“LOW”: The crease defender will string to defend X. When the ball is at X the S & P have the crease in a Right / Left technique. Formations such as 1-3-2 / 1-4-1 & Odd Circle will put us in a LOW call.

“HIGH”: The crease defender will string to top center. When the ball is top center the Wings have the crease in a Right / Left technique. When the ball is on either side we will leave the High wing uncovered until he receives the ball. Formations such as a 3-3 & 2-3-1 put us in a HIGH call.

 “EMPTY”: The crease defender will stay on the crease. With an empty cylinder the crease defender only moves to ball-side pipe and we maintain a 4 man perimeter (box). Formations such as a 2-2-2 & an Even Circle put us in an EMPTY call.

Clearing

After a save or a turnover the S must start with the ball. The 3 defensemen will align in the opposite alley, giving the S the whole alley to be 1 on 1 w/ an attackman. The P will break to the box to get another S on. If an offensive player leaves a defenseman then he will cut to the ball.

When in doubt dump it to your attack zone. Let them fight it out as the clock ticks.

No mistakes clearing. We do not want to give the EMO second chances.

PRACTICE TIPS:

Do EMO / Man Down after practice. Make it an honor to be on these teams.

Always use a clock and tell the teams whether it is 0:30 or 1 minute penalty.

Practice being 2 men & 3 men down.

Practice with different players on man down being in the penalty box. This may result in people having to know multiple positions on Man Down.

Practice clearing & riding while man up and man down.

Practice going from man down to even strength.

Brendan Talbot

Head Coach, New Milford HS

Man Down Defense

Man Down defense in an exercise in outworking the offense!

A good Man Down Unit kills at 30%, a great Man Down Unit kills at 40%.

We want to be in 2 places at once. “Play the ball. When the ball is passed be in your next spot as the ball arrives at the next offensive player.”

The clock is on our side.

There are 5 spots on Man Down:

Shorty- D-Mid who is smart enough to understand defense but needs to be able to the clear the ball 1 on 1. He will align Top Left.

Pole- Defenseman with a knack for tipping or intercepting passes or he is a lefty. He will align Top Right.

Crease- Best all-around defenseman. He aligns on the crease and is the “string”.

Wing- Any defenseman. He will align Back Left.

Wing- Any defenseman. He will align Back Right.

We use 3 base calls. Any call can get the job done but we feel using 3 gives us the flexibility to defend all EMOs, it gives us options and allows us to make game-time adjustments.