  Sharks Goalie Wade Flaherty keeps his eye on the puck and on the opposingplayer in front of him. | Hockey goalies have one of the most challenging occupations on the planet. Imagine trying to stop a six-ounce piece of frozen rubber traveling at speeds in excess of 100 mph (160 km per hour). Or wearing 50 pounds (22 kg) of equipment and losing 5 to 7 pounds (2-3 kg) of your own body weight in just a few hours during a game. Goalies do all of these things and more. Reaction time, mental preparation, and other facets of life in the net are examined by players and scientists in this section.In this section, there are RealAudio and videoclips from Sharks goalie Kelly Hrudey. |
Fractions of a second Goalies have many unique qualities, one of which is excellentreaction time. In a game where the puck travels at high speeds, the differencebetween a goal and save can come down to milleseconds. How do you developreaction time? Is it something you're born with? "I really don't thinkthat you take anybody off the street without some prior God-given ability,"Sharks Goalie Kelly Hrudey told us. The Exploratorium's Director of LifeSciences, Charles Carlson seems to agree, stating that reaction time isa "genetic trait." However he believes that you can improve yourability to react through practice since it is also a "memory function."Reaction time depends on both genetics and training. |  San Jose Sharks Goalie Kelly Hrudey talks about reactiontime.  |
SavesGoalies make several different types of saves dependingon the situation. Stick-saves, glove-saves, blocker saves, and kick-savesare all part of the hockey vocabulary. Which type of save does a goalieemploy? The answer seems to be that when he only has a fraction of a secondto stop the puck, he uses whatever part of his body or equipment is closest.If you watch a goalie's save closely. you'll see that if he's in positionhe'll need to move only a very small distance to stop the puck.
Reaction time
In a high-speed sport such as hockey, players' reflexesare of supreme importance. A player's reaction time can often determinethe outcome of a game. A notable example of this is the reaction time ofa professional hockey goalie. Many a fan of the game has watched in bewildermentas a goal keeper's limbs are flailing about saving pucks left and right.It's amazing that most most of the games remain relatively low scoring afterwatching powerful players rip 90-mile-per-hour (144 km per hour) slapshotsat the goal.
Click the "forward"button below to continue.
Making Saves:1-of-3
© Exploratorium
