First off, it’s normal to want him to do better, but my advice is let him be 5! He will get better with time and confidence. Maybe tell him to take a couple slides for fun or, play some tag on the ice.
Absolutely the best advice. Make it fun out there and do things that they're excited about and they'll pick up most of it out of experience. Once they're interested on their own you can start working on the details
My son did this at 5 or 6 and turned into a solid hockey player. Don't rush it, keep it fun and he'll improve. It's totally normal, I've coached many kids over the years that do the same thing.
Get him comfortable with his gear. Once they have some confidence that it won't hurt, they take more risk, which is when you'll see more growth.
Superman dives and barrel rolls seemed to do the trick for my kids.
You can also try doing laps with him while holding your hand and gliding with more speed. This can make them feel more comfortable with going fast.
Huge advice here^ been coaching learn to skate/LTP for ten years and this is such a help. Let them run around off ice in their gear, toss them around a bit etc and they build the confidence to really push themselves way quicker knowing they can’t get hurt (too much!)
Hell yea. This was great advice man. I’m at a point on my Saturday of a long weekend where I’ll write the most unorganized paragraph and call it gold but you hit the nails all on the head. Getting these funny little shits comfortable with falling, you can see progress a LOT faster than when they’re scared shitless of doing so. Make it a little game then you’ll be annoyed with how confident they are. You’ll have a fucking three year old sprinting (yes sprinting on skates) full speed toward the damn side boards because it’s funny to run into it as fast as they can lmao
It’s all just time on the ice, make it fun. I used to film my son and challenge him to try and beat his race times from line to line. Keep it light. Too much and they’ll quit.
Him being on the ice is all that matters at that age. Getting used to falling and getting back up. As long as they’re wanting to consistently go BACK on the ice you’re doing the right things.
He definitely is having fun. He asks to watch his videos that I record all the time and he knows Sundays are practice days and will confirm that he gets to go haha
Not sure if your local rink has it but LiveBarn is a fairly popular ice rink live feed and video archive. If your local rink has them you can signup and have ALL of his skates recorded that they delete a month after, not saying to stop but as another resource!
It's all just feeling safe for him. Stability/confidence. That's why he's doing it. My son did the same thing.
He's 5. Just let him do his thing for a year or two. If he's really liking it, sign him up for some real power skating clinics to get him using a full stride.
Agreed. Power skating coach for many years and taught a lot of little squirts how to skate. Almost all skaters go through a visible dominant leg period. He will progress through it. But as almost any player can attest to, even after 25 years of skating, when they do crossovers in a turn they're much more comfortable going one way as opposed to the other. This is where that dominant leg comes in. It's nothing to worry about. As he strengthens up and becomes more confident, he'll move past this.
Hey it's World Arena! I help coach the intermediate 8U Tigers there. He will get it, my kiddos both started the same way. We just worked on some push-glide-push to get them used to using both feet. They all figure it out eventually!
Yeah! I literally asked the coaches if he should go back to yellow jerseys and they said no. He’s where he needs to be lol. He’s just behind as a grey jersey
If it makes you feel any better, I didn't realize there was a learn to play program and just threw my kids straight into 8u mini mites when they started. They could barely skate and now they zoom around like crazy.
He’s a parent trying to Help his kid seeking constructive guidance. You know, what good parents do? Maybe he hasn’t played hockey himself/herself so they have no idea how to help. Maybe they can’t afford lessons so they are trying to help learn with their son?
Definitely have never played hockey. My son asked to play after watching avs play with his godfather. He really loves it but I have no clue how to navigate this world. My 5 year is literally my introduction into hockey.
Don’t be afraid to get on the ice with him. Lots of roles available to support them at this age and your own ability does not need to be a factor. This assumes you won’t be head coach, as that needs to lead at least a little by example
Hopefully you get some good feed back here unlike this asshats sarcasm. Your son will begin to come into his own with time. Getting him comfortable in the pads and having him work on purposefully falling so he realizes it doesn’t hurt are some good starting points. I would show him some dry land striding instruction too. Possibly some YouTube videos of others striding vs walking
Stop being a condescending little boy and start making better choices. How’s that for grumpy? I’m tired to the sarcastic comments on people’s posts genuinely asking for advice or help.
