08/12/2026
What is the most important and critical part of goaltending?
It’s stance.
It’s the very first thing we teach to goalies new and seasoned and the one thing we continue to coach perfect. Whenever a goalie talks about a struggle they have had, we go back to square one and look at their base or foundation and see if there are any holes or inconsistencies in their stance, and usually there is.
Our stance should consist of what anyone would call a basic athletic stance. Goalies should be on the balls of their feet, with a good knee bend that consists of their knees over their toes and their ankles bent with their shins in their skate tongues, and their feet shoulder width apart. Their shoulders should be over the ice, with their core activated, their hands neutrally up and in front of their body and slightly outside of their torso covering net, and their heads down and eyes up to help with tracking pucks.
This allows us to skate more powerfully and efficiently, butterfly quicker and with better technique, recover quicker, track pucks easier, and makes controlled saves, limiting rebounds.
Details matter.
Practice your stance, and master it.