Power-Focused Playing Style This style suits players who thrive on generation strong, top end speed through longer and forceful strides. They come with a stiffer boot that efficiently transfers energy into the rink for maximum power with every stride.
Acceleration-Focused Playing Style For players who rely on quick bursts of speed and agile movements to dominate the game, this type of skate is ideal. These offer a moderately stiff boot that balances support with mobility. These these skates, you can swiftly change direction, make sudden moves and accelerate rapidly.
Fit Profile
If multiple categories are selected, it indicates the skate is available in or can be molded to different fit profiles.
Low Profile Fit Narrow forefoot, narrow heel pocket, shallow instep depth and low overall volume.
If multiple categories are selected, it indicates the skate is suitable for multiple levels of play.
Recreational-Level Skates Built for the new-to-hockey player or casual skaters that are looking for an affordable option. These are great starter skates, especially for youth players. Shop All Recreational Skates.
Performance-Level Skates Designed for players who are confident in their skating stride and are ready to take their performance to the next level. These players are on the rink 1-2 times a week playing mid-to-high level hockey. Shop All Performance Skates.
Elite-Level Skates Engineered for the best performance, protection, durability and comfort. These players are usually on the rink three times or more a week and are playing high-level hockey. Shop All Elite Skates.
Cut Protection Level
This is the general level of protection against cuts.
Minimum: Basic protection suitable for competitive play
Standard: Balanced protection for intense gameplay.
Protects against more severe cuts.
Maximum: Highest level of cut resistance for elite gameplay.
Ideal for competitive adult hockey and designed for the biggest and fastest players.
ANSI Rated Cut Level
Measures the actual cut resistance of materials based on the ANSI/ISEA 105 standard.
ANSI Level
Description
Grams of Force
N/A
No specific cut resistance rating provided by the manufacturer.
Low-level protection; suitable for competitive play.
1,000-1,499
A4
Standard protection; defends against significant cuts.
1,500-2,199
A5
Elevated protection for intense play.
2,200-2,999
A6
Extra protection for faster, higher-impact play.
3,000-3,999
A7
Ultra-high protection.
4,000-4,999
A8
Premium protection for all levels of play and ages.
5,000-5,999
A9
Top-tier cut resistance for ultimate protection.
6,000+
Certifications
Indicates compliance with safety standards and regulations for hockey gear.
USA Hockey: Approved for play under USA Hockey regulations.
Ensures gear meets safety standards for organized play in the United States.
BNQ: Certified by the Bureau de Normalisation du Quebec for cut-resistant hockey gear.
Required for players in Canadian Minor Hockey leagues to ensure on-ice safety.
CE: Meets European safety standards for protective equipment.
Designed for compliance with regulations across European leagues and recreational play.
The Elite Player Skate Sharpening and Profiling Service is available for select player skates and blades purchased from Ice Warehouse, or you can mail in your blades for sharpening or profiling. At IW, we use Elite Blade Performance Technology machines, renowned for delivering the industry’s best consistency and trusted by numerous NHL equipment managers. The Elite EP-3 Blade Profiler isn't just incredibly precise but features 10+ custom performance profile options that improve your acceleration, agility, speed and stability.
With all of these sharpening hollow and custom profile options, we know it can be overwhelming especially if you're just exploring profiling for the first time. We recommend reading our How to Select the Correct Skate Sharpening and How to Select the Correct Skate Profile articles that will help guide you to the perfect sharpening and profile for you!
Ready to have your skates or blades sharpened or profiled? When purchasing new skates or runners from Ice Warehouse, simply add them to your cart and look for the Elite Skate Sharpening pop-up to select your preferred hollow. When it's time to have them re-sharpened or re-profiled, call us at 800.366.3070 or email info@icewarehouse.com. For $20, you'll receive UPS 2-Day Shipping both ways for up to three sets of steel.
