The 2 on 1 to 4 on 2 from Wes Wolfe is an excellent game for teams to practice rush entries and activating the second wave of support in a game like situation.
Setup
- Forwards along the boards on the blueline & the goal line, defenders along the boards at the center ice red line.
- On the whistle, 2 forwards (F1 & F2) jump out, cross & drop the puck and head up ice with a defender (D1) that jumped out to play them 2 on 1.
- After the 2 on 1 plays out, the coach blows the whistle, and the forward in the corner (F3) passes to the defender D1 to start a 4 man rush (F1, F2, F3 & D1) against 2 new defenders that just jumped out (D2 & D3).
- After the 4 on 2 plays out, the coach blows the whistle and a new 2 on 1 starts with F3 (or the high forward) backchecking).
- The drill is continuous.
Coaching Points
- Encourage the 4 player rush to be positionless. Players should support and read off of each other and find open lanes.
- Players without the puck should work to get open and keep their sticks on the ice to let their teammate know where they would like a pass.
- Defenders should keep their sticks on the ice to block passing lanes and angle players to the outside.
Variations
- Can have the F3 forward line (in the goal line corner) always be the backchecker and coaches can roate players and sides after a few reps, or coaches can have the high forward be the backchecker so the forwards get to rotate who is in line in the corner.
