Rookie Questions

[Atlas]

Thanks to whoever thought up "The Rink" for a bulletin board.

I'll be lacing up w/full gear for the first time this week and I have a few questions. Does anyone have any advice about how to fall? I've been skating for a year now and surprisingly I haven't fallen that many times. I haven't been taking many chances because I'm a guitarist and make a living with my hands. But with full gear on I won't worry as much about crashing and burning. In karate I learned to tap the ground with my hands to break the fall. Are there any tricks like that for hockey?

Also, do you have any general advice about what to expect in an adult "C" league? How fast will it be? From what I understand there will be some pretty decent players and a handful of scrubs. I have pretty good hands I think but my skating will have me at the scrub level at first. My right to left crossovers are quite good and my starts are solid...but everything else needs a lot of work.

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[Jacob]

I never learned any tricks as far as falling. Just make sure, if anything, you fall forwards with your hands out to protect you.

 

[Accord]

Thanks to whoever thought up "The Rink" for a bulletin board.

That would be me .

I'll be lacing up w/full gear for the first time this week and I have a few questions. Does anyone have any advice about how to fall? I've been skating for a year now and surprisingly I haven't fallen that many times. I haven't been taking many chances because I'm a guitarist and make a living with my hands. But with full gear on I won't worry as much about crashing and burning. In karate I learned to tap the ground with my hands to break the fall. Are there any tricks like that for hockey?

Also, do you have any general advice about what to expect in an adult "C" league? How fast will it be? From what I understand there will be some pretty decent players and a handful of scrubs. I have pretty good hands I think but my skating will have me at the scrub level at first. My right to left crossovers are quite good and my starts are solid...but everything else needs a lot of work.

When you fall, don't fall straight down onto your knees because that's how most injuries happen, when you fall try and just get down as low as possible before actually falling to minimize the distance you're going to fall and use your hands to brace yourself and lessen absorb most of the impact on the ice.

Get all your gear on, go to an open hockey session or a stick&puck session and just go out there and fall, practice falling, dropping to your knees, etc. and you'll eventually find your comfort zone and falling will not be a big deal at all.

I've found that with most adult "novice" and "C" leagues is that there are a LOT of players who should not be in those leagues and should be in the B or A leagues. This is at least how it is at all the rinks in my area, it may be different where you are. Don't worry though and don't be intimidated, because no matter how good the other players are it's still rec league hockey so just go out there and have some fun.

 

[sc37]

WHen I fall..I srota try to pretend I'm playing baseball and stealing a base. Since fal on your knees isnt too cool and fall onyour butt will cause some problems if you land on your tailbone. Work on falling in a good position so you can get back up and into the play quick.

 

[RangersMoogle]

The rink I went to wants to put me in a "C" league. I've been playing for 9 years.

Nuts to it, I'll go to an inline rink. They're standards there are usually pretty low, and the guys there are generally a good group to play with.

 

[kingpest19]

I never learned any tricks as far as falling. Just make sure, if anything, you fall forwards with your hands out to protect you.

That could end up causing broken wrists

 

[stick9]

One tip from a former fellow axe grinder. Never put your hands out to break your fall. In full gear it's pretty hard to get hurt from a fall unless you fall akwardly. You are gonna fall and you can't always control the direction you are gonna fall. Just keep in mind that you are covered from head to toe in protective gear. I would say there is a great risk of injuring your wrist then your hands. That's still a bummer for you though. I've learned if I fall foward to fall on my elbows.

Don't hold back and don't play scared of getting injuried. When you do that's usually when you end up getting hurt. That's something you probably already know.

You'll find a wide range of people in C leagues. The good thing is there will probably be other guys there just like you.

Enjoy yourself. It really is the greatest game on earth.

 

[Atlas]

Thanks for the replies. Yeah, I'm not too worried about getting hurt. Things can happen but with all the protective gear on I expect it's relatively safe.

What position did you guys start with? I'd like to start at left wing but I think my left to right cross-overs and stopping w/left foot forward need to be a lot better before I can do that. So I expect right wing is where I'll start out.

 

[afterhours]

Really depends on how fast you're going. I rarely ever hear of people breaking their wrists when they fall, so I'm thinking trusting your instincts will keep you safe. If I had to break it down, I would say I fall more on my elbows than my hands.

There are far more easier ways to get hurt than simply falling. Always watch your back when you go in the corner, you'll never know when some idiot will knock you head first into the boards.

Don't think too much, you'll have more fun and probably be safer that way.

 

[stick9]

Thanks for the replies. Yeah, I'm not too worried about getting hurt. Things can happen but with all the protective gear on I expect it's relatively safe.

What position did you guys start with? I'd like to start at left wing but I think my left to right cross-overs and stopping w/left foot forward need to be a lot better before I can do that. So I expect right wing is where I'll start out.

Think about more in terms of what side is it easier to collect the break out pass on. If you play the off wing (left wing if you are a righty and vice versa) you'll be picking up the break out pass on your backhand.

 

[technophile]

That could end up causing broken wrists

Exactly what I was going to say. Don't try to catch yourself with your hands (even if you don't break your wrists, it will leave your hands free to play the puck if it's nearby); try to "roll" with the fall (elbows and knees; those are your best protected areas, followed by hips and rear). If you go down in traffic, tuck your head down (chin against chest) to protect your face and neck.

