U5-U7 Hockey skating should come before complicated Hockey systems, positions or tactics. At this age, young Players are still learning how to balance, start, stop, turn and change direction. Therefore, the first job is not to make them look like older Hockey Players. It is to help them become confident skaters who enjoy being on the ice.
Once a Player can move with confidence, learning the rest of Hockey becomes easier. Passing, shooting, puck control and decision-making all depend on being able to get to the right place under control.
Why U5-U7 Hockey skating comes first
A young Player who is concentrating entirely on staying upright has very little attention left for the puck, teammates or opponents. However, as skating becomes more automatic, the Player has more capacity to learn Hockey.
That is why U5-U7 Hockey skating should emphasize fundamental movement rather than speed alone. Balance, edges, starts, stops, turns and recovery after falling provide the base for later skills.
Build balance before speed
Adults notice the fastest child immediately. Speed is exciting. Nevertheless, speed without control has limited value.
At U5-U7, Coaches should create activities that challenge Players to glide, bend their knees, shift their weight and remain balanced. For example, Players can skate through simple obstacle courses, change body height, touch a knee to the ice and recover, or glide on one skate for short distances.
As a result, the Player learns to control the body before being asked to move faster.
Teach stopping in both directions
Young Players often develop a favourite stopping side. That is normal at first. Still, Coaches should gradually develop both directions.
Instead of repeatedly correcting the weaker side, use games and races that naturally require Players to stop facing different directions. Consequently, both sides receive repetitions without turning practice into a technical lecture.
Falling is part of U5-U7 Hockey skating
Falling should not be treated as failure. In fact, young Players need to learn that falling, recovering and continuing the play are normal parts of Hockey.
Coaches can deliberately include activities where Players get down and return to their feet. Most importantly, the child learns that losing balance does not end the play.
Add the puck without losing the skating lesson
Skating first does not mean young Players should spend every practice without a puck. Instead, Coaches should combine movement and puck touches whenever possible.
For example, once Players can perform a movement without the puck, repeat it while carrying one. Later, introduce a simple decision such as choosing between two directions or passing to a teammate.
The puck should add to the skating challenge, not eliminate it.
Keep young Players moving
Long lines are particularly costly at this age. A Player standing still is receiving neither skating repetitions nor puck touches.
Therefore, station-based practices, small-area activities and games can be extremely useful. More Players move at the same time, and each child receives more opportunities to learn.
Hockey Canada’s U7 development material emphasizes fundamental movement skills, skating skills, puck skills and age-appropriate station-based development. Review Hockey Canada’s U7 skill-development resources.
Do not rush young Players into adult Hockey
Rigid positions and complicated systems can make a U7 Team appear organized. However, appearance is not the same thing as development.
A five-, six- or seven-year-old needs opportunities to move, explore, make simple decisions and touch the puck. There will be plenty of time for increasingly sophisticated tactics as the Player develops.
Meanwhile, Coaches should ask a more useful question: Is this activity helping the child become a better mover and a more confident Hockey Player?
Fun and development belong together
U5-U7 Hockey skating should also be enjoyable. Games, races, challenges and imaginative activities can create hundreds of useful movements without making a young Player feel as though practice is work.
Furthermore, enjoyment matters because development requires repetition over years. A technically perfect practice has little long-term value if children stop wanting to come back.
Explore more age-specific Player development throughout The Hockey Resource™.
COACH JOEY™ takeaway
BUILD THE SKATER. THEN BUILD THE HOCKEY PLAYER.™
At U5-U7, better skating creates more opportunities to learn every other part of Hockey. Build movement first. Add the puck. Keep the Players active. Then let the game become more complicated as they become ready for it.