Repeat Ice-skating Sprints In Relation To Off-Ice Tests

Abstract

The validity of the Wingate test on an ergocycle for assessing anaerobic power in elite hockey players has been questioned and, contrary to the aerobic aptitude, there is a lack of normative standards for elite hockey players despite the existence of on-ice anaerobic tests. As well, off-ice testing, such as the NHL draft Combine, appears to offer little value as an indicator of ice hockey performance. Thus, a thorough specific assessment of both aerobic (determinant of muscle endurance) and anaerobic (determinant of muscle power) capacity is important for an accurate player's fitness level. PURPOSE: To determine the relationship between repeated maximum ice-skating speed trials to off-ice power tests. METHODS: A total of 29 NHL players were evaluated (age: 28±4.9 yrs; height: 186±5.4 cm; weight: 92±6.4 kg, all values are expressed as mean±SD). The Sargeant Anaerobic Skate (SAS40) test was used to assess anaerobic power. The SAS40 consisted of having the player skate, accelerating from a dead stop, to maximum speed over a 40 m distance. The SAS40 was performed 3 times with 15 sec recovery period between bouts. All runs were videotaped and the time at every 5 m was calculated from the start (0 m) to the end of the course (40 m). Off ice tests consisted of standing broad jump and vertical jump (right and left). RESULTS: The best time to complete 40 m was 5.50±0.18 sec. The broad jump distance, and both right and left vertical heights were 104.35±6.56, 24.89±3.03 and 25.86±3.31 inches, respectively. The broad jump and only the left vertical jump were both significantly correlated negatively with the best time to complete 40 m (r2 = -0.57, p<.001 and r2 = -0.39, p<.006). The peak speed for trials 1, 2 and 3 were 9.61±0.46, 9.46±0.44, and 9.18±0.45 m*s1, respectively. The peak speed of trial 3 was significantly lower (p<.001) than trials 1 and 2 that were not significantly different. The broad jump was significantly correlated with the peak speed of trials 1 and 2 (r2 = 0.28, p<.009 and 0.19, p<.04, respectively), but neither the right or left vertical jump was related to peak speed. CONCLUSIONS: The on-ice performance was explained poorly by the broad jump and the left vertical jump variance (r2=-0.57 and -0.39, respectively). Thus, off-ice tests can not replace on-ice tests to predict skating performance.