Hockey Skate Sharpening Recommendation Chart
Hollow
Recommendation
Deepest Max Grip Less Glide
↑
↑
↑
↑
↑
↓
↓
↓
↓
↓
Shallowest Max Glide Less Grip.
3/8"
7/16"
1/2"
Junior or Youth
9/16"
5/8"
New Adult
11/16"
3/4"
Skilled Adult
7/8"
1"
Goalie
1 1/8"
1 1/4"
Skate Profile Comparison Chart
Profile
Description
SCS.1 & SCS.2
Ultimate blend of agility, power, and speed with a flat midfoot and rockered heel and toe for balance and control.
Polaris
Top-end speed and stability with the newest Quad profile, delivering excellent stability and speed without sacrificing agility.
Quad.1 & Quad.2
Balanced power and stability with a solid, stable feel and smooth transition zones, similar to the ProSharp Quad Profile.
Triple.1
Aggressive acceleration with an agile front zone and flatter heel, providing a mix of agility, power, and stability, similar to the ProSharp Triple Zuprior Profile.
No brainerWe had 5 pairs of ice skates sharpened at time of order from IW and they all came expertly sharpened. It makes complete sense to get it done with your new skates, the price is good and the skates are ready to go!
Duke - TX, United StatesMay 08, 2026
5 out of 5 Stars
Great sharpening & profiling serviceI purchased a new pair of skates and tried the sharpening and profiling service with the new blades. Very impressed with how well they felt in the ice and love how I can ship my blades to get this done. Nice work!
Anonymous - FL, United StatesApril 13, 2026
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
Profile and sharpeningAbsolutely top notch! My sharpening lasted for several weeks and felt amazing.
Jack - CO, United StatesMarch 13, 2026
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
5 star servicePerfect skates and sharpening.
5 star customer service.
Highly recommend.
Scott - FL, United StatesMarch 04, 2026
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
PolarisLove the Polaris with a 9/15” hollow. I am 52, 6’2", 215 lbs and play 3 times a week. I play defense and I tried Quad 1 but Polaris is what I like, and I could go to to 5/8” hollow.
Anonymous - NM, United StatesJanuary 07, 2026
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
Profiling bladesFirst time profiling, started with quad 1 which better than standard radius but moved to Polaris and love it. I am 52 and play defense and started playing again after 30 years. This profiling was done on Size 9.5 on CCM Tacks xf pro. Highly recommend.
Anonymous - NM, United StatesDecember 15, 2025
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
Awesome serviceExcellent sharpening and profiling that’s super convenient and has a great turn around time. Steel usually comes back within a week of sending them out and customer service is outstanding!
Martin - OH, United StatesNovember 29, 2025
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
Great profiling/sharpening serviceAfter 40+ years of playing hockey I finally got my blades profiled. Game changer. With the Ellipse and now the Polaris profile I was able to move to a flatter hollow at 3/4". At 6'3" and 215lbs I didn't need the 5/8" hollow. Now there's much more glide. Overall I'd recommend the profiling/sharpening service to anyone who wants to improve their skate performance. Getting a second set of steel allows me to ship off the steel for a sharpening and avoid the inconsistency of a rink sharpening.
Anonymous - ID, United StatesNovember 22, 2025
5 out of 5 Stars
A+Definitely get it done
Anonymous - ND, United StatesOctober 25, 2025
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
Exceptional Edge and Precision sharpeningI recently purchased a brand-new pair of ice skates from Icehouse and had them sharpened and profiled before shipping — and I couldn’t be more impressed. The sharpening job was absolutely incredible. From my very first skate, I could feel the precision and balance in every stride. Even after multiple sessions on the ice, the edges have held up beautifully, maintaining that same crisp bite and glide as day one. Ice warehouse truly delivered professional-quality sharpening that makes a real difference in performance. Highly recommend!
Pepsy - CO, United StatesOctober 07, 2025
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
Profiling and sharpeningIW is the only place I trust to get my blades profiled consistently. I will ship them to the store and get them done.
