Shooting 2 - Snap Shot
The snap shot is virtually identical in its execution to a wrist shot (see Wrist Shot Article). The weight transfer from the rear leg to the front, the movmement of the wrists and the follow through are all the same. The only real difference is that, for a snap shot, the stick does not begin in contact with the puck.
There is no need for the stick to lift off the ground
when performing a snap shot (if you lift too high, then it is a slap
shot - the first picture has the stick starting too far from the puck),
but the stick is drawn back from the puck. The motion of the shot must
be more explosive than the wrist shot and the wrists must be held firm
- In other words you must tense the muscles in your arms so that they
do not absorb any of the energy you have generated in your shot. Your
stick should absorb some of the initial energy, bending slightly as
it does so, and then releasing this energy just before the puck leaves
the blade. When choosing a stick, you should make sure that you are
able to bend it, by pressing it into the ground. It should not bend
too far, just a little is good. For younger players there are junior
sticks available. These are lighter, better sized for young hands, and
able to be bent (slightly) by most young players.
There is a variation on the snap shot. This is the off-foot snap shot, whereby a player who shoots right will stand on their right leg and perform the shot from there. This is a good play for a right hander skating down the left side, quickly snapping the puck from the off foot, without giving the goaltender too much warning. This shot is difficult only if you are not comfortable with the normal snap shot technique. The main difference is that you are on one leg for this shot, meaning that you cannot transfer weight from one leg to another, instead you bend your knee to bring the stick back, and straighten it slightly as you explode through the shot action. The off-foot shot can also be performed as a wrist shot in much the same way.
On important thing to remember with shooting is that
the wrist shot is the beginning of the progression. The snap shot is
next, followed at the end by the slap shot. Now I will not tell you
that if you have a great wrist shot you will have a brilliant snap or
slap shot, but I will tell you that to improve you snap and slap shot,
work on your wrist shot - it is the basis for the others.