How to Properly Fit Hockey Skates - Hockey Skate Fitting Guide - New To Hockey (2024)

FAQs

How do you fit new hockey skates? ›

Hockey skates should be snug, but not uncomfortably tight. When unlaced, your toes should just barely touch the toe cap. When standing in your skates with them fully laced, you want your heel snug in the heel pocket, so your toes have a bit of space at the end.

A proper fit for hockey skates should fit 1-1.5 sizes smaller than your street shoes. Your toes should barely touch the toe cap, while having no more than 1/4 inch of space in the heel. When you're finished lacing up your skates, they should feel snug with the foot resting flat on the footbed.

If you've never shopped for a pair before, you might start out wondering, "What size ice skates should I buy?" As a general rule, you want to get a skate that is 1 to 1½ sizes smaller than your shoe size.

Check the heel

If you can easily put a pen into the back of the boot by your heel, the skates are too big. If you can't insert the pen at all, they're too small. The pen should fit snugly.

Hockey skates should fit tight—but how tight? For youth sizes, you should be able to place one finger between the inside of the boot and the heel of the foot. This is simply to allow some room for growth over the course of the season. Adult skates are made to mold to the foot, so this extra space is not necessary.

When you buy a new pair of skates they come with a factory grind on the steel. It is recommended that you get them profiled before skating in them. The most common profiles are 7 foot 9 foot 11 foot and 13 foot. Most players go with a 9 foot radius, but there are many options to consider.

It's normal to have your little toe and the fourth toe close to the edge of the insole or completely off the edge. Signs your skates are not the right fit include very little space at the toe, zero space at the toe and having your toes hang over the front edge, and the third toe hanging off the side of the insole.

Tip #1: Hockey skate sizes are approximately 1 to 1.5 sizes smaller than your shoe size for men and 2.5 - 3 sizes smaller for women.

Skates Are Just Right If: They feel snug and your foot is held securely. While standing, you can stretch your toe inside the boot and barely touch the end.

Generally speaking, the golden rule for proper skate fit no matter the brand or kind of skate is as snug as possible without being painful or uncomfortable, with the ability to still wiggle the toes up and down.

How do you break in new skates? ›

Heat and Bake

One of the most popular in-store adjustments involves using heat. If they prefer not to do it at the store, some people use a hair dryer, which can be applied to the boot of the skate for 2-3 minutes before trying the skate on to mold it to their foot.

Players that experience foot pain, "hot spots," or other general discomfort may be suffering from lace bite, a common injury caused by hockey skates. Learn the best way to lace and tie your skates to avoid this problem.

In addition to causing a width issue, as discussed above, skates that are too long can also result in these sort of problems: When too much growth room is given length-wise, in addition to sliding to the inside of the boot, the foot will also slip forward and back, making it difficult for the skater to balance.

All skates, regardless of if they are entry level or pro level, should have some level of stiffness to them. You do not want the boot to bend or change shape much while skating. If the boot feels “flexible,” then it might be time for a new pair.

LOOSEN THE WHEELS

The looser the wheel, the faster it spins. Skater Tip: Your wheels should not be loose enough to move up and down on your truck screw; if you hear a noise, they're too loose!

When you first skate in your new skates, yes, it is normal for there to be a little discomfort. It is normal to get the odd blister, or a bit of a pain. This discomfort should only affect you the first few times you use your skates. This is the normal process of breaking in a new pair of skates.

The toe area and the area high above the ankles should be tied so they are moderately snug or even on the loose side. The tightest area of lacing should be from a point above the ball of the foot back to a point just above the ankle bone i.e. the top 2 or 3 eyelets. This is where the most support is required.

The first time you step on the ice in your new skates, plan to skate in them for only 30-60 minutes. If your skater is a little one, you might even want to take it in 15-minute increments.

One of the first NHL teams to be using the flat bottom v skate sharpening method was the St. Louis blues, now over 20 NHL teams are using this method, quite a bold statement for a technique that just took off at the beginning of the year!

For most people it will take about 12 hours to break in a pair of skates over the course of roughly a month. Start out with shorter skate adventures and build up to longer skate adventures.

Should you buy skates a size bigger? ›

The short answer to this question is that most skates run in US mens shoe sizes and that you more often than not want to size down. Unless plainly stated otherwise, it is generally safe to assume this.

With bigger wheels, you can skate faster, but you will have less stability. They are better suited for trained athletes or more experienced inline skaters, and generally not recommended for beginners.

The general rule of thumb when sizing Bauer ice hockey skates is to go down 1.5 sizes from your shoes. For example, if you wear a size 10 shoe, it is best to start out with an 8.5 size hockey skate. For junior and youth size skates, you will want to go down just one size from your shoe size.

Bauer Fit 3

Players looking for volume, with a deep heel pocket, a taller instep and a wider width will find the Fit 3 to be the way to go. Now skaters can get a full volume fit in Bauer Supreme Fit 3 Skates: Ultrasonic, 3S Pro, and 3S models, as well as the Bauer Vapor Fit 3 Skates: 2X Pro, 2X and X2.

