Shooting it wrong handed

[johncho]

So I catch with my left, but I grew up shooting right which is a problem and I'm having more and more trouble as I move up in competitiveness and need to stickhandle quicker and shoot harder. 

A local guy with the same issue uses a full right stick with a huge ball-like knob at the end of his stick that he grips with his glove hand. Anyone else do something similar and have any advice? To make matters worse my kid is also in the same boat. Do I coach him to keep at it or change and be lambasted by goalie coaches?

After a quick search I saw that Matt Dalton, Curtis Joseph, Jose Theodore, and Roloson used to do something like it, but not with a full right stick (except for Matt Dalton).

I might buy a cheap full right and experiment with it.

[Wake42]

I practice by shooting tennis balls for my dogs and by skating out using the same stick orientation (catch left, so top hand right hand on player stick). Both have helped, but I am still pretty bad. One or two goals again a beer league season from whiffing. 

This looks like an interesting method. One of my captains said to try the reverse like you posted, but one handed, with the top of the stick behind my back. I’ll try to find an example. 
 

Things did get better for me with a different blade. I had some cheap sticks with a very flat blade. Going to a mid curve helped get a little more on my shooting. 

Edited June 16 by Wake42

[IpaddyTECH]

I'm pretty curious about this and in the same boat (grew up shooting right, but play in goal regular). I'm not sure I totally understand the concept though. Are you saying play with a full right stick but still catch regular? So like the stick faces the wrong way? Wouldn't that affect stick saves?

Also has anyone ever switched from regular to full right just to be able to play the puck better? I'm so utterly bad at playing the puck despite practicing, I'm considering the switch.

Edited June 17 by IpaddyTECH

[johncho]

Yeah so the idea is to play with the wrong handed curve, meaning it curves inwards.

On the surface it sounds nuts hence my hesitation, but my buddy who does this says that it doesn’t affect it that much, and I remember Matt Dalton also saying the same thing in an interview.

 

 

 

Edited June 17 by johncho

[RichMan]

John, it's definitely going to be a challenge. I'd say just be mindful of stick on puck deflections as the blade will be curved inwards and that could affect how you judge the trajectory line, space and such. Let's hope you have sufficient butterfly flare to catch anything that swerves past. 

 

[EilaOG30]

I normally shoot right, but catch with my left hand. So I practised shooting pucks in my drive way as s junior. 200 pucks per day for two summers. I’m not great at it but I can shoot the puck to the plexi class most of the time  the blade of the stick has the most effect on my shot, find one that works for you.

in my opinion changing your sitck orientatien will take too much time in most cases if you go the Dalton way.

 

 

[johncho]

3 hours ago, EilaOG30 said:

in my opinion changing your sitck orientatien will take too much time in most cases if you go the Dalton way.

This is also one of my fears, under pressure I could envision myself getting caught up as I flip. Although on the other hand, in a real game I sometimes end up losing my stick as I slide my hand up to a shooting position because I'm a spaz and have little confidence in handling the puck wrong handed.

[RichMan]

Maybe do some therapy first, then tackle your stick handling    

[IpaddyTECH]

I don't know, I'm just a beer leaguer... stakes are pretty low... I'm so tempted to try this. That said I'll also keep working on normal stick handling. 

[ilyazhito]

Go full right. I did and it helped me with my puck handling. I can't lift the puck yet, but I can stop the puck and fire hard passes. 

[johncho]

12 hours ago, ilyazhito said:

Go full right. I did and it helped me with my puck handling. I can't lift the puck yet, but I can stop the puck and fire hard passes. 

That would bring up so many more issues not to mention costs.

[chile57]

Go Dan Blackburn @johncho. It is the way.

In all seriousness - I am also a righty on the rare occasion I skate out anymore and catch left in net. The best way is just repetition and muscle memory. I'm no Marty Turco but I'm serviceable. I would just continue to work at it before I'd go off book. That said - if you feel like you aren't making any progress - don't beat a dead horse and just give it a whirl. Easily the most cost effective "solution" to buy a full right stick to experiment.

Edited June 19 by chile57

[RichMan]

15 hours ago, ilyazhito said:

Go full right. I did and it helped me with my puck handling. I can't lift the puck yet, but I can stop the puck and fire hard passes. 

I do that on a "regular"

[Fullright]

Not so sure about all this. Seems as if the job is hard enough and adding in backward curves, switching hands, etc adds complexity to an already complex job. But you got to do whatever works for you. 

