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[Excerpt below courtesy of Chris Kamalani]
Below you will find a few good tips to take with you to public skating.
(Exerpts from Lara Stamm and Robbie Glance)
KNEEBEND
Explanation:
Bend the knees more than what feels comfortable. You will find that your
balance immediately improves, as well as your stride length, mobility and
speed.
Tips:
* Bend your knees deeply so that they are covering or about 2" out in front
of the toes of your skates.
* The Knee should always be out in front of the toes of your skates (except
for in the tight turn, where the outsideedge skate should lead you into the
turn).
* If your legs are not burning (especially the thigh area) after a shift or
at the end of practice, than you know you are not bending the knees to the
optimal position.
STICK CONTROL
Explanation:
Obviously, when you shoot, pass, catch a pass, etc. you should use two hands
on the stick. However, when you are attempting to gain top speed in open ice
you should have one hand (your top hand) on the stick (even with the puck).
Be sure to stretch your arms fully to the front, rather than side to side,
so that you are able to keep all your momentum and speed going in the
direction you are traveling.
Tips:
* Use one hand on the stick whenever you are in open ice situations.
* Keeping one hand on the stick will dramatically improve your balance,
especially when skating backwards.
* Remember to turn the palm of your stickhand up once the arm has fully
extended to the front, this will flatten your stick out on the ice, allowing
you to maintain top speed while pushing the puck on your backhand side.
EDGEWORK
Explanation:
You have to be able to grip the ice with the edges of your skates in order
for you to get maximum power and control. The proper angle of an edge
rolling to the ice should be maintained at 45 degree angle (halfway to the
ice). Too many players we see never roll the ankles of their skates which
means they are standing mostly on the flats of the blades. This causes your
grip against the ice to be lessened. In other words, shoddy edgework causes
you to slide on top of the ice, rather than digging into it. This mistake
will severely hamper your power, turns, starts, etc.
Tips:
* Make sure your edges roll at least halfway to the ice.
* Be sure to center all of your bodyweight directly over your edge to create
a Counterbalancing effect.
* Try loosening the top iylid on your skates, which will immediately give
you more ankle flexibility and allow you to roll your edges further to the
ice.
Any discussion of Hockey Skating and what the mechanics are for attaining
more speed and power, should begin with an explanation of how to get the
maximum grip from your edges, as well as proper body angle and posture.
Let's begin with body positioning. Always begin by bending the knees so low
that they are two inches out over the front of your skates, this will assure
that you are beginning with the proper 90 angle. Lowering your body at the
knees, while keeping the back straight, will give you the stability and
balance you need over your skates. Make sure that your thighs are burning
more than normal, this means that you are coming out of your "Comfort
Zone"and starting to use the correct muscles needed to give you power and
speed on the ice.
GET ON THOSE EDGES!
If you have been skating awhile, you are probably aware that a strong grip
against the ice is necessary for speed,balance and power. You get this grip
in the ice by using the edges of your blade and by rolling your ankles
halfwayto the ice (45) either in or out depending on whether it is an
inside or outside edge.
In the Forward Stride, for example, you start each push on one foot, firmly
planted on an inside edge, rolled halfwayto the ice (sounds simple, right?).
And the ability to maintain that grip against the ice for a long enough
period of time is one of the vital elements in the quest for more speed. At
the same time, you MUST use 100% body weight on every push (how to actually
get all your weight centered over the edge is explained in the section
oncounterbalancing). Another example is in the Tight Turn made so famous by
Wayne Gretzky. Here, you have both edges on the ice outer foot on an inside
edge and inner foot on an outside edge rolled halfway, with the knees bent
deeply.
Your gliding foot is always your direction foot. In other words, if you land
on the flat of the blade (straight up) you will glide straight, and
logically, if you land your glide foot on an edge (preferably at 45) than
you will turn. The more extreme the edge, the more dynamic your turn. (Hint:
If you are having trouble with the Tight Turn we talked about above, it
might be that your inside foot, outside edge is landing too flat which takes
you in a straight direction.)
