Before the Toronto Maple Leafs took the ice for practice on Sunday, goaltenders Matt Murray and Ilya Samsonov worked with newly-installed goaltending coach Curtis Sanford on some drills.
But there was a new wrinkle added as the goaltenders were sporting some new eyewear.
There are no lenses on them. Just rubberized blinders intended to block your peripheral vision.
“It’s just a tracking aid that forces you to use the middle of your eyes and the strongest part of your eyes,” Murray explained. “It just gets you in the rhythm of moving your head and tracking the puck.”
Murray says he’s used the tech before this season. The goggles, made by Swivel Vision and retail for $30, just narrow your sight.
The technology has been adopted by many different sports leagues and positions where developing the habit of moving of your head is paramount.
Football receivers have used it to make sure they are moving their had to track the course of a pass from their quarterback.
In Major League Baseball, Yasmani Grandal has used it to help with his catching and former Major Leaguer Shin-Soo Choo used the goggles at times in the batting cages before games.
Sanford isn’t the only goaltending coach to used the tech. Avalanche goalie coach Jussi Parkkila would have the goaltender who wasn’t scheduled to start in games wear the goggles.
“I think it’s something that is gaining traction across the league, based on what Curtis has told me,” Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said.
The Maple Leafs overhauled their goaltending this season. In addition to adding Murray and Samsonov, the club hired Sanford to become their new goaltending coach after parting ways with Steve Briere, who had served in the post for the last seven seasons (Briere was hired by the Seattle Kraken to become their new goalie coach this season).
With a new goaltending boss comes new methods and this appears to be one of the ways in which Sanford is preparing his goaltenders for the upcoming season.
“It’s kind of like a tunnel vision,” Leafs goaltender Erik Kallgren said. “You’ve got to be more precise tracking the puck.”