The #1 Weapon in Girls Hockey

By Kim McCullough, MSc, YCS

Back I first started playing hockey at the age of 13, I was as slow as they come.  It may have had something to do with the fact that I didn’t know how to skate and I was 25 pounds overweight.  I was basically a “human pylon”.  After a few embarrassing seasons as a slow, fat defenseman, I realized that if I wanted to get to the elite level of women’s hockey, I had to get faster, as fast as possible.

Taking power skating lessons helped, but nothing I did worked as well as off-ice training.   Ten years ago, not many aspiring female hockey players were working as hard off the ice as they were on the ice, so my commitment to off-ice training really gave me an advantage over the competition.  Once I started getting stronger, faster, quicker and “fitter” off the ice, my speed and performance on the ice went through the roof.  Off-ice training, and more specifically speed training, was the primary reason I was able to make it to the elite levels of women’s hockey.  Getting to the elite levels of the female game is all about being first.  You have to be first to the puck, make the first save and be first in on the forecheck.  And in order to be first, you have to be fast.

In the absence of full body checking, the players with great speed have always had a big advantage. Even the smallest players can fly down the ice at full speed without worrying about getting drilled through the boards.  Ever since the rules changed a few years back, when every possible type of obstruction became illegal, speedy forwards have become every defenseman’s nightmare. At least in the men’s game, defensemen can slow down the forwards (who are carrying the puck of course) with a well-timed body check. However, in women’s hockey, the defensemen have to be as quick, if not quicker, than the forwards in order to gain and maintain proper positioning throughout the neutral and defensive zones.

Now more than ever, in the world of female hockey, speed is what separates the “best” from the “rest”.   Every female hockey player - big or small, young and old - must focus on developing speed if they want to take their game to the next level.  Women’s hockey is only going to get faster and it looks like it will be the speedier players that will dominate the game for years to come. Sure, having a big slap-shot or great one-on-one moves are great skills, but they will mean very little in the female game unless they are coupled with great speed.

Skills are important, but it’s speed that kills in the female game.  Speed is the #1 weapon in girls’ hockey and off-ice training is the best way to develop speed.  Players who aspire to take their game to the next level on the ice should use this off-season to get stronger, quicker, more powerful and more fit off the ice by participating in a properly designed off-ice training program. 

© Total Female Hockey 2008

Kim McCullough, YCS, MSc, is a Athletic Development Specialist and founder of Total Female Hockey. In addition to training and coaching girls at all levels of hockey, from novice to the National team, Kim has also played at the highest level of women’s hockey in the world for the last decade. Kim’s female player development website features a state-of-the-art Complete Off-Season Training Program and her blog gives the coaches and parents of aspiring young players access to the most up-to-date tips and advice on how to help their players take their game to the next level. To learn more about female-specific player development, get your Free Report: The #1 Mistake Female Players Make in the Off-Season at http://www.totalfemalehockey.com