Quick answer
To score more goals, stop shooting at "the net" and start aiming at the spots a goalie struggles to cover: just above the pad on the short side (the blind spot the leg can't reach and the glove is slow to get down to), the five-hole when you are in tight, the far-side top corner when you have a cross-body angle, and high over the shoulder against a goalie who drops into the butterfly early. Read where the goalie is set, pick the opening he is giving you, and release before he can take it away. When you miss, miss to a spot that leaves a rebound.
Key takeaways
- Pick a specific target every shot. "The net" is not a target; a corner is.
- Above the pad, tight to the post, is the hardest shot for most goalies to stop — low enough that the glove is late, high enough that the pad can't slide over.
- The five-hole is nearly automatic in tight, because a close goalie has no time to close his legs before you release.
- Read the goalie first: how deep he is, how square, and whether he drops early. The opening tells you where to shoot.
- A smart miss beats a wasted shot. Aim so that a miss high still hits the net and a miss low leaves a rebound.
- Off the rush you shoot for corners; in tight you shoot for holes and rebounds. The target changes with the distance.
Where are the best spots to shoot?
See it in action:
Most kids grow up with one target: the top corner. For a nine-year-old facing a nine-year-old goalie, roofing it works, because a small goalie cannot reach the crossbar. But goalies keep growing. By fourteen, the netminder fills most of the top of the net, and those high shots that used to be goals are now easy gloves. In thirty years of coaching I have watched more scoring slumps come from a player refusing to update his target than from any flaw in his mechanics. Here is how I teach the four scoring zones.
| Target | Why it scores | Best when | If you miss |
|---|---|---|---|
| Above the pad, short side | The pad can't reach up and the glove is slow to drop; it's the goalie's blind spot near the post | Goalie is square and standing tall | Miss wide goes behind the net; miss low often leaves a rebound |
| Five-hole | A close goalie has no time to close his legs before the release | You are in tight and the gap is open | High, low, or wide almost always produces a rebound |
| Far-side top corner | A cross-body angle exposes the most net on the glove or blocker side | You are coming off the wing with the goalie cheating the short side | Miss high sails over — the riskiest of the four |
| High over the shoulder | A butterfly goalie who drops early can't get his glove or blocker back up in time | The goalie sinks into the butterfly early inside his crease | Miss high goes over the bar |
The short-side shot just over the pad is the one I trust most, because a miss rarely costs you. If you aim there and pull it a touch high, you can still catch the top corner. Pull it low and you often force a juicy rebound. Aim top-corner and miss, and the puck is behind the net or in the netting. Cue: "above the pad, off the post."
Read the goalie before you release
The best shooters I have coached are not the ones with the hardest shot. They are the ones who see the goalie in the half-second before the puck leaves the blade. Three things tell you where the hole is. First, depth: a goalie deep in his crease gives you the top corners, while one who challenges out at the top of the crease takes those away but opens the shot low and to the sides. Second, how square he is: if he is turned even slightly, the far side is bigger than it looks. Third, whether he drops early: a goalie who sinks into the butterfly before you shoot is handing you everything above his shoulders.
Coach Erik's tip: Train your eyes to leave the puck. Beginners stare at the puck all the way to release and shoot wherever their stick happens to point. In practice I make players call the hole out loud a beat before they shoot — "glove," "five," "short side." Say it, then shoot it. Within a few weeks the scanning becomes automatic and you start seeing openings you used to skate right past. Watch for: telegraphing. If your eyes lock on the far corner for a full second, a good goalie reads it and slides over before you release.
Near side, far side, high and low
Two questions decide most of your shots: near side or far, high or low. Off the wing, the near (short) side is the quick option because it is the shortest path and the goalie has the least time to react — but a goalie who hugs the post takes it away. When he sells out to protect the short side, the far side opens up, and a shot across the body to the far top corner is one of the prettiest goals in the game. The trade-off is risk: the far-side shot travels farther, so the goalie has more time, and a miss sails wide or high.
High or low comes down to the goalie's style. Against one who stays on his feet and stands tall, go low — above the pad, tight to the post. Against one who drops into the butterfly early, go high, because once he is down he cannot get his hands back up quickly. Most players I train default to high because it feels like a highlight. In a real game the low short-side shot scores more, and it forgives your misses.
In tight versus off the rush
Your target should change with your distance, and this is where a lot of players go wrong — they shoot the same shot from everywhere. Off the rush, from fifteen or twenty feet out, you have a fraction of a second and a goalie who is square and set. That is a corner shot: pick above the pad on the short side or, if he is cheating, the far top corner, and release before he can adjust. A quick, accurate wrist or snap shot to a corner beats a hard shot into the goalie's chest every time.
In tight, everything flips. The goalie has closed the angle so the corners are small, but he is also reacting to you in real time, which means holes open and close in an instant. The five-hole is your friend here: get the puck low and quick between the pads before he can seal them. If the five-hole is shut, go to the short-side post just off the ice, or pull the puck to your backhand and lift it over a down goalie. Cue: "in tight, shoot for holes and rebounds — not the roof."