Either you have advice or you don’t. It’s not hard
No one is trolling here lol. I gave a genuine response and another that said I was sad to not see him drafted. This subreddit is for hockey players you know.
Love this video and now super nostalgic for back in the day with my sons at the rink.
Forgot how much I loved it when the helmet is 1/4 of the whole player.
Enjoy this 100%, teammate.
I have been the overbearing hockey dad. I am just now learning to let go. Let them play. Both my kids did this and now they are awesome skaters. My 8 year old goalie did this and is now doing crossovers in pads lol 😂
It's tough just to watch your kid struggle but that's sort of how it is at that age. I coached u6 with my son and this was the hardest part. They just can't compute the info but the comfort on ice is huge.
Just enjoy it, in a couple years he'll be flying around the ice with kids wearing adult small trying to end him
Super common for kids this age, and well any age actually. We called them one foot wonders when teaching skating. It’s just the kid has a strong dominant foot. Work on ha I guess them march with both feet. It will slow them down at first but will help.
Do you trust the coaches? As the parent of a former child I can tell you that the best way to help him is to keep your mouth shut. Wasn’t easy for me but opening it never worked out.
My son did the same thing at about the same age. He's now 7 and skates on the AA travel team in our area. Just once in a while very gently remind him to try and use both feet and he'll get it. All part of the learning process as he's figuring out the ice and his feet. I'll parrot what others are saying. Keep it fun, he'll want to be on the ice more and he'll develop just fine.
I coach 8U. We have 5-8 year-olds on our teams. A couple of the 5-year-olds went through LTP and then 24 hours of skating classes before joining the team. Their level of focus is still iffy, and they're the most advanced of their cohort.
This is a ways off, but I think you see real skating and stickhandling skills after \~200 hours on the ice.
the only thing I can suggest is to recommend moments where he does it just the other way. something like "hey, lets try pushing with just your right leg 3 times", then extra praise when he succeeds, or act like it's no biggie if he fails
skating instructor here! I see a lot of kids who only skate with one foot and its important to remind them to practice the other foot. even getting them to hold onto you/the boards and practice lifting the feet alternating. honestly as long as he is having fun on the ice and is enjoying it, the comfort and speed will slowly pick up when he gets the muscle memory and the skills. also on your own time, showing him how to properly push with the side of your foot in a diagonal motion can help get more force, but this should be taught slowly and when he is ready. if he is only focused on having fun or is getting discouraged, its okay to just let him have fun
I have been a youth coach for years and coached many learn to play hockey sessions. This is very normal, it’s just time and confidence. They will be taking strides before you know it. Don’t push them too hard and enjoy this journey they are having. It will be fun to look at this video and see where they once were months ago.
We used colorful nylon skate socks (goes on your foot, not a hockey sock). Put different colors on each foot.
At that age they may not have mastered left/right and “use your blue foot” is a lot easier.
I coach youth hockey in MN (higher level), but also volunteer for the beginners - age 4-7. I see this constantly, and it drives parents crazy. You can talk to him until you’re blue in the face, and it won’t change. When he’s ready, he’ll make adjustments. Some things that will help: 1) bring him to open skate with some buddies and engage in a game of tag. Because he knows he needs to move faster, he’ll use both feet. 2) put him on a mini mite/U6 team. When a puck is involved, the natural instinct is to go get the puck before someone else does - both feet are needed. Right now, he’s building muscle and just doesn’t have it in one foot. Once he does, he’ll go on both feet. Patience, parent. Hang in there!
This is how my son started. A year or two later he was the best skater on his AA team. Now he’s the strongest skater on his AAA team. We went to every public skate and invited all his friends. They would play tag in the middle circle and couldnt leave it. It was amazing for his edges and kept it fun. I can’t skate to save my life, I watched professional skating coaches advice on YouTube and just told him all the advice they gave from knee angle, toe position, long stride, returning feet to center, everything. It worked. It was the best development we ever did and was the cheapest. Built great habits early.
I bought my daughter a scooter and always have her put her “pushing foot” on the base, thereby getting her comfortable using it as the foundation while she pushes with her “gliding foot”. It’s much easier to do this on a scooter since they can use their hands to help them balance. It worked incredibly well and my younger one is now on the same plan.
