Guys Who Significantly Improved Their Skating

[Big Phil]

Ducks fans would know better than me, but...

As I recall, Corey Perry was pretty awkward on his skates in junior and this was one of the biggest knocks against him as a prospect.

He's still not the world's smoothest skater but this obviously isn't an issue now.

The first name I thought of actually. Perry was having a spectacular season with London of the OHL but was cut from Team Canada at the WJC. His skating was a main concern despite the fact that he was great with the puck. The following year he had another great year and this was London's big year and it was impossible to cut him from the WJC. However, his skating was always an issue. He has improved I think and I think the Hart trophy might suggest this.

Just a side note, Dickie Moore won two Art Ross trophies despite not being a very good skater at all - ever. I think it was because he broke his leg when he was young and never really developed proper muscles in his legs.

Someone mentioned Spezza, and I do remember him in the OHL and having his skating being a question mark. However, a lot of it if I remember correctly was due to Spezza's hunched over skating style and the fact that he was so big that made it look like he was a slow skater. It was deceptive with him, he just had big strides. He was never really slow.


How about another name? Brett Hull? Never ended up with blinding speed but was a more than capable skater once he hit his stride. However, not so much when he was younger.

 

[byrone12]

Donald Brashear was one guy who really improved his skating.

 

[PizzaAndPucks]

It's bloody near impossible to improve a players skating once he's grown into his body.

The minor leagues are teeming with guys with great hands and hockey sense but not NHL skating ability.

Ottawa prospect Mark Stone should be worth watching. The guy has tremendous hands, size and hockey sense but he was taken in the sixth round due to a serious skating deficiency. The Sens got him a skating guru and say he's vastly improved but judging from his recent callup I just don't see it. I predict he busts.... a very unpopular view on the Ottawa board.

And, no, I can't think of a single player who entered the league with a pronounced skating deficiency who became a better than average skater.

He's still not the best skater but he certainly wasn't a bust.

 

[carjackmalone]

Luc Robataille
Bo Horvat
Joe Mullen
Brian Bradley
Steve Thomas

 

[quietbruinfan]

Dave Maloney was one of the first to work with an instructor. (I can't remember the name. I wonder if it was Nystrom's instructor)?

He improved considerably. He became a very upright skater.

 

[connellc]

Gino Odjick





1st video (penalty shot) seems nearly impossible that he made the NHL. I used to have a video of him scoring on a breakaway when Gino was in Philly and faced the Capitals, but it's been taken down.

 

[ESH]

Leon Draisaitl is the perfect player for this thread

The number one knock on him as a prospect was his skating. When he first came into the league he looked like he was skating in cement. He really improved his skating quick over the next few years though and now it’s certainly not a problem.

He’s still kind of an awkward looking skater, but he can get around the ice quick enough.

 

[tabness]

Brett Hull in college, Calgary, first season in St. Louis

Adam Oates in his early years in Detroit really worked on his skating

they joined forces in 1989-1990, the rest is history

 

[PistolPete]

It's bloody near impossible to improve a players skating once he's grown into his body.

The minor leagues are teeming with guys with great hands and hockey sense but not NHL skating ability.

Ottawa prospect Mark Stone should be worth watching. The guy has tremendous hands, size and hockey sense but he was taken in the sixth round due to a serious skating deficiency. The Sens got him a skating guru and say he's vastly improved but judging from his recent callup I just don't see it. I predict he busts.... a very unpopular view on the Ottawa board.

And, no, I can't think of a single player who entered the league with a pronounced skating deficiency who became a better than average skater.

You were saying?

 

[Troubadour]

Gino Odjick





1st video (penalty shot) seems nearly impossible that he made the NHL. I used to have a video of him scoring on a breakaway when Gino was in Philly and faced the Capitals, but it's been taken down.

He -- Vernon? Kinda kidding, but he looks worse than Odjick who moves just like he needs to come up with his best finish.

