Reply To: Daily Drill Part Seven

[Tom Molloy]

Transition Games

I just went through the forum posting with Transition Games and have listed them here. They all have diagrams and most have video demonstrations with various North American or Europen kid’s, pro’s or women teams that I have coached. There are a few that I filmed other coaches doing.

Coaches have developed thousands of drills that stress going through the neutral zone and attacking or coming out of the corner etc. but the game is won and lost in the WAR ZONE (slot) in front of the net. Fighting for rebounds, tying up sticks, boxing out, starting the breakout under pressure, the key areas of a game, are hardly practiced because the players must get out of the way for the next rush in the drill.

Transition games are not used by many coaches but are a natural progression from game situation drills such as a 2-1 or a 3-2. The difference is that in transtiton games the coach creates the same situation but only one puck is used and the play must be finished. In standard drills as a 2 on 1 the forwards attack a D, get a shot and maybe a rebound and go back to the line up. The D simply plays the rush and returns to the line up. Games are not like this. In a real game the forwards will fight for the loose pucks with the D who must regain the puck and make a breakout. Transition games simulate REAL game situations because both the forwards and defenders must finish the play before returning to the line up.

TRANSITION GAMES TO TEACH THE FOUR GAME PLAYING ROLES

When the players have learned the basic game situation skills by doing one way drills that work on offensive or defensive responsibility there is no transition. The next stage is to practice using the skills in more realistic situations that demand both good technique game understanding and transition.

In transition games the players work on all of the various game situations from the basic 1 on 1 skills to 5 on 6. Quickly moving from offense to defense and from defense to offense is emphasized with the theme that; “you must always attack so that you are able todefend and defend so that you can attack.”

Transition games allow the coach to create any numerical situation that happens in a hockey game and the players practice these situations under game pressure in the same zone as it would occur in a game.

Any of the game formations can be used for transition games. The cross ice, half ice and one zone games use the same rules as the full ice transition games.

HOW TO ORGANIZE A TRANSITION GAME

To organize a transition game the coach must decide what individual or team skill to work on and then devise the game. Take your time and go slowly starting first step by step and let the players do everything in slow motion so that the game is understood. It is best to begin with a 1 on 1 situation and build from there.

When the players are comfortable with the flow of the game the coach can add modified rules to practice individual or team skills. The transition game itself is like a template for teaching all the various situations in the game.

After the coach has decided what needs to be worked on and where on the ice it should be done, then who gets support during the play, determines the type of transition game to use.

In transition games you go from offense to defense and from defense to offense. The coach can create the situation by having the passive players give support to either the defense, the offense or both the offense and the defense. New players come into the play from the line ups and they must assume the appropriate game playing role of either offensive or defensive situations. As the play continues their role changes from defensive to offensive or offensive to defensive responsibilities and all playing situations: offense, defense and loose puck will be encountered.

Options for transition games.
1.Transition games where players wait in the neutral zone for a breakout pass and the play goes towards the other end. This isolates situations in the neutral zone and at each end (game situation role one, two, three and four.)
2. Transition games where the attacking team gets support from teammates joining the play (game situation role two.)
3. Transition games where the defending team gets support from back checkers (game situation role four.)
4. Transition games where both the offensive and defensive teams have supporting players join the play.

Attachments

• DT Games from the forum.pdf (199 KB)

'The Game is the Greatest Coach'
'Enjoy the Game'