CENTRE’S ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES
In general the centerman is the “support man” this means he is helping out the other players when they are in trouble, the centerman is also considered the quarterback as he will win faceoffs, and lead breakouts.
Your general duties as a centerman are to win faceoffs, cause trouble in front of the other teams net, stop players and pucks in front of your own net, score goals, make passes, help out your wingers, lead break-outs and back check.
Offensive Zone
In the offensive zone (as in other zones) the centerman’s job is to offer support to the other team members. A good “general area” to hang out until you are needed is in the slot on whatever side the puck is on. Remember to always keep your feet moving and always be skating, this makes it easier to get going when you need to!
· If your winger has possession of the puck get open in front and call for a pass.
· If your winger does not have possession of the puck then read the play.
· Remember you are the support guy, so if your winger is getting double teamed along the boards get in there and dig for the puck to help him out.
If the other team has possession in the offensive zone then you should switch to defense. They will be attempting to break out and you don’t want that to happen.
Usually when they get possession you should start moving towards the blue line, that way if they try to make a break out pass you can intercept, or at least have a bit of speed going to back-check / keep up with the play, you don’t want to get caught deep in your end with the other team breaking out.
Defensive Zone
Just like in the offensive zone your job as a centerman is to offer support. Also similar to the offensive zone you will be hanging around the slot area, but this time for different reasons.
On your team you have two defencemen, one is usually busy trying to get the puck, while the other is in front of the net being a BOSS and not letting people get near the net or get open.
As a centermen you want to help him out and pick up anyone who might be open. Hang out in the slot, block the cross ice passes, and tie up any open man.
If your defenseman is outnumbered along the boards you can go and help him out, just make sure you aren’t leaving a man wide open in front of the net
(in this scenario there would probably only be one person in front of the net and your other defensemen should have him covered anyways).
Breaking Out
When your team gets possession in the defensive zone it is time to start the break-out.
There are a number of ways to break out but it usually starts with the d-man passing to the centermen who then feeds a breaking winger, or the winger getting the puck and feeding it to the centerman.
Remember you are the support man so you should always be giving your players options for passes
If you have the puck you can pass to the head man, skate with the puck into the other teams end, or if the defense have you covered just go for a dump and chase, or dump and change.
While breaking in, the first man in should go hard to the net, and the second man in will stay high.
If the other team has the puck you are basically trying to stop them from getting into your zone. In most cases you will be playing catch-up so skate hard to get into the play and try to get in the way of passes, or sneak up on the guy with the puck and strip the puck from him.
In summary, the centreman will usually be hanging out in the slot / circles in the offensive and defensive zones. While in that area the centermen should be looking for opportunities to get the puck either by calling for a pass, intercepting a pass, or by recognizing a moment when his teammate needs help and then going in and getting the puck.
MOVING CENTRE TO WING
When it comes to a shift from center to wing, the largest impact on the player will be in the defensive zone.
The center is tasked with covering the high slot.
The wingers, on the other hand, are tasked with pressuring the points and disrupting the cycle. Their goal is to limit time to setup and cause quick turnovers.
WINGERS ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES
Your general duties as a wingman are to dig in the corner, feed the centermen and defence, wreak havoc in front of the other teams net, and outsmart the other teams defensemen on both ends of the rink.
Defensive Zone
When you are in the defensive zone you should generally
stay between the blue line and the hash marks.
You want to stay in that area for a few reasons:
• To stop the other teams defensemen from getting the puck and getting a shot on your goalie.
• To get a break out pass from your own team member
• To block shots or passes if the other teams defensemen does have the puck.
• To intercept passes and break outs.
When you are in the defensive zone it is your job to cover the other teams defensemen.
You typically stay between the hash marks and the top of the circle. You will come up to the blue line when challenging the defence.
Breaking The Puck Out
One of the biggest responsibilities of the winger in the defensive zone is breaking the puck out. Usually you will be taking a pass from the defencemen and it is then up to you to receive the pass, control the puck and either break out with it, or make a quick pass to your centremen or other winger.
The safest way to break out of your end is to bank a pass off of the boards to your center men who should be breaking out, or if the defensemen is right against the boards you can gently redirect the puck to your centermen, or your winger who should be cutting to center.
Offensive Zone
You will mainly play in the corner, inside the circle, and in front of the net. When the puck goes into your corner it is your job to get it out.
If the other teams defence get there first, as it is their job to get the puck out. If this happens you can try to take the puck from them, or tie them up and wait for your centermen to help you out.
If the puck is in the other corner then you have a few new jobs. When the puck is in the other corner you can:
• Go to the net and look for a pass from the winger
• If your winger looks like he is going to be tied up you could skate behind the net and call for a pass
• If it looks like the other team may get the puck you could skate to the hash marks and try to cover a man / take away a pass.