Practice going into and out of slides; a lot of times, you'll either fall and slide, or you'll intentionally slide (shot/pass block, desperate lunge for a shot, etc) and getting back up quickly is a great skill to have. We do a drill occasionally where you start at the goal line, skate hard to the blue line, dive and slide on your stomach to the other blue line, get up, and skate to the other goal line. It's a workout.

 

[Atlas]

Exactly what I was going to say. Don't try to catch yourself with your hands (even if you don't break your wrists, it will leave your hands free to play the puck if it's nearby); try to "roll" with the fall (elbows and knees; those are your best protected areas, followed by hips and rear). If you go down in traffic, tuck your head down (chin against chest) to protect your face and neck.

Practice going into and out of slides; a lot of times, you'll either fall and slide, or you'll intentionally slide (shot/pass block, desperate lunge for a shot, etc) and getting back up quickly is a great skill to have. We do a drill occasionally where you start at the goal line, skate hard to the blue line, dive and slide on your stomach to the other blue line, get up, and skate to the other goal line. It's a workout.

Hey techno, I live in Austin too. Do you play at Chaperral or at the Expo Center? I go for my new player evaluation skate tonight at Chapperal. Maybe I'll catch you over there sometime. I'll be the one scoring with a wrister in tight...and then crashing into the goalie because I don't stop so well.

 

[Atlas]

Thanks stick9 and afterhours.

 

[technophile]

Hey techno, I live in Austin too. Do you play at Chaperral or at the Expo Center? I go for my new player evaluation skate tonight at Chapperal. Maybe I'll catch you over there sometime. I'll be the one scoring with a wrister in tight...and then crashing into the goalie because I don't stop so well.

LOL...

I'm playing at Chap. I was at the New Player Skate Tuesday, I couldn't make the 7:30 so I ended up at the 9pm, surrounded by a bunch of A/Bers... Exciting stuff.

Have you been taking the Learn to Play classes over at Northcross?

 

[Atlas]

LOL...

I'm playing at Chap. I was at the New Player Skate Tuesday, I couldn't make the 7:30 so I ended up at the 9pm, surrounded by a bunch of A/Bers... Exciting stuff.

Have you been taking the Learn to Play classes over at Northcross?

Cool! I haven't taken that class yet but I'll be there this Sunday. The guy's name is TJ that teaches that, right? The UPS box just came with most of the rest of my gear...actually my helmet hasn't come yet...hmm. I'll be going to those classes every Sunday starting either this week or next.

I went to the 7:30 skate on Tuesday. First time I'd ever been in any kind of scrimmage. It was killer. Loved it. My skating has to get a lot better. I was keeping up speed-wise but the little stuff like stopping and making quick adjustments gathering the puck - that kept me from going into places I wanted to go. I was on the ice for 2 of our goals but I was only a decoy. Made a couple nice passes. I got freight trained by a guy who I think was on my own team...he had a colored jersey and for some reason he was playing on our team (at least most of the game - maybe he just started going wherever he wanted to go). I still haven't figured that out. haha. It didn't hurt at all. With all that gear on it was like laying down on the sofa. And I learned to never go easy when contact is imminent.

By the end of the game my legs were like jelly but I kept plugging away. I was beat because I skated at Northcross for 2-3 hours that afternoon practicing the hockey stop. I've almost got it.

Anyhow, my name is Lance. I'll catch you up at Northcross this Sunday or next. I'll probably be wearing a dark red CCM practice jersey. Maybe we'll end up on the same team.

How did you play in your scrimmage?

 

[technophile]

Cool! I haven't taken that class yet but I'll be there this Sunday. The guy's name is TJ that teaches that, right?

Yeah, TJ's the class instructor; there's also (the last month or so) an assistant named Uwe (pronounced OOH-vah). TJ's really cool; a couple of weeks ago he actually strapped on the goalie pads (he's not half bad, either). The last few classes have been crazy busy (30+ people showing up), so they're limiting the class to 25 people. It should slow down again once the season starts, though; there were times in the fall when we only had 8-10 people show up.

I'll be going to those classes every Sunday starting either this week or next.

I'll be there next week, but I probably will have to take a break from the classes for at least a bit; money's a little tight and my wife was skeptical enough about just playing in the league.

I went to the 7:30 skate on Tuesday. First time I'd ever been in any kind of scrimmage. It was killer. Loved it.

You'll like the class then; the last 15 minutes is a scrimmage (though if there's nothing after the class, and there usually isn't, they'll let us play for half an hour or more).

By the end of the game my legs were like jelly but I kept plugging away. I was beat because I skated at Northcross for 2-3 hours that afternoon practicing the hockey stop. I've almost got it.

Ha. It took me about 6 months of skating to really "get" the hockey stop -- and I still can't do it facing left at all. Need to practice that, but I don't get as much ice time as I'd like.

Anyhow, my name is Lance. I'll catch you up at Northcross this Sunday or next. I'll probably be wearing a dark red CCM practice jersey. Maybe we'll end up on the same team.

I'm Eric -- usually wearing a home Blues jersey.

How did you play in your scrimmage?

It was a tough skate -- I'm nowhere near the skating level of those A/B players. The speed especially was tough to get used to. I should have had a pair of breakaways, but I flubbed catching the pass on the first and I was just completely out of steam on the second and had the puck stripped by a backchecker. Didn't get a shot on goal at all. I did play all right defensively--stopped a pair of 2 on 1 breaks, blocked several shots, and between the goalie and I managed to stop a 3 on 1 break as well, so I felt good about that.

Of course I don't even know if any C captains stayed for the 9pm skate, so it may not have mattered at all.