In the last edition of USA Hockey Magazine’s Coaches Playbook, I wrote about getting the most out of your edges (in particular, the inside edges).  In this month’s Coaches Playbook, I will again try to answer some more of the key questions you have about getting the most out of your skates.

These include skate sharpening, body positioning and where to correctly land the blade and an exercise to improve your edge control.  Plus, in this edition, the focus is on improving your use of Outside Edges and learning an exercise to strengthen that edge control.

GET ON THOSE EDGES… PART 2:

            As I discussed in last month’s article, falling down is not only part of the game, but is an effective learning tool … especially when you are trying to push outside your comfort zone to develop your skills.

Quite often, when one of my students falls or slips, I hear them blame their equipment.  For example: “I lost an edge” or “My skates are really dull” or “I got a lousy sharpening”.

While all of these explanations may have some validity, most of the time the fall was caused by where the skater placed his or her bodyweight relative to the blade’s edge. That factor is much more relevant to your success in getting power, control and a strong grip against the ice than your actual skates.

Now, this is not to say that you will never have a bad skate sharpening, or that you will not fall down for what seems like no reason at all.  However, what I generally see is that players will lose an edge because their bodyweight is balanced over the skate incorrectly or they are on the wrong part of the blade.

SKATE SHARPENING:

Speaking of skate sharpening, I cannot tell you how many times I am asked about this.  Unfortunately, however, the only answer that I truly feel comfortable giving is this… ‘it is a personal thing.’

Players should find a hollow and a skate sharpening professional that they feel comfortable with and try to use him or her consistently.

The best example I can give to explain that there is no right answer to the skate sharpening dilemma is to tell you that every pro player I have ever coached has a different opinion.

For example, when I coached former NHL star Mats Naslund in Sweden, he told me that he only gets his skates sharpened every 3-4 games.  But another of my students, Jeremy Roenick, is very particular about his skates and has them fiddled with constantly… it is really a matter of taste and feel.

As far as how deep to go with the hollow, again it is a personal decision.  But there are some rules of thumb…here’s a few examples of the pros and cons for how sharp to make your skates:

Arguments for the skates not being too sharp:

1)  If you or your youth hockey player are having trouble stopping (especially on the weaker side) you may want to let the skates dull down or not go with too deep of a hollow as that can hinder your ability to slide the skate across the top of the ice.
            2)  If you are looking for more glide on the ice you will likewise need to have less of a hollow, as the deeper cut in the skate, the more friction created with the ice… thus taking away from your abililty to move smoothly.

3)  If you find that your legs are overly fatigued in the third period of games for example, it is possible that reducing the hollow in your skate will help alleviate this problem (the theory being: less friction with the ice, creates less work when you skate).

Arguments for the skates being sharper:

1)  If you are in need of a better grip when making a turn for example, then you may want to go with a deeper cut in the skate as this could help you maintain a strong grip with the ice for a longer period of time.

2)  If you are falling down a lot and it feels like the skates are constantly sliding out from under you, then you may want to try a deeper hollow as well to see if that helps you with your balance.

3)  If you are a larger, stronger player, you may able to handle a deeper cut in the skates as you then should be able apply more mass and thus more downward pressure into the ice.

THE OUTSIDE EDGE:

More important than the skate sharpening however, it is still where you place your bodyweight over an edge that holds the key to how it will perform for you.  And, quite often it is the upper part of the body that is creating the most problems for you …especially when it comes to the outside edge (for more detail on this, see www.robbyglantz.com to read last month’s article where I discussed “Counterbalancing”).

Of the two edges, the outside edge, rolled halfway to the ice at the proper 45 degree angle (or more), is a more difficult edge to lay down in the ice.  In order to get on an outside edge, you must have the confidence to be able to roll your ankle outward…and turning the ankle out is a much less natural movement than turning the ankle in.


Body Positioning:

If you feel like your ankle is going to cave in or that the outside edge is going to give out from under you when you are turning, it is more likely than not that you are forcing too much bodyweight over the edge.  If you lean your body too dramatically over an outside edge, it will be tough for you to maintain the grip with the ice.
            Instead, when you put the outside edge down in the ice, it is important that you have your hips and knees move past the edge and toward the ice.  But at the same time you will want to counter that push in with the lower body, by maintaining your upper body as parallel with the ice as possible (see upper Scott Gomez photo on the right).
            As you improve and gain more confidence using the outside edge, you will be able to push the edge harder and more effectively toward the ice, and the way you adjust your body will become more intuitive.  When you get to this point, you know that your muscles are beginning to learn the lessons that you are teaching them… this is called “muscle memory.”


Blade Placement on the Ice:

How you place any edge on the ice is a vital factor in your ability to use it efficiently.  This is especially true in regards to the outside edge, where you have less margin for error than on the inside edge.

To help you better understand where and how to put the skate properly down on the ice, it is good to think of the blade as three separate parts:  Front-Middle, Middle-Middle and Back-Middle.

You will use all these parts of the blade depending on what skating maneuver you are doing.  For example, a quick start comes from the front-middle of your blade.  As well, a quick turn in a short area (especially at lower speeds) can come from the back-middle of the blade.

But for the best success in improving and holding an outside edge, you will want to use the middle-middle of your blade.  This gives you the most stability and control (see lower Scott Gomez photo on the right).

If you apply too much pressure to the front-middle of an outside edge, it becomes virtually impossible to maintain it.

To test this, try building up speed around a circle and then glide only on your outside edge (one foot).  Place the skate down incorrectly, with too much weight toward the toe, and you will see how this will cause you to come off the edge and lose your balance forward… Not even Scott Gomez could hold an outside edge, while on one foot, with his weight on the toe of his skate!

Then, skate around the circle again and this time land the outside edge correctly in the middle of the blade getting as much of it as possible in contact with the ice and it should be clear to you where the most stability will come from…. directly in the middle of the blade


OUTSIDE EDGE DRILL

Drill:  Outside Edge to Outside Edge Crossovers.

Techniques:

·    The drill goes from one goal line to the other.
 

·    Start by pulling your right foot over and in front of your left foot.
 

·    Your left skate should be planted on an outside edge, with the edge at least halfway to the ice.
 

·    Hold and glide on your outside edge for a beat or two, or until you have formed a half-moon in the ice.
 

·    Cross your left foot under the body, to full extension, thrusting against the ice to pick up speed.
 

·    Then, you will switch over and do the drill on the other side, this time landing on the right skate…make sure it comes down on a solid outside edge as well.
 

·    Now bring the left foot around in front of the right and repeat the crossover motion described above.
 

·    Keep changing from one outside edge to the other, building up speed with each Crossunder push (while not shortening the time you are on the edge on one foot), until you get to the far goal line.
 

·    Tip:  As mentioned earlier in this article, be sure to land on the middle of your outside edge… landing too close to the toe will make you come off the edge and fall forward… and likewise, landing too far back on the heel will cause you to rock backward and lose momentum.

Body Positioning in the Drill:

·    With the eyes straight ahead (not looking down or hunching forward), lean the upper body forward with the back of your helmet in front of your glide knee.
 

·    Bend the knees deeply to get the most out of your leg muscles.
 

·    Roll the skate, at the ankle, to an outdise edge halfway to the ice (45°) for proper grip.
 

·    Apply downward pressure into the middle of the blade (not the toe or heel), so the outside edge will hold throughout the turn.
 

·    Be sure to push the Crossunder to full extension as this will help you practice not only your edge control, but also the motion you use when turning.