Last Updated on Thursday, 08 August 2013 12:29
By Diane Ness
While watching the great skaters in the NHL, you may notice how effortless it looks. All movements look natural and they make any skating skill look pretty easy.
One of the things you may notice is how great skaters are able to control their upper body even at top speed. As the summer moves on we see a lot of kids that seem to be almost “out of control” with their upper body. Hands, arms, head and stick are moving in every which direction. Kids may think that the more and faster they move everything, the faster they will go. Actually, moving your arms faster does not make you faster; it can be counter-productive, especially when controlling a puck.
The body should move in the natural direction. When executing a forward stride, the arms should move in a natural range of motion. The motion should be free flowing and not robotic, again making sure to keep the upper body relaxed and controlled.
In the above photo, Kyle Okposo is executing a forward stride at our camp. Notice how his arms are not moving directly side to side, nor straight front to back. It is a little of both; however the stick’s lie is staying flat on the ice and not moving side to side. The key is to keep that upper body relaxed as apposed to being rigid and tense.
When turning (power turns or crossovers), the upper body works much like handlebars on a bike. You would turn your handlebars first and then your bike would turn. A skater should turn their head, stick, and shoulders then the turn can be executed.
Notice from the below photos, Zach Parise and Travis Zajac have their stick leading the direction they are traveling. The shoulders are turned in and the head is looking the direction that the skater is traveling.
Some common mistakes we see are kids “dragging” their stick behind or shoulders turned out to the direction they are traveling. One of the only times we want the stick on the outside of the body is when we are protecting the puck, but most of the time this is the easiest way to execute a corner.
When working with younger kids, watch for their stick positioning as well as their upper body positioning. These are little things that can make a huge difference in whatever skating skill they are practicing. Remember to keep kids mindful during their drills in practice; stick and upper body positioning is a correction that can be made on the spot whatever they are doing.
Diane Ness has been a full-time professional skating coach for over 35 years. She has coached both figure skaters and hockey players alike and is a former U.S. gold medalist in figure skating. She is the Director for the Pro Edge Power hockey camps and the Learn to Skate program at Highland Park Arena. Ness is the skating coach for the New Jersey Devils, the University of Minnesota men’s and women’s hockey teams and the U.S. Women’s Olympic Hockey Team. She has trained players in the NHL, AHL, NCAA, USHL and NAHL.
