Your top hand does most of the stick work in hockey. I found that I needed to be stronger, especially since I'm "wrong handed" and use my non-dominant left hand on top.
Regular practice will help, but especially for the younger players, they need something more because the sticks are comparatively heavy for their size.
Here's a simple drill my granddaughter and I set up for her. Just inside the door of her bedroom, her hockey stick is leaning against the wall. On the floor is a puck. Every time she goes into her room, she grabs the stick with her top hand only (checks her grip), steps back from the puck, and taps ten times on each side of the puck. Back and forth, ten times.
It only takes seconds, but by doing this several times every day, it helps build up her hand, wrist and forearm strength, and teaches her fine control using just her top hand. After a few weeks it's already become easier for her, and she's increased it to twenty taps on each side.
Here's a (low-quality) video showing you what I mean:
Remember, this is my top hand only.
A couple of things to notice here. First, I'm tapping near the heel of the blade. You have more control of the puck closer to the heel. Secondly, when I tap on either side of the puck (or ball, either works), I'm twisting my wrist so that the blade of the stick "cradles" the puck. You can see how the blade rotates as I tap on either side. Cupping the puck like this gives you more control over it as you stickhandle, shoot, make passes or receive passes. It's another habit to get into.
If you found this useful, please leave a comment. Let me know if you do these kinds of strength drills, or if you do other kinds. I'm just a beginner, so I'm always open to learn new ways.
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