How to Skate Fast: What Really Matters!

Powerskating has become really complicated over the last few years. There is a lot of fancy lingo being thrown around, and a lot of coaches seem to have become completely focused on having their players skate like certain specific NHL players.
This really irritates me; everybody is unique. Everybody is different. No two players are going to skate alike.
We as coaches have to accept this, and instead of pressing players into a certain mold, in which they may not fit, we need to find ways to maximize each player's own special skating style! Two different styles can both be very fast on the ice!
In this video I'll show you what really matters with regards to skating fast, and what doesn't. I also compare two very fast skaters, Dylan Larkin and Connor McDavid, who both have very different skating styles.
I hope, that I can make skating fast less complicated for you!

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[BobSacamano]

As an older adult player, having heard so much advice over the years, I find you have a great “Keep it simple” teaching style. Great lesson, thank you.

[occultustactical]

In 2007 I had an opportunity to skate with some of the Stanley Cup winning NY Rangers. Mark Messier, Adam Graves, and even Glenn Anderson who was a known speedster. Just for context I’m more of a beer league guy who played some competitive hockey while I was at NATO in Germany when I got to play with the local Canadian team. It was an absolute blast playing with the Canadian guys.

Getting back to playing with the Rangers I spent four days on the ice, one day at MSG. What amazed me was how little movement it took for them to get going, high speed. Mess would literally glide up the ice and pass people who were actively skating. He never really had to do much. The skating and the overall talent was so far beyond my beer league comprehension. It was amazing. Glenn, like the others, had been retired for a few years at that point but could absolutely fly up the ice like he had rockets on his skates. I can’t imagine what Conner McDavid must be like…. Anyway thanks for the video. Very helpful.

[hunterrobinson]

Dude your videos are so ridiculously helpful for someone who’s trying to learn how to play hockey on a budget and can’t afford lessons. Thanks so much, and seeing your videos and hockey’s popularity in Germany has me very excited to study abroad there!

Danke von Amerika!

[jeffholt]

Keep your blade in the ice as much as possible. You don't need to pick up your feet much when you skate. Transitioning, turning, crossovers, keep the blade down, work on being fluid. Fluidity is very important and saves energy and keeps speed up.

[mkslave]

As an ex pro too and former youth coach, this video is priceless. Very good, worthy and reasonable observations.

[humancentered]

skating fast is like 3rd on priority because its SO rare that you're going any long distance in one go. skating QUICK is the most important dimension to the average player since change of speed both gets you time, space and should be used as a deception tactic and you work in very SMALL sections of the ice during any given play/series.

[joseph-fernando-piano]

As someone who started skating and playing hockey as an adult in my late 20s, the hardest thing for me has always been remembering to keep my legs bent and to "sit down" into my skating stance, which is especially counterintuitive coming from a running/sprinting background... even after 7 or 8 years and having gotten much better at hockey, I can still tell from videos of myself skating that my form is not quite natural compared to someone who grew up skating and playing hockey...

[BobbyReifenberger]

I just wanted to say great job and awesome videos. My daughter and I just started playing this year and we absolutely love your videos. Keep up the great work!

[fliptactics]

Dude, this is INCREDIBLE. The fact that you put this out there for free is awesome! So much great knowledge!!!! If I were to get a coach, you DEFINITELY would be the one I choose! Respect!

[blindguardian]

as a former high level speed skater, but also a coach to my sons hockey, there are a lot of really good points being brought up. Obviously a different sport with different skates, a lot of the technique are very transferable. I think the key techniques speed skaters use like knee bend, direction of push, etc.. are the same. Weight transfer of the hips is never really brought up in hockey skating but can see why as probably only utilized in straight skating and barely used in games...it would also lengthens the stride more so which would negatively affect agility.
Although players have their preference on what works for them, but I would say there are techniques that are more efficient, such as pushing to the side. I'd also say a lower upper body is faster as at the speeds you go, air resistance is real...of course in games, you want to see the puck so not ideal there but for pure fast skating, all else being equal, a lower upper body would equate to being faster.

[BMack]

I've done well in the past by telling them to bend their knees enough that they can't see their toecaps in full gear. It gets them in the ball park of a deep knee bend. To jump you bend your knees deep before you extend for your jump; its the same thing, you're using the most out of your leg muscles by getting low and extending. You're also a lot more stable which is just as important, if not moreso.

