What Josh Anderson Can Learn From Nick Suzuki
The one small habit that can make a massive impact
A handful of months ago when I was casually watching the Stanley Cup Finals, I noticed a very simple habit that Nick Suzuki did consistently to leverage his play. I also noticed he did it far more than any other player on the ice that game, especially linemate, Josh Anderson.
Shoulder Checking: the simple act of lifting up your head and becoming aware of your surroundings.
It’s something so simple that we consciously, or subconsciously do every single day outside of hockey as well. Take the streets for example. If you drive a car, (I hope) you shoulder check right before you switch lanes or make a turn. And if you don’t drive, I’m sure you do it before you walk across a street.
In hockey it can be tough to do as many players get caught “puck watching”. This means to be so focused on solely the puck, you suddenly forget about your immediate surroundings, the player(s) you’re supposed to cover, potential next plays, etc. We’ve all seen players suffer through this, from minor hockey all the way up to the NHL.
As a visual, watch LAK3 sneak down the weak (left) side and receive a pass as all of the defenders are puck watching and basically forgot he was even on the ice:
Going back to Suzuki & Anderson, I made a condensed video of the best (maybe half in total) of Suzuki’s shoulder checks in Game 5 of the 2021 Stanley Cup Finals. Feel free to check them out below and notice how he uses up to three shoulder checks upon arrival of the puck:
I understand this is a small (but meaningful) sample size, however when comparing Suzuki to Anderson, I don’t think Josh Anderson did any shoulder checks prior to him receiving a puck. I did happen to see a couple where he did a singular check and didn’t end up getting the puck, however even those were extremely tough to come by (which isn’t a promising trait to have as a world class ice hockey player).
Lets take a couple look at some clips of where Anderson could’ve implemented a shoulder check:
To clarify that I’m not trying to bash Anderson and hype up Suzuki, here are also some clips of where Suzuki could’ve executed some more shoulder checks into his game:
Although some of the plays these two guys are making do turn out to be successful even without a shoulder check, we still want to engrain the habit into the players for the long run.
Shoulder checks can be used either in any zone of the rink, before you get the puck, when you have the puck, and even if you’re nowhere near the puck with no chance of receiving it (winger covering opposition’s defenceman in defensive zone for example)
Neutral & Defensive Zone
Shoulder checks can be used either before you get the puck, when you have the puck, and even if you’re nowhere near the puck with no chance of receiving it (winger covering opposition’s defenceman in defensive zone for example).
Lets take a look at a previous No. 1 overall NHL draft pick & 949 point career scorer to see how he would “keep his head on a swivel” (constant shoulder checks & looking around) towards the end of his career:
Offensive Zone
Now here are a couple examples of a shoulder checks directly leading to offence:
Finally, even McDavid’s famous goal against Toronto included a shoulder check (although he did already have the puck) for him to not only see if there’s any help for him, but as well as a way to add deception (learn the 3 different ways of deception here) against TOR44.
Even a general self-improvement tip can be just as applicable with hockey. James Clear, the popular author of Atomic Habits states:
We live in a world of competition. The margin between good and great is slimmer than ever before. Small habits can unlock the improvements you need to get the results you want.
At the end of the day, truly elite players understand what their options are on the ice, where their teammates are, and where their opposition is before receiving the puck through the sheer number of shoulder checks they do on a consistent basis.
Although shoulder checks won’t guarantee you perfection, they will be sure to increase your puck touch success rates as you’ll be a step ahead of the play.
If you’d like to learn the game of hockey from a new & different perspective, consider subscribing to get instant access to new posts!