I've obviously been a long-time hockey fan but just now am trying to get into playing. I've gone to a handful of stick times and public skates. Also doing Learn to Play sessions. But I'm having trouble learning hockey stops. I've watched all the YT vids and they all make it look so easy. But I don't seem to scrape the ice and come to a stop. My knees are bent, I put weight on the balls of my feet and not my heels, etc. but it's coming along more slowly than I anticipated. Any tips from you guys would be appreciated!
-ghoste
can you do a snow-plow stop well? if not, try to learn to do that and get used to the feeling of digging in to the ice to stop.
there are many videos going over the US figure skating skills 1-8 including the snow plow stop, but this one's good because she demonstrates a one-foot snow plow, which is halfway to your goal. check out at about 5:20.
if you've got the two-foot version down, try slowly shifting the emphasis to one foot as in the one-foot snow plow. (it's ok to go with the more comfortable side to start but be sure to work on your weak side as well.) gradually try to allow your hip on that side to come around so that you end up stopped perpendicular to the direction your were skating in. you'll just lift the other foot slightly until you come to a stop.
if you can get to that point, you're almost there! you get most of your stopping power from the inside edge of the leading foot anyway.
at that point, you can try to throw in the other foot and see what happens!
the outside edge is trickier in general, though. if it doesn't come right away, you could work on t-stops to get a better feel for that outside edge and once you have it, finally bring them both together.
another suggestion - download the USA hockey mobile coach app (for iPhone at least), which has a *ton* of videos on skating (as well as stick-handling and shooting). you don't have to be a coach or even a registered USA hockey member. the videos are under "coaching tools".
i'd also highly recommend some power skating classes to really learn how to use your edges.
good luck!!