• If the other team does clear the puck being closer to the blue line makes it easier to back check.
• Do not go into the other wingers corner unless you have learned a special drill in practice that calls for this. If your winger is in trouble, it is the job of the centermen to help him out.
Neutral Zone
Typically in the neutral zone you are either breaking out, or back checking.
If you are on the attack you make hard passes through the neutral zone and feed the head man.
Faceoffs
Most face offs involve winning the puck back to the defensemen, when this happens your job is to tie up your man so your defensemen has time to make a play.
Your role during the face off is to either get the puck, or stop the other team from getting it.
Penalty Kill
When the puck is in the defensive zone most teams play in a box formation, this means your two defensemen will play down low, and the centermen and the winger play up high. The idea is your formation will look like a box, and you want to keep the other team outside of the box, and take away any passing or shooting opportunities.
MOVING WING TO CENTRE
(Sept 25, 2014)
Converted wingers on average saw a -1.9% decrease in their Rel. Exp GF% in their first season at center.
Conversely, centers transitioning to wingers have gotten a bump in their production.
I think we could make the following conclusions:
1) Very few players who make the transition from winger to center are not going to see a decline in their production.
63% of them get worse, and that is cast in a more negative light by the fact the average age of these players a point where they should be seeing their most rapid improvements.
2) Production, in the way I’m using it, is not the same as value. As center is a more valuable position, there is more scarcity of elite center talent, so one would be willing to accept a certain loss of production based on one’s own particular roster needs.
The biggest change would be in the defensive zone. Wingers, generally speaking are playing zone defense high in the zone looking to transition to offense while covering the point.
for the most part wingers are up high. Centers, on the other hand, are more engaged low in the zone, sticking the other team’s center in the zone.
strong-side overload/man coverage hybrid. This is the strategy the most teams use in the defensive zone when the puck is above the goal line.
When the puck is below the goal line, the Rangers shift to man on man coverage
Offensively, the biggest difference for MSL will be on breakouts. Usually, wingers will fly the zone, looking for the defense or a center to hit him with a pass.
PLAYING THE OFF-WING
It is easier to defend against a player who is on his off-wing.
On his strong side, a player has the ability to shield the puck with his body, shoot on net, find multiple passing options or cut back and reset off the exact same look. Very hard to defend.
On his off-wing, the shape of his body dictates his next move. On the first image he can only pass, on the second he can only shoot. No Dual Threat.
A LOOK AT OFF-HANDED WINGERS
Conventional wisdom suggests that doing this allows for: Greater effectiveness in the offensive zone (with the shot having a better angle to the net), but Less effectiveness in the defensive zone, where stick-off-boards makes for tougher defending and zone exits.
Off hand wingers are producing slightly but distinctly better results than their on hand counterparts in every category.
Furthermore, the improvement is not solely because of greater offensive impact (as you’d expect) – rather, both the for and against shot rates are slightly better.
In general, off hand wingers had overall numbers that showed them to be more effective than on hand wingers, even from a shot suppression point of view
WHY NOT PLAY OFF-HAND
(May 16, 2020)
high-level teams have stopped deploying left-footed players on their left flanks and right-footed players on the right. What they lost in ability to cross the ball they gained in ease of cutting into the middle and attacking the most valuable real estate on the pitch. The benefits were undeniable and having players on their off-sides is now a no-brainer
players shot 9.9% when their sticks were in the middle of the ice vs. 8.6% on their strong sides, a non-trivial difference
BENEFITS OF PLAYING OFF-WING
(Oct 01, 2020)
In the offensive zone, players can create advantageous shooting angles by cutting to the middle of the ice while staying on their forehand.
On the other hand, in the defensive zone, these strong-side players (are perceived to) have an easier play catching a breakout pass on their forehand.
The knock against defensemen playing on their off-hand is that it puts them in an undesirable spot on their backhand. Whatever potential offense that could be created from a shot in the middle of the ice is negated by the defensive liability.
Our findings (briefly) were that:
· Offensively, the shots generated when a player enters the zone on their off-wing are of higher quality in terms of expected goals compared to entry on their strong-side and that, defensively, handedness does not appear to be a factor in terms of controlled exit percentage on either side of the ice
· There is no evidence to suggest that wingers see worse results on their off-wing in the defensive zone than strong-side wingers
· Wingers will see improved shot quality, expected goals, and actual goal percentages by playing on their off-wing
Even if you’re not a believer in your off-side wingers in the defensive zone, at an absolute minimum, coaches should utilize players on their off-wing while on the power play.
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