Fast, Physical, Respectful

Playing the game the right way with UMD’s Derek Plante

By Shane Frederick

Derek Plante is more than a little familiar with hockey at all levels. As a player, he was a standout at Cloquet High School and the University of Minnesota Duluth before embarking on a long professional career that took him around the world and included eight seasons in the National Hockey League.

Today, he is starting his second stint as an assistant coach at his alma mater, UMD, following five years as a player development coach with the Chicago Blackhawks. He also watches his three sons, ages 16, 14 and 12 play regularly.

At almost every level, fast and physical play is a key to success. But it’s a style that must also include respect—for teammates and opponents alike.

“I like there to be a physicality and heart and being hard to play against,” Plante said. “But that doesn’t mean blowing guys up.”

In 2019, USA Hockey unveiled its “Declaration of Safety, Fair Play and Respect,” an initiative to try and change certain aspects of hockey culture—eliminating dangerous hits while also supporting legal body contact and body checking.

Here are a few tips and observations about playing fast, physical and respectful from a guy who’s seen it all:

In your face—with pace

“I’m all about pace and being in someone’s face,” Plante said. “That’s how I kind of played. I was a good board checker. I was in your face, but I never hammered people.”

Plante noted the style of his dad’s teams. Bruce Plante coached Hermantown High School for 28 years, winning three state championships.

“They weren’t overly physical, but they were just a little bit more physical than anybody else they played. And you would be amazed at how frustrated other teams got, just because of the continuous contact. It wasn’t like bullets but just a little bit of a finish to a check: ‘You’re not getting anything easy.’ … It sounds simple, but you’re going to have to outwork people and have a physical nature. It can be frustrating for other teams that don’t want to work through that.”

Find the hands

Ultimately, the purpose of body checking in hockey is to gain possession of the puck. Whether it’s a bump or a (legal) hit into the boards, the objective is that the defending team is no longer defending.

“Look for the hands,” Plante said. “Go right through the hands, essentially, so you’re trying to find that angle where you can get right in front of the body. If you go too far, you’re getting the end of the stick and you can lift the stick and take the puck. If you’re a little behind, you’re right on the body. Whatever level you’re at, you’ve done almost everything right—as long as you don’t blow the guy up. If you take a penalty you just learn from that, right?”

Play like you practice

Angling, checking and playing fast are skills that can be learned and improved upon with practice—and an emphasis on that work from coaches.

“Teach the right way to do it, and show the kids like any other skill, whether it’s skating or stick handling,” Plante said. “When they don’t do it right, talk about it. When they do it right, talk about it.”

Not all players skate the same, so they’re going to learn to angle differently.

“Get them in a position where they can keep their feet moving and skate and get ahead of the (puck carrier) and into a position that the kid can’t get out of. So really, it comes down to an angling art and then being in a body position where your legs are lowered and you’re in a strong position to make contact and not fall over.”

Respect the check

You’re playing fast and physical, but so is your opponent. Understand that you’re likely to get bumped or checked in a game. Understand that means you might get knocked down. Don’t get mad and retaliate when someone gets the best of you, Plante says.

“When I’m at a game I look for that,” he said, “like, ‘I got knocked on my butt. Now what do I do? Do I get up and go whack the guy or run around all over the rink trying to get them back? Or am I just going to go out on the next shift and be better?’ For me, that’s character.”

You don’t want to put your team in a bad spot by playing undisciplined hockey.

“Hockey sense is a big part of that, knowing when it’s appropriate to make a strong check, when is it appropriate to just get back. It’s about the big picture. It’s about what’s best for your team. But if you’re going for the big hit because you’re kind of upset, and now you let your guy go down and score a goal because you were too busy worrying about something else, you’ve hurt your team.”