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Q: What should I be doing as an excercise to strengthen my wrist shot? And, what are some exercises that can help me gain better foot speed?

A: The wrist shot is an incredibly effective shot that a player has at their disposal. One doesn't have to dig too deep to see how a quality wrist shot can improve a player's scoring abilities. Joe Sakic, Theo Fleury, Peter Nedved to name a few. One of the most important things you can do to improve your wrist strength and shot is to practice. Practice your shot on the ice whenever you get the chance. As importantly, be sure to practice off the ice. We recommend taking a bucket of pucks and shooting against an old mattress or a brick wall. (Just be sure that you won't be in range to break anything.) For a slippery surface, you can use a chair mat (lets your desk chair role) or the side of a collapsed cardboard box. If you have rollerblades, wear them to give yourself the proper perspective to the puck. Through practicing, your shot will improve, and your wrists will inevitably become stronger.
As for specific exercises that will help you to improve your wrist strength, here are three. The first exercise is to take a normal curl bar that you will find at any gym. The weight of the bar will depend on your own strength, but on average, most players will use between 30-70lbs. Once you have found a weight that you're comfortable with, take it to a normal flat bench. Place your forearms on the bench "while you're sitting on it" so that your wrists and hands dangle over the edge. Now, you simply extend your wrists down and then curl them back up. Try to strive for 4 sets of 20 reps. We caution you that this will burn your wrists and forearms, but if you do it consistently, it will definitely help you with your wrist strength. Now, for the second exercise. You may have seen this one before, but if you haven't, it's a must know. You're going to need a hockey stick or old broom handle, and it should be around 45cm in length. You will also need around 4 feet of rope and a 10lb weight as well as a 5lb weight. "You can add on as much weight as you want, but 15lbs is a good starting point." Once you have these materials, you're ready to go. Tie one end of the rope to the middle of the hockey stick or broom handle, and tie the other end to the weights. Now, holding the stick in your hands extend your arms out in front of your body. Using your wrists, wind up the rope until the weights are touching the stick, and then do the same thing while you're lowering the weights to their starting position. We encourage you to try and do this exercise in 30 second sets and in groups of 4. Take about 30 seconds to rest in between sets. "You can do this routine up to 5 days a week, because your forearms have a quick recovery time". Once again, this exercise will burn, but in the long run, it will drastically improve your wrist strength which in turn will help to improve your shot. Lastly, one of the latest things for wrist and forearm strength is a gyro ball. Many of the pros have caught on to these tennis ball sized mechanisms used by mountain climbers for training. You can get an idea of how they work by visiting the Leho site. You may have to hunt around to find one, but they are great workout.
For your second question, good foot speed is a must for any good skater. The great thing about foot speed is that through proper practice and training, you as a player will be able to not only improve your foot speed, but at the same time, you will be improving your overall skating ability. When it comes to developing quick feet, the first place you need to start is with your leg strength. With quick feet, you need explosive starts and these come from having strong legs. Start adding leg extensions, leg curls, leg presses, and squats into your gym routine. Building up strength will help you get the jump on your opponents. We also suggest the use of plyometrics as a training technique for improving your foot speed. Side steps, and one and two leg jumps are some examples. Don Chu's book on plyometrics is a great reference, and you can learn more about it in the Must Read Books section of our site. As well, shuttle runs will help you with explosive starts and stops. Lastly, we suggest skipping. Boxers have the fastest feet in the world, and skipping is a major component in this part of their training. It also is an unbelievable workout.