Ron Davidson's 50 fundamental hockey skills and tactics will empower players to excel individually at this team game.

At last! A book that focuses on the development of individual hockey skills and promotes a mastery of body positioning, skating and stick work. Learning these skills gives players a strong fundamental understanding of how to move effectively on the ice in any gameplay situation.

The skills are organized in four sections: Fundamentals, Skating Techniques, Stick Work, and Dekeing and Deception. As the reader progresses through a chapter, the level of difficulty of each skill increases, ultimately covering every fundamental move and technique needed for an outstanding and total comprehension of the play. Davidson's progressive-learning approach teaches beginners the proper techniques, hones the skills of intermediate-level players and challenges elite players with the additional skills they need.

Among the 50 critical skills presented in this eye-opening collection are:

• Forward stride
  
• Backward crossunder
  
• Drive and delay
  
• Heel-to-heel turns
  
• Tight turns
  
• Extending your reach
  
• Receiving off-target shooting
  
• The Forsberg deke
  
• The Datsyuk deke

by Ron Davidson ; Foreword by Ron MacLean

Ron Davidson's profile page

RON MACLEAN, host of CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada for 28 years, began his broadcasting career in 1978 as an all-night DJ in Red Deer, Alberta. In 1984, he moved to Calgary to host Calgary Flames telecasts. MacLean joined CBC in 1986, where he hosted the Toronto Maple Leafs’ telecasts on HNIC, before becoming the full-time national host, and popular co-host of "Coach’s Corner" with Don Cherry in 1987. He has also hosted CBC’s coverage of the Olympic and Commonwealth Games, the World Cup of Hockey, the Calgary Stampede and Battle of the Blades. MacLean has been recognized with ten Gemini Awards for excellence on television. The co-author of the bestseller Cornered, he lives with his his wife, Cari, in Oakville, Ontario. Follow him on Twitter @RonMacLeanCBC and @hometownhockey_.

KIRSTIE MCLELLAN DAY ranks among the top hockey book writers in the world thanks to the three national bestsellers: Theo Fleury’s #1 bestselling memoir Playing with Fire, Bob Probert’s Tough Guy and Ron MacLean’s Cornered. She's currently working with Marty McSorley on his upcoming Hellbent. Her other books include Above and Beyond, a comprehensive family and business history of cable magnate J.R. Shaw; Under the Mat, a memoir with Diana Hart of the Hart wrestling family; and No Remorse, a true-crime novel. Kirstie is a mother of five and lives with her husband, television producer Larry Day, in Calgary. Together they own one of Canada’s most successful television companies, Pyramid Productions. Visit her online at www.kirstiemclellanday.com and follow her on Twitter @kmclellanday.

Ron MacLean's profile page

Coaches and parents you now have the chance to have an instruction manual on hockey skills. Ron Davidson has put a book together with instructions on skating, shooting, and handling the puck. He includes 50 essential skills to develop a hockey player. There are tips in here for the beginner and the pro. Davidson is an energetic, enthusiastic hockey man who once set up hockey skill schools while living in Peterborough... You may know him best as being the instructor of Hockey Night in Canada, but he's also a former OHL player and played in Europe. This book states a lot of the obvious, but the directions are clear... Even if you're a beginner coach or parent you can take the instructions and adapt most of his skills to instruct the child... Davidson gives you the how, now you have to pass it on and make sure the player and you are having fun doing it. If it's fun, the student won't even know he or she is practising.

London Free Press

Coaches and parents you now have the chance to have an instruction manual on hockey skills. Ron Davidson has put a book together with great instructions on skating, shooting, and handling the puck...Davidson gives you the how, now you have to pass it on and make sure the player and you are having fun doing it.

The Toronto Sun

This is a book that many aspiring hockey players have been anticipating. Former player and hockey instruction consultant Ron Davidson has written a clear, detailed guide for developing individual hockey skills. Using high quality photographs of some of the NHL's finest players to demonstrate the skills, Play Better Hockey promotes a mastery of body positioning, skating, and stick work

Hometown Hockey, Ontario Minor Hockey Association

At last! A book that focuses on the development of individual hockey skills.

Hockey Book Reviews

Davidson makes the point in his introduction that even those well versed in the sport of hockey can learn -- the greats are great because they never stop learning and practicing. The technical knowledge contained within the book is fantastic but is not overwhelming due to the highly visual presentation.... This book is laid out in a way that even a beginner like me can follow it through and get some good ideas -- or at least an understanding of what is happening in the good 'ole hockey game. However, the advanced beginner or aspiring player would get a lot more from it. Davidson has laid out the topics from gearing up to skating essentials down to dekeing and deception to breakaways and all the puckhandling, passing and shooting you can wish for in between. This book would appeal to anyone who wants to learn more about hockey or a hockey player that wants to learn how to play a stronger game.

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