There is nothing worse than a feeling of a foot cramp or a huge blister coming on during the game which forces you to get off the ice.
Finding the most comfortable hockey skates can be easier than you think, and it will help you avoid getting blisters and foot cramps mid-game.
A comfortable and functional skate comes with great padding, a reliable boot, and an appropriate outsole.
Since you will be on the ice for hours, you need a comfortable skate that gives you the best speed and performance possible.
To be effective on the ice and keep your head in the game, you need to keep your feet cozy and dry and this is made possible by a hockey skate that comes with comfortable features.
This article will break down the most comfortable hockey skates that can be used by skaters with different skill levels including their performance and design features.
Additionally, there is a detailed buying guide to help you choose the best hockey skate that is comfortable.
Our top choice for the most comfortable hockey skates that can be used for beginners as well as experienced skaters is the Bauer Supreme M4 Ice Hockey skate. This is because it is designed with great features that provide a good balance of performance, fit, and comfort such as a memory foam footbed, Felt tongue, LS+ runner, and composite boot.
Another great choice for a comfortable hockey skate that provides you with great performance is the CCM Ribcor 100k Ice Hockey skate. It is designed to improve your agility on the ice, and your performance, as well as increase your range of motion. With this skate, you can make sharp turns and move deeper in your strides easily.
If you are a player that skates weekly and looking for a budget-friendly hockey skate that comes with good performance and comfort, the Bauer Vapor X3.7 is for you. It comes with features that prevent rubbing and offer superior flexibility and support as well as an excellent feel and support.
6 Most Comfortable Hockey Skates (2022)
When looking for a hockey skate, comfort is an important factor to consider in ensuring that your performance on the ice is not affected or your feet are not injured.
Comfortable hockey skates should have padded interiors, foam liners, and flexible boots.
Always ensure that your hockey skate fits comfortably and perfectly, regardless of your foot size.
Size plays a key role in ensuring that your skate is comfortable, therefore, when shopping for a skate ensure that it is the right size for your feet.
Skates that are too tight can make your feet become sore and even have blisters while those that are too big can make you fall while skating. The following are the 6 best hockey skates that are comfortable:
1. Bauer Supreme M4 Ice Hockey Skates
Most Comfortable Hockey Skates (Editor’s Choice)
Design
If you skate two to three times a week and looking for a good balance of performance, fit, and comfort, the Bauer Supreme M4 is the best hockey skate for you.
It features an LS+ runner, symmetrical flex facing, form fit+ footbed, and felt tongue. These features ensure that you have a great performance on the ice while still feeling comfortable.
Performance
Bauer has been working on the features of its skates from the on-ice feel and performance perspective.
To differentiate the Supreme Models from the Vapor Models, Bauer uses new materials, new technologies, and flex points that are different.
Since the Supreme model focuses on power, the lower part of these skates is stiffer for improved energy transfer, and the upper part is softer for enhanced mobility.
The exposed metatarsal guard and felt tongue provide extra protection and comfort in the key parts of your feet.
The composite 3D flex boot gives you thermoforming capabilities and great support while the outsole that is made with Digi composite ensures that the lower stiffness of the skate is maintained for generating power for each stride on the ice.
Inside the skate is the microfiber liner that is made of Aerofoam and is hydrophobic to ensure that your ankle is comfortable. the footbed comes with a Fit+ technology that keeps your feet in place while skating.
The Bauer Supreme M4 features great performance and protection designs and comes at a great value.
Pros
- Great value for money.
- Improved mobility.
- Protects your ankles.
- Provide a comfortable fit.
- Great power transfer.
2. CCM Ribcor 100K Hockey Skates
High Performance
Design
The CCM Ribcor 100K Ice Hockey skate is specifically designed to offer you maximum agility on the ice.
The one-piece boot flex technology that CCM uses in the construction of this skate ensures that you have maximum performance and an increased range of motion.
The Flex tongue comes with a flexible tendon guard to give you the ability to maneuver strides and sharp turns easily as well as have a good feeling on the ice.
Performance
For pure performance and improved agility, this skate features a one-piece boot technology that helps skaters get a direct transfer of energy and a closer fit for faster strides.
The boot provides excellent forward flexion for skaters to have stability and generate power, thus increasing their agility on the ice.
To ensure that the skate has a superior edge hardness and a phenomenal glide, it features high-quality steel and carbon-coated technology.
The increased height of the blade enables the skater to dig into the ice with great control and confidence.
The tongue is designed with a new Flex technology that helps skaters in increasing their forward flexion.
The tongue also has a ribbed design to enable the player to have deeper strides as well as provide protection against lace bites.
The RFM composite is flexible and lightweight to give improved biomechanics and a good fit for every stride.
The comfort liner has moisture-wicking and high-performance properties to keep your feet dry and the skate light throughout the game.
The liner is also combined using a seamless assembly which makes the skate comfortable.
