The Most Important Skill in Hockey

Skating is the most important skill in hockey and that is why players spend numerous hours trying to improve their skating abilities. No matter what level a player attains, he can always improve his skating skills. You will often see advanced hockey players (college, professional) seek advice on how to improve their speed, explosiveness and technique.

Learning how to skate is very difficult and requires a lot of dedication and hard work. Focus on one specific area at a time, and apply one tip at a time. Equally important to technical skills are improving leg strength, endurance and flexibility. A good off-ice-training program is essential to increase your speed, explosiveness and endurance, and reduce your risk of injuries.

Each week, I'll update this section with a skating tip starting with Forward Skating this week.

FORWARD SKATING

The forward skating motion should be your first priority when learning how to skate. Although it may look easy, skating in a forward motion is very difficult and requires a lot of time and practice. Learning to skate with a proper technique will make you improve a lot faster and give you the confidence to develop into a great skater in the future.

Proper Technique

• Start with your skates forming a ‘’V’’, knees turned outwards
• Bend your knees (you should not be able to see your toes)
• Push one foot at a time and transfer all your body weight into each stride
• Reach a full extension on each stride with your driving leg and with your ankle
• When you fully extend one leg, rapidly return the leg back to the ‘’V’’ position and extend the other leg
• As you get more comfortable, work on extending faster (you will gain more speed)
Tips
• When skating forward, your feet should always be hip width apart
• Your body is always square to the direction of travel
• Your back should be straight, your head in the centre of your shoulders with eyes focusing forward
• Don’t lean your body to far forward (use the body lean that gives you maximum balance and lets you to take fully extended strides)
• Make sure to always bend your knees (beyond level of comfort) A good knee bend equals more power and more balance
• Skate one foot at a time
• Fully extend on each stride with a quick recovery
• As you become a better skater, focus on taking wider strides for more speed
• Skate with a proper arm swinging movement (arm and leg movements work in rhythm with their opposites)
• Always keep your stick on the ice, except when you are looking to gain top speed