Большинство. Выход из своей зоны DEVELOPING THE BREAKOUT There are countless ways to diagram player positions on a power-play breakout. In most cases, however, the simplest ones tend to be the most effective, especially at the youth levels. The purpose of the power-play breakout is simple: to gain entry into the offensive zone with puck possession and puck support. Too often at the youth levels, coaches try to devise intricate power-play breakouts containing long, home-run type passes or low-percentage passes over 20 feet. These passes are difficult enough for many players at the higher levels and become even more difficult (if not impossible) for most youth players. Instead of focusing on long, low-percentage passes, construct a power- play breakout that takes advantage of the uneven situation on the ice. This can be accomplished by isolating one of the opposing players and creating a two on one somewhere on the ice during the breakout, regardless of in which zone it occurs. Once zone entry is gained, the other line rush or offensive zone setup concepts will take over, so it is imperative to develop a simple, efficient power-play breakout in order to give your team the best chance to gain entry into the offensive zone. Adjusting Your Power-Play Breakout to the Penalty-Kill Forecheck Many coaches think of coaching hockey as similar to a chess match: You create a strategy, your opponent reacts to your strategy and defends against it, and you both continue to make adjustments in an attempt to stay one step ahead of the opposing coaching staff. Although this approach is more prevalent at higher levels, it is certainly relevant in youth hockey as well. Power-play breakouts should be developed with the opposing team’s penalty kill forecheck in mind in order to have the most success. With a man advantage on the power play, the goal is to try to create two-on-one situations, both on the breakout and while setting up in the offensive zone, in order to create a scoring chance. Regardless of the team’s penalty-kill forecheck, the power-play breakout should attempt to freeze or trap the first forechecker. This is done by having your puck carriers hold onto the puck until they’re pressured by a forechecker. Only then will they look to pass it while catching the opposing forechecker out of position or trapping him. Over the years, very few new penalty-kill forecheck formations have been created. Let’s review some of the more commonly seen penalty-kill forechecks and then some power-play breakout ideas for breaking down these forechecking schemes. Typically at the youth levels, teams will play one of the following penalty-kill forechecks: 1-1-2, 2-2, or 1-2-1. Penalty-Kill Forecheck: 1-1-2 Variation 1 (figure 14.1a): Pressure the first pass. In the first variation of the 1-1-2 penalty-kill forecheck, the first forechecker (F1) starts in the middle of the ice and slowly backs up until a pass is made or is about to be made. He will then angle and attack the player about to receive the pass. The second forechecker (F2) holds the center of the ice. Variation 2 (figure 14.1b): Pressure the puck carrier. In the second variation of the 1-1-2 penalty-kill forecheck, F1 starts in the middle of the ice. As soon as the puck carrier begins carrying the puck up ice, the forechecker angles and attacks the puck carrier, attempting to force him to make a pass. F2 holds the center of the ice until he can determine which direction the pass is going, at which time he attempts to angle and pressure the player about to receive the pass. FIGURE 14.1 1-1-2 penalty-kill forecheck: (a) variation 1; (b) variation 2. The two rear penalty killers line up between the red line and the far blue line, trying not to let anyone behind them.
Penalty-Kill Forecheck: 2-2 In the 2-2 penalty-kill forecheck (figure 14.2), the penalty-killing team is trying to take away the center of the ice and force the power play to bring the puck up the side of the ice. F1 and F2 will be even or slightly stagger their depth just inside the zone they are forechecking. Instead of pressuring, they simply wait until the power play begins to bring the puck up ice and begin skating backward through the center of the ice, taking away any skating or passing lanes through the center. The two defensemen are also skating a similar pattern behind the two forwards, although their depth will vary depending on the power-play breakout setup, which will be discussed shortly. FIGURE 14.2 2-2 penalty-kill forecheck. Penalty-Kill Forecheck: 1-2-1 In the 1-2-1, or diamond, penalty-kill forecheck (figure 14.3), F1 holds the center of the ice and attempts to force a pass to the side when the puck carrier gets above the top of the circles. At this time, the two players along the wall are prepared to step up or pinch the player about to receive the puck. The rear penalty killer stays back and in the center of the ice, careful not to let anyone behind him. It’s the coach’s decision how to position the other players. Many coaches favor putting a defenseman on the opposite side of the diamond since they are already used to retrieving pucks and breaking them out when the puck gets dumped. This means there will be a forward on one board and a defenseman on the other. If they are successful in trapping the opponent, the other positions will shift according to figure 14.3. FIGURE 14.3 1-2-1 penalty-kill forecheck. Breakout Options Regardless of whether your team is facing any of the three penalty-kill forechecks, the following power-play breakouts can be used to successfully come up the ice if executed properly. Power-Play Breakout Option 1: Three Back In figure 14.4, the three players coming back to retrieve the puck should include the two players manning the points once your team gains possession in the offensive zone, as well as one additional player who has the ability to make and receive passes with some level of confidence. FIGURE 14.4 Three back with one forward on the near blue line and one forward on the red line. When the penalty-killing unit dumps the puck into your zone, it’s important that your three players come back together and with speed. The depth of the two players on the wall swing should be based on the depth of the opponent’s forecheck (figure 14.5). For example, if their first forechecker is typically starting around the hash marks, your two players swinging should be close to even to their forecheckers for the best chance at completing the pass.
