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When a player is skating on a treadmill, they are simply striding to keep up with the speed of the treadmill. It seems to me that they are not producing the kind of power that will have great carryover to the ice. When a player skates on ice, they are forced to use the mechanics of their stride to propel not only their own bodyweight around the rink, but also the additional 10-15lbs of equipment that is being worn. Anyone who has ever run on a treadmill can attest to the fact that it is far easier to run at a higher intensity for a longer duration than when being compared to running outside. Far more musculature is being recruited when running outside, hands down. So what is the point of training on skating treadmill, when it does not give you as hard of workout?

Yes it is easier to skate as per running on a running mill but he misses a few key points. As with a running treadmill which can be used to edge a runners speed up and increase muscle recruitment and response to do so, this can be done on a skating treadmill. Speed is a critical factor in hockey; you can use the Blade for speed training. And the faster a skater goes the greater breakdown occurs in technique, so the Blade allows for correction in a controlled environment. Second, many kids in power skating schools do not continuously skate for 2 minutes but glide. You cannot glide when you run on a treadmill......as per the skate mill, it requires constant skating so the conditioning factor is far superior and the correlation between a running treadmill and skating and muscle recruitment is single minded.