Ringette Retreat Online Tutorial
Many players can score 1 vs. 1, but only a precious few have the smarts to score on the defensive triangle. In this online instructional tutorial, you will learn ADVANCED strategies for picking apart the opposition’s triangle and giving yourself golden chances. You will learn the following:
- Transforming a 1 vs. 3 into a 1 vs. 1. You will learn how to neutralize two of the players in the defensive triangle, transforming it into 1 vs. 1. Once you absorb this fundamental tactic, you will be able to demoralize any triangle.
- The L Offense Secret Weapon. The L-offense is a timeless tactic for creating quality scoring chances against the triangle by leveraging your teammates. You will learn insider, pro secrets for working with your line mates to exhaust and trick the defensive triangle until you create an opportunity for yourself to drive to the hot spot and make the goalie move.
- Executing Flawless Picks and Screens.Every now and again you come up against a hot triangle and goalie. While the average shooter bangs her head against the wall with traditional shots, you will know exactly how to execute picks and screens that literally cannot be defended against.
Note: The fundamentals of individual goal-scoring are covered in our instructional DVD, How To Become A Ringette Sniper. In this tutorial you are learning ADVANCED strategies.
In this online tutorial, you will learn insider, pro secrets to checking players 1 vs. 1. Here’s exactly how to use it:
- Read it over carefully and watch the DVD clips by clicking on the links. It will take about 20 minutes.
- Set your “Triangle Scoring” goals for the next 10 days. I will help you do this at the end of this tutorial. You will probably have at least two practices and one game in 10 days, if not more.
- Try your new “Triangle Scoring” strategies in at least three ice sessions.
- Evaluate yourself at the end of 10 days. How did you do?
- If you have any questions or want tips, email Laura Warner at info@lisabrown.ca and she will help you!
- Screens are only legal in ringette if you are facing AWAY from the goalie.
The best screens are timed. This means that you arrive in front of the net just before your teammate shoots. - Your team’s offence will be most effective when your three offensive players are constantly a threat. That means no single player should remain in the slot for a long time.
- The best way to execute a screen is to skate into the middle, set a screen, and skate out again (rather than skating into the middle and staying planted there for 30 seconds). Screens are terrifically effective, and you can use them right away to your advantage.
The success of a screen is dependent upon the shooter and the screener. Each has her own job and both must work together.
Your Job In The Offensive Zone
Your #1 job in as a goal-scorer in the offensive zone is to get to the ‘hot spot’ right on the crease with the ring. A lot of players do not understand this, which is why they rarely score on a triangle. They are trying to shoot from too far away from the net (even the hash marks is usually too far away) with more than one defender in front of them. It is very difficult to score if you do this. Remember, any other shot is unlikely to go in because the goalie will have ample time to stop it.
Too many ringette forwards try to beat two or three defenders at a time – they attack the top of the defensive triangle or take turns circling around it.
Attacking the Triangle 1 versus 3
Check out this DVD clip of ineffective offensive movement. Please be patient because the clip takes a few minutes to load:
Here’s the same idea, except that the player shoots (ineffectively). You will rarely score by shooting from this far out:
Here’s another common situation. You circle the other team’s triangle without ever truly threatening to attack. After 5 or 10 seconds you want to “get rid of the ring” at which point you make a pass to no one in particular… e.g., from behind the net into the slot. This is a poor play because the ring will probably get intercepted. It seems like a good play because you think “If my line mate picks up the ring, she’ll have a great opportunity!” but these passes are usually intercepted by the defenders.
Your chances of scoring a goal using these two strategies are very low.
Transforming a 1 vs. 3 into a 1 vs. 1
In our instructional DVD How to Become a Ringette Sniper, we explain what the ‘hot spot’ is and how to move the goalie once you get there. I am not going to repeat these ideas here. I am simply going to repeat that even when you are facing a defensive triangle, nothing has changed in your mind about what you are trying to do. You are still trying to get to the ‘hot spot’ and make the goalie move.
Insider Tip 1: Snake Into The Triangle to Create 1 vs. 1 Scoring Chances
There are several ways you can try to ‘snake’ into the triangle and create 1 vs. 1 scoring chances on your own.
You can attack the low defender on one side of the triangle while carrying the ring:
You can cut between the center and the low defender:
Check out this DVD clip of this move. Notice how the ring carrier fights through the two players to get the shot off:
Here’s another one:
The ring carrier cuts around the center as the defender steps up:
Insider Tip 2: Perfect Your Deke Around the Low Defender
I have personally found that it is easier to score on a low defender than driving between two players. Here is a great “sniper” move for you to start rehearsing in your mind and in practice right away:
Deking Around the Low Defence
In this move, the forward pretends she is going through the center and the defense. At the last minute, she skates low around the low defense only. When you deke around the low defense, you end up right in front of the net with only the goalie to beat.
Here is a DVD clip with some examples. Make sure your speakers are turned on!
In practice, take a few minutes in drills and try “deking” a defender at the bottom of the triangle and driving straight to the front of the net. Visualize your moves during games when you watch your team attack the triangle from the bench. After a few practices, when you play your next game, you will naturally do this move… and watch your goal scoring skyrocket!
The L Offense Secret Weapon
The L Offense is a timeless tactic for creating quality scoring chances against the triangle by using your line mates effectively in the offensive zone. You use the L Offense with your line mates to move the defensive triangle until you create a 1 vs. 1, and then you drive to the hot spot and make the goalie move.
It is called an “L” because this is the formation the 3 offensive players (two forwards and a centre) should keep in the offensive end. The purpose of staying in an “L” formation is to give the ring carrier two passing options at all times.
Here’s how it works: The ring carrier (#2 in the diagram on the left) makes the corner of the L, while her teammates form the L around her, both in good support positions.
