Welcome to another edition of Tactics 101. Today we’re going to discuss how a well-organized forecheck can tilt the ice for your team and drive offense.
We’re only a handful of games into the 2026-27 NHL season, and it’s too early to draw conclusions about the quality of this Seattle Kraken team. That being said, I see some early reasons for optimism. Beating lottery-bound teams like the Calgary Flames should be table stakes for a team with playoff aspirations, but they have also beaten a rising Washington Capitals team and largely hung in games with contenders like the Tampa Bay Lightning and Edmonton Oilers. Right now they’re getting contributions from all four lines. From what I have seen so far, the Kraken forecheck has played a role in controlling the play.
In previous articles in this series, we talked about how the midlane drive opens up space on the rush, creating high-quality scoring chances. We also discussed how wall play is a fundamental skill for all hockey players, allowing teams to wear down opponents through the cycle. To employ these tactics, you first need to win the puck back from the opponent, and a strong forecheck is all about winning the puck when you are in the offensive zone.
A Primer on F1, F2, and F3
Before we get into video, it’s worthwhile explaining how forward groups organize themselves. During faceoffs, a center is generally flanked by a left wing and right wing. This nomenclature implies responsibility for a certain part of the ice (i.e., you might believe the left wing stays on the left side of the ice), but in open 5v5 game play in the offensive zone, the role and positioning of each forward is relatively interchangeable. Left wing, right wing, or center, you’re not bound to any side of the ice in the offensive zone. This is where the concept of F1, F2, and F3 comes into play.
Defensemen who can pass the puck can easily bypass half-hearted or disorganized forecheckers, so F1, F2, and F3 work in concert to force turnovers and generate scoring chances. They do so through a combination of angling and reading off each other’s positioning and routes in real-time.
Typically starting around the 12U or 13U level, minor hockey teams begin teaching this concept. Some coaches use the terms F1, F2, and F3. Alternatively, some coaches use more descriptive names like hunter, retriever, and seeker while others use animals like wolf, fox, and eagle.
- F1 (the hunter): Their job is to be first on the puck carrier to disrupt the other team’s breakout. They do this by angling the puck carrier so that the puck moves up the wall toward where F2 is moving.
- F2 (the retriever): Their job is to support F1 by reading which way F1 is angling the puck carrier and cutting off escape options. For example, if F1 is angling the defenseman up the boards, F2’s job could be to seal off the pass up the boards.
- F3 (the seeker): Their job is to remain higher in the zone, in case F1 and F2 do not win the puck, and the opposing team is able to successfully break out. The presence of F3 prevents a 3-on-2 rush against. If either F1 or F2 are able to win the puck, F3 is also ideally positioned to receive a pass for a scoring chance.
How do the players know who is F1, F2, and F3? The answer is that it constantly changes depending on where the puck is. As always, the best way to understand these concepts is by watching some video.
This first example comes from preseason action vs Vancouver.
Hard-working forward Ben Meyers (SEA #59) sprints up the ice as F1 to apply immediate pressure on the Canucks defender Kirill Kudryavtsev (VAN #59).
Kudryavtsev decides to rim the puck to the weakside to Jonathan Lekkerimäki (VAN #88), who has come down to the hashmarks to give his defenseman an outlet option. However, Jacob Melanson (SEA #63) is already headed there and engages as F2. Note that if Kudryavtsev had decided to move the puck up the strongside boards to Braeden Cootes (VAN #86), Jake O’Brien (SEA #44) would have engaged as F2. But with the puck now going to the weak side, O’Brien adjusts his route to become F3.
Lekkerimäki has trouble handling the rim cleanly on his backhand, and the play devolves into a 50/50 2v2 battle behind the net. Cootes misreads the play and momentarily leaves his assignment, O’Brien, unattended at the net front. Melanson wins the puck battle and moves it to O’Brien, who has an uncontested shot from three feet outside the crease.
Key points
- For this sequence, O’Brien did the least amount of “work” but was rewarded with a goal. Scoring goals and finishing is a rare talent, but this goal does not happen without the forechecking efforts of Meyers and Melanson. That’s the nature of egoless teamwork.
- There was real urgency in that initial forecheck to force the Canucks defenders into making hard, split-second decisions. If Meyers is slower up ice, the Canucks have a few extra moments to break the puck out cleanly.