For improved comfort and customized fit, the skate comes with added memory foam pads to wrap around your foot.
Pros
- Customized fit.
- Improved biomechanics.
- Offers lace bite protection.
- Keeps the feet dry.
Cons
- Slightly higher on the price point.
3. Bauer Vapor X3.7 Ice Hockey Skates
Budget-Friendly
Design
If you are looking to save some money but still get a skate that gives you great performance and comfort, the Bauer Vapor X3.7 is for you.
This skate is 4% lighter and features a soft microfiber liner, foam ankle padding, and a foam footbed to give you flexibility, a comfortable feel, and maximum support.
Performance
Bauer makes use of digital printing capabilities to show the visual richness of the Vapor X3.7 as it puts the value of graphic appeal and comfort first.
To ensure that this skate is 4% lighter compared to other models, Bauer uses a 3D composite in the construction of the boot.
The interior of the boot is constructed with a combination of microfiber liner and foam padding to ensure that your ankle area is wrapped comfortably and that you have extra support when skating on the ice.
The bottom of the boot features a footbed that gives you a good feeling and support during the game.
The liner on the upper part of the skate and the tongue make sure that you have the flexibility and extra comfort on the ice. To ensure that the blade is long-lasting, the Vapor X3.7 comes with an LS1 runner and Lightspeed holder.
You can choose a high-end hockey skate if you are looking to improve your performance, but you will still get the flexibility and comfort that you need from the Bauer Vapor X3.7 as it comes with quality features.
Pros
- Easy to change blades.
- Durable and lightweight.
- Affordable.
- Great support and stability.
Cons
- Not Suitable for daily skating.
4. True TF9 Ice Hockey Skates
Design
This is one of the best comfortable skates that you can get which features the best-in-class designs that are good in increasing the overall comfort.
It has a personalized fit system that integrates the insole of the boot for players with various arch heights. It is ultra-light and keeps your energy where they need to be.
The skate also has an anatomical tongue that has a t-guard insert. The contoured and stiff design will give you a lightweight tongue and the t-guard ensures that the tongue has an anatomical fit for increased comfort.
Performance
The TF9 uses an antimicrobial, moisture-wicking liner made from HydroFoam. The liner increases the overall comfort level and helps keep the water away from the feet.
The TF9 skate work with all the arches low, medium, and high. To meet the needs of your feet, you can adjust the insert placement to get the perfect amount of support.
It also offers a shift holder which is a new feature that uses the BenchChange technology to swap your blades easily.
The skate is also thermoformable, hence can be baked before wearing to mold them around your feet. This will help in reducing the break-in period to get your skate to a perfect comfort level for your needs.
Pros
- Liner for increased comfort.
- Personalized fit system
- Ultra-lightweight
- For elite performance
Cons
- The liner can make the feet warmer.
5. Bauer Vapor Hyperlite Hockey Skates
Design
This hockey skate is designed for experienced players who skate about five times a week and are looking for a high-performing and lightweight skate to get their best when playing.
The new Bauer Vapor Hyperlite gives you the ability to select which runner you want to purchase with your skate. The choice is between Pulse, Pulse TI, and Carbonlite.
The Carbonlite runners have ultralightweight carbon fiber and increased torsional flex for more power and acceleration in every stride.
The Pulse TI has a titanium outer coating ultra-premium core and increased height for better edge retention and performance.
The Pulse runners have an increased height, high polished mirror finish, and premium core materials for better ice gliding and great durability and performance.
Performance
The new feature found in the Vapor Hyperlite skate is the Hyperflex Technology which is a combination of outsole and Facing Technology that improves the overall flex profile.
Hyperflex Facing technology includes integrated flex zones that are built into the top four eyelets that help to increase the skat wrap for enhanced stability.
This allows the players to get on the balls of their feet efficiently and quickly while maximizing the transition zones and acceleration.
The Hyperflex outsole is uniquely constructed and features rigid composite material in the back at the front while the back has a flexible material.
The composite material is rigid allowing players to maximize their energy transfer during acceleration time.
The Vapor Hyperlite also has Aerolite which is a unique foam material found in the tongue and reduces skate weight and maintains comfort.
This foam helps in reducing the skate’s excess weight and maintaining excellent protection, flexibility, and support,
It also has the asymmetrical toe cap designed to reduce the skate volume for an improved low-profile fit and allow one to improve the push-off with each stride.
Internally it has the Aerofoam Pro for optimal foot comfort and ankle and gets a lighter appealing skate.
The TUUK Lightspeed Edge Holder with the options of one of the three Runners helps in getting a maximum custom feel.
All the Vapor Hyperlite new features offer a combination of trusted features and new technologies while providing players with a pair of lightweight and flexible skates that help in improving flexibility and agility in every stride.
Pros
- Improved overall fit.
- Maximum agility and quickness.
- The tongue removes excess skate weight.