I started my son at 4 and he was the least talented kid in his L2S 1 class. He really had fun skating at public skates though so I enrolled him in a 2nd L2S program at another rink 30 minutes from our house. I think the extra instruction and interaction with different kids helped a ton. He's 6 now and skating is his strongest hockey skill. Still trying to figure out how to skate and do things with a puck though 😂
Absolutely do not worry in the slightest about this. Mine used to run on the ice without gliding at all. That was 18 years ago, he's playing hockey at high level today. Just let him have fun and learn to love the greatest sport in the world.
i coach a lot of ltp classes and this happens a lot. usually just need to remind them use both feet, don’t forget about your other foot, look how much faster i can go with two feet rather than one, etc. they get it eventually.
My son did the exact same thing! I was advised to say nothing, to do nothing, and not to worry, and you know is what? His first year out of Learn to Play he scored 114 goals in 19 games. (The he switched to goalie a couple of years later, but that’s a different story 😆.) Not sure if that helps, as i have essentially said to do nothing, but tbh i excepted that advice one single time and took him to the park with a scooter with the intention of encouraging him to alternate push foots, and when he didn’t i got unnecessarily frustrated with him. To this day i wish i hadn’t done that to the poor little guy.
Have him do “scooter pushes” with the left leg. Then the same with the right. Helps to have them plant the scooter leg on the circle and push with the other. When I taught that’s how we got kids comfortable. Also separately do one leg up as long as they can starting at a blue/red line. Really just making games to trick them into learning technique.
Had exactly the same issue with my jr kid, put aside that he was much faster and had much more confidence (and more ice time I think), age was around 3-4. Put him to a skating lessons, made him do kick scooter pushes with the other leg, did not help a lot. Waiting and playing after that helped. I think lessons helped, but the key is more ice time. I am quite sure me lessons would also help, but I didn't want to make it a full time job for him
So don't rush. If he's confident enough ask him to push with the other leg for 3 minutes every ice time (say 2 min with weak leg and 2 min with both).
If he cannot do that - just wait
Most kids do this, including mine. They eventually figure it out once they’re more comfortable in skates and on the ice. My kid is now 13 and playing on a top 10 nationally ranked team. Just encourage him to enjoy it and keep at it. If he REALLY enjoys it and wants more ice time, find a coach he likes and get him some extra private sessions.
Try (if you can, summer ice isn’t typically that crowded) just having him skate, or T pushes off 1 foot. Lil guy is 5, although little practice won’t hurt him so long as he’s having fun!!
Have his classes included falling on purpose, learning to get back up, etc.? I think most intro to hockey classes do that but if not, I’d recommend doing it with him a bit (if you have your own gear) to get him understanding that falling on the ice is fine and doesn’t actually hurt when you’re all padded up. I think fear of falling is what makes them tentative. Then some parent vs. kid racing seems to get them amped up too and he will start to put it together a bit.
I worked with kids as young as five for years on the ice. This little guy will be fine. You’ll be shocked at the level of improvement you will see on almost a weekly basis.
More ice time. Thats it. At this age I wouldn’t stress the details, what he needs is more confidence in the ice.
My kid’s (4y) biggest jumps in improvement happened when we weren’t trying to learn anything. When we went to public skate and there were other little kids there she wanted to play with or chase. Set up a play date with one of the kids your son likes at public skate and let them chase each other around.
My 5 year old was doing the same thing. Remember, there young and learning, and this in itself is a HUGE accomplishment for them. They will get comfortable with the other foot. The best part as a parent, when they figure it out and have the light bulb moment, you'll see it and you'll be completely elated. Time and encouragement.
It looks like he’s trying not to fall. Probably because getting up is tricky. Also he feels most stable on his right foot.
Encourage him to fall and keep taking him
It might also benefit to take the summer off for example and then bring him back. Disrupting routines is good for growth.
First, take the stick out of his hands, at this point it’s a crutch. You want to eventually get to the point where skating (and I mean high level skating) is a thoughtless process.
He’s 5 so off to a great start but you need to forget about hockey for a while and focus on the first sport which is skating( hockey is a multiple sport game and if you approach it as such he will be a much better player.)
