Center

Question
I'm 14 years old and i've been a defenseman almost my entire time playing hockey. i used to play center and when i did i scored goals. but my coaches put me on defense because they say i am very aggressive. Now this next season i want to become center again. I just got through a concussion and i need to practice. Do you know of any practice drills for a center?

Answer
Hi Joe, thanks for your question

There are advantages to having an aggressive centre and aggressive defense so you should play which ever position you feel most comfortable at. Defensemen can still score a lot of goals, but you have to always remember what your role is.

As a centre you should be the strongest skater on the ice, any drills that improve your speed, acceleration, and agility will help a lot.

Here are a few drills that you can do off ice to improve your foot speed. All you need is some tape to make some lines on the ground

http://huskystrength.ica.washington.edu/Footspeed%20drills.htm

Skipping rope also helps give you quick feet, and build your leg muscles.

You should also be able to move the puck well. Check out this article for a few tips on how to stickhandle properly http://howtohockey.com/how-to-stickhandle and you can also subscribe to the blog for more great hockey tips