Want to see me hit the "Post"!

In the fifties the goal posts went from very small to bigger than they are today. Some hot shot brain deader pro (Andy Bathgate an extremely accurate shot!) decided to show off for his peers and hit like 8 out of 10 posts in a row in rapid fire.

It caught on...I have to admit I used to practice trying to hit both posts and the cross bar with three shots. I don't think it really effected me but I do remember starting to pick up posts in my shootin' eye in the games.

Come forward a generation (or two) and the posts are marginally smaller but the posts hit and the shots just high and wide are unbelievable. In my day Fish would have been benched last year and sent to the Hand Eye Doctor...that's the meanest coach on staff and... "OK BOY, lets shoot a few!" Try shootin' a hundred shots. If you miss one you start over!

So in practice ban any of this post shootin'...take the mesh off the net...this makes you move your target more central and posts hit are fined!

In Atom the players used to call me the "Russian" or the" MAD Russian" I was just the helper who got up and ran the 6am practice for them with all the old fashion drills not in their play book...

One everyone liked...take as much time as you needed but cary the puck the full length of the ice and get a good shot on net...no deken and a post or wide cost you a trip all the way to the other end!

Years later those guys would tell me it was their favourite drill...now a lot of coaches lay claim to it...hey that's OK...just don't let 'em hit the post!