Stickhandling is another important fundamental skill in the game of ice hockey. Players must develop good puck handling skills in order give and receive passes, shoot, and maintain possession of the puck. Practicing skickhandling is something that can be done both on an off the ice. Here are some tips in order to improve overall stickhandling skills and confidence with the puck.

1. Cup The Puck. Roll your wrist over and under when dribbling the puck to develop smooth soft hands. The puck should move from your forehand to backhand with little sound and try to avoid erratic slapping when stickhandling. Check out EZ Pucks for a great stickhandling obstacle.
2. Practice Variation Dribbling. Always practice dribbling the puck in many different positions and not just directly in front of your body. Dribble and move the puck in all positions from your forehand to your backhand sides of your body.
3. Keep Your Head Up. Concentrate on keeping your head and eyes up as much as possible when practicing stickhandling. Stickhandling with your head up is an essential skill in order to play safe and effective hockey.
4. Practice Off The Ice. Stickhandling skills can be greatly improved off the ice in driveways and garages. Devoting extra time at home each day can really improve a player’s stickhandling abilities. The Flypuck and Swedish Stickhandling Balls are great off-ice training tools.
5. Develop Strong Wrists. Developing strong wrists, hands, and forearm muscles is important in order to become a good stickhandler. A great product to increase stickhandling strength is the Hockey Wrist Roller.
6. Keep Hands Out From Body. Concentrate on moving your hands out away from you body. This allows your hands to move freely and increases your stickhandling reach and range of motion. Place Agility Dots in a way that makes you dribble out away from you body.
7. Use Training Obstacles. Practicing stickhandling through and around training obstacles that simulate real life players can be very beneficial. There are many great training obstacles on the market such as the Attack Triangle PRO-PAC and the Stick Handling Triangle.
8. Incorporate Training Games. Using and developing games is a fun way to improve stickhandling skill. A great and challenging game to play is Box Hockey.
9. Practice Stationary And Moving. Both stationary and moving stickhandling skills need to be practiced. A good stationary stickhandling tool is the Stickhandling Horseshoe and almost any obstacle can be practiced moving as well.
10. Develop Quick Hands. Hockey is a fast paced game and you need to have quick hands in order to succeed at a high level. You should always push yourself to stickhandle beyond your comforts zone in order to develop faster hands. The Kwik Hands Stickhandling System is a great training tool to do just that.