 

[PistolPete]

He -- Vernon? Kinda kidding, but he looks worse than Odjick who moves just like he needs to come up with his best finish.

Mike Vernon is a miracle. How that man played as long as he did without anyone realizing he isn't good amazes me.

He was very good in '89 and helped Calgsry to a Cup but that dude screwed them over in '88, '90, and '91. Never a guarantee to win a Cup even with a top goalie but having him in nets surely didn't help. I swear, he compromising pictures of Fletcher and Crisp.

 

[The Macho King]

Brayden Point was an average at best skater when he was drafted. Now he's toward the top echelon in the league.

 

[Davenport]

Brian Boyle, with his career hanging on a thread, worked with former Olympic figure skater Barbara Underhill in Toronto during the summer of 2010.



Before working with Underhill, Boyle had 12 goals and 16 points in 107 games. In 2010/11, he had 21 goals and 35 points.

This is the first name which comes to mind.

 

[BenchBrawl]

Question for the resident scouts and coaches

Is it really possible to increase mobility and lateral agility, beyond strengthening the appropriate muscles? Like once you've strengthened your body after 1-2 years of training, isn't your mobility a matter of how your bone structure holds itself?

 

[Michael Farkas]

Question for the resident scouts and coaches

Is it really possible to increase mobility and lateral agility, beyond strengthening the appropriate muscles? Like once you've strengthened your body after 1-2 years of training, isn't your mobility a matter of how your bone structure holds itself?

Good question and a complex one. This is one of the arts (or, as some may term it, "prayers") of the trade...

There are things that really are out of your control, where you just got dealt a bad hand...knock-kneed, wide hip gait, ankle pronation issues, etc. That's going to be really difficult to improve, there's going to be a really hard ceiling in a lot of those cases.

Then there are situations where it's a matter of correcting posture (this is especially the case with youngsters that lack the necessary core strength to skate well from a postural perspective...how many 6'4" 18 year olds skate with their shoulders out over their knees? Right, a ton. They haven't developed the core strength necessary to sit "back" in a better posture.)

This is why folks have to be careful with "skating is the easiest thing to fix" (people will substitute a lot of things in the spot where "skating" is there, but...) - it could be easy to fix if it's just a matter of traversing up the natural, physical development arc. Conversely, it might be the hardest thing to fix for some players with, say, hip gait irregularities...that's why you really have to dig in and do your homework on this kind of stuff. Some of it can be reasonably ascertained from the outside. Some of it can't...

I have a couple of kinesiology majors on speed dial that sometimes I use to help me try to diagnose stuff that looks weird to me...I know it's hard to believe after reading me use the phrase "stuff that looks weird to me", but I actually didn't go to medical school haha

 

[BenchBrawl]

Good question and a complex one. This is one of the arts (or, as some may term it, "prayers") of the trade...

There are things that really are out of your control, where you just got dealt a bad hand...knock-kneed, wide hip gait, ankle pronation issues, etc. That's going to be really difficult to improve, there's going to be a really hard ceiling in a lot of those cases.

Then there are situations where it's a matter of correcting posture (this is especially the case with youngsters that lack the necessary core strength to skate well from a postural perspective...how many 6'4" 18 year olds skate with their shoulders out over their knees? Right, a ton. They haven't developed the core strength necessary to sit "back" in a better posture.)

This is why folks have to be careful with "skating is the easiest thing to fix" (people will substitute a lot of things in the spot where "skating" is there, but...) - it could be easy to fix if it's just a matter of traversing up the natural, physical development arc. Conversely, it might be the hardest thing to fix for some players with, say, hip gait irregularities...that's why you really have to dig in and do your homework on this kind of stuff. Some of it can be reasonably ascertained from the outside. Some of it can't...

I have a couple of kinesiology majors on speed dial that sometimes I use to help me try to diagnose stuff that looks weird to me...I know it's hard to believe after reading me use the phrase "stuff that looks weird to me", but I actually didn't go to medical school haha

Fascinating. Thanks for the detailed answer!