Butterfly goaltending is a style in which goalies go down with both pads, and the top of their pads meeting in the middle. the result is a wall of padding without any holes. it is the most widely used style in the NHL today. Butterfly goalies depend on being fast and need to have good timing. One example of a butterfly goalie would be Marc-Andre Fleury.

The oldest style of goaltending is stand-up. With this style, you stop the puck from a standing position. Goalies bend over and use their upper body or skates to stop the puck. They also may use their stick. This style was used in the early NHL, but it almost unheard of now. An example of this style would be Martin Brodeur.

Stretching muscles increases flexibility, which enhances range of motion and prevents injury. Players need to stretch to warm-up. They must warm-up, because cold muscles do not stretch well. It is especially important for hockey players to stretch their hamstring. Good flexibility in that area will enhance a players ability to play hockey.

Goalie equipment is some of the best in protecting the wearer. Some of the traditional goalie equipment is a goalie stick, skates, mask, chest and arm protector, blocker, pants, pads and socks. The goalie stick is different than the traditional stick. It has a thick shaft and blade and players tape a huge butt-end so they don't lose their stick. Goalie skates are also made with more padding. A goalies mask is unique to the player, and they often put special decals on them. The blocker is a special pad worn on the stick hand, and is used to deflect pucks away. Goalies wear special pants full of padding, so if they get hit where they don't have pads or blockers, they have the padded pants. Finally, goalies where giant pads on their legs. they were given the nickname "pillows" because they actually were pillows in the old days.