Pere - NV, United StatesAugust 27, 2025
3 out of 5 Stars
ProfilingUnderstanding that there is a personalization aspect this review is only due to the fact that because the item was personalized it wasn’t refundable. Hate to be out $50 dollars to not be satisfied with the product.
Anonymous - NY, United StatesAugust 10, 2025
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
Great sharpeningI got replacement steel because I broke a blade.
I bought the sharpening with the replacement for the sole purpose of having them ready to go when they arrived. Now, I wish I could send them back for every sharpening bc of how good of a job they did.
Marc R. - IL, United StatesJuly 31, 2025
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
Great initial sharpening and profilingI got exactly what I wanted with the advanced profiling I asked for.
Anonymous - GA, United StatesJuly 30, 2025
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
Sharpening while ordering new skatesGot the blades sharpened while ordering my new skates. Helped to not have to visit a local place just for sharpening.
Anonymous - WA, United StatesJuly 20, 2025
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
Great sharpeningOutstanding sharpening! Top quality!
Anonymous - NC, United StatesJuly 06, 2025
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
Professional and FastThis is the way that everyone should get their skates sharpened. It is fast, precise, and a great deal. We have all had the experience of the inattentive teenager working the pro shop at your local rink doing a lousy job on your skates. You will never experience this with IW's mail in sharpening. They do an amazing job, and with the equipment they use, it will be exactly the same every time. I can't recommend this service with enough praise and enthusiasm! Get your skates done here.
Steve - SC, United StatesApril 24, 2025
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
Good serviceI purchased CCM skates from Ice Warehouse and used their skate sharpening services. They were perfectly sharpened and I was very happy with my purchase.
Anonymous - MA, United StatesApril 18, 2025
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
Just sharpened, not profiled.I only had the sharpening, not the profile service.
The sharpening was great.
I'll definitely look into the profiling option if I get new steel.
Anonymous - OH, United StatesApril 10, 2025
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
Shake sharpeningVery convenient when buying skates.
Anonymous - ME, United StatesMarch 25, 2025
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
First time profiled bladesI’ve skates on the standard 7’-13’ profiles for nearly 35 years and this was my first set I ordered a custom profile; quad 2 profile is stable, fast, corners well and accelerates great! Couldn’t be more happy! Will order again!
Tyree #97 - KS, United StatesMarch 24, 2025
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
ProfilingI did a try profiling with 5/8. Witch is a little bit aggressive for my recreational skating. So I'm changing my hollow to to compensate for the aggressiveness of the runners. I think that I would like to Quad profile.
Anonymous - UT, United StatesMarch 19, 2025
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
SharpeningDefinitely have the sharpening done!
Shawn - OR, United StatesMarch 16, 2025
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
Sharp new skatesFigured I’d add this feature to my new skate purchase and skip a step. Gotta say they are very sharp, can’t ask for much more than that.
Todd - NC, United StatesMarch 08, 2025
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
Great serviceSkates were profiled and sharpened perfectly and quickly.
Anonymous - GA, United StatesJanuary 11, 2025
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
A knife’s edge!Great sharpening! Could tell the moment I hit the ice the blades were done right!
Anonymous - CA, United StatesDecember 19, 2024
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
Profiling is awesomeI did the Polaris profile on FT6s (non-Pro). I ordered a second set of Step blades from Inline so I would not lose skating time. I had a problem with the initial cut, but Inline fixed it promptly. The difference between a mono (off the rack) and quad cut is like night and day. Elite keeps the Polaris specs a little private, but I really like it.
Anonymous - FL, United StatesOctober 09, 2024
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
Profiled BladesOrdered JRZ runners and had them profiled to Quad 1. This is my first profile and I feel it has made a difference! Will be back for my next set.
Lance - NC, United StatesAugust 22, 2024
5 out of 5 Stars
Would Recommend
Game changerI have to say, I'm not a gear head and hadn't heard of Elite before.. but the edges were unreal. Not sure how to explain it except that they just felt perfect compared to anything else before.
