How to Poke-Check Better with Jared Spurgeon, Nicklas Lidstrom & Cale Makar

When should a hockey player use a pokecheck?

Feb 12, 2023

When we last spoke about 1v1s, we discussed the two elements that should exist for the attacker. One of those was the ability to beat the defender’s stick.

Well, if we are the defender, we should probably make it very difficult to defeat our defensive stick. Let’s dive in.

Hiding Your Reach

Defenseman Jared Spurgeon is the captain of the Minnesota Wild. He’s not a prototypical NHL defenseman, listed at just 5’9” (the average NHL defenseman is about 6’2”).

One of the ways he’s been able to play at an elite level in the best league in the world is by being one of the best at using his stick to pokecheck the puck to create turnovers.

His secret? Hiding his reach.

“With my stick, I like to keep it hidden. If you have it out there, they can tell how far you can reach, but if you keep it hidden on the inside you can poke and get stick-on-puck a lot.”

Hide Then Attack Like A Cobra

Rather than going in all guns blazing, defenders should be purposeful as to when they expose their reach and go for the pokecheck. If done too early or without care, this can happen:

Hall-of-Famer Nicklas Lidstrom was an expert at using his stick smartly. He would hold his stick in tight by his hip until he was ready to strike then he’d pokecheck with violence like a cobra.

Advanced Cue

Below, watch how reigning Norris Trophy-winning defenseman Cale Makar waits until Connor McDavid commits and takes his stick off of the puck. Makar throws a small fake pokecheck where he remains tight and compact. McDavid then commits to driving deep into the zone and allows Makar to pivot into an attacking position. Once McDavid spots the puck, Makar swiftly pokechecks it away.

Poke-checking

To poke-check well, a defender has four items to key on:

Hide your stick and reach
Don’t overreach/overextend
Wait for the correct moment
Attack swiftly and purposefully

Further Reading