Sprong aims to find target from any area
Penguins prospect is honing his skill with one-timers
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Daniel Sprong has an absolutely lethal shot, one that wouldn’t be out of place in the NHL if he were summoned from Wilkes-Barre/ Scranton this minute.
That, however, hasn’t stopped the Penguins from trying to improve it. Or at least work with Sprong, 20, on his aim.
“One of the things we’ve been really emphasizing with him is hitting the net,” director of player development Scott Young said late last month. “He’s got such a good shot. There are too many times he tries to get too fine with it.”
The results have been striking — and, for a welcomed change, it doesn’t involve the posts or crossbar.
In 10 American Hockey League games this season, Sprong has eight goals and 12 points, converting 43 of his shots on goal for a shooting percentage of 18.6.
Sprong’s production has been exactly what the Penguins had hoped for, general manager Jim Rutherford said. Score a bunch of goals in the minors. Get some confidence. Be ready for a promotion.
A regular occurrence for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton has been Young and Sprong on the ice together early, firing one-timers from all over the ice.
The thinking has been basically to expose Sprong to every possible shot he’ll experience and make sure he’s out of the habit of getting overly fine, instead trusting that the puck will find a hole.
“With the one-timer, we want to feed him one-timers and make sure he’s shooting at the middle of the net and he’s not missing the net,” Young said. “The onetimer’s a tough shot. You do it from a lot of different angles. From the middle of the point, to the top of the circles, to inside the dots, from the goal line out to the middle of the slot. He’s seeing them from a lot of areas.”
To prove his point on why this is important, Young cited simple math. Sprong is averaging 4.3 shots on goal per game. Although shot attempts aren’t as easily accessible in the minors, Young believes Sprong missed the net roughly equal to the number of times he got the puck on it.
“If he gets five quality shots on net, chances are one’s going to go in,” Young said. “But if he misses the net five times, he’s probably passing up on another goal.”
Sprong’s development hasn’t been just about scoring goals, either. Young has been impressed with Sprong’s ability to read plays and find weak-side defensemen with passes.
Young also said Sprong’s play away from the puck has been steadily improving, something that dates to his time with the Charlottetown Islanders in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.
“His passing and vision are underrated,” Young said. “It’s not just his shot.”
True, but Sprong’s shot is his calling card, even when he doesn’t score on it, which is why the Penguins view better accuracy for Sprong as essential. Young used a recent game to outline why this so vital.
Five-on-four power play. Sprong shot from the slot. Five-hole, on target. The goalie stopped it, but it led to a pair of rebound chances. The opposing team had to take another a penalty, and Sprong completed a hat trick with an easy, one-time goal during five-on-three play.
If Sprong misses the net, likely nothing else happens.
“I’ve probably only seen Brett Hull really be able to pick corners with one-timers,” said Young, who played with Hull in St. Louis. “If you’re aiming at the middle of the net at a good height, and looking to hit the puck the right way, again, if you’re missing the middle of the net, it’s going to find a corner. With guys like that, your shot’s so hard, it’s going to find some holes.”