Visual cues in ice hockey goaltending

The effect of both the availability and the quality of visual cues preceding stick-puck contact was investigated for an ice hockey goaltending task. Thirty-four young (15.8 years) goaltenders observed filmed sequences of a hockey player approaching the net and directing a shot to one of the four corners. The film sequences were edited so that 2, 4 or 8 images were occluded prior to the impact of the stick with the puck, reflecting durations of 1/12, 1/6, 1/3 of a second, respectively. The subjects' performances for both the wrist and the slap shot were measured as well as the level of response confidence in both the horizontal and vertical planes. The results indicated that performance precision was aided by the increased availability of pre-shot visual cues. It was also evident that the wrist shot provided more cues for the goaltender than did the slap shot. Performances were found to be superior in the horizontal as compared to the vertical plane. In all dimensions, the subjects' perceptions of their success closely followed the actual performance patterns. It appeared that information that could facilitate anticipation in this goaltending task was both available and useable during the period that precedes the shot.