THE ART OF COUNTERBALANCING
It is vital that you work on being able to roll your ankles to the extreme
angle of 45, while on one foot or two, in order to grip the ice for a power
push, sharp turn, crossunder, etc. Unfortunately however, it is not that
easy to get the edges on the proper angle, and then, once you do finally
begin to achieve the correct edge position you will notice one thing
happening frequently, you fall down...a lot! Believe it or not, when
attempting to improve your skating, falling down is an extremely beneficial
tool. It shows you exactly where you have gone too far and where you have
lost control. Thus, it is very important that as you begin to use your edges
the way they were intended, that you learn the art of what I call
Counterbalancing. Counterbalancing, in skating terms, means to shift your
body weight in the opposite the direction of your edge. For instance, in the
Forward Stride, you roll your edge inward halfway to the ice, therefore, you
must counter this action by leaning your body weight in the opposite
direction (still keeping your shoulders level and parallel to the ice). If
you lean your body weight in the same direction of your edge and the angle
of the edge becomes too extreme, it will almost always slip out from under
you and cause you to lose power or fall down. In the turns, it becomes even
more important that you shift your body weight outside, again counteracting
your edges which are angling in the opposite direction, much as a
motorcyclist shifts his weight to the outside in a sharp turn so the bike
does not slide out from under him. Mastering the art of edge control and
counterbalancing are certainly not easy tasks. It takes continuous trial and
error, and years of practice. However, keep working on it and try not to get
frustrated if you find yourself falling down quite a bit or making mistakes,
instead, use that frustration as a springboard for improvement.
KNEE BEND
Helpful Hints: This much is AUTOMATIC, the more you bend your knees --
whether you are skating forwards,backwards or turning -- the better your
control, balance, speed and power. However, knowing that you should bend
your knees more is one thing, DOING IT is another story. Therefore, you must
make a great effort to exaggerate the bending of your knees while practicing
your skating. Bend the knees lower then what feels comfortable for you, or
lower then where you usually skate; in fact, I challenge you to bend your
knees too far.
Skating Imagery: As I just discussed, a 90 degree angle of the knee is the
optimal knee bend position. However, since it is impossible to play hockey
with a measuring stick in your hand, simply bend your knees to a point where
you cannot see the toes of your skates. With kneepads on this means that the
knee is about two inches ahead of your gliding skate and that will insure
that you are at least at a 90 degree angle.
Practice Drill: One excellent practice exercise is called the One-Leg Push.
In this drill we are practicing by first using only our right leg to push
off from while skating on one side of the ice and then with only our left on
the otherside. Concentrate on maintaining your gliding knee at about two
inches ahead (90 degrees) of your toes while fully extending the pushing
leg. Each push comes from an inside edge digging squarely into the ice (see
the nextparagraph). You will want to put 100% effort into each thrust to get
the most benefit from this drill.
EDGE CONTROL
Helpful Hints: Bending your knees is a must for better skating. However, it
is just as vital that you bend your ankles, as well. What I mean by 'bending
your ankles' is that you want to have excellent flexibility in the ankles so
that you are able to roll the skate to the proper and optimum edge position.
The best angle for an edge -- inside or outside edge -- in relation to the
ice is 45 degrees. At 45 degrees, you will feel an excellent grip in the ice
which will immediately improve your balance, control, speed and power in all
aspects of hockey skating. Of course, maintaining an edge at 45 degrees is
very difficult and many high level players who still have trouble using
there edges properly.
Skating Imagery: Once again, describing in detail how your edge should be 45
degrees to the ice may not mean that much to you (especially if you did as
poorly in Geometry as I did). Therefore, concentrate on rolling your ankle
HALF WAY to the ice, this will automatically put you at the necessary and
best angle. Try to picture in your mind that your edges are your grip in the
ice, and when your grip is improper you are sliding along the ice -- losing
power and speed -- rather than driving into it. Also, in order to hold an
inside or outside edge in the ice be sure that you have ALL of your body
weight centered directly over it.
IT DOESN' T COME OVERNIGHT!
I'm sure we all wish that we could simply wave a magic wand that would allow
us to suddenly skate like Coffey orPavel Bure. Unfortunately, we know that
this is not going to happen and, in fact, there is no magic relating to
Coffey or Bure's skating skills either. Their greatness comes from working
hard and understanding the proper skating techniques and fundamentals. And
you too can definitely make great improvements in your skating if you begin
to put these fundamentals to work by visualizing and feeling what you are
doing, both correctly and incorrectly.
