Under-9 Hockey

Fundamental skill development for U9 hockey


Hockey for 7- and 8-year-olds is about teaching and refining the basic skills of the game

U9 Skills Matrix

The Long-Term Player Development Model places U9 hockey at the Fundamentals 2 stage, with programming focused on fundamental skill development. The U9 skills matrix identifies the skills players must have the opportunity to develop through progressive and meaningful practice sessions.

Focus on Skill Development

  • Small-area games in practice / station-based practices / skill-focused drills.
  • Only 25% of practice time should be spent on tactics, with 75% of practice time spent on skills.
  • Basic positional play and rules can be introduced at the end of the season or prior to the start of the U11 regular season. Basic defensive-zone positioning, offside, icing, etc., can be introduced during the ice sessions prior to evaluations or after teams are selected.

 U9 hockey skills development breakdown

U9 Skills | LTPD Stage – Fundamentals 2

Balance and Agility

  • Basic stance
  • Balance on one foot
  • Gliding on two skates
  • Gliding on one skate – forward and backward
  • Lateral Crossovers

Edge Control

  • Figure 8’s – forward – inside & outside edge
  • Figure 8’s – backward – inside & outside edge
  • Heel to Heel (Mohawk)
  • 1 leg weaving – fwd / bwd

Starting and Stopping

  • Front v-start
  • Crossover start
  • Backward c-cut start
  • One o’clock – eleven o’clock stops
  • Outside leg stop
  • Two-foot parallel stop
  • One-leg backward stop
  • Two-leg backward stop

Forward Skating and Striding

  • C-cuts – left foot / right foot / alternating
  • Crossunders
  • T-push
  • Forward striding

Backward Skating

  • C-cuts – left foot / right foot
  • Gliding on two skates – backward
  • Gliding on one skate – backward
  • Backward Striding
  • 1 Crossover / Reach

Turning and Crossovers

  • Glide turns / Tight turns
  • C-cuts – around circle – outside foot – forward & backward
  • Crossovers – forward & backward
  • Pivots – bwd to fwd & fwd to bwd
  • Pivots – open & reverse

Stationary Puck Control

  • Stance
  • Narrow / Wide
  • Side – front – side
  • Toe drag – side/front
  • Attack Triangle

Moving Puck Control

  • Narrow / Wide
  • Open ice carry – forehand & backhand
  • Weaving with puck
  • Toe drag – front & side
  • Attack the Triangle

Stationary Passing and Receiving

  • Stationary forehand pass
  • Stationary backhand pass
  • Stationary bank pass

Moving Passing and Receiving

  • Moving forehand pass
  • Moving backhand pass
  • Pass and Follow

Shooting

  • Forehand - wrist shot
  • Backhand - sweep shot
  • Forehand / backhand shots in motion
  • Forehand - flip shot
  • Backhand - flip shot

Individual Offensive Tactics

  • Body fakes
  • Stick fakes
  • Dekes
  • Moves in Combination
  • Net Drives

Individual Defensive Tactics

  • Angling
  • Basic 1 on 1’s
  • Escape moves
  • Puck retrievals

Team Play

  • Basic Positioning – all players should play all positions
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