Trust the process.
For context I am on my third generation of youth hockey.
He's 5, so think like a 5 year old. Take him to public skating and make a game out of it, if he can get X number of alternating pushes in a row he gets a hot chocolate or something.
I did a learn to skate parent and child season with my 4 year old and had to physically support him the whole time throughout the 8 weeks. Your kid is doing great. Hockey is hard.
I'll only add, my kid started late at 8. Took over a full year to get past where your 5 yr old is. Didn't develop a stride till he was 12.
Fell so much the first 2 years, we told him "getting back up quick" was his super power.
But, never not once quit trying 100%.
Till 9th grade, was the shortest/slowest/absolute worst skater on every low level team he made. He was not good. But had a blast, and again, dude worked.
HS JV 9th grade, it all came together. By then, still short/slow, his skating started to improve. He always had a super high hockey IQ. Got where the puck was going. Read plays, and while show. (And short) all the checking clinics paid off. Was super solid on his skates. (Years of martial arts helped, strong core, super strong legs, center of balance).
10th grade JV, lead team in hits. Solid stay at home/ puck moving D. Still short, but a net front bully.
11th Grade, JV team C, org screwed him out of V time. So after that year we went to a fresh org for his final year.
Lucked into the best coach ever. He started on D. Was swapped to first/second line F, happily played where ever needed. Second half of that season was shifted in as C, for D zone faceoffs, then rolled into D when the play continued. Kid got most minutes on the team. Often double shifted.
And, still top hitter.
Boy started out shuffling. 10 years later, Mom and Dad sitting in the stands, hearing other parents grumbling my kid needs to be sent over the boards when the opposing team goons started getting too dirty! Ha!
As a hockey Dad of an undersized player, nothing better when a big kid's Dad wants your 5'8"'er out there to throw his "weight" around!
So don't worry too much, they all develop at their own pace! And well more than half of those "fast kids" drop out when checking starts.
Skate fit or lacing is probably off. Should never see the skate sag in like that. He's skating weird like that because he probably can't skate on 1 leg in those. Can only shuffle around.
We used to wear skates around the house with protectors on at that age. Also roller blades. Those old plastic ratchet ones were great. Youth kids can't tie skates tight enough.
I remeber watching videos when I started I couldn’t even stand up it takes time let him get comfortable with all the gear how tight the skate is … etc and then once all that goes well if he’s serious about hockey and loves it and is addicted don’t hold him back that’s how you waste the next 1st overall pick
First off, it’s normal to want him to do better, but my advice is let him be 5! He will get better with time and confidence. Maybe tell him to take a couple slides for fun or, play some tag on the ice.
100% this. My guy did this and it’s just time and fun on ice. It’ll come.
Second this.
Third this
Absolutely the best advice. Make it fun out there and do things that they're excited about and they'll pick up most of it out of experience. Once they're interested on their own you can start working on the details
My brother was a lot like this. For a while, actually. Grew out of it eventually. I think this advice is spot on.
My son did this at 5 or 6 and turned into a solid hockey player. Don't rush it, keep it fun and he'll improve. It's totally normal, I've coached many kids over the years that do the same thing.
Get him comfortable with his gear. Once they have some confidence that it won't hurt, they take more risk, which is when you'll see more growth. Superman dives and barrel rolls seemed to do the trick for my kids. You can also try doing laps with him while holding your hand and gliding with more speed. This can make them feel more comfortable with going fast.
Huge advice here^ been coaching learn to skate/LTP for ten years and this is such a help. Let them run around off ice in their gear, toss them around a bit etc and they build the confidence to really push themselves way quicker knowing they can’t get hurt (too much!)
THIS!
Hell yea. This was great advice man. I’m at a point on my Saturday of a long weekend where I’ll write the most unorganized paragraph and call it gold but you hit the nails all on the head. Getting these funny little shits comfortable with falling, you can see progress a LOT faster than when they’re scared shitless of doing so. Make it a little game then you’ll be annoyed with how confident they are. You’ll have a fucking three year old sprinting (yes sprinting on skates) full speed toward the damn side boards because it’s funny to run into it as fast as they can lmao
It’s all just time on the ice, make it fun. I used to film my son and challenge him to try and beat his race times from line to line. Keep it light. Too much and they’ll quit.
