The standard forehand pass is your go-to option on the ice. This should be comfortable, and you should be able to bend your knees and comfortably hold the stick against the ice at a comfortable angle. You hold the stick like this for every kind of pass.
If the blade is perpendicular to the ground or tilted back, the puck is going to fly up into the air when you pass it. If you’re new to hockey, don’t pass the puck while you’re moving. Stop first and get into a stationary position. Passing while skating is kind of a unique skill, so master the mechanics while you’re standing still first. [3] X Research source
It’s okay to look at your stick if you’re practicing passing for the first time and you want to make sure you’re moving the blade correctly but, in a game, lock your eyes on the target when you’re ready to pass. In a game, make sure you’re passing to someone who’s actually ready for the puck. Most players will tap their stick on the ice, hold it steady in front of them, or call out to indicate that they’re open.
The speed that you drag the blade determines the speed of your pass. If it’s too slow, it’s going to be intercepted. If it’s too hard, you may be inaccurate. You’re aiming for a sharp but smooth, controlled pass here. Your nondominant hand actually does most of the work when you shoot or pass the puck. Your dominant hand’s main job is to stabilize and guide the stick. [6] X Research source
This is known as “rolling the wrist,” and it’s why a lot of professional hockey players look like they’re magically shooting the puck all over the place with a slight flick of their stick. This can feel kind of odd at first, but you’ll get better with practice.
This isn’t baseball—you don’t need to throw your entire body weight into the follow through or anything like that. Just make sure you aren’t letting up before the puck is out of your control. It’s okay if you lift the stick off of the ice on the follow through after the puck has left your possession.
This style of pass is a lot quicker to execute than a standard forehand pass, but you won’t get nearly as much power on the puck. The push pass is great for making quick passes on the move or if you want a little more accuracy on your pass.
Unlike the standard forehand pass, you don’t slide the puck back at all to gain leverage and increase the speed. You also don’t roll the puck off of the tip of your blade. Your lower body isn’t doing very much during the push pass. This is just a quick dragging motion forward.
This is going to be really awkward if you’re new to hockey, but stick with it. It’s sort of like shooting a basketball with your left hand—it gets easier the more you practice. You are not going to have nearly as much snap on the puck when you perform a backhand pass. Still, there may be times where a defender blocks off a route and you’re forced to make one of these passes, so it’s a great tool to have in your skillset.
The flip pass and saucer pass are the same thing. In most cases, you don’t want the puck to launch more than 8–10 inches (20–25 cm) off the ice. You can get it higher by lifting the blade at a higher angle as you make the pass if you’d like.
This is a great pass to make on the move when you’re in the opponent’s defensive zone since passing the puck behind you will make it hard for the goalie to keep track of it.
This is probably the one time you want to rely on your peripheral vision to make your pass. If you stare at your target directly, you’re going to telegraph the direction that you’re passing.
You can also shout out “puck” or “open” to let them know you want the puck. You can receive passes on your forehand or backhand side. If you have a choice, receiving on your forehand side will feel more natural.
You can catch a pass with either side of the blade. Whenever possible, catch it with the curved side facing the puck. It’s a little bit easier to maintain control with this side.
It’s totally fine if you need to skate towards the puck to catch it, but avoid moving your stick all over the place if you can. The fewer adjustments you need to make with the stick, the easier it will be to catch the pass and transition immediately into handling it.
If it helps, picture this kind of like you’re catching an egg that someone lobbed to you. If the puck bounces off your stick and you can naturally take a few strides to bring it back under control, do that. If you can’t get it before someone else, forget about it and just set back up on offense or defense depending on which team grabs possession.
