Puck Retrieval - Breakout setup

Drill:

1. X1 picks up puck behind net and decides which way to go with the puck
2. X3 (a defenseman) must get to the front of the net
3. X2 & X4 must read X1 and adjust their location accordingly
4. X1 moves the puck up and all players breakout of the zone

Focus:
1. Players keeping in their lanes and maintaining position
2. Head up skating to know where the puck and/or open player is
3. Moving the puck out of the zone

Notes:
You can add in a forechecker to put pressure on the puck carrier

Related Drills:
3 on 2 Breakout 
Behind the Net Breakout 

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Behind the Net Breakout

Drill:

1. Players work together as a team to bring the puck out of the zone
2. 1 Defensemen gets the puck behind the net to start the play
3. The other Defenseman has to hold his ground in front of the net
4. The 2 Forward will come down along the boards to the tops of the circles and cut back up.
5. Forward takes pass and they move it out
6. D in front of net joins the rush and the other is the last guy in the zone

Focus:
1. If they have time, the D can stop and set up the play
2. If they don’t they have to skate with the puck and make a good outlet pass
3. Forwards have to focus on where they need to be. If they do not get the pass, they should move toward the middle of the rink to cut the next pass length down

Notes:
This drill really focuses on getting the puck out of their own end. Players learn to make decisions on whether to carry the puck or pass.
Add a coach in as a fore-checker after they get used to it.
You could also start to add your own forwards into the play as well to work on their fore-checking skills.

Related Drills:
3 on 2 breakout
2 on 0 breakout

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2 on 1 Breakout

Drill:

1. On whistle, the Forwards in the each corner skate for the opposite dot, turn and cut back in the middle. Defense starts to skate backward out of the zone.
2. Goalie (or a Coach) looks to make an outlet pass to one of the players after they turn the dot
3. 2 Forwards now work out of the zone and Defense works to control their movement

Focus:
1. Lateral movement by the Forwards to get open
2. Puck movement by the Goalie. Goalie should focus on passes out toward the circles and not in the middle

Notes:
This drill is move for skating and lateral movement and is not recommended as a breakout option. Skating back and forth is wasted movement and moving the puck in front of the net is never a good thing.  What I'm trying to teach them is the side to side movement to get open.  Most young players want to head straight up the rink.

Related Drills:
3 on 2 breakout
Behind net breakout

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3 on 2 Breakout

Drill:

1. Player 1 skates behind the net and picks up a puck
2. Once Player 1 makes a decision of which way to go, player 2 and 3 move into position
3. D1 and 2 will start skating backward once Player 1 picks up the puck
4. O players focus on moving the puck down the rink
5. Play until goal, puck frozen or D clears the puck

Focus:
1. Setting up a play out of their own end
2. Player position – If Player 1 goes to the right, then Player on far boards moves to the middle
3. D should focus on filling their gaps and moving into good D position once puck is moved into zone

Notes:
Whistle play dead at any point you need to make corrections of show correct positions. Tell players to freeze on whistle.

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2-0 Breakout

Drill:

 1. Players line up in 2 lines on the blue line
2. Coach dumps puck into the corner
3. Players must communicate and get control of the puck
4. Player with puck must make a decision
5. Player without puck should get open looking for puck
6. Have a coach play Defense and make the puck carrier decide what to do

Focus:
1. Carry the puck to open space
2. Pass the puck to teammate
3. Shoot it up the boards to open space

Notes:

This drill really focuses on getting the puck out of their own end. Players learn to make decisions on whether to carry the puck or pass. This is a great drill to help players understand how to work out of their own zone and learn to make quick decisions.

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