“KEEP AWAY!”          

 The words evoke nostalgic thoughts of joy for most of us. What a fun game!

Throughout my coaching years I still find it one of the simplest games to play at practice and a great skill builder. One of the great things about our game is that we can and should make practice fun and enjoyable, and this adds to the fun.

If you don’t have a full rink to work with it is a perfect game to be added to a practice plan. I would use it in small area games with a small number of players as well as in a full-ice setting with larger numbers. You could use it with two or even three squads, with one puck or two. Players learn to transition quickly from defense to offense once possession is gained. Not to mention learning the importance of keeping possession as well as supporting the puck by getting into an open passing lane.

It is fun to watch beginners evolve as they play group keep away in a full ice setting. After a couple of sessions, they realize that maybe it’s better to cover someone rather than constantly chase the puck around. They also begin to recognize the value of anticipation. Sometimes I begin practice with as many as 50 6-year-olds competing against 10 coaches with one puck. It’s a great five minutes of fun, agility and cardio for all involved.

The most basic game is 1 on 1 in a small area. Simplicity can lead to progression, such as running two or three 1 on 1 games simultaneously in the same area so there’s less waiting around. Don’t forget to include your goalies; they like to play, too. Pretty soon your younger players become aware of the swirling skaters around them and learn to keep their heads up.

As your players begin to grasp the concepts of passing and teamwork you can make the games 2 on 2 and 3 on 3. This provides the opportunity to develop additional skills, such as man to man defending, transitioning, angling, opportunities for double-teaming and more. Now make the game 3 on 2 and a different dynamic comes into play.

Use your imagination to divide players into teams, such as light vs. dark jerseys, lefties vs. righties, wire cages vs. plastic visors or forwards vs. defensemen. You can also play upwards of 10 on 10 with two pucks in the same area, or put the sticks down and use a soccer ball to throw around for a few minutes. Any of these drills are fun ways of team building and in no way a waste of ice time. 

​            If you want to add some conditioning, put the goalies in the nets and play three 1 on 1 games simultaneously on full or half ice for 45 seconds to a minute or until one team scores before rotating in the next opponents to keep three games going at once.

Using a variation of these games at every practice, if only for a few minutes, creates a fun learning environment that your players will look forward to and really get excited about.

While you may have a keep away segment in your practice plan, it’s advantageous to end your practice with some kind of scrimmage or modified scrimmage (and a final few laps and cool down) because ultimately that’s why we practice. 

Simple and fun.

Lou DeLuca has coached everything from beginners to Div. III hockey at Queens College, and played junior hockey for legendary coach Lou Vairo. He is the founder and currently the director for the Dix Hills Mites ADM program, now in its 25th year. He still plays beer league in South Florida.