SKATEMILL – SKATING TECHNIQUE AND SKILLS TRAINING
The Skatemill: What It Is — and What It Isn’t
Our skatemill, focused on skating and individual skill development, has quite rightly received both praise and criticism. Over more than seven years of daily use, I have heard virtually every possible opinion.
In order to respond responsibly to questions, coach players with my team, and track measurable progress, I examined this relatively new method in the Czech environment more thoroughly. I studied professional literature (primarily foreign research), conducted testing, and compared the results directly on the ice.
A common criticism in professional literature is that skatemill training may insufficiently load part of the posterior thigh, which could lead to muscular imbalances. However, this training is fundamentally the same as skating on ice, and the resulting imbalances do not significantly differ. In practice, we are training skating itself — the same movement pattern used on the ice — therefore any imbalances arise from the nature of skating rather than from the tool.
It is useful to clarify two points:
- Similar imbalances occur in many hockey players who have never trained on a skatemill.
- Performance cannot be built on imbalance — every player must compensate appropriately.
For this reason, we primarily use the skatemill as a tool for technical development, while expecting athletes to take responsibility for their health through proper dryland training and strength work in the gym.
What Our Measurements Showed
Over the long term, I analyzed skating technique in more than one hundred players and measured their movement efficiency directly on the ice.
When comparing timed on-ice tests between players who trained on the skatemill and those who did not, I recorded differences of up to 1.5 seconds.
A similar test conducted by FTVS UK reported that foreign skaters gained up to 8 meters over a 30-meter distance. I do not know whether those players used a skatemill, but in my view the mechanism is clear: this tool delivers the greatest effect when combined with solid physical preparation.
The skatemill can be viewed as a multiplier.
It can turn a well-prepared athlete into a significantly better skater through technical refinement.
Conversely, even a physically fit player may underperform if a technical flaw is not corrected — for example, transferring weight too early onto the pushing leg.
In one test, we extended a 25-year-old player’s glide by one meter at the same speed simply by lowering the center of gravity. The measurement was based on push-off force and the distance covered from the same starting position.
Edges, Alignment, and Stability
I also examined how skate positioning — particularly work on the outside edge — influences the recovery phase when the blade re-engages.
The key is to keep the “rudder,” meaning the skate on the support leg, aligned with the intended direction.
Hockey is not only forward skating, and even forward skating should not resemble a sine wave. Our detailed measurements revealed lateral deviations of up to one meter, even among older players. The primary focus remains strong fundamentals in forward skating.
We found that pushing through the outside edge was less important than two other factors:
- Timely weight transfer onto the support leg
- Stability during the single-leg support phase
Stability comes from controlled positioning of body mass over the skate.
In battles, properly engaging the edge is important, but without correct alignment and timing, the player loses speed, strength, and stability.
Upper-Body Timing and the “Stacking” of Energy
A properly timed arm swing during push-off increased glide energy in our comparisons by up to 30% (based on speed and distance achieved with proper versus delayed arm action). This surprised even me.
We therefore began mapping all movement components. When the push-off leg, shoulder movement, and weight transfer occur in the correct sequence, their energies add up. This measurement was again calculated from belt speed and distance achieved during push-off.
Players should apply the same logic when skating forward, backward, and through turns, using both edges for stability.
Other important technical details — full leg extension, active ankle involvement at the end of push-off, and torso rotation — are especially important in the first steps of acceleration, where a longer push-off translates into greater glide energy.
Most Common Mistakes
Typical issues include:
- Excessively high step frequency (“running on the ice”)
- Stomping
- Insufficient stability
These are precisely the factors that determine puck battles in favor of the technically cleaner opponent.
A high center of gravity may feel natural, but it costs the player real speed, stability, and explosiveness.
Viewed from above, there should be a single line from the pushing leg to the arm swing. From the side, the joints should form a straight vertical alignment.
Because the game involves constant rapid changes of direction, these mechanics must become automatic — there is no time to consciously think about them during play.
Why the Skatemill Helps
The advantage of the skatemill compared to on-ice practice is simple: the player remains in one place while the coach stands within one meter, able to observe small errors and correct them immediately.
It is training under a microscope.
The key benefit is the ability to train slowly and deliberately so the player can see and feel their movement. This is extremely difficult to achieve during full-speed team practices.
On the skatemill, the player can check details in real time:
- Was the leg fully extended?
- Did the ankle finish the push-off?
- Were the arms used correctly?
Because we are not always working at maximum speed, the athlete can choose what to focus on, while the coach adapts the session according to observed errors.
Depending on the plan, sessions can target skating endurance, dynamics, or starts — but the foundation is always overall movement control.
A coordinated athlete who trains properly in the gym will almost always become a better skater.
Youth, Coordination, and Long-Term Development
If we pursue only “pure dynamics” with eight-year-olds, we risk neglecting fundamental coordination, mobility, growth, and the athlete’s overall healthy development.
These gaps later appear as shortened muscle structures, reduced glide, an upright stance, and a disrupted movement cycle because the thighs cannot work through their full range.
Conditioning is important, of course. However, in my opinion, technique remains the primary obstacle to improved performance for many players, given the environment in which they perform.
We directly connect off-ice test data to skating. On the skatemill, we can measure maximum output, fatigue index, and right-left asymmetries.
Practical Examples
My colleague David Pojkar trained Radko Gudas on the skatemill for several years. His approach impressed me greatly — systematic, almost slow-motion work. He required precise knee and ankle angles, compared push-offs, and measured improvements relative to belt speed.
At a speed of 35 km/h, the player was able to push twice and remain in place — that was the goal: to improve technique without unnecessary curves or wasted movement.
Personally, the skatemill has helped me show many players how to skate better. It is demanding and sometimes humbling — some athletes realize they “don’t really know how to skate.” That can be frustrating, but it is worth working through.