FORWARD STRIDE
Key Points:
Start with your skates forming a "V" or "Arrow Tip" position (heels
together), knees turned outward
Bend your knees so you cannot see your toes
Roll your inside edges half way to the ice
Push one foot at a time putting 100% body-weight in each stride
Aim your push perpendicular to (directly against) the inside edge
Finish your stride at the toe of the skate with your knee turned out
Extend the leg until it locks (full extension), and then rapidly and fully
return the leg back to the "Arrow Tip"position so you may start each stride
from under your body for maximum power
Keep your feet very low to the ice at all stages of the stride
Skating Imagery:
Picture that you have a line or divider that goes down the center of your
body separating it into two halves; and imagine that the right and left
sides act independently of the other, each, with its own individual job to
get your maximum power on every stride. Playing this mental game should help
you to get that feeling of using one foot at a time. Also, in the case of
the forward stride one foot pushes while the other glides.
BACKWARD STRIDE
Key Points:
Bend your knees deeply, again, so that they are covering your toes
The back is straight, head is up and eyes are forward
Start each push from directly under your body
Pivot the pushing foot so that the heel turns out
Push one foot at a time using all your weight on each thrust
The pushing foot drives to the side to full extension forming a "Half-Moon
(C)" in the ice while you glide on theother foot straight back
Do not swivel your hips like you are dancing, maintain directness
Skating Imagery:
When skating backwards your body posture and positioning are vital. You
should feel like you are sitting on a stool with your behind almost parallel
to the ice, keeping your back straight and your weight centered directly
over the middle of your skates. Positioning your upper body and chest too
far forward when going backwards will put too much weight to the front part
of the skate and definitely take away from your balance, speed and power.
FORWARD CROSSUNDERS
Key Points:
Once again, bend those knees
Your inside foot MUST land on an outside edge half way to the ice
Keep your weight centered over your skates and your shoulders parallel to
the ice
Focus on getting power from both legs
The outside foot pushes from an inside edge to full extension and the
inside foot then pulls from an outside edge also to full extension.
Try to form a "Big Y" with your legs to create powerful crossunders
Keep your feet low to the ice
Do not run on your skates, maintain a nice, even flow
Skating Imagery:
Try to think of crossovers as "crossunders." So many players from novice to
pro are under the misguided idea thatthey need lift their outside foot very
high off the ice so they can cross it "over." Instead, you should
concentrateon keeping your feet very low to the ice pulling the inside leg
under the body to achieve better fluidity, speed and balance when performing
corners.
THE FORWARD STOP
In Ice Hockey, as you are surely aware, the change of direction using the
quick stop (both forward and backward)is a vital fundamental. You must
consistently work on and practice this very difficult skill, no matter what
your level of play, in order to see marked improvement. As well, you are
going to need to do your share of falling down when practicing. But do not
look on this as a failure, in fact just the opposite, this means that you
are getting closer to stopping properly now that you are breaking out of
your comfort zone.
Tips:
1. Bend your knees so deep, that it feels like your going to sit your butt
back on the ice.
2. Keep your eyes forward, your chin up and your back straight.
3. Be sure to turn your hips 90 degrees (a 1-turn) from the direction you
were traveling, with both skates turning at the same time.
4. The outside skate slides along the top of the ice on an inside edge, with
the snow coming off the middle-front part of the skate (the ball of your
foot).
5. The inside skate trails the outside one and also slides on top of the ice
but on an outside edge. Again, the snow should be coming off the
middle-front part of the edge.
6. Your feet should be wide and staggered at this point (not parallel), with
the inside foot in front of the outside foot by a full skate length or more
7. Your feet should be wide apart from each other (at least shoulder
distance) and also wide as in staggered or uneven.
8. The bodyweight should be distributed with the greater percentage to the
outside skate (inside edge). If not, and you have too much weight over the
inside foot (outside edge), than the skates will slide out from under you
causing you to fall or lose your balance.
9. Be sure to counterbalance the stop with your upper body, by keeping your
shoulders parallel to the ice, rather than leaning or dropping the inside
shoulder down towards the ice.
IT'S A LOT TO THINK ABOUT
Do not worry about remembering everything. Pick the key points that you feel
will most improve your skating and work those skills the hardest. Take your
time when practicing and try not to compare yourself to your peer's
progress, as we all have a different learning curve.
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