My first YouTube Video | ReUpload Series

Lately I've been practicing the slap shot. Sometimes I feel I do it quite well, like here. But just as often I fail miserably. So in this video I'll share my mistakes, try to analyze what I do wrong. But I also encourage you, the viewer, to comment below. At the end of the video I'll link to a playlist of slap shot tutorials, so if you're not interested in my mistakes go right to the end or click the link in the description below. So this was my very first shot. As you can see it's not very hard at all. It does get some air and it does go pretty much in a straight line, so that I'm happy with. But the lack of speed has one very simple explanation. Here the stick hits the puck. The correct way is to hit the ice so the stick flexes, builds up stored energy and then releases. Much like how a bow and arrow works. Okay this one is silly, but please just tape the blade all right. I did not and it cracked. Thankfully it didn't break, but it was a great warning on what will happen if you don't tape it. I can add that my stick is a very cheapest wooden stick you can find. I picked it up at the discount store between light bulbs and toilet seats, for around 10 euros. Still I guess a more expensive stick needs tape too, if only for a better grip. I was very surprised when I watched this footage. Look the puck flips on the blade and I had no idea it did that. What I do know is that my focus was too much on lifting the puck. As a matter of fact I do believe you should always try to aim low. If you do a proper slap shot the puck will gain air anyway. But again, what is your experience? What are your thoughts? So here's my second day practicing. My shots are a lot better now. Half of them are decent, but the other half are, well, just terrible. And I'm pretty sure I know the reason. When I look at the puck the shots are bad. When I look where I'm aiming the shots are good. Of course there's sort of a catch here, because if I don't look at the puck then I may not hit the puck in the first place. You can look at the puck while you prepare the shot, but when you release that's when you must look where you aim. Finally I'll add that I used to play hockey, but that's many years ago. So for me it's more about relearning what I once knew. If you are new to hockey I guess the slap shot is one of the more difficult things to learn. YouTube has lots of helpful tutorials and I made a playlist which you likely see on the screen right now. If you don't there's a link in the description. You may also want to watch my video about how I relearned the hockey stop. As with the slap shot it was quite frustrating at first, but it soon came back to me. Just like that it just clicked and that's a very satisfying feeling. As always, thank you for watching and subscribe for updates!