Work on Your Weaknesses

Identify Your Weaknesses First

The first step in getting better is knowing what you're bad at. That sounds simple. It isn't. Most players avoid this conversation because it's uncomfortable. But if you don't know what's holding you back, you can't fix it.

Talk to your parents. Talk to your coach. Ask them directly what area of your game needs the most work. Ask the difficult questions that are not fun to ask, and really listen to the answers even when they sting. Your coach sees things on the ice that you can't see yourself. That perspective is valuable. Use it.

Every single hockey player has weaknesses and room for improvement. That includes the pros you watch on TV. Nobody skates into the league with a complete game. The best players are the ones who never stop finding holes in their own game.

Own It. Don't Be in Denial.

The second step is owning your weaknesses without making excuses for them. This is where a lot of players get stuck. They hear the feedback, nod their head, and then go right back to doing what they've always done. That's not improvement. That's comfort.

Denying a weakness doesn't make it disappear. It makes it worse, because now you're falling further behind players who are actively working on theirs. Accepting where you're weak takes real honesty. That honesty is what separates players who develop from players who plateau.

Work on Your Weaknesses, Not Just Your Strengths

It's easy to do what you're already good at. Practicing your strengths feels good. It builds confidence in the short term. But it doesn't make you a better player overall, and coaches at every level notice the gaps you're trying to hide.

When you work on shooting, don't just take shots you're comfortable with. Practice on the move. Work your backhand. Put yourself in awkward positions and find a way to get a shot off. That's where real improvement happens. The shots that feel unnatural in practice are the ones you'll need in a game when there's no time to set your feet perfectly.

Play up your strengths, always. But don't let them become a hiding spot.

Train at Home. On Your Own.

Your best development doesn't always happen at the rink with a coach watching. Some of it happens in your driveway or basement with a tennis ball and a net. Work at home with a tennis ball, a green biscuit, a Mr. Assist. Set up an obstacle course to the net. Make it difficult on yourself.

When you're alone, there's nobody directing you. You have to figure things out yourself. That self-discovery process is invaluable. You start noticing things about your own game that nobody else pointed out, because you're paying attention in a different way. You're not performing for a coach. You're problem-solving.

Working on your weaknesses at home also naturally pulls in other skill work. If your backhand is weak, fixing it forces you to work on your edges, your grip, your release. Skills don't exist in isolation. They connect. And when you start exploring your game on your own terms, you find those connections faster.

This kind of unsupervised practice builds independence. Players who rely entirely on coached ice time to develop are always going to hit a ceiling. The ones who go home and keep working are the ones who break through it.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I figure out what my weaknesses are as a hockey player?

Start by asking the people who watch you play most, your coach and your parents. Tell them you want honest feedback and that you can handle it. Beyond that, pay attention to what you avoid doing in games. If you never use your backhand, that's probably a weakness. If you hesitate to skate into traffic, that's one too. Patterns in your own habits are usually a good map to what needs work.

Is it okay to keep practicing my strengths instead of focusing on my weaknesses?

Your strengths are important and you should absolutely use them. But relying only on your strengths becomes a problem as you move up in levels. Better competition will find and exploit the parts of your game that are underdeveloped. The goal is to round out your game so you have fewer liabilities, not to stop doing what you do well.

What can I do at home to work on hockey skills without ice time?

A lot. Stickhandling with a tennis ball or green biscuit, shooting at a net with a shooting pad, and setting up obstacle courses in your driveway are all legitimate training tools. The key is to make it hard on yourself. Don't just go through the motions. Work on the moves that feel awkward. The repetition you put in off the ice translates directly to your hands and your feel for the puck when you get back on it.

How long does it take to fix a weakness in your game?

There's no set timeline, and anyone who gives you a specific number is guessing. What matters is consistency. Showing up and working on something difficult regularly, even for short sessions, compounds over time. Some things click faster than others. Some take a full season. The players who stick with it and don't quit when progress feels slow are the ones who eventually see the results.