As a scout, I am always looking for talented players who stick out amongst the crowd of good players out there. The one skill that I notice in most good hockey players is something that I have been teaching for the past thirty-five years: Knee Bend! When scouting players or evaluating players at tryouts, the first thing I look at in their skating is their knee bend. Without proper knee bend (almost to a 90 degree angle), the player will not have a long stride, deep edges, a strong base, efficiency in their skating, balance, powerful strides and crossovers, or sharp turns. If you look at your most explosive NHL players such as McDavid, Crosby, and Ovechkin, they all have great knee bend. The other physical attribute that they all have in common is massive legs and quadriceps. In order for your lower body to be able to hold your upper body in a “sit down” position while performing various skating skills, one must have very strong legs. Hockey players have to put in the work in the gym to get their legs strong enough to have proper knee bend. Players must do their squats, lunges, hockey lunges, deadlifts (for core and hamstrings), wall-sits, and other various exercises to strengthen their legs. Don’t forget to concentrate on one-legged squats and leg exercises as well, as hockey is a one legged sport. You are only pushing one leg at a time, so do the majority of your exercises one leg at a time. Build up your legs to be a lower hockey player by having deeper knee bend and you will not only see your game improve, but you may also get noticed by a scout! Treat every game like a tryout, as you never know who will be in the stands watching you. 
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