Lean Forward. Your instinct will be to lean back to keep from falling, but this is the opposite of what you want to do. Leaning forward will give you more control and better balance.

If you sit back down and kick your heel back as far as it can go, your toe should be separated from the toe cap and be able to wiggle freely without touching the boot of the skate.

Players should aim for less than 1/4" of space between the longest toe and the end of the footbed. Any more space than that will cause the foot to slide around in the boot, resulting in bad skating technique.

Inline skates are more commonly known as rollerblades, and have a single row of wheels down the middle of the skate. The arrangement of the wheels on quad skates gives them more stability, making them good for beginners who struggle with balance.

The strength of my legs can often be noticed in my skating. With increased leg strength, a player can feel his or her edges cut the ice and become a better skater. With improved leg strength, a skater will exhibit more speed and explosive starting power on the ice.

As a rule of thumb, you should start feeling more comfortable by skate number 5 or 6. Oh – and in the meantime, don't be tempted to skate competitively – like a game isn't physical enough without painful feet!

How do you stretch new skates? ›

Wear them! This is a cheap and easy way if you don't have the money to buy or make a stretch machine: Find a 15 or 25 pound weight and place them right on the skate arch for about three days. Or take the laces out and put the whole weight right on top of the skate long-way. Skate a lot!

Breaking in Your Skates off the Ice

Lace them up as you normally would and then walk around the house. You can also leave them on while watching television or reading, which can help the leather shape to your foot. While wearing the skates around the house, loosen and then re-lace the skates at least twice.

So focus when you are skating on your “weight foot print” and make sure the front half of your skate has way MORE weight than the back half. You will know when you have done this when your feet don't hurt anymore. Reducing your speed will help this, as more speed makes our bodies (and feet) tense even more.

While many types of shoes these days are lace-up-and-go, hockey skates are not among them. But if your new skates can be heat molded, safely baking them before you wear them can significantly shorten the break-in period and make them much more comfortable the first time you step onto the ice.

Some people have relieved their lace bite by first lacing their skates from the outside of the eyelets, then inside. This outside-in technique can help reduce excessive pressure from the shoe's tongue. Tying your skates or shoes slightly less tightly.

Choose thin or thick socks, tall or short—whatever keeps your feet comfortable and makes you feel good in your skates.

Extra sharp skates can slow a player down or make transitions difficult. Sharp skates result in a slower glide because the blades sink into the ice more. Skate blades are too sharp when the hollow (the curve between the inside and outside edges) is too deep.

Wear thin socks, do not wear extra thick socks which you think will keep your feet warm. Thick socks are meant to keep your feet warmer by insulating them with more material. Thick socks actually do the opposite of what you think they will do because of all their extra materials.

When skaters commit to independent practice time their coaches can focus more on teaching new skills and spend less time reinforcing previously learned skills. Recreational figure skaters should aim for at least 3 times per week on the ice, no less than 2. No more than one of these times should be on a public session.

New skates are not sharpened, so you will need to get them sharpened by a trained sharpener, and then re-sharpened every 15-20 hours of ice time – to keep them in tip top condition by removing knicks and deformaties in the metal edge.

How do you break in new skates at home? ›

Heat and Bake

One of the most popular in-store adjustments involves using heat. If they prefer not to do it at the store, some people use a hair dryer, which can be applied to the boot of the skate for 2-3 minutes before trying the skate on to mold it to their foot.

Generally speaking, the golden rule for proper skate fit no matter the brand or kind of skate is as snug as possible without being painful or uncomfortable, with the ability to still wiggle the toes up and down.

Your toes should barely touch the front toe of the hockey skate. The skate is too small if your toes are bunched up or pressed hard against the front of the skate. Try a smaller size if your toe doesn't touch the front of the boot.

Toe stops are useful for total beginners to help climb out of bowls. But once that is not a concern, they really aren't necessary. At this level of being a novice skater, you should be focusing really hard on being completely comfortable with and mastering your pumping and stalling technique.

The long answer? Keep reading! Generally skates should be sharpened every 20-40 skating hours. This depends on a few different factors such as how many times a week a skater is on the ice, which elements the skater is working on, and the build of the skater.

Skating should not be painful. If it is, it's a sign you are doing things wrong.

If you sit back down and kick your heel back as far as it can go, your toe should be separated from the toe cap and be able to wiggle freely without touching the boot of the skate.

Breaking in Skates

Skates are probably the most important piece of hockey gear to break in because they support your weight and help you move on the ice. New skates can not only be uncomfortable, but downright painful, which is why you generally want to break them in before your first game using them.

All skates, regardless of if they are entry level or pro level, should have some level of stiffness to them. You do not want the boot to bend or change shape much while skating. If the boot feels “flexible,” then it might be time for a new pair.