FIGURE 14.5 Three back with the forwards adjusting their swing depth and skating into the zone together. If the player collecting the puck picks it up at or near the goal line, he has the option of stopping behind the net to wait for the other two players to time their swing. If he can catch the opponent’s players in a line change, however, he should break out from behind the net and begin skating up ice, or taking ice. The two swing players will simply open up and support the puck carrier as an outlet. While the puck is being broken out of the zone, the other two players (typically forwards) will be skating their routes through the neutral zone. They typically won’t receive the initial pass from the puck carrier but will end up supporting the puck once the initial pass is made (figure 14.6). FIGURE 14.6 Three back; puck carrier makes initial pass to player on wall; near forward skates across to support the puck. These players must be extremely diligent in timing their skating patterns through the neutral zone to avoid showing up at the puck too early or too late. Usually these players will want to start skating slowly when the breakout begins, then explode into an area to support the play once that first pass is made. When the breakout begins and each player skates his route, the goal of the puck carrier is to beat the first forechecker with the initial pass. The puck carrier has to exercise patience and pass the puck when the first forechecker is beaten or trapped. If the first forechecker isn’t aggressive, the puck carrier should skate the puck at him to freeze him (figure 14.7). Once the first forechecker has been frozen, a pass can be made to a support player, thereby beating the first forechecker. FIGURE 14.7 Three back; first forechecker is passive so puck carrier takes ice, freezes the first forechecker, and dishes the puck to a supporting player. To beat an aggressive forecheck, the first player back must sprint to the puck, look over his shoulder twice (shoulder check), and trap the first forechecker. If the first forechecker is aggressive and pressuring the puck down below the goal line, the goalie should look to play the puck if the forechecker might win the race to the puck. In this scenario, where your players get beaten to the puck, the first player back should open up and present a passing option for the goaltender (figure 14.8). FIGURE 14.8 Three back; first forechecker comes hard and beats the defense back; defense opens up and receives a pass from the goalie. Power-Play Breakout Option 2: Five Back In this scheme, all five players on the ice come back to assist in the breakout. It is the coach’s responsibility to determine the exact position each player will fill on the power-play breakout. At Denver, when we posted our power-play lineups, we also posted a breakout formation to ensure the players know exactly where they were supposed to be during a breakout. Figure 14.9 shows an example of a power-play breakout lineup from the 2008-2009 season. FIGURE 14.9 Five back with player initials.
This power-play breakout is similar to the three-back breakout discussed earlier. However, two additional support players are added just inside of the players on the wall. This allows the puck carrier to make a shorter first pass while also giving the inside player the option to skate the puck, make a short pass to the outside support player, or make a short pass back to the original puck carrier (figure 14.10). FIGURE 14.10 Five-back options once puck is moved to inside player. Once again, the timing of the players coming back into the zone and coming up the ice together is critical to ensure the maximum number of options on the power-play breakout. Several factors go into identifying the best position for a player on the power-play breakout: 1. The location of the player in the offensive zone, once zone entry is gained 2. The player’s shooting side, right or left 3. The player’s endurance level
Let’s look at each of these. In any power-play offensive zone setup, typically two players will be on the point and three will be stationed lower in the zone. At least two of the players stationed lower in the zone should be the higher swing players on the breakout to conserve their energy and prevent them from having to come back the full length of the ice (figure 14.11). FIGURE 14.11 Five back; path of high swing player to his respective spot in the offensive zone. One potential issue with all five players coming back for the power- play breakout is that several may be on their backhand coming up the ice. Although this may not be an issue for older athletes, younger kids may struggle with backhand passes. There is no right or wrong solution to this problem, but it is something to be aware of when you’re developing your power-play breakout. Remember the discussion earlier in the chapter that mentioned breaking down systems into smaller, simpler skills. In this case, it is receiving a pass on a backhand. If your system has players coming up the ice on their backhands, be sure to run practice drills in which these players work specifically on this skill, and not just when practicing the power-play breakout. Another factor to consider when determining a player’s location on the swing is his endurance level. Players who tend to have less endurance should be higher swing players to prevent them from coming back the full length of the ice. Since these suggestions are merely guidelines, feel free to adjust the breakout to suit the needs of your team. Similar to breaking out against a 1-1-2 forecheck, the puck carrier should attempt to skate the puck until he is pressured by the first forechecker. At that time, the puck carrier should pass to one of the inside swing players, effectively trapping the first forechecker. After making the pass, it is important for the initial puck carrier to continue supporting the play, without putting himself even with the new puck carrier. The new puck carrier may or may not have time and space to continue skating the puck. However, he should have support from the wide player, usually within 10 feet, if he receives pressure from a second forechecker. It is imperative that the new puck carrier exercise patience and look to create a new two on one against the second forechecker (figure 14.12). FIGURE 14.12 Five back; two on one with two swing players against the second forechecker near the wall. Now that the puck is being advanced up one side of the ice, the inside swing player from the opposite side of the ice, in an attempt to outnumber the penalty killers, should start skating across in order to create another support option. The neutral zone will become crowded with players very quickly, potentially making it difficult to make a perfect tape-to-tape pass. Another option for the puck carrier is to make an area pass to a space behind the penalty killers and allow the forwards to skate into it. With the crackdown on obstruction and holding, this has become a very popular strategy in today’s game. One common mistake made during the power-play breakout is for players to skate to their respective spots in the offensive zone before the team has clear possession. This typically results in a one-on-one or two- on-two battle for the puck, with the penalty killers clearing the puck the length of the ice. Coaches must continue to emphasize outnumbering the opponent in every loose puck battle, or scrum, until the team has clear possession of the puck. At that time, players can begin to rotate into their correct power-play positions.
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