That's a good point for people unfamiliar with the "new" (dual-stick) way of playing NHL. Vision control is just a fancy way of saying "face the puck". It works when the puck is behind the goal, too. So you can use L2 to face the guy setting up in the office, and with R1 held down, keep an active stick (this is something I'm adjusting to as it didn't work that well on the PS3).
That's a great tip for penalty killing forwards, BTW: hold R1 and L2 down, and wave the RS back and forth. That keeps an active stick in all passing lanes and at least makes that outside player think before deciding where to go with the puck.