Amy starts off with reminding coaches to teach that there are two pushes in a crossover. Her drill begins with what she calls a ‘scooter push’ or ‘stride push’ for one half of a circle, changing into crossovers for the second half of the circle. Her aim is for the skaters to gain power from the very first push.
Envisioning a three-circle snowman on the ice for their pattern, Amy has them focus on the stride push, then crossovers, then foot speed on the last circle.
Amy reminds the skaters to keep their outer hip down during the pushes and crossovers. Ideally, she would like the hips to be level, not ‘teeter tottering.’
Refining the crossover technique, Amy wants to see the skaters pigeon toe their foot in during the crossover and step with a flat foot rather than on their heel.
Amy spends extra time training the clockwise circles because often hockey players are weaker this direction.
For the second half of the video, the skaters are asked to insert a mohawk into their crossover pattern. Amy wants them to open their hip for the move. This challenges them to keep their hips and shoulders in the correct place.
When the players feel comfortable with these snowman drills, Amy adds the puck for an added layer of multitasking.
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