When a pass is made and there is a NEW ring carrier (#3), the 2 supporting offensive players need to adjust to maintain the L. In this case, player 2 passed to player 3. Now player 1 must skate so she is directly across from player 3.
Again, when another pass is made (diagram to the right), the supporting players must adjust accordingly. Player 3 now passes to player 1; therefore player 2 must skate to end up directly across from player 1 to complete the L.
A fun and easy way to practice this is to get two buddies on your team to pass with you in the L formation in the warm up. Every time the ring is passed, a player must changes players in order to keep the L formation going. Here is what it looks like in drill form:
When a player is diagonally across the ice from the ring, the ring carrier often cannot get the pass through to her. We say the “diagonal” player is not supporting the ring.
In this diagram, F1 is diagonally across from the ring. If the defence were set up, F3 could not get a pass through to F1. Because F3 can’t get a pass to F1, we say that F1 is “not supporting the ring”. It is easy for the defensive triangle to cover this because only F2 is open for the pass.
Of course, the ultimate objective of the L offence is not passing… the objective is to score.
Here is an example of how it all unfolds to create a quality scoring opportunity:
You use the L Offense to create a 1 vs. 1 on the triangle for yourself or one of your teammates. Here is a classic example of how to use the L Offense to set an attack on the low defender. In the diagram below, the player at the top of the diagram receives the ring at the perfect angle to drive in on the low defender on her side:
Check out this DVD clip of this same play. The player who drives in on the low defender chooses to pass across the crease instead of shooting. That’s the beauty of the L Offense. It sets up multiple scoring and passing options.
Here’s another example of using the L Offense to set up a player to drive on the low defender in the triangle. Notice that the key is timing. The ring carrier only passes when her line mate is ready to drive on the opposite side of the triangle:
Executing Flawless Picks and Screens
Every now and again you come up against a hot goalie. While the average shooter bangs her head against the wall with traditional shots, you will know exactly how to execute picks and screens with your teammates that literally cannot be defended against.
Insider Tip 3: Set A Screen
A hot goalie that is having a great game will likely stop all shots directed at her. What is the solution? A goalie cannot stop what she cannot see. I’m talking about setting a screen in front of the goalie.
Here Are Some Basics On Setting Screens
THE SCREENER’S JOB: A legal screen is set just outside the crease facing away from the goalie. If the screener turns and looks at the goalie, she will receive a penalty. The screener’s job is to block the view of the goalie. In order to do this, she must think like a goalie. As the ring moves around the offensive zone, the screener must move with the play, just as the goalie does.
THE SHOOTER’S JOB: The shooter must use the screen effectively. This means moving so that the goalie cannot as the shot is taken. Usually if the shooter cannot see the goalie’s mask, the goalie cannot see the shooter. Sometimes the screener may not be in the exact position to block the goalie’s view. The shooter has the ability to move the goalie to adjust. The shot taken should be low, so the screener can either move to avoid (by a small shift to one side) or she can jump to allow the ring to go through.
Learning how to properly set a screen and shoot at a screened goalie takes time and practice. In your upcoming practices, work with a teammate and your goalie on this during breaks (before and after shooting drills). To start, practice standing in front of your goalie while your buddy tries to score. Move across the crease just as the goalie does until you can mimic her movements easily. Then, practice shooting on a screen by asking your buddy to stand low on the crease. When you shoot, ensure that you are a) cannot see the goalie’s mask and b) can see a hole in the mesh of the net to shoot at.
Here is a DVD clip of shooting on a screened goalie. The player in red drives in on the low defender and shoots. She does not score but she is definitely making the right play. Check out this clip here:
Insider Tip 4: Set A Pick
The purpose of a pick is to block an opposing defender to create a lane for the ring carrier. A pick is a legal maneuver in ringette when set properly. Just like the screen, both the pick setter and the ring carrier have jobs. To start, check out these DVD clips of offensive players setting picks. Please be patient because the clip will need a bit of time to load.
PICK SETTER’S JOB: In order to set a legal pick, the pick setter must leave enough space and time for her opponent to react. This means stopping about 1/2 to 1 stick length away and standing still in a normal body position. Once the pick is set, she should not move until the play has moved past. *A penalty will be assessed if you set a pick too soon or too close to the defender. Both do not allow the opponent enough time to react.
There are two options for the pick setter. She can pick on the inside or the outside of her opponent, usually a defense or the center (at the top of the triangle). The rest is up to the ring carrier. She must “read” the pick and use it to avoid being checked by a defender as she drives to the net.
RING CARRIER’S JOB: The ring carrier needs to use the pick effectively by driving to the side that the pick is set on. For example, if the pick is set on the inside, the ring carrier should fake to the outside and drive inside – this will force the defender into the pick. If the pick is set on the outside, the ring carrier should fake inside and drive around the outside, forcing the defender into the pick. The key here is the fake. The ring carrier must ‘sell it’ that she is driving one way and then lead the defender into the pick. If this is done correctly, a lane should open up for a great scoring chance.
Your Triangle Scoring Goals
Here are your marking goals for the next three months:
1st Month
To create at least one 1 vs. 1 situation in the other team’s end in each practice or game. Perfect at least ONE deke or move you can use on the low defender that will give you a quality shot.
2nd Month
To learn the L Offense formation so it is comfortable for you. Then, use it at least five times to set you or your line mates up for a 1 vs. 1 on the low defender.
3rd Month
To attempt a pick or a screen at least once per practice until you are ready to try them in a game situation.
Personal Evaluation
At the end of each month, write at least two comments in the space below. How did you do? What was easy for you? Difficult? What improvements did you make?
1st Month
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2nd Month
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3rd Month
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Light it up out there,
Your friend,
Lisa B.
