General Hockey Shot Question - Discussion

[chuckcouples]

As a left-handed shot, my two best options tend to be either 12 inches off the ice off the left (from my viewpoint) post or over the shoulder on the glove hand side (for shorter butterfly goalies).

[Invictus]

As a left-handed shot, my two best options tend to be either 12 inches off the ice off the left (from my viewpoint) post or over the shoulder on the glove hand side (for shorter butterfly goalies).

I'm so glad I was a tall goalie... that over the shoulder spot would have been so annoying.

[Pengwin7]

So - reason for thread.
About 5-10 years ago I had this idea for an NHL analytics tool... but it's just TOO expensive to make.
But... in a perfect world where anything could be engineered - here is the idea.

Imagine the 1"x3" puck... and all around the circular edge - it's 360 degree real-time camera that naturally picks up main viewing toward the center back of the goal net.
Basically, the "puck camera" looks towards the goal area at all times - translating a green screen behind any openings (i.e. paths to back of net).

So - at any time - the puck camera + software relays a real-time green screen showing an opening where a puck could reach the back of net.
As the puck moves about the ice, or approaches the goalie, computer analytics would fully capture the growing & shrinking zones that are open.
The goalie might open & close the areas by his movement.
But the puck carrier - or a pass cross-ice - would also open & close areas by puck movement and the goalie's reflexive movement.
If defenders skates or sticks are between the puck and the goal, those areas would open & close as well.

So the green screen (open areas to back of net) are constantly changing - and analytics is picking up what areas are most often open (or closing) with every puck movement.


The mindset is that what's more important is the the "path of the puck", not what the puck carrier sees.
With experience, shooters learn what spots are most likely to have high goal scoring %.

But with this technology - analytics might say to a player "You most often are shooting for X-LOCATION in this condition, but the larger more likely spot to score is Y-LOCATION."

And the opening photograph is from an article I found with like mindset - which is what "the puck sees" vs what "the shooter sees".
It was pretty cool read.
https://www.omha.net/news_article/show/1146044


Anyways - I was awful a TERRIBLE shooter growing up.
I had one of those "drag" wrist shots that are slow, heavy, and not effective.
I felt like I always KNEW the best shots to shoot, but could just never get it there with enough velocity.

My favourite spots to shoot - and have been mentioned:

1. Blocker side, upper corner. There's little there beyond the butt-end of the goalie stick - and it's hard for a goalie to "chicken wing" his blocker up there. IF you can hit that spot! (The downside is that with the angle-rise to the shot, an elite goalie is cutting that angle down by slowly backing in to the net while skater is approaching.

2. Five-hole. I've long thought Sidney Crosby does this so well, the very simple and quick shot STRAIGHT-THROUGH, but 5-8 inches off the ice, to clear the goalies stick blade.

The one that I think is really undervalues - and that Gretzky did well is CORNERS-onICE. The trick here is that a skate blade is thin and it's very hard to shuffle a foot out to that spot.
Also - I think a lot of kids LOVE shooting high - it's sexy and easy. Much like soccer, keeping a fast shot LOW... is an art... and VERY difficult.
And the less people do it, the less goalies practice having to save and react to that style of shot.


Just a lot of thoughts...
But - hopefully - someday - somebody can create the indestructible puck with a camera inside that can show us this "green screen NET scoring area" and how it changes with puck movement.

Great replies!
Rep to All!

[Invictus]

This may be a great page, I just found, for you to look at:

https://lookerstudio.google.com/repo...zxXl/page/LOUY

Albeit older data (2017-18 season accounting for ~1/4 of the goals scored that season, empty net goals excluded for obvious reasons)

Looking at Shootout Only for example I get this image:
shootout.JPG

I'm not sure corners along the ice are that great for scoring now with todays goalies, but they do generate those rebounds - which is plenty useful in game situations and outside the scope of what we are looking at.
I know NHLers sometimes purposely shoot, not to score, but to get a rebound off the goalie.

[Invictus]

Taking a look at even strength only:

Attachment 5761
Agreeing with my idea that 5-hole gets a big bump (in being an effective hole to shoot) in shootout when goalie has more time to setup.
I just thought blocker middle would be a little higher here, but I suppose this makes sense.
5-hole is pretty universal for whichever handedness you are - blocker less so.

[Invictus]

One of the best stat goalie of 2017-18 was Anti Raanta on ARI (so not good team)

RAANTA.JPG

So little different then the average. 5-hole and down low are lower than average, but up high is higher.
Few things to note though:
Low sample size for individual goalies. This is only for 19 goals against.
Does not (that I can find) say how many saves he made for each hole area. So this data doesn't show if the goalie has any strength or weaknesses in an area. Players may (as others have mentioned) shoot up high much more often as it's flashy.

Adapting your playstyle to the shooting tendencies of the league may help your game.

[saucelife90]

While these stats show what we're seeing as answers for areas people would target, they aren't taking into account the "you're not allowed to deke" aspect of the OP question. Throw stick handling into the equation so you can get the goalie moving side to side and 5-hole is definitely your go-to spot.

[Pengwin7]

^Yes!
Statistics are great - they definitely help tell some of the story. (awesome stat references Invictus - I love those!!!)
...
But they definitely don't tell the whole story.
The NHL has "shots by type", but if you deke to a forehand and then go five-hole, it probably is registered as a "wrist shot".

i.e. Where should/could a shooter be aiming IF he must shoot.
As an example, a common situation might be a powerplay from 10'-15' out.
(If he tried to move in, defenders would surely close in too fast for a deke to even be an option.)
So there's definitely a time & place for an NHL skater to know where to shoot.


One thing I've always wondered about - some of you may know...

When Ovechkin fires his one-timer from his PP-office...
Does he have a spot he is pre-programmed to try to hit?
Or is he just wiring it on net - and settling for the randomness that the speed + goalie movement comes with a LOT of open space available?

[2014olympicgold]

I think Ovi goes for the near post knowing it's the farthest for the goalie to travel. Then if it's stopped he changes it up a bit on his next attempts.

You can also tell when he just wants to put it through the goalie lol. But I would say most of the shots are on the near post for him. Just anywhere on that post.