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What is "Edge Work?"
- "Edge work" originates from compulsory figures many, many years ago in competitive figure skating. And it has nothing to do with how hockey players skate.
- "He's good on his edges" ... meaning he can make a tight turn, he can stop, he can pivot, he can do a 'brake turn' to create a gap between him and the d-man? Most Pee Wee players can do that, it's just a matter of how efficient they are when they do these drills/skills. It's better to use sensible terms ... "He's real good at making very tight turns with the puck."
- I once had a client who asked me, after an hour skating clinic, if I did edge work. I respectfully said that we just did an hour of "edge work" ... tight turns, pivots, acceleration, etc. He says "No, I mean north-south skating?" I don't know what north-south skating is. We did north, south, east, and west skating!!
- Skating coaches (especially figure skaters), who mistakenly try to improve the skating performance of hockey players, use a lot of "edge work" because they don't know how hockey players actually skate. As a result, they use silly figure skating drills which are a waste of time for hockey players performance enhancement. A waste of time because hockey players never use skills like this in a game.
- Generic slang terms, such as "edge work" are used by people who don't understand skating. Such as most figure skaters who try to be hockey skating coaches.
Example, I was talking to the head of female hockey development for Hockey Canada one time. We were watching a player skate on video, he says "He needs to get on his horse." I said "I don't know what you mean, get on his horse."
He says "You know, bend his knees and lean forward like riding a horse." Skating compared to riding a horse? Really? Well, this poor guy made many other comments about skating which were ridiculous.
It's a sign of someone who doesn't understand skating, kinesiology, or biomechanics because he can't say "bend the knees more with more trunk flexion" or "get lower and lean forward more."
Think what players will understand when giving them feedback ... "GET ON YOUR HORSE!!" The kid would be like "What is he talking about?"
Yours truly,
Mike Bracko
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