It’s that time of year again: The Winter Classic, featuring the Chicago Blackhawks and the St. Louis Blues, which means here at Golf Digest, it’s time to break down some hockey players’ golf swings.

It’s a tradition we started last year in honor of our sister company TNT and Max broadcasting the Winter Classic (coverage on TNT and Max this year starts at 4 PM on New Year’s Eve). It turned out well, so this time we’re looking at the moves of four Blues players.

From top left to bottom right:

• Joel Hofer
• Jake Neighbours
• Robert Thomas
• Scott Perunovich

1. High trail shoulder

I was raised in England and admittedly don’t know the first thing about ice hockey, but I’ve played enough golf with enough hockey players over the years to spot a common issue in hockey players’ golf swings: They tend to keep their trail arm too high on the backswing.

Notice how lefty Hofer’s left forearm is almost parallel to the ground in this frame. Ideally, his arms are moving more around his body, and his trail elbow folds into his body a little sooner. But don’t worry, Joel. That too-high trail shoulder is something even Rory McIlroy struggles with. Here’s how he works on it.

2. Turning before shifting

Jake Neighbours has an awesome golf swing. You can tell he loves his golf. The only little thing I can spot here is that as he starts his downswing, he tends to rotate his upper body a little too soon, which drags his arms slightly over-the-top. Notice how his hips are unwinding while his weight is still pretty even across his feet.

It’s probably the most common issue in golf, especially for players with a lot of core strength. Remember the ideal golf swing downswing sequence: Shift toward the target, rotate around your body, then rise up to the sky.

3. Bracing with legs too early

When golfers are athletic and have lots of lower body strength, you’ll often see them try to use it too early in their golf swing. You can spot it in Robert Thomas’ golf swing here.

Before his arms have reached the top of his backswing, you can see Thomas increase the bend in his knees pretty significantly. He’s torquing the ground—hard—and he’s ready to explode off it. That’s good, he just does it a little too soon. It prevents him from finishing his backswing turn and finishing what coaches call the “unweighting” process.

4. Dipping toward the lead leg

This is a pretty classic hockey player golf swing right here from Scott Perunovich. Right arm high combined with a 10-finger grip which closes the clubface. The big hockey player tell here, though, is how he dips toward his lead leg on the backswing.

Because ice is, well, ice, hockey players need to create their own stable surface when they’re playing on it. So they have a wide stance, brace with their legs, and stay very centered as they shoot. All that stuff shows up in their golf swing, even though they’re on a nice stable surface.

If this sounds like you, remember to maintain your height as you turn on the backswing. Moving off the ball is powerful in golf, and don’t worry, the ground isn’t going anywhere. Unless you’re playing during a frost delay.

Watch the Blackhawks take on the Blues in the Discover NHL Winter Classic – live from Wrigley Field in Chicago, New Year’s Eve, coverage begins 4 PM ET on TNT and Max.

This article was originally published on golfdigest.com