While it may seem chaotic at times due to its breakneck pace and sudden transitions, hockey involves extensive coaching and meticulous planning. Hockey coaches devise detailed strategies to account for all possible scenarios, providing their players with the necessary information to adjust to whatever happens on the ice. Many coaches employ a flexible system featuring an F1, F2 and F3 as opposed to the traditional forward positions. The F3 forward, in particular, must read and react to his teammates' actions.
Description
The three forward positions in hockey are center, left wing and right wing. However, coaches often neglect these designations when designing forechecking and backchecking schemes, opting instead to draw up plays designating the forwards as F1, F2 and F3. In this system, F stands for forward while each number refers to the player's entrance into the zone, with F3 being the third forward into the zone.
Function
Each forward's responsibility changes depending on whether he's the first, second or third forward. The F3 must recognize his two teammates have already entered the zone and adjust his play accordingly. Each coach will ask his F3 to do something different depending on the specific scheme and whether the puck is in the offensive or defensive zone.
Forecheck
In a typical forechecking scheme, the first man into the offensive zone aggressively pressures the puck, hoping to win possession outright, to force the defense into a bad pass or to finish the defender with a stiff check. The F2, or the second player into the zone, supports the first man and jumps into the opposite corner if the puck gets reversed behind the net. The F3 hangs higher in the zone, cutting the puck-side boards and remaining in strong defensive position. Coaches often ask the F3 to keep the play in front of him at all times to eliminate any on-man rushes the other way.
Backchecking
If the F3 forward hangs high in the offensive zone, he'll likely become the F1 when the puck heads back the other way, requiring him to work low in the defensive zone. The last forward out of the offensive zone, usually the F1 on the forecheck, then becomes the F3 on the backcheck. Once in the defensive zone, the F3 remains high in the zone and guards the points, eliminating the opposing team's defensemen from the attack. The F3 may also sag into the high slot to offer support or pick up loose forwards.
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