Practice Habits That Matter!

Practice is where hockey players are made — but not all practice is created equal. Some kids can be on the ice for years and stay the same, while others take big jumps in just one season. The difference usually isn’t talent or even extra training… it’s how they practice. When players bring real intensity, focus on small details, and treat every rep like it matters, coaches notice — and improvement follows.

This article breaks down the practice habits that actually separate “busy” from “better.”

Intensity, Details, and “Rep Quality”

The big idea , why this matters & what actually makes kids improve!

Most players don’t need more ice time. They need better reps during the ice time they already have.

• Coaches can tell within 5 minutes who is just “doing drills” vs who is training to get better

• “Rep quality” is one of the biggest reasons some kids improve fast—even if they aren’t the biggest or most skilled yet

• Practice habits show coaches what you’ll be like in games

  • If you glide in practice, you’ll glide in games

  • If you compete in practice, coaches trust you in games

Busy ≠ Better.
A player can be moving the whole practice and still not improve much if their reps are low quality.

What “rep quality” actually means

A high-quality rep has 3 ingredients—every time:

1) Game Speed (feet + brain)

• You move at a pace that looks like a real shift

• You make decisions quickly (no “standing still” thinking)

• Your first steps are sharp, not lazy

Example: If the drill is a 1v1, you don’t skate through it… you compete through it.

2) Game Posture (how your body is built to play)

• Knees bent, hips loaded (strong athletic stance)

• Chest over knees (not standing tall)

• Stick in the right spot (on the ice, ready)

Why it matters: Good posture = more speed, better balance, stronger on the puck, harder to knock off.

3) Game Intention (purpose)

You know what you’re training and you’re trying to get it right.

• Are you working on your angle?

• Are you scanning before receiving a pass?

• Are you selling a fake?

• Are you learning how to protect the puck?

If you don’t know what you’re training, you’re just skating!

✅ Truth: If one of these 3 ingredients is missing, it becomes a “lazy rep” — even if you touched the puck.

Intensity: what coaches mean

A lot of players think intensity means “go as hard as possible every second…That’s not it.

Intensity means:

• You compete

• You execute with purpose

• You don’t waste reps with half-effort habits

Intensity looks like this

• First 3 strides are sharp

  • No gliding into the drill

  • No “warming up” during the rep

• Stops and starts are real

  • Tight turns, hard edges

  • No drifting wide because it’s easier

• You finish the rep like you finish a shift

  • Track back hard

  • Stick on puck

  • Stop on pucks instead of coasting away

• Fast reset

  • Back to the line quickly

  • Ready to go again

  • Not staring into space or slowly circling

What kills intensity 👉the stuff coaches notice immediately.

• Long glide turns between reps

• Coasting back to the line like you don’t care

• Talking while the coach is teaching

• “Half-speed” because it’s only practice

• Doing the drill while thinking about something else

Important for parents:
This is why some kids “practice a lot” but don’t improve much. They’re logging time, but not building skill.

Details: the small things that create big separation

Coaches love detail players because they are reliable…. 👉 Reliable players get more opportunities.

Details that separate kids fast

Stick details

• Stick on the ice (ready to receive and defend)

• Stick in lanes (cut passes off)

• Active stick on puck battles (not just watching)

Eyes and awareness

• Scan before you get the puck

  • quick shoulder check

  • “peek then play”

• Eyes up in traffic (not staring at the puck)

Body posture

• Knees bent = balance + speed + strength

• Low hips in battles = you win more pucks

Passing and puck placement

• Pass to the teammate’s forehand

• Pass with purpose (not “somewhere close”)

• Catch and move it quickly (no panic)

Simple rule ; If you can’t do it clean, you can’t do it fast….and if you can’t do it fast, you won’t do it well in games.

The 3-speed practice model that are easy to do

This helps kids actually improve instead of living in “kinda fast” mode.

1) Learn Speed

1. Slow enough to do it right

2. Focus: technique and understanding

2) Train Speed

1. Medium-fast with control

2. Focus: repeatable skill under pace

3) Game Speed

1. Full pace + decision-making + compete

2. Focus: perform like a shift

👉The most common mistake: Kids go “kinda fast” the whole practice. That’s the worst zone—too fast to learn properly, too slow to develop game speed.

Compete reps vs cruise reps, this is where ice time is earned

A coach can forgive mistakes, what they can’t ignore is cruise reps.

Compete reps look like:

• Winning races to pucks even when no one is watching

• Finishing on pucks with a stop, not gliding past

• Battling for inside position in small area games

• Recovering hard after mistakes (no quitting on the play)

• Sticking with the drill when tired, not “cheating the rep”

Cruise reps look like:

• Giving up as soon as you lose a puck

• Coasting once you pass it

• Avoiding contact or battles

• Skipping stops/starts because it burns

• “Just going through it”

Coaches remember who competes when they’re tired.

The takeaway for kids & parents

Your future ice time is earned in practice when nobody is keeping score.

• Skill improves when reps are high-quality

• Trust is built when effort and details are consistent

• Coaches don’t just reward talent— they reward reliability, compete level, and habits