Crease Depth Awareness: Making Goals Look Easy

Often hockey players think all they need to score is a hard enough shot and a favorite part of the net. As a goalie, it makes my job easy when this is all the shooter is thinking about. The best scorers may not have a very fast or accurate shot, but they know how to adjust their decisions based on their environment. One easy way for teams to increase their chances of scoring is to pay careful attention to where the goalie is positioned in relation to the net, puck, and other players. Today's article will focus on crease depth awareness. In other words, we're going to talk about how to change your strategy depending on whether the goalie is closer to the net (deep crease depth) or closer to the top of the crease (high crease depth).

In general, a goalie standing closer to the top of the crease is attempting to make themselves look bigger than if they were closer to the net. Goalies are in better position to save a shot when they are high in their crease and facing the shooter because less of the net is visible. On the other hand, goalies who are high in the crease have a long distance to travel if the shooter dekes to the side instead of shooting immediately. When the shooter moves the puck with a deke before shooting, this can open up big parts of the net that were blocked a moment before.

In comparison, a goalie standing deep in the crease is attempting to make a save on a play where the puck might change direction quickly. Goalies are in better position to make a save on a deke or a one-timer when they are deep in their crease. However, goalies who are deep in the crease leave a lot more net visible to the shooter.

While every situation is different, teams will usually find more success scoring if they shoot when a goalie is deep in the crease and deke (or pass) when a goalie is high in the crease. Teams who understand the strengths and weaknesses of goalie positioning score goals that look easy. The rest of this article will focus on breaking down four different shooting attempts so that we can get a clearer sense of how crease depth awareness can lead to more goals (courtesy of Extra Hour with Cathy Andrade).

On the first attempt, the shooter did a nice job of recognizing that I was high in the crease. They deked to the side in response to my positioning, but they moved the puck closer towards me instead of towards the open side of the net, allowing me to knock the puck off their stick.

The next shooter picked their head up to see that I am deep in my crease. But, I was able to make a save because the shooter deked closer to the goal, allowing me to take up more of the net. A shot from further away would have given the shooter a better opportunity to find the open net.

The third shooter realized that I am high in the crease, so they decided to deke. This is the right move, but I made the save because the shot still came from right in front of me. The deke would have been more effective if the shooter continued another foot towards my glove side where I had left an opening.

The first shooter tried again, making it look easy this time. As soon as the shooter turned towards the net, they see I am deep in the crease and much of the net is open. The shooter wasted no time with dekes. Instead, they shot right away, leaving me looking a little silly.

Next time you're on the ice with a goalie, pay attention to their crease depth. Are they usually really deep? Do they only stay high in the crease? Is their crease depth the same on a 2-on-1 as it is on a breakaway? If none of these answers are clear from watching, no worries! Other goalies are a great resource for learning how to score. Make sure you are communicating with your goalies about what makes their job easy and difficult. You will both learn a lot in the process.