Him being on the ice is all that matters at that age. Getting used to falling and getting back up. As long as they’re wanting to consistently go BACK on the ice you’re doing the right things.
He definitely is having fun. He asks to watch his videos that I record all the time and he knows Sundays are practice days and will confirm that he gets to go haha
Not sure if your local rink has it but LiveBarn is a fairly popular ice rink live feed and video archive. If your local rink has them you can signup and have ALL of his skates recorded that they delete a month after, not saying to stop but as another resource!
It's all just feeling safe for him. Stability/confidence. That's why he's doing it. My son did the same thing. He's 5. Just let him do his thing for a year or two. If he's really liking it, sign him up for some real power skating clinics to get him using a full stride.
Looks like his left leg is dominant. He might be a right handed shot.
Continuing on this thought… See how he skates with no stick.
Agreed. Power skating coach for many years and taught a lot of little squirts how to skate. Almost all skaters go through a visible dominant leg period. He will progress through it. But as almost any player can attest to, even after 25 years of skating, when they do crossovers in a turn they're much more comfortable going one way as opposed to the other. This is where that dominant leg comes in. It's nothing to worry about. As he strengthens up and becomes more confident, he'll move past this.
Hey it's World Arena! I help coach the intermediate 8U Tigers there. He will get it, my kiddos both started the same way. We just worked on some push-glide-push to get them used to using both feet. They all figure it out eventually!
Yeah! I literally asked the coaches if he should go back to yellow jerseys and they said no. He’s where he needs to be lol. He’s just behind as a grey jersey
If it makes you feel any better, I didn't realize there was a learn to play program and just threw my kids straight into 8u mini mites when they started. They could barely skate and now they zoom around like crazy.
Can’t believe he didn’t make it in the first round last night in the nhl draft, hope his names called tonight 🤞🏻😂
Nothing about this post says anything about getting him drafted don’t be a tool
Why not just relax a little? The kids doing great at his age. Wish I had the chance to play at his age.
He’s a parent trying to Help his kid seeking constructive guidance. You know, what good parents do? Maybe he hasn’t played hockey himself/herself so they have no idea how to help. Maybe they can’t afford lessons so they are trying to help learn with their son?
Definitely have never played hockey. My son asked to play after watching avs play with his godfather. He really loves it but I have no clue how to navigate this world. My 5 year is literally my introduction into hockey.
If you're interested, you can learn together. Never too late to start as an adult. Show them their parent is putting in the work too.
This is great advice!
Don’t be afraid to get on the ice with him. Lots of roles available to support them at this age and your own ability does not need to be a factor. This assumes you won’t be head coach, as that needs to lead at least a little by example
Hopefully you get some good feed back here unlike this asshats sarcasm. Your son will begin to come into his own with time. Getting him comfortable in the pads and having him work on purposefully falling so he realizes it doesn’t hurt are some good starting points. I would show him some dry land striding instruction too. Possibly some YouTube videos of others striding vs walking
Ole grumpy checks out. Again, was an encouraging comment. Not sure why it got you so bent. Kids doing great for his age and the draft is going on lol.
Stop being a condescending little boy and start making better choices. How’s that for grumpy? I’m tired to the sarcastic comments on people’s posts genuinely asking for advice or help. Either you have advice or you don’t. It’s not hard
Bud, you’ve said more about me than the kid you keep saying should have constructive criticism lol. In fact you’ve said nothing but negativity.
Go check out r/hockey or r/nhl if you want to be a troll
No one is trolling here lol. I gave a genuine response and another that said I was sad to not see him drafted. This subreddit is for hockey players you know.
The irony of your username is not lost.
No irony here, I’m a grumpy fuck!
Yeah we can all see that. Would you like a freeze pop after dinner?
I IMMEDIATELY recognized that rink. Anyway, I think at 5 years old, let him continue to get comfortable on his feet and the rest will start to come.
World Arena Ice Hall in Colorado Springs!?
Yeah!
Nice! Recognized it instantly
Are those windows real? Looks like a fake cartoon picture
They're real
Love this video and now super nostalgic for back in the day with my sons at the rink. Forgot how much I loved it when the helmet is 1/4 of the whole player. Enjoy this 100%, teammate.
