“Mohawks” or “Heel to Heels” are becoming one of the most commonly used skating techniques in the game today, however, we don’t often think of them as a technique for building speed. It is important that you do not get into too long of a glide while working on this technique, as the “hitting” of the feet on the ice, allows us to be constantly pushing and picking up speed. This concept is also very important, because those “hits” are what is going to be coordinated with the stickhandling in this technique of speed with the puck. When practicing this technique, it is important to remember that you don’t often see a player doing exclusively mohawks and stickhandles all the way down the ice. However, you will very often be forced to do 1 or 2 of them, as you avoid a defender or try to regain your balance. If we are able to coordinate the stickhandles and mohawks such as in this drill, it will allow us to switch back and forth with strides, or crossovers, seamlessly without losing speed or control! Remember, that you can really work to improve this on-ice skill using your rollerblades outside, and then take that practice back to the ice and watch how much quicker you progress!