SkatingConditioning

Power Skating Drill

A focused power-skating session isolates stride length, knee bend, and explosive acceleration — the specific technical elements that separate a fast skater from a merely fast-looking one.

Age RangeAges 11+
Duration10–12 minutes
Group Size4+ skaters
SportHockey

Equipment Needed

  • Skates
  • Cones

Sharp edges make this drill work

Freshly sharpened skates give players the push and edge control that power-skating work is built around.

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Setup

  • Set up a straight-line lane with cones marking start and finish.
  • Skaters take turns performing timed or technique-focused reps.
Power Skating Drill1explode → full speedDeep knee bend, explosive first 3 strides, full extension

Instructions

  1. Start from a stationary position in a deep knee bend, ready position.
  2. Explode into the first three strides with maximum leg extension and power.
  3. Transition into a full-speed stride for the remainder of the lane.
  4. Decelerate under control at the end rather than coasting to a stop.
Coaching Points
  • The first three strides matter enormously — a strong start makes the whole sprint faster.
  • Deep knee bend throughout the stride generates real power; standing too tall wastes the leg's full range of motion.
  • Full extension on every push, not just the first few strides, keeps power consistent throughout the skate.
  • This is a demanding, technical drill — keep rep counts modest and quality high rather than running it into fatigue-driven sloppy form.

Variation

Add a stopwatch for timed sprints as a fun benchmark, or combine with a puck carry once the skating technique alone is strong.