How fast can ice hockey players skate? (and who’s the fastest)

Hockey is one of the fastest games all over the world. Whenever you watch a hockey game you notice that it is becoming faster with every passing day. Sometimes you messed up with the players who change their positions in seconds at high speed. They stand in one place at a time and then in another place on ice after a few seconds. 

How fast can an ice hockey player skate on ice? The fastest hockey players can go to  40km/h or 25.5 mph estimated. These ice hockey players take 13 to 14 seconds to complete a lap around the ice. Some professional ice hockey players might reach the range of 20 to 30 km/h.

As a hockey lover, you must want to know all the important information about fast hockey players in a single article. It is possible if you stay tuned with us till the end.

How fast can an ice hockey player skate?

The fastest hockey player Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers can skate with a speed of 40km if we measure it in kilometers per hour or 25mp per hour. It’s not easy to calculate the speed of a player accurately while playing on the ice. Therefore, we don’t have the exact figures to determine the speed of a hockey player. 

Hockey-Players-Skate

The good news is that NHL is working to solve this problem. NHL decides to attach some computer chips to the sweaters of the players. These chips will measure the speed of the player when they will skate on ice. In this way, we will get a precise measurement of the speed of hockey players.

Related Post: How Long Do Hockey Players Stay On The Ice?

Winner of the fastest skater at the all-star skills competition

A competition held by the NHL to determine the fastest skaters in ice hockey is called the all-star skills competition. During this competition, players skate a round of laps around the ice. When the competition starts NHL notice the time and keeps noticing till the end of the competition.

The player who takes lesser time than the other competitors to complete the laps around will be considered the winner of the competition. The highest speed that the players have achieved in all-star skills is 40km/h.

A table is given below to expose the last 5 years’ winners in the all-star skills competition.

YearPlayersTime 
2022Jordan Kyrou13.55
2020Mathew Barzal13.175
2019Connor McDavid13.378
2018Connor McDavid13.454
2017Connor McDavid13.31
2016Dylan Larkin13.172

2022 World ice hockey championship fastest skating time

NHL never releases reports on the speed of the players to the public. There is an association called International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) Which supervises the world championship as well as Olympic hockey. The IIHF calculated the speed of all the players during the 2022 world ice Championship. Then they expose this record to the public.

A list of top players with high speed in 2022 is given below.

PlayerTeamTime in Seconds
Jordan Kyroust. Louis blues13.55
Adrian KempeLos Angeles Kings13.58
Chris KreiderNew York Rangers13.66
Conor McDavidEdmonton Oilers13.69
Cale MakarColorado Avalanche13.83
kyle ConorWinnipeg Jets13.85
Dylan LarkinDetroit Red Wings14.11
Evgeny KuznetsovWashington Capitals14.55

Related Post: Who Were The Original Six Hockey Teams In The NHL?

Who is the fastest skater in NHL?

As we have discussed the fastest skate competition with the winner of this competition. You might notice that Connor McDavid won 3 competitions in 4 years. In the 4th year, McDavid was in the second position after Mathew Barzal.

Fastest-Skating-Times

This was a complete surprise for Mathew Barzal. He claimed that he never expected this achievement so it was not easy for him to believe that he beat McDavid. This was really a proud moment for him when he beat the great McDavid.

Here Connor McDavid gets 81% votes as the fastest player in the competition. Hence proved that Connor McDavid is the fastest skater in the NHL. Now the question was who is the fastest skater in the NHL in 2022? The answer is Jordan Kyrou is the fastest skater in the year 2022.

Who is the fastest player ever in the NHL?

The Hockey Hall of Fame reported Bobby Hull as the fastest ice hockey player ever in NHL. He played with a maximum speed of 47km/h  or 29.2 mph in the NHL. This is really a high speed compared to the speed of other players. 

NHL named a hockey team in his name, the Winnipeg Jets. Bobby Hull was also known as Golden Jet due to his blonde (golden) hair that he always races with the wind whenever he skates on the ice.

Is Skating Faster than running?

When we compare both skating and running, skating must be faster than running. Approximately skating is two times as fast as running.

Related Post: Why are hockey arenas called gardens?

How fast do speed skates go?

As the name indicates speed skates have high speed. The maximum speed of the skates is 55kp/h or 35mp/h. Speed skates have a specific type of skates to play.

Conclusion: How fast can ice hockey players skate?

In conclusion, ice hockey players are among the fastest skaters in the world of sports. They can reach speeds of up to 30 miles per hour (48 km/h) or more on the ice. The speed of a player depends on many factors, including their stride, technique, and power, as well as the condition of the ice.

The NHL has a yearly event, The All-Star Skills Competition, in which the fastest skater event is held, and the current record is held by Jordan Kyrou from st. Louis blues reached a speed of 13.55/S in 2022. It’s worth noting that while speed is an important aspect of a player’s game, it’s not the only one to be considered when evaluating their performance and role on a team.

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