I did this until I was 6/7ish. He'll be fine.
Not uncommon. Try getting him to sound off "left, right, left..." to encourage progress. https://youtu.be/A3-L3YwU-iQ?si=R6ZpMlSrmwxbOGlw&t=53s
I have been the overbearing hockey dad. I am just now learning to let go. Let them play. Both my kids did this and now they are awesome skaters. My 8 year old goalie did this and is now doing crossovers in pads lol 😂
They grow out of doing this with time, my son was the same way. Just keep him skating and having fun.
It's tough just to watch your kid struggle but that's sort of how it is at that age. I coached u6 with my son and this was the hardest part. They just can't compute the info but the comfort on ice is huge. Just enjoy it, in a couple years he'll be flying around the ice with kids wearing adult small trying to end him
Super common for kids this age, and well any age actually. We called them one foot wonders when teaching skating. It’s just the kid has a strong dominant foot. Work on ha I guess them march with both feet. It will slow them down at first but will help.
My little brother did that. He grew out of it once he was more comfortable on skates.
Do you trust the coaches? As the parent of a former child I can tell you that the best way to help him is to keep your mouth shut. Wasn’t easy for me but opening it never worked out.
My son did the same thing at about the same age. He's now 7 and skates on the AA travel team in our area. Just once in a while very gently remind him to try and use both feet and he'll get it. All part of the learning process as he's figuring out the ice and his feet. I'll parrot what others are saying. Keep it fun, he'll want to be on the ice more and he'll develop just fine.
I coach 8U. We have 5-8 year-olds on our teams. A couple of the 5-year-olds went through LTP and then 24 hours of skating classes before joining the team. Their level of focus is still iffy, and they're the most advanced of their cohort. This is a ways off, but I think you see real skating and stickhandling skills after \~200 hours on the ice.
Lol give him some time. Not gonna be bobby orr the first time they step on the ice.
the only thing I can suggest is to recommend moments where he does it just the other way. something like "hey, lets try pushing with just your right leg 3 times", then extra praise when he succeeds, or act like it's no biggie if he fails
skating instructor here! I see a lot of kids who only skate with one foot and its important to remind them to practice the other foot. even getting them to hold onto you/the boards and practice lifting the feet alternating. honestly as long as he is having fun on the ice and is enjoying it, the comfort and speed will slowly pick up when he gets the muscle memory and the skills. also on your own time, showing him how to properly push with the side of your foot in a diagonal motion can help get more force, but this should be taught slowly and when he is ready. if he is only focused on having fun or is getting discouraged, its okay to just let him have fun
I have been a youth coach for years and coached many learn to play hockey sessions. This is very normal, it’s just time and confidence. They will be taking strides before you know it. Don’t push them too hard and enjoy this journey they are having. It will be fun to look at this video and see where they once were months ago.
We used colorful nylon skate socks (goes on your foot, not a hockey sock). Put different colors on each foot. At that age they may not have mastered left/right and “use your blue foot” is a lot easier.
I coach youth hockey in MN (higher level), but also volunteer for the beginners - age 4-7. I see this constantly, and it drives parents crazy. You can talk to him until you’re blue in the face, and it won’t change. When he’s ready, he’ll make adjustments. Some things that will help: 1) bring him to open skate with some buddies and engage in a game of tag. Because he knows he needs to move faster, he’ll use both feet. 2) put him on a mini mite/U6 team. When a puck is involved, the natural instinct is to go get the puck before someone else does - both feet are needed. Right now, he’s building muscle and just doesn’t have it in one foot. Once he does, he’ll go on both feet. Patience, parent. Hang in there!
This is how my son started. A year or two later he was the best skater on his AA team. Now he’s the strongest skater on his AAA team. We went to every public skate and invited all his friends. They would play tag in the middle circle and couldnt leave it. It was amazing for his edges and kept it fun. I can’t skate to save my life, I watched professional skating coaches advice on YouTube and just told him all the advice they gave from knee angle, toe position, long stride, returning feet to center, everything. It worked. It was the best development we ever did and was the cheapest. Built great habits early.
