There is no such thing as a bad skater rather, there are players who need to develop their muscle memory so they can skate with a smooth coordinated movement pattern.

One of the most misunderstood and incorrectly taught skills in skating is arm movement. Many coaches do not understand that arm movement is a law of physics – for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. It is a law, and you cannot break the law! When skating, the legs push to the side, therefore in order to maintain balance, momentum, and speed, the arms must to move to the side.

Arm Movement Research

Marion Alexander, Ph.D. and colleagues at the University of Manitoba Biomechanics Lab wrote a paper entitled Arm Action in Hockey Skating- Is It Being Taught Incorrectly?  Dr. Alexander is quoted as saying: “Hockey coaches almost invariably teach the arm swing in skating to occur in the forward-backward direction, similar to running. Their reasoning is that since a hockey player is moving forward, their movements should be forward. Although no valid rationale is given for the selection of this technique, it has been universally accepted by almost all hockey coaches as the ideal technique for fast skating.” Dr. Alexander goes on to say: “The basic premise of this paper is that hockey coaches teaching the forward-backward action of the arms in hockey skating are incorrect. If the skate push off is in the sideways direction, and increased speed is attained primarily by increasing the force of the push off, then a sideways arm swing should be used by all hockey players. The correct movement of the arms and hips during skating is abduction and adduction movements” (abduction is when the legs and arms move sideway away from the body, and adduction is when the legs and arms come back to the body).  In the picture below, McDavid’s left leg and right arm are abducted, and his left arm is adducted.

Julie Hayward-Ellis from the University of Saskatchewan and colleagues from the University of Manitoba and the Pan Am Clinic in Winnipeg did a study to measure the differences in ground reaction forces (GRFs) produced from forward-backward arm movement compared to side-to-side. Ground reaction force is the amount of force pushing down on the foot as an extension of arm movement, through the body, down the legs, into the foot. Twenty-four female Canadian University hockey players performed each arm movement technique while standing on a ground-mounted force platform, without skates.

The results of this study showed the side-to-side arm swing produced 37% greater GRFs than the forward-backward arm swing.  The researchers surmised that when skating, the side-to-side arm movement would produce higher GRFs on the driving skate so the legs will produce more force.

The author conducted a study on the effect of different arm movements on acceleration in high school hockey players. Each subject was randomly instructed to accelerate using one of three arm movements: side-to-side, forward-backward, or a 45-degree angle. When the players moved their arms side-to-side, they were faster than when they moved their arms forward-backward or 45-degrees. Moreover, 13 players had to be eliminated from the study because they could not move their arms forward-backward when they accelerated.

Practical Application of Arm Movement

One of the best ways to understand arm movement is to watch fast players skate. It is an advantage for coaches to use YouTube to watch NHL and elite female players. One of the best ways to see how fast players move their arms is to watch the NHL Fastest Skater Competition in regular time and slow motion.

A good video to see how a fast player moves his arms is of Connor McDavid – notice how his left glove moves in front of his Oilers logo and his other arm moves sideways and up so that his elbow is approximately even with his shoulder. Notice also (in slow motion) the ‘action-reaction’ of his leg and arm movement. When he pushes off with his left leg, his arms move to the right, and when he pushes with his right leg, his arms move to the left.

Another great video is of Kendall Coyne-Schofield. This video is good because it shows different angles of Coyne-Schofield skating. It starts showing her from the side, then changes to behind. The camera then shows her from above, which offers a great view of her arms moving side-to-side and moving very fast.

A short video showing side-to-side arm movement is of Anthony Greco, who plays in the American Hockey League. When they had their Skills Competition a couple of years ago, he skated faster than Connor McDavid over what was supposedly the same distance. This video is short but shows a great side view of Greco and his arms moving in front of his body.

The final video is of Mathew Barzal in the 2020 NHL All-Star Fastest Skater Competition, which he won. Notice his side-to-side arm movement and the coordination of his legs and arms.

To see more videos, go to YouTube and search for ‘NHL Fastest Skater.’

Skating Coaching to Improve Arm Movement

Many young and inexperienced players have not developed the proper muscle memory to have a smooth, coordinated movement of their arms and legs. This means there is no such thing as a bad skater rather, there are players who need to develop their muscle memory so they can skate with a smooth coordinated movement pattern. Moreover, if hockey players are taught to move their arms forward-backward, it will hinder the development of muscle memory for proper skating performance. As such, coaches must understand physics and proper arm movement. More important, hockey organizations must teach correct arm movement in coaching clinics rather than making up their own way of skating.

Following are some drills the author to improve arm movement.

1. Arm Skating – 2-Hands on stick, blade off the ice
2. Arm Skating – 1-hand on stick, blade on the ice
3. Arm Skating – Pushing a puck
4. Arm Skating – Receive pass, give pass – no video. Players are working with a partner. One partner does “Arm skating” with 2-hands on the stick. The other partner skates backwards with a puck. The players pass the puck back and forth with a focus on arm movement for the player skating forward and fast backward skating for the other partner. The partner skating backward lets the “arm skating partner” to do 3-4 pushes with arms and legs between passes.

Conclusion

It has been established with research, and observation of fast players, that the proper and logical movement of the arms when skating is side-to-side. Arm movement is a law of physics – for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. If the arms are moving properly, the legs can move more efficiently. Many young players have not developed the muscle memory for proper arm movement. There are specific drills that can be done to enhance arm movement.