We all started somewhere. Many players have skated “somehow” for years with unconscious patterns (for example, pushing with the left leg and swinging the right arm as if walking). Recognizing — and correcting — these patterns pays off.
Ongoing Work and Acknowledgment
I have been dedicated to this topic for many years. Together with my team, we continuously study how technique shapes hockey performance.
I respect everyone working with youth and adult players and welcome further collaboration so we can continue improving athletic performance together.
I cannot disclose every detail — we value our findings and continue research using newly acquired technologies — but the direction is clear.
Special thanks to HTC Praha Arena and HDC Czech for their continuous improvement and for being part of a unique group supporting hockey player development.
Martin Bauer
HTC Praha Arena
A frequent criticism in the literature is that skatemill training can under-load parts of the posterior thigh, potentially creating imbalances. Two clarifications are useful:
- similar imbalances occur in many hockey players who never touch a skatemill, and
- performance cannot be built on imbalance—every player must compensate.
That is why we use the skatemill primarily for technique, while expecting athletes to take responsibility for their health with appropriate dryland and gym work.
What our measurements showed
Over a long period I studied skating technique with more than a hundred players and measured their movement and efficiency on ice. Comparing on-ice timed tests between players who trained on a skatemill and those who didn’t, I found deviations of up to 1.5 seconds. A similar test by UK FTVS reported foreign skaters gaining up to 8 metres over 30 metres. I don’t know whether those skaters trained on a skatemill, but I’m confident about the mechanism: the tool helps most when paired with solid physical preparation.
Think of the skatemill as a multiplier. It can turn a well-prepared athlete into a significantly better skater by refining technique. Conversely, even a fit player can underperform if a technical flaw—something as simple as transferring weight too early to the pushing leg—is left uncorrected. In one test with a 25-year-old player we extended the glide by one metre at the same speed simply by lowering the centre of gravity.
Edges, alignment, and stability
I also examined how placement of the skate—especially the outside edge—affects the return phase when the blade re-engages. The key is to keep the “rudder” aligned with the chosen direction. Hockey isn’t only forward skating, and even forward skating shouldn’t look like a sine wave. Our detailed measurements found up to 1 metre of lateral deviation—even in older players.
Pushing through the outside edge mattered less than two other factors:
- timely weight transfer onto the support leg, and
- stability during the single-leg support phase.
Stability derives from controlled body mass over the skate. In battles, leaning into contact by setting the edge matters—but without alignment and timing, you’re giving away speed.
Upper body timing and “stacking” energies
A timely arm swing during push-off increased glide energy by up to 30% in our comparisons (based on speed and distance with proper vs. delayed swing). That surprised even me. So we began mapping all the moving parts: when the push-off leg, shoulder swing, and weight transfer land in the right sequence, the energies add. Players should skate forward, backward, and through turns with the same logic, using both edges for stability. Other details—full leg extension, ankle work at the end of push-off, and torso rotation—also help, especially in the initial sprint where longer push-offs translate into more energy in the glide.
Common faults? “Choppy” steps (running on ice), stomping, poor stability—exactly the problems that lose puck battles to a technically cleaner opponent. A raised centre of gravity often looks trivial but costs real speed. Viewed from above, you should see one line from pushing leg to arm swing; from the side, the joints stack in a straight line. Because games are a blur of directional changes, these mechanics must be automatic—there’s no time to think them through during play.
Why the skatemill helps
The skatemill’s advantage over on-ice practice is simple: the player remains in one place and the coach is one metre away, seeing tiny errors and correcting them immediately. It’s training under a microscope. Most importantly, you can train slowly and deliberately so the player can see and feel their movement. That’s hard to do in team sessions at game pace.
On the skatemill a player can check details in real time—Was the leg fully extended? Did the ankle finish? Were the arms used correctly? Because we’re not at full speed, the athlete can choose what to focus on while the coach adapts the session to the errors actually observed. Depending on the plan we can target endurance in skating, dynamics, or starts—but the foundation is always overall movement control. A coordinated athlete trained in the gym will almost always skate better in the end.
Youth, coordination, and long-term development
If we chase “pure dynamics” with eight-year-olds, we risk neglecting basic coordination and mobility. Those gaps show up later—shortened tissues, reduced glide, high stance, and a broken cycle because the thighs can’t work through the full range.
Conditioning matters, of course. But in my view, technique is still the main obstacle to better performance for many players, given the environment they perform in. We connect off-ice test data directly to skating: on the skatemill we can measure maximum output, a fatigue index, and right/left asymmetries.
Examples from practice
My colleague David Pojkar trained Radko Gudas on the skatemill for several years. His approach impressed me: deliberate, almost slow-motion work. He wanted exact knee and ankle angles, compared push-offs, and measured improvements against belt speed. At 35 km/hhe could push twice and stay in place—that was the point: improve technique without unnecessary curves or wasted motion.
Personally, the skatemill has helped me show many players how to skate better. It’s demanding and can be humbling—some athletes realise they “don’t really know how to skate.” That can be frustrating, but worth pushing through. We all started somewhere; many players have skated “somehow” for years with unconscious patterns (say, left-leg push with a right-arm walk-like swing). Recognising that—and fixing it—pays off.
Ongoing work and thanks
Years ago I committed to this topic. With my team we’ve spent years studying how technique shapes hockey performance. I respect everyone working with youth and adults, and I’d welcome more collaboration so we can keep improving athletes together. I can’t disclose every detail—we value our findings and continue to research with new technologies we’ve acquired—but the direction is clear.
Many thanks to HTC Praha Arena and HDC Czech for their constant improvement and for being part of a unique group helping hockey players develop.
Martin Bauer
HTC Praha Arena