[Chenner29]

As a California native, I grew up shooting right.  Mainly playing street hockey in the early/mid 90s because Gretzky was in LA, and because of the Ducks.

Picked up goalie shortly after subbing for an absent tendy in in-house and never looked back.

As I went through travel programs, I learned that the "correct" way is to shoot with your dominant hand on top.  Now that I was fully entrenched in net, I had to learn how to shoot left because A) the gear cost and B) coach made me learn to play the puck.

Ever since then, playing out (almost never) or coaching (also almost never) I have shot with a left player stick.

[johncho]

Yeah I think that's the biggest issue, I still play out on occasion and coach too.

To make matters worse I was born a lefty (so is my son) but I was forced to be right handed because I had strict parents, whereas my kid does everything with his left naturally.

[ilyazhito]

1 hour ago, johncho said:

Yeah I think that's the biggest issue, I still play out on occasion and coach too.

To make matters worse I was born a lefty (so is my son) but I was forced to be right handed because I had strict parents, whereas my kid does everything with his left naturally.

Hopefully your son can play left handed if he is able to play in goal. 

[mik]

On 6/19/2024 at 3:46 AM, ilyazhito said:

Go full right. I did and it helped me with my puck handling. I can't lift the puck yet, but I can stop the puck and fire hard passes. 

I´m not sure it is worth only for stick handling reasons. I tried it once (at goalie camp, just for fun). Catching with right hand was not a big problem (maybe I was used to it from my years in handball). Blocker was strange. But the hardest part was the muscle memory in back, joints etc. That was giving me realy bad experience and even pain after it. I didn´t find it worthy. Will I try it again when I get another chance? Of course , but not for a permanent switch.  

[Fullright]

On 6/20/2024 at 8:06 AM, johncho said:

Yeah I think that's the biggest issue, I still play out on occasion and coach too.

To make matters worse I was born a lefty (so is my son) but I was forced to be right handed because I had strict parents, whereas my kid does everything with his left naturally.

I bleed with you on this. In 3rd grade, my penmanship teacher insisted I learn how to write w my right hand. Got an F in penmanship. 

Edited June 22 by Fullright

[johncho]

3 hours ago, Fullright said:

I bleed with you on this. In 3rd grade, my penmanship teacher insisted I learn how to right w my right hand. Got an F in penmanship. 

My penmanship is still horrid, and in HS I tried to switch back to my natural left and I started having a stutter? Although now I hear that it's not a connection, back then professionals thought there was a connection and suggested that I switch back to the wrong hand now that I was used to it.

[Fullright]

Have you tried the different stick approach yet? Interested to know how it works out.

[johncho]

On 6/22/2024 at 5:34 PM, Fullright said:

Have you tried the different stick approach yet? Interested to know how it works out.

Not quite yet, I will def report back as soon as I do. I'm still looking for a cheap but light right hander

[Naz]

Learn to shoot left.
I golf right, bat right, write right, so right handed.  I learned to shoot left for goal, starting with a straight stick back in 86.  It all comes down to technique, as dictated by the catching glove we wear.  Learning to shoot left in goal is not the same as learning to shoot left as a player due to that catching glove.  The biggest thing that helped me when learning, was that I actually started shooting off what would be considered your "back foot"...  so shooting left, that is your left foot.  It helped me adjust that the goalie stick is much more upright than a player stick, so makes your position to the puck more accurate.

Try both the overhand and regular grip with your glove.  When utilizing regular grip, don't put your glove too low on the shaft when first practicing.

Since my first year of Midget in 1987, I have been able to fire the puck airborne past the far blue line.  Let your wrists roll.

Watching Cujo flip his stick over drove me nuts, one of the reason's I never put him with the Elite Goalies... dude, you're a Pro... learn to shoot left!

 

[coopaloop1234]

20 minutes ago, Naz said:

Since my first year of Midget in 1987, I have been able to fire the puck airborne past the far blue line.  Let your wrists roll.

Well la dee da Mr. Super Wrists. 

[johncho]

On 6/22/2024 at 5:34 PM, Fullright said:

Have you tried the different stick approach yet? Interested to know how it works out.

So I tried it a bit and it did not work out, maybe it takes more getting used to it but the swing around was a bit clunky. I'll try it a few more times.