of the program.
After we have improved ankle mobility, we also must be able to control movement at the ankle. This drill is simple and effective. Take a kettlebell of 10–20 lbs, depending on the athlete, and simply stand on the right leg. Pass the kettlebell in a circle around the body. I typically use 8–10 circles in one direction and 8–10 circles in the opposite direction and then switch legs and repeat. Go really, really, really slow and make sure they are performed with bare feet.
Hockey players have a tendency to develop tight external hip rotators, resulting in a toe out gait. I use Z-Health’s three position open chain hip circle drill with internal hip rotation to improve internal rotation at the hip. Again, this drill is extremely simple to perform and really effective. Have the athlete begin standing on the right leg. Bring the left leg slightly out in front of the body. Internally rotate at the hip while keeping the pelvis in a neutral position. Be sure the knee is fully extended and perform six circles in one direction and six in the opposite direction. That is the first position.
Come back to a hip width stance. Slightly abduct the hip, internally rotate, and be sure the pelvis is in a neutral position and the knee is fully extended. Perform the same number of repetitions. That is the second position. Come back to a hip width stance. Slightly extend the hip while maintaining a neutral spine. Internally rotate at the hip and be sure the knee is fully extended and perform the same number of repetitions as the first two positions.
Movement drills and core work
The warm-up portion of each training session consists of basic movement drills such as skips, side shuffles with arm and leg movement, and cariocas. These drills serve to increase body temperature and ready the athlete for the work ahead. Warrior lunges and lateral lunges may be performed in addition to these drills on lower body days to work on dynamic flexibility prior to squatting or cleaning.
After the movement drills, we perform our core work. We all know that the core is important. This is the transfer station between the upper and lower extremities. However, I’m not sure how many trainers and/or trainees actually prioritize it. I have been using core circuits as part of the warm up for my athletes for quite some time with great success. Coach Carl Valle here at Excel Sport and Fitness turned me on to the idea, and it’s a great way to continue to get the body warm and perform those pesky exercises that most would be bound to skip if left to their own devices.
Our core circuits typically consist of three or four exercises including Palloff cable press outs, anti-rotation landmines, front/side plank variations, barbell rollouts, and hanging leg raises.
Strength training template
Here is a variation of what I have used as a three-day strength training template for my hockey players. Again, nothing is set in stone and it isn’t uncommon to make some adjustments on the fly.
Day 1
A1 Power clean, 5 X 3
B1 Front/back squat, 3 X 5
C1 Reverse or walking lunge, 3 X 8
D1 Posterior chain movement, 3 X 8
E1 Push-ups, 3 X 12
E2 Row variation, 3 X 12
Day 2
A1 Pull-ups, 3 X 5
B1 Incline bench dumbbell press, 3 X 6
B2 Row variation, 3 X 8
C1 Elbow flexion, 3 X 8
C2 Elbow extension, 3 X 10
D1 Forward sled drag, 4 X 100 feet
Day 3
A1 Trap bar deadlift, 3 X 5
B1 Weighted push-ups, 3 X 8
B2 Single arm dumbbell row, 3 X 8
C1 Dumbbell step-up, 3 X 8
Each of these strength training sessions ends with flexibility work. I typically have my athletes perform a combination of lower body and upper body stretches. If they end the strength training session with upper body, they will perform lower body stretches first. If they end the strength training with lower body, they will perform upper body stretches first.
Like I said before, this article isn’t to market myself as some kind of hockey expert but a way to offer a glimpse at what I have used with some success with my athletes. I understand this isn’t the only way to approach it, and when I come across something I feel would better my programs, I make the necessary adjustments.