How to REALLY Tie Hockey Skates

Actually, this topic should have been one of the very first ones addressed here.  After all, isn’t skate tying part of the foundation for all a hockey player will do once he or she hits the ice?  Thankfully, though, a member recently mentioned his bout with “lace bite”, which caused me to put the following together — for him and for all my other CoachChic.com friends…

Now, we have to begin with a premise (or two) here.  I mean, the greatest skate tying job in the world isn’t going to help a player if his or her skate boots aren’t 1) of good quality and 2) properly fit.  Those things assured, the boots should support a player through the rigors of hockey movements, even with a poorly done lacing.

And that last point is important to keep in mind as we go about tying the skates.  In other words, a quality boot that fits right is already somewhat supporting the feet…

1. So, understand that there is absolutely no need to pull the laces very tightly in the lower to middle eyelet areas.  Worse yet, to tie the laces extra tightly over the arch area of the foot is going to put pressure on the arch, and it’s also likely to cut-off blood flow (since this area contains blood vessels that supply the lower portion of the foot).  My advice then is to tie the lower and mid-eyelets as you would dress shoes or sneakers.
2. The real “support” in a skate boot stems from the leather (or more likely the modern day synthetic materials) that surround the ankle.  And it’s the top three or four eyelets that — when pulled pretty tightly — will draw the skate boot snugly around the ankle.  (The number of holes involved in this can vary, but it is usually in the ball park of three or four eyelets.)

Now, as one of my favorite cartoon characters might say, “That’s it, folks…”  Because there’s no real supportive impact in the lower to middle holes, and because there’s a danger of causing great pain by tying those areas too tightly, the laces down below should be left relatively loose.  And, because the top eyelets are the ones that affect support, these are the only ones that should be pulled snugly.

Then, a few more tips…

After years of video analysis, I can spot from the far end of the rink a player with excess tape or laces wrapped around his or her ankles.  There’s something unnatural — or rather robotic — to his or her movement, because the ability to really flex or snap the ankle is lost from being so encumbered.  (In a way, they’ve pretty much removed the ankle joint from the skating motion.)

Like the premise that skates should be of good quality and fit properly, it just makes sense that spending $2 for the right length laces is also worthwhile.  And, although there’s nothing wrong with using a light wrap of tape to just keep the lace-bow in place, excess tape should not be used in an attempt to gain extra support (hey, good boots and the right lacing take care of that).

Now, I’m always fearful of sharing this last tip, mainly because I don’t want the parents of younger, weaker skaters rushing things (let them first learn to skate and let them develop some foot strength).  However — and this might help that skate bite victim…  A lot of years ago, a pretty stylish skating pro player suggested I try not using the very top eyelets in my skates.  (He was talking about stopping short at the next to last hole on each boot.)  As he said (and it’s the very opposite of what those who bind their ankles with tape or laces achieve), “It really helps to get more flex at the end of each thrust!”  I tried it, I liked it, and I’ve stuck with it ever since. I’m not necessarily advising this, but I am leaving up to advance level players to test it for themselves.