Shoot for rebounds, not just the corner
Here is something I wish every young scorer understood sooner: a shot that does not go in can still create a goal. The five-hole and the low short-side shot are valuable precisely because their misses stay in the danger area. When you practice, do not treat a rebound as a failure. Aim low and hard on purpose, follow your shot, and be ready to bury the second chance. In thirty years the players who out-score everyone are the ones who never stop skating after they shoot.
Drills to build shot placement
Accuracy is a trained skill, not a gift. You build it by aiming at something real, every single rep, on a smooth surface. A shooting pad gives the puck near-ice glide and saves your blade so you can do all of this in the garage or driveway. Hang shooting targets in the corners, or drop a goalie shooter tutor into the net so you are shooting at the exact openings a real goalie leaves — above the pads, the five-hole, the top corners.
| Drill | Target | Reps | Move on when… |
|---|---|---|---|
| Short-side snaps | Above the pad, off the post | 4×10 | 7 of 10 hit the zone under the crossbar-height line |
| Five-hole in tight | Between the pads from 8 ft | 3×10 | 8 of 10 pass through the five-hole opening |
| Call-the-hole | Say the corner, then shoot | 4×10 | You call and hit 6 of 10 |
| Far-corner rush | Far top corner off a moving start | 3×10 | 6 of 10 on target from the wing |
| Rebound follow | Low, then react to the rebound | 3×10 | You beat the puck to the "net front" every rep |
For a real challenge, tighten the openings with pro shooting targets and shoot into a full-size steel goal so the net, posts, and holes match what you will see in a game. Practicing at game dimensions matters more than most people think — a target smaller than a real hole makes the real net feel huge.
Coach Erik's tip: Do not shoot a hundred pucks the same way. Structure it: 20 short-side, 20 five-hole, 20 far-corner, and only then a handful of full-power shots. The mistake I see every week is players who fire fast and hard at the middle of the net and call it practice. Slow down, pick the hole, hit it, and only add power once your placement holds. Accuracy first, power second — in that order, always.
Common mistakes
- Aiming at "the net." No specific target means no accuracy gains. Fix: pick a corner or a physical target for every single rep.
- Living on the top corner. It feels like a highlight but goalies grow into that space. Fix: make the low short-side shot your default and save the roof for when the goalie is down.
- Shooting into the goalie's chest. A hard shot to the middle is an easy save. Fix: read where he is set and shoot the opening he gives you.
- Same shot from everywhere. Corners from distance, holes and rebounds in tight are different jobs. Fix: match the target to your distance.
- Telegraphing with your eyes. Staring at the corner lets the goalie slide over early. Fix: see the hole, then look through the puck as you release.
- Treating a rebound as a miss. Second chances score plenty of goals. Fix: aim low on purpose and skate to the net after every shot.
FAQ
Where is the best place to shoot on a goalie?
Just above the pad on the short side, tight to the post. The pad can't reach up to it and the glove or blocker is slow to drop down to it, so it sits in the goalie's blind spot. It is also a forgiving target: miss a little high and you catch the corner, miss a little low and you often force a rebound.
Should I shoot high or low on a goalie?
It depends on the goalie. Against one who stays on his feet and stands tall, shoot low, above the pad and tight to the post. Against a goalie who drops into the butterfly early, shoot high over the shoulder, because once he is down he cannot get his hands back up in time.
When should I shoot for the five-hole?
When you are in tight and the goalie's legs are still open. A close goalie has no time to close the gap before you release, so a quick, accurate low shot between the pads is nearly automatic. Even if you miss the five-hole, the shot usually produces a rebound in the danger area.
Near side or far side — which should I pick?
Shoot the side the goalie is giving you. The near (short) side is quicker and the shortest path, but a goalie hugging the post takes it away. When he sells out to protect the short side, go far side to the top corner. The far shot is prettier but riskier, since a miss sails wide or high.
Why do coaches say to shoot for rebounds?
Because a shot that doesn't go in can still create a goal. Low shots to the five-hole and short side tend to leave rebounds right in front, where a teammate or you can bury the second chance. Aiming low on purpose and following your shot turns near-misses into scoring chances.
How do I practice shot placement at home?
Aim at something real on every rep. A shooting pad gives the puck ice-like glide, and targets or a goalie shooter tutor in the net let you shoot at the exact openings a real goalie leaves. Structure your session by target — short side, five-hole, far corner — instead of firing hard at the middle of the net.
Summary
Scoring more goals is less about a harder shot and more about a smarter target. Stop shooting at the net and start shooting at openings: above the pad on the short side, the five-hole in tight, the far top corner off the rush, and high over a goalie who drops early. Read his depth, how square he is, and whether he is going down, then release before he takes the hole away — and when you miss, miss low so a rebound keeps the chance alive. Build the skill with structured target practice, not blind volume. For the mechanics behind these shots, see our guide to the four types of hockey shots and our shooting accuracy training, learn to finish from below the goal line with wrap-around scoring, and browse the Hockey Shooting hub for more drills and equipment guides. Then go pick a corner, and hit it.
