The mohawk is the move that turns a forward skater into a backward skater in one step. Hips open. Feet point opposite directions for a beat. Then the skater is going backward without losing speed. Defensemen use this to track an offensive player who turned upice.
What you need: Full gear, ice rink.
Setup: Skater at one blue line. Open lane.
How to run it:
- Skater starts forward skating slowly toward center ice.
- At center, opens the back hip and pivots the back foot 180 degrees. Feet are now heel-to-heel for a beat.
- Continues motion now skating backward.
- Backward skate to the other blue line.
- Skate forward back. Do the mohawk again on the other side. 4 reps each direction.
What to watch: The hip rotation. If the hips don’t open fully, the feet tangle. The hip leads, the foot follows.
If they’re struggling: Walk through the footwork on the ice without speed. Just open the hip and turn the foot.
If they’ve got it: Combine with a stop. Mohawk turn into a hockey stop, then explode forward.