Averie starts with a ‘change pace’ drill, which has her student going 10% to the first blue line, then 50% speed to the next line, with pushing 100% to the end of the rink. In hockey, players are never skating a consistent pace for too long, and practicing ‘change of pace’ or ‘overspeed’ drills trains athletes to be ready to skate the speed needed to keep up with gameplay.
Next she has her student repeat the drill with ‘one in one out’ motion of making half circles down the ice. She reminds him to pick up his feet. It’s important to start these overspeed drills at a young age, even 8U, to begin the basics of a strong foundation.
Skating the drill backward but staying slow the whole length, Averie instructs the athlete to ‘push, cross and shift’ while keeping his eyes up. With a change of pace going backward, the athlete becomes more wobbly, but we can tell that over time and repetition he will gain more and more control.
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