I also learned from the same school as you, pushing out is like pinching a marble, except the force is going outward, it naturally pushes you forward. Toe down first, so you "Skate downhill" with an emphasis on the toe flick follow through. Hands in tight, bent elbows but allowing the body to twist as if you were swinging your arms. Worked for me, I learned the arm thing from Smarthockey's Lecavalier training CD haha

Great video, wonderfully done.

[tysonmann]

Hey man this is a great video and you are bang on, on every point in this video. I've studied ground based sprinting and biomechanics (as well as for skating as my son is a hockey player) and if you dig and research it enough, the best sprint coaches advocate what you are saying for sprinting. Usain Bolt had different strategy for sprinting than Bob Hayes, Carl Lewis, Ben Johnson, Donovan Bailey, Micheal Johnson, Asafa Powell, and Christian Coleman. Yet they were all very fast using their own unique strengths based on their anatomical structures and solutions to running fast. Coaches though both for sprinting and skating like to point to certain individuals to base their entire speed philosophy (which is so wrong).

[RobertStJohn-rohp]

To encourage shin angle I always cue "chest over your toes" in addition to "get low". That also helps prevent kids falling backwards because of too much weight on their heals.

[BenBreeg]

I remember that outside edge to inside edge roll they used to teach on the recovery leg. Definitely gives that “long smooth” stride appearance but then guys like Crosby and others came along and planted the recovery foot right under their hip and instantly were using that leg to stride.

[alexandrumoisac]

Couse all your videos was very helpfull for me and a lot of secret for free ! thanks a lot for all! Excuse my English, i want to tell you and your viewer a little secret to go faster on ice. To be in a good balance when skating some advices : Teach your body first and your feet will follow! First use your upper body ( trunc) to transfer the weight from one leg to other then the arms, the weight transfered will helps to improve speed !2) the longer blade on the ice, the slower the skater! 3) the hands must move in this way ... side to side and before the skating leg touch the ice or in other words touch the ice when oposite arm arrive on the middle of the body! the arms will move upper body a little bit rapidly than upper body and will be to the side before skating leg touch ice! a good exercise is to skate with both hands on the stick mooving side to side to feel how the weight will be transfered from one leg to other and helps to speed! thanks a lot! i hope you understand me ! so in one phrase Move weight with upper body and hands before skating leg touch the ice!

[Compos-Mentis-]

I skate since 40+years and this tutorial pretty much sums it up. The two most important messages regarding powerskating (and I teached numerous casual skaters): There are no two identical skaters, everyone has his own style and "GET LOW" hahaha (which gives you a low center of gravity as a bonus, which is always good in skating) !
Long stride/short stride...you'll be 100% faster on the first meters with short strides...but only, when you're young. Forget about the short strides the older you are, they won't be fast enough.

Sadly the teacher here missed out on one important point and the disadvantage of the long stride: Beware of the "death zone". It sometime happens, that you push you're leg too far and disrupt your run. You then have to pull it back into position, which costs you speed and more important rhythm. Of course it's a mistake, but it happens, especially, if you really want to push your speed to the limit.

[KevinDoole]

the long stride short stride thingy is SUCH a good observation. With long strides, if you time it perfectly, you can actually blaze down the ice while only really pushing for about 300ms, i think kinda when your feet are approaching their widest part of the stride. Combining the arm swing and shifting the body weight side to side, again, perfectly timed, seems to give these little nitro bumpos. Finally, remembering to kick the toes behind you at the last possible second, and idunno if this is just some kind of placebo, but that part makes you literally take off from the ice and fly around above everyone, haha. Anyhoo, this is a freaking rad vid; you are unbelievably good at explaining this stuff!!!!

[crystalsaete]

I use the long hard strides on a break away or a chase but maneuvers i use the quick short strides.

[RandyOney-wf]

Decent job explaining. I took power skating lessons and they told me I don't need lessons. It's like walking it just came au natural

[joemichael]

It’s amazing class and about skating so fast and the shape about your explication is so clearly, and were the bonus when you did the comparative about the both the athletes.