04/09/96 - 11:20 AM ET - Click reload often for latest version

Each week, USA TODAY will feature a leading college coach providing tips on improving hockey skills. This week's guest coach is Buddy Powers of Bowling Green State University.

Dot drill for defensemen

by Coach Buddy Powers, Bowling Green State University

This drill will develop a player's agility and quick feet. It involves forward and backward skating, pivoting, stopping and starting, which makes it particularly good for defensemen. As a progression, a player can add puckhandling. This drill can also be used repetitively for conditioning purposes.

Players will start at some point inside the blueline and aligned with one of the faceoff circle dots. Movement is to the left or right (coach decides) with the players using the faceoff and center ice dots to complete an indented box (see above diagram). Do the drill in the following order:

Start skating forward to the center ice dot from blueline area (align with a faceoff circle dot).
At the center ice dot, pivot and skate backwards to next faceoff dot to player's right.
At faceoff dot, stop. Then sprint forward to next faceoff dot. Once there, pivot and skate backward to center ice dot.
At the center ice dot, pivot and sprint forward to next faceoff dot and stop. Then skate backwards to where the drill started.
For conditioning, do the drill in three sets of three repetitions.
To improve puckhandling skills, carry a puck while following the above steps.

Francis "Buddy" Powers is in his second season as coach at Bowling Green State University. Powers, who was an assistant at BG under Jerry York from 1982-88, returned to BGSU after five years as coach at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (1990-94) and one at Rochester Institute of Technology (1988-89). Last season, the Falcons went 25-11-2 and Powers was named the Central Collegiate Hockey Association's coach of the year and one of the six finalist for the Spencer Penrose Award for the nation's top hockey coach. Powers' 1993-94 Rensselaer team advanced to the NCAA East Region semifinal game. His 1988-89 RIT squad finished second at the Division III NCAA tournament. Powers has a 145-82-17 record as a head coach. A native of Boston, Powers played college hockey at Boston University (1972-75) and played professionally in the European League for three seasons.