6. CCM Tacks AS-V Pro Ice Hockey Skates
Design
This skate features the exclusive one-piece boot power technology and provides superior energy transfer as well as a closer fit.
It has the new technology and excellent performance features benefits for the player skating about 5 times a week and needs the experienced features of the high-end skate.
The CCM Tacks AS-v Pro skate is an all-new skate with the ability to choose the runner you would like to buy your skate with.
The runners include Step V-steel, Step steel, and Step Blacksteel. The Step Blacksteel Runners are coated with a carbon nanoparticle layer to create a fine hard edge.
This maximizes the skating speed and requires less energy to move on the ice.
The Step V-steel runners are polished to obtain a mirror image to get a sharper edge and reduced resistance while on the ice.
You use less energy with optimal glides to get more precise turns. The Step Steel runner has high-grade steel and a high polish finish.
Their high precision raised profile gives hockey players a better turning radius, a longer-lasting sharpening life, and superior glide.
Performance
The CCM Tacks Line provides a tapered, wide, and regular fit depending on the foot. This allows for a closer fit, customized feel, and faster strides.
The Tacks AS-V Pro is built with highly advanced one-piece boot power technology. It has a lightweight RFM composite that has a high-end carbon material engineered for the modern power skater.
The carbon composite wraps under the boot hence no energy is absorbed or lost by the outsole and instead gets transferred directly through the boot to the ice.
The skate also has the Metatomic Tongue with D30 foam that takes protection and comfort to an all-new level. This tongue is 7mm with asymmetrical flex points to wrap better and foam inserts to prevent pucks and slashes.
Its features are unmatched custom feel because of making the tongues interchangeable hence you can switch to various tongue inserts to get maximum protection and feel.
There is also the use of Powerflex Tendon with carbon which help improve the range of motion for increased skating power and fuller strides.
It also has the memory foam ankle padding and polygiene liner that helps the skater to resist abrasions and wick away unvented moisture.
The liner locks the feet and has a tacky feel with high moisture conditions.
CCM’s Ortholie Ultralite footbed has a heel grip saving weight and making the skate lighter.
This will also allow the foot to stay locked and add comfort to the foot bottom. It also releases moisture keeping the feet drier.
The Speedblade XS holder in this skate along with the spring-lock system provides a positive lock mechanism that secures the blade tightly to the holder and makes the blade swapping efficient.
These new features that have been poured on the AS-V pro skate focus on explosiveness and power.
Pros
- Powerful strides.
- Provides moisture-wicking comfort.
- Lightweight for enhancing energy transfer.
Things To Consider When Looking For Comfortable Hockey Skates
Skate Sizing And Width
If you want to be very comfortable while skating, your skates have to fit your feet. When your hockey skates are well-fitting, they will not have any gaps in the heels and can fit snugly on your feet.
Your feet should wiggle when you have laced up the skate.
The skates should also not be too tight because if they are squeezing your feet or being too narrow, they cannot be comfortable.
It is good to follow size guides closely. The reason why it is not recommended to use your regular shoe size is that most players do not wear the correct shoe size.
Padding
The skate’s padding means different things. Skates should have reliable padding under the tongue to protect the top of the foot from the lace bite.
The ankles need to have some padding to give the right amount of protection. Therefore, you will find that some skates have enough padding along the liner as well which is a great feature if you like to skate without socks.
Boot And Outsole
Your skates’ boots should not only fit, but it also needs to be the right boot for your skating needs. If you are an entry-level skater, you need a pair of skates that provide enough stability for your safety ad cannot be overly stiff as well.
This is because if they are too stiff you cannot maneuver well. For experienced hockey skaters, the stiffer the boot the better.
The skate’s outsole is the bottom of your boot. This is the part that the blade holder attaches. You need to have a durable outsole in a comfortable skate.
The outsole is often vented and has a quick release for any sweat or liquid that builds up at the bottom of the boot. The outsole is rigid because it needs to transfer the power from the legs to the blade.
Get Your Hockey Skates Baked
The best way to reduce the break-in time is by getting your skate baked. Baking makes the composite material heated up till they are flexible and moldable.
It is recommended to have your skate baked by a professional, but you can also do it at home with care.
When doing it at home, ensure that the skates can be baked and that you have a reliable oven.
Skates need to have the right temperatures to bake them at and follow the instructions thoroughly to get good results.
Final Words
Finding a comfortable hockey skate requires you to take your time in trying a few skates before selecting the right one.
This is because you do not want to spend a lot of money and end up with a skate that is not comfortable.
Comfort is important as it affects your focus and performance in the game. There are other factors that you should consider when buying a hockey skate including boot design, padding, and sizing.
Our top choice for the most comfortable hockey skates that can be used for beginners as well as experienced skaters is the Bauer Supreme M4 Ice Hockey skate.
This is because it is designed with great features that provide a good balance of performance, fit, and comfort such as a memory foam footbed, Felt tongue, LS+ runner, and composite boot.