Figure skating vs speed skating

[Kshahdoo]

Say, one kid was a figure skater before he started to play hockey seriously, and the other was a speed skater. Which of them will be a better hockey skater?

 

[Machinehead]

One will Jeff Skinner and other will be Carl Hagelin.

 

[jetsforever]

Ehlers and Morrissey

 

[major major]

A good figure skater can still have very good speed, and should have tremendous agility as a hockey player.

A good speed skater is not likely to be particularly agile, and might not even be that fast as a hockey player.

 

[kingsholygrail]

Figure skaters have a lot more control with their turns and could skate better backwards than a speed skater.

 

[Inkling]

I would think the figure skating skills would be more applicable to hockey. You hear of people in hockey taking figure skating to help their skills, but I don't think I've ever heard of hockey players taking speed skating lessons to help their hockey skills.

In reality it would probably depend on each person's athletic ability rather than simply which sport they came from.

 

[Cardiac Jerks]

 

[SPF6ty9]

Figure skating would be helpful for agility, edgework, and the unpredictable nature of the game. Speed skating would be like putting a Nascar driver into F1. I mean, they'd be pretty good at turning left, but that's about it.

 

[KevinRedkey]

Your all underestimating how good speed skaters are.

I know the #1 ranked mass-start female speed skater in the world. Not only is she a fantastic skater (with regular skates), she can also keep her balance at high speeds while being nudged. Doing twirls means you have balance and agility. But so does passing people trying to knock you off your skates.

Hard choice but I think the speed skating skills translate to hockey more than figure skating.

 

[gifted88]

Short track speed skating you'd think might translate well. Not to mention just developing those massive leg muscles they have.

I'd say they are fairly equal. Really power skating would be best I'd think.

 

[Leafsdude7]

The difference in skate design means I don't think hockey and speed skating will translate all that well, even if the technique were similar.

Here's a speed skater's skate:

A figure skate:

And a hockey skate:

Based on design, it'd be much easier to switch from figure skates to hockey skates.

 

[Spazkat]

I never noticed it before... those speed skater skates look like windshield wiper blades.

Seems like figure skating would be a better overall base for a transition to hockey, as well as figure skate to hockey skates being a minimal difference. (That said going the other way- hockey skates to figure skates sucks. That toe pick will get you as soon as you forget it's there. Uggggh)

 

[Thordic]

Haha that's amazing

 

[Rec T]

One thing about learning to skate with figure skates that doesn't translate to hockey skates that well is that the serrated part of the blade up by the toe isn't there on a hockey skate. If you learn on & get used to using it to kick off from & get going, your first time on hockey skates could be an exercise in frustration & humiliation.....

Not that I'd know anything about that mind you......

But all things considered I'd think that a figure skater would transition better. As mentioned, speed skaters have the massive leg muscles but from what I can tell, each stride is supposed to be exactly like each other one. Hockey just doesn't give you the chance to develop that rhythm to play to your strengths.

 

[Legionnaire]

Your all underestimating how good speed skaters are.

I know the #1 ranked mass-start female speed skater in the world. Not only is she a fantastic skater (with regular skates), she can also keep her balance at high speeds while being nudged. Doing twirls means you have balance and agility. But so does passing people trying to knock you off your skates.

Hard choice but I think the speed skating skills translate to hockey more than figure skating.

Agreed. There is a lot more precision involved in speed skating than most people think. That being said, there is a lot more speed to figure skating than most people think as well.

 

[Proust*]

I play hockey with an Olympic medallist figure skater (actually), and his ability to gain speed on turns is ridiculous. He can also just change directions almost spontaneously. That said, he has no hands and the concept of start/stop straight-line, efficient skating is kind of lost on him lol.

 

[NarcoPolo]

Figure skating easily. The blades on speed skates a foot and a half long.. There is a reason why they're able to skate laps around the ice without much effort. Figure skating requires just as much power and strength that speed skating does on top of having incredible balance and core strength imo.

 

[biturbo19]

Figure skater, easily. There's a reason so many of the top "power skating coaches" that tutor NHL players are ex-figure skaters.

The speed skating technique is so specialized and not particularly applicable to hockey. There's just very little opportunity for a player to do entire laps of the playing surface to where that ability to skate huge arcs at high speed would be overly useful. And it's not very often you can really go cruising perfectly straight through the neutral zone hunched over with your hands behind your back. You'd get murdered.

 

[Herschel]

How old is the kid? If they are less than 12 or having less than 4 years on the ice it isn't going to matter.

Assuming you have an experienced skater who is 12ish then the figure skater for one major reason.

Edge control - they would start out at a level that is on par with elite hockey players of similar age. This means they are going to have excellent balance and agility which are huge keys to being a good hockey skater.

It is also possible that the speed skater has limited experience skating backwards which again is something the figure skater would already be on par with elite hockey players of similar age.


I have made the assumption that both kids are similar size.

 

[ijuka]

The top figure skaters are incredible. There are so many skills that would help with hockey.

I'm sure speed skating would be useful as well but figure skating would be much more useful in my opinion.

 

[not a troll]

I'm pretty sure Kenny Wu outscored Luis Mendoza.

 

[swiftwin]

I'm going to guess figure skater.

Speed skating is like a sprinter trying to play soccer. I'm sure it would still help, but the technique is so specialized and geared towards specific efficiencies. Figure skating requires more versatility and movements that are similar to hockey.

 

[SnuggaRUDE]

Try a barrel roll!

 

[Canovin]

Coffey or Bure.

 

[ybnvs]

Say, one kid was a figure skater before he started to play hockey seriously, and the other was a speed skater. Which of them will be a better hockey skater?

Better question, which one would more likely become an astrophysicist, because your question is utterly hypothetical and largely dependent upon so many other life variables you invariably excluded.