Mile-long skate

Mile-long skate
Purpose: This classic conditioning drill will whip players into shape.

Move the nets up to the hashmarks
Split players into two groups at opposite ends in opposite corners
On the whistle group 1 (at right) takes off and skates around the net and stops at the blueline (a)
Group 1 returns to the starting point, skating hard the whole way
As soon as group 1 gets back to the goal-line, group 2 leaves and skates around the net to the near blueline (A)
Group 2 returns to the goal-line, skating hard the whole way
As soon as 2 returns, 1 leaves again, heading to the red line (b)
This continues with one group skating as the other rests until group 1 gets through the markings a, b, c, and d
Group 2 will also go through A, B, C, and D on the other side
Be sure to do this drill at the end of practice, because it's designed to tire the players out
Move the nets up slightly as the drill goes on to avoid destroying the ice as the players skate around the nets (and to give the players a slight break).