Warm-Up, 8 of 9. Straight from the Hockey IQ book appendix.
From the locker room: The pillow-and-stick drill looks ridiculous in a dorm hallway. I do it anyway. My ankles stopped rolling in practice and that’s a trade I’ll take.
Goal: Lower-body joint stability. Time: 10 minutes.
When: Off-season and pre-season especially, and any week you’re skating a lot. Ankles and knees take the load nobody notices.
- Heel-to-Toe Walks – 1 min
- Single-Leg Calf Raises – 1.5 min
- Balance on BOSU or Pillow + Stick Handling (if available) – 2 min
- 90/90 Hip Switches (seated) – 2 min
- Slow Skater Bounds (hold each landing) – 2 min
- Standing Quad Stretch + Reach – 1.5 min
Why it works: A skate boot holds your ankle, so the small stabilizers get lazy. This wakes them up. The pillow balance with a stick in your hands is the best drill on this list: your feet are unstable, your hands are busy, and your brain has to sort it out, which is exactly what a puck battle is.
Do it right: On the skater bounds, land and stick it. Hold for a full second. No wobble, then go.
Every warm-up and stretch routine here is in the back of the Hockey IQ book, with the full 9-week hockey-bag program. Back to Warm-Up.
FIND. A. WAY.