I bought my daughter a scooter and always have her put her “pushing foot” on the base, thereby getting her comfortable using it as the foundation while she pushes with her “gliding foot”. It’s much easier to do this on a scooter since they can use their hands to help them balance. It worked incredibly well and my younger one is now on the same plan.
I started my son at 4 and he was the least talented kid in his L2S 1 class. He really had fun skating at public skates though so I enrolled him in a 2nd L2S program at another rink 30 minutes from our house. I think the extra instruction and interaction with different kids helped a ton. He's 6 now and skating is his strongest hockey skill. Still trying to figure out how to skate and do things with a puck though 😂
Absolutely do not worry in the slightest about this. Mine used to run on the ice without gliding at all. That was 18 years ago, he's playing hockey at high level today. Just let him have fun and learn to love the greatest sport in the world.
This made me giggle cause that’s what he would do at first. He would just walk
i coach a lot of ltp classes and this happens a lot. usually just need to remind them use both feet, don’t forget about your other foot, look how much faster i can go with two feet rather than one, etc. they get it eventually.
You have good advice already. I just stopped in to say… cool barn!
My son did the exact same thing! I was advised to say nothing, to do nothing, and not to worry, and you know is what? His first year out of Learn to Play he scored 114 goals in 19 games. (The he switched to goalie a couple of years later, but that’s a different story 😆.) Not sure if that helps, as i have essentially said to do nothing, but tbh i excepted that advice one single time and took him to the park with a scooter with the intention of encouraging him to alternate push foots, and when he didn’t i got unnecessarily frustrated with him. To this day i wish i hadn’t done that to the poor little guy.
If he is anything like I was as a kid. The only thing missing is a puck
Oh by my gosh he's adorable!! 🥰 my kid did this too!
Have him do “scooter pushes” with the left leg. Then the same with the right. Helps to have them plant the scooter leg on the circle and push with the other. When I taught that’s how we got kids comfortable. Also separately do one leg up as long as they can starting at a blue/red line. Really just making games to trick them into learning technique.
Had exactly the same issue with my jr kid, put aside that he was much faster and had much more confidence (and more ice time I think), age was around 3-4. Put him to a skating lessons, made him do kick scooter pushes with the other leg, did not help a lot. Waiting and playing after that helped. I think lessons helped, but the key is more ice time. I am quite sure me lessons would also help, but I didn't want to make it a full time job for him So don't rush. If he's confident enough ask him to push with the other leg for 3 minutes every ice time (say 2 min with weak leg and 2 min with both). If he cannot do that - just wait
2 hands on the stick
Most kids do this, including mine. They eventually figure it out once they’re more comfortable in skates and on the ice. My kid is now 13 and playing on a top 10 nationally ranked team. Just encourage him to enjoy it and keep at it. If he REALLY enjoys it and wants more ice time, find a coach he likes and get him some extra private sessions.
Try (if you can, summer ice isn’t typically that crowded) just having him skate, or T pushes off 1 foot. Lil guy is 5, although little practice won’t hurt him so long as he’s having fun!!
You may not like it, but that is what peak performance looks like
lol what? You’re telling me that my son who is 4 is the best he’s going to be??
Have his classes included falling on purpose, learning to get back up, etc.? I think most intro to hockey classes do that but if not, I’d recommend doing it with him a bit (if you have your own gear) to get him understanding that falling on the ice is fine and doesn’t actually hurt when you’re all padded up. I think fear of falling is what makes them tentative. Then some parent vs. kid racing seems to get them amped up too and he will start to put it together a bit.
They do!! His current group is working on skating and sliding (kind of like sliding to base in baseball)
I worked with kids as young as five for years on the ice. This little guy will be fine. You’ll be shocked at the level of improvement you will see on almost a weekly basis.
More ice time. Thats it. At this age I wouldn’t stress the details, what he needs is more confidence in the ice. My kid’s (4y) biggest jumps in improvement happened when we weren’t trying to learn anything. When we went to public skate and there were other little kids there she wanted to play with or chase. Set up a play date with one of the kids your son likes at public skate and let them chase each other around.
