Free Ice Hockey Tryout Evaluation Form & Scorecard

The scorecard loads these nine columns. They are short labels, and the labels hide most of the judgment, so here is what an evaluator is looking at under each.

• Skating. Balance, edges, stride, stops and starts, transitions between forward and backward, and how well a player skates in both directions of a turn. Skating is the skill everything else sits on, so score it first, and score the skating and not the stride length or the size of the player.
• Acceleration. The first three or four strides, from standing or from a stop, and how quickly a player gets to speed. It is not the same as top speed, so score it on the starts and not only on the timed lap.
• Puck handling. Control of the puck with the head up, in tight spaces and at speed, on both sides of the stick. Score the player who keeps the puck under control while looking at the ice, not the one who stares at the puck and gets through the cones.
• Passing. Accuracy, pace and the ability to receive a pass cleanly, on the tape and on the move. Score the receiving as carefully as the passing, since a good pass that bounces off a stick was half a good pass.
• Shooting. Release, accuracy and mechanics, from set spots and on the move. Score where the puck goes, not how hard it was hit, and record the shots on net in the table below.
• Positioning. Where a player is when they do not have the puck: the lane they skate, the gap they keep, the spot they take on the rush. It is the quiet skill that separates players who look the same at the first drill.
• Physical play. Winning a puck battle with body position, balance and a strong stick, within your league's contact rules. Score it only where those rules allow contact, never as a hit, and leave the cell blank for an age group where checking is not allowed.
• Hockey sense. Reading the play and making the decision: the pass chosen, the lane taken, the moment to shoot. Score the decision and not the result, because a good pass that is missed was still a good decision.
• Coachability. The player who adjusts after a correction, not the one who nods. Give one note on a drill and watch who changes it on the next try.

A five point scale gives evaluators a consistent way to compare players across the same skills and the same age group. It is printed above the grid so every evaluator reads the same words, and the last column is an average, not a total.

• Agree on the 3 before anyone is scored. Have every evaluator watch the same few shifts and say out loud what a 3 looks like for this age group. A lot of the disagreement between evaluators is about where the middle is, not about the players.
• Score what you saw, when you saw it. Write the number before the next shift. Leave a cell blank for a skill the session never tested, such as shooting for a goaltender or physical play where contact is not allowed. A blank costs a player nothing, because the average only counts what was scored.
• Score each column on its own. A fast skater should not lift a hockey sense score, and a missed shot should not pull down skating.
• Watch the player without the puck. Positioning and hockey sense are mostly shown away from the puck, and an evaluator who follows it will score only the puck carrier.
• Score independently, then average. Two evaluators who confer during the session produce one opinion twice.

This is the ice hockey version. The general tryout evaluation scoresheet works for any sport, and the ice hockey forms and templates page lists the other 5 ice hockey documents.

Playbook Logix provides customizable templates for informational and administrative use. They are not legal advice and will not meet the requirements of every organization, sport or jurisdiction. Review anything you intend to rely on with your own attorney or your insurance carrier, and check your league and state requirements.