- The speed of the game makes results a matter of inches. Despite the opportunity the Kraken forecheck generates, the Canucks nearly recover. In the following screenshot, you can see that O’Brien is literally a fraction of a second away from getting his stick lifted. That can be the difference between winning and losing in the NHL.
Let’s take a look at another example, this time from last season.
Meyers (SEA #59) dumps the puck into the Penguins zone, and the Kraken initiate the forecheck. F1 Jaden Schwartz (SEA #17) sprints up ice to pressure Stuart Skinner, who has come out of the net to play the puck. Skinner takes a look over his shoulder and sees Schwartz cutting off the weakside boards. With limited options, Skinner’s only play here is to rim the puck up the strongside boards.
However, F2 Ryan Winterton (SEA #26) has already read the play and sealed off those boards. It’s now a 50/50 puck battle, and Schwartz is first to arrive on the scene to assist his teammate, dislodging the puck and finding F3 Meyers.
Meyers is able to take the pass in motion and get to a soft spot in coverage for an uncontested shot between the faceoff dots.
The previous examples are straightforward. F1, F2, and F3 are clearly defined. But what happens when the situation changes? Do forwards retain their F1, F2, and F3 designation? Do assignments change, and if so, how is that decided? Let’s take a look at an example in the second game of this season against the Edmonton Oilers.
Chandler Stephenson (SEA #9) is first in on the forecheck, acting as F1.
Instead of chasing directly behind him, Stephenson takes a route that angles Oilers defender Connor Murphy (EDM #5) into the boards, cutting off his escape route around the net. Murphy must reverse the puck to his defensive partner Jake Walman (EDM #96), who has moved down the boards to support Murphy as a passing option.
Josh Samanski (EDM #81) does a good job as a center, swinging low to support Walman. Walman reads the play correctly and tries to reverse the puck up again into an area that Samanski can skate into and exit the zone, but Bobby McMann (SEA #74) arrives in time to impede Walman, and the puck goes behind the Oilers net.
During this sequence of events, Jordan Eberle (SEA #7) has acted as F3. Seeing McMann force a potential turnover and anticipating a scoring opportunity, he now takes a route to the net, timing his arrival to coincide with McMann coming around the far side of the net. Meanwhile the original F1 Stephenson has now rotated up high to act as the F3.
McMann’s royal road pass sets up a great scoring opportunity for Eberle. Unfortunately, Eberle is unable to capitalize on the chance, and the Oilers recover the puck and initiate a breakout.
Notice where Stephenson heads as the Oilers attempt to move the puck up ice. As the high forward at F3, he “reloads” and engages the puck carrier again, angling the Oilers defender to disrupt the breakout. Stephenson acts as a de facto F1 again, buying time for Eberle and McMann to get back up ice into defensive position.
Within a single 10-second play, Stephenson is first on the forecheck, making life hard on Murphy and rotating up ice as the responsible F3, then re-engaging again to disrupt the breakout and buy time for his linemates to recover. These are the types of reads that every player must make in fractions of a second.
A well-organized forecheck is dangerous
To recap, a well-organized forecheck that combines all-out effort with strong reads can disrupt breakouts and generate scoring chances. In a lot of ways, it epitomizes what hockey is. Hockey is a lot of hard work through skating and winning body positioning, intermingled with moments of high-end skill. It also showcases the importance of fundamentals because the best players in the world combine these fundamentals with elite offensive skill.
F1’s job first and foremost is to angle the puck carrier to limit their options. If F1 fails to angle properly, the entire forecheck falls apart. If you’re bad at angling, you simply cannot play hockey at a high level, regardless of your stick skills or shot. There’s a reason why youth hockey players practice angling all the time.
Without F2 reading where the play is going and jumping in enthusiastically, F1’s efforts are mostly wasted because strong passing teams will still successfully take the outlet that you give them.
Lastly, F3 needs to be savvy enough to read the play and understand the situation his team is in. He needs to balance defensive responsibility with offensive support. If F3 gets pulled too low and there’s a turnover, his team might give up a 3-on-2 rush against. If F3 is too conservative defensively and stays too high, F1 and F2 will be isolated and struggle to generate offense. To be an effective hockey player, you need to be able to assume and transition between F1, F2, and F3 roles seamlessly.
The next time you watch a Kraken hockey game, keep an eye on the forecheck of both teams. If you know what to look for, you can gain greater appreciation for the details that orchestrate effective forechecking.