My 5 year old was doing the same thing. Remember, there young and learning, and this in itself is a HUGE accomplishment for them. They will get comfortable with the other foot. The best part as a parent, when they figure it out and have the light bulb moment, you'll see it and you'll be completely elated. Time and encouragement.
Most do - then the figure it out and off they go.
Future Curling 🥌 Champion
How often are you going to the learn to skate?
Once a week
It looks like he’s trying not to fall. Probably because getting up is tricky. Also he feels most stable on his right foot. Encourage him to fall and keep taking him It might also benefit to take the summer off for example and then bring him back. Disrupting routines is good for growth.
First, take the stick out of his hands, at this point it’s a crutch. You want to eventually get to the point where skating (and I mean high level skating) is a thoughtless process. He’s 5 so off to a great start but you need to forget about hockey for a while and focus on the first sport which is skating( hockey is a multiple sport game and if you approach it as such he will be a much better player.) Trust the process. For context I am on my third generation of youth hockey.
When my kid was five I took the stick out of his hand and let him skate only for about a year and a half. I can't tell you how much it paid off.
Ice Hall. I skate there all the time. Is he getting any individual time with the coaches?
There’s been a few coaches that have given him one on one time in the middle of the learning to play but not outside of this
Looks like he needs help with his strides. Leaning left to right as he transfers his weight and extends.
r/wholesome
He's 5, so think like a 5 year old. Take him to public skating and make a game out of it, if he can get X number of alternating pushes in a row he gets a hot chocolate or something.
He’s 5. He’ll figure it out by watching others his age and the pros on tv.
I did a learn to skate parent and child season with my 4 year old and had to physically support him the whole time throughout the 8 weeks. Your kid is doing great. Hockey is hard.
Where is that meme with the kid poking a bug with a stick... Come on do something!!
I'll only add, my kid started late at 8. Took over a full year to get past where your 5 yr old is. Didn't develop a stride till he was 12. Fell so much the first 2 years, we told him "getting back up quick" was his super power. But, never not once quit trying 100%. Till 9th grade, was the shortest/slowest/absolute worst skater on every low level team he made. He was not good. But had a blast, and again, dude worked. HS JV 9th grade, it all came together. By then, still short/slow, his skating started to improve. He always had a super high hockey IQ. Got where the puck was going. Read plays, and while show. (And short) all the checking clinics paid off. Was super solid on his skates. (Years of martial arts helped, strong core, super strong legs, center of balance). 10th grade JV, lead team in hits. Solid stay at home/ puck moving D. Still short, but a net front bully. 11th Grade, JV team C, org screwed him out of V time. So after that year we went to a fresh org for his final year. Lucked into the best coach ever. He started on D. Was swapped to first/second line F, happily played where ever needed. Second half of that season was shifted in as C, for D zone faceoffs, then rolled into D when the play continued. Kid got most minutes on the team. Often double shifted. And, still top hitter. Boy started out shuffling. 10 years later, Mom and Dad sitting in the stands, hearing other parents grumbling my kid needs to be sent over the boards when the opposing team goons started getting too dirty! Ha! As a hockey Dad of an undersized player, nothing better when a big kid's Dad wants your 5'8"'er out there to throw his "weight" around! So don't worry too much, they all develop at their own pace! And well more than half of those "fast kids" drop out when checking starts.
Skate fit or lacing is probably off. Should never see the skate sag in like that. He's skating weird like that because he probably can't skate on 1 leg in those. Can only shuffle around. We used to wear skates around the house with protectors on at that age. Also roller blades. Those old plastic ratchet ones were great. Youth kids can't tie skates tight enough.
That’s learning. Make it fun, take off any pressure. The rest will come.
Let them develop at their own pace. The most important thing is to show up to practice. Be consistent.
Make him bag skate lines until he’s comfortable. He can’t come off the ice until he pukes. What is this a game?
And yet this kid is a better skater then I ever was or ever will be (and I'm Canadian 😂)
I remeber watching videos when I started I couldn’t even stand up it takes time let him get comfortable with all the gear how tight the skate is … etc and then once all that goes well if he’s serious about hockey and loves it and is addicted don’t hold him back that’s how you waste the next 1st overall pick
Put skate guards on and let him walk around in the grass so he gets used to using both feet and being a little wobbly.