18 Dec
We have all seen it watching our favorite hockey team. A forward crosses center ice and the defenseman comes up to challenge. Our guy dekes the defensive player, who goes for the fake, and the offensive player moves in on the net for a scoring opportunity.
Every player who wants to become an offensive threat has got to learn the fine art of deking. There are three primary ways to execute a quality deke. The first is to use the stick and puck to signal one direction, then quickly shift the puck to the other side. This is similar to a cross over in basketball. The player moves up the ice, not committing to any direction. As a defenseman starts to challenge, the player may shift the puck to their forehand, so it appears they are going to their strong side. When the defensive player commits to a poke check or body check, the puck is quickly shifted to the backhand, along with an abrupt shift in direction.
The next way that deking can be effective is to use the old head fake. The player controlling the puck assertively throws their head one direction, but not their body, hoping to deke the defenseman into committing. When that happens, the player goes the other way.
A more subtle deking method is to use the body. Defensive players are taught to watch the body of the person with the puck, because that will ultimately determine their direction. Skilled skaters learn to dip a knee, usually an indicator of direction. The opposing player will often fall for that deke when others would not be effective. When that happens the puck handler dips the other knee to shift their weight suddenly to the opposite skate for a quick directional change at full speed.