RULES FOR DEFENCEMEN

1. Fight for the puck when it is in your corner.

2. Fight to own the front of the net when the puck is in the other corner.

3. Keep the front of the net clear when the puck is up high. Don’t allow your goalie to be screened.

4. There should be at least one defenceman in front of the net when the puck is in your zone.

5. Don’t tie-up with opposing players in front of the net. Gain position and control.

6. Don’t ever tie-up with opposing players anywhere when your team is short-handed. Being tied-up takes you out of the play and improves the scoring odds of the other team (it’s easier to score playing 4 on 3 than it is 5 on 4; same as it’s easier to score playing 3 on 2 than it is 4 on 3).

7. Don’t chase behind the net (usually).

8. Don’t chase above the dots (usually).

9. Don’t chase the puck too much as that will put you out of position.

10. Don’t leave the offensive zone too soon. Leaving too soon is a much more common mistake than leaving too late.

11. Always play defence first. If attacking with the puck, only go deep into the offensive zone until the prime scoring opportunity is over and then get back fast.

12. Never play a 1-on-1 head on. Give the attacker a little room on one side to force them where you want them to go.

13. Stagger one defenceman up a little further than the other in 2-on-2 and 3-on-2 situations. The D up further is usually the one closest to the puck carrier.

14. The best shot from the point is usually low and accurate to either score or put the puck into the scoring area.

15. When shooting or passing from the point, don’t shoot into opposing players and don’t telegraph passes so that they are easily picked off. The only way to do this is to keep your head up.

16. When turning with a player breaking around the outside, keep the feet moving. Never reach or lunge without moving your feet as that can lead to a tripping penalty.

17. Never stop working on backward skating, pivoting and turning.

18. Don’t pass to covered forwards or blindly throw the puck away. Young players commonly make blind passes leading to turnovers. Carry the puck, cross-pass it to your D partner or “eat it” rather than turn it over.

19. Body check only with an objective. Hitting for the sake of hitting is usually pointless and can lead to a penalty, self-injury or an open opposition player.

20. Communicate with your D partner, goalie and forwards. Communication is a critical part of effective team play.

21. Follow your attacking forwards closely (by 15 to 20 feet) and move quickly into the offensive zone once the puck enters that zone. Many D are lazy moving up the ice which allows the puck to turn around before they get over the blue line.

22. Blue lines are critical. Always clear the puck over the defensive blue line as your priority and then move up to that blue line as quickly as possible. Defend both blue lines with as much intensity as is reasonable.

23. Practice chipping the puck off the glass and flipping the puck out of the defensive zone. These are key puck movement skills in games.