Power Skating Techniques

Laura Stamm, a former figure skater, is widely credited with introducing the concept of power skating to NHL players. Since she first started working with NHL players in the 1970s, power skating has become a key component of hockey training and is taught in many camps and clinics.

  1. Wind Up

    • Whether skating forward or backward, efficient power skating requires the proper use of the edges and loading all the player's weight on one edge. The knees should be bent at a 90-degree angle and the edge of the pushing skate digging into the ice at a 45-degree angle. A player should load all of their body weight on this one edge in preparation for an explosive skating stride.

    The release

    • The release is the stride itself, where the player releases all that energy to drive the leg in the direction the player wants to go. In a forward stride, the player drives the leg forward. For skating backward, the player does what's called a C-cut, essentially cutting the letter 'C' into the ice from top to bottom.

    Follow Through

    • For the forward stride, the follow through, incorporating a toe flick at the end of the stride, leads to more efficient skating. As the pushing skate reaches full extension, body weight transfers onto the gliding skate and the pushing skate digs in with the toe of the skate and flicks off the front of the inside edge.

    Recovery

    • In the recovery phase, the pushing skate returns to a position directly beneath the player's center of gravity to prepare for the next stride.