Help for a rising hockey player

[JMW814]

I am a 15 year old, 5'10'' 200 lb. American kid who lives in Florida. I have been playing roller hockey since I can ever remember, and I am about to teach myself how to ice skate well so I can start playing ice hockey. It has always been my dream to play in the NHL, and now I am taking all of the steps that I can to make it into the NCAA hockey system, and then eventually into the NHL hockey system. I think if i were to get into the NCAA system it would be as a walk-on, I don't think scouts go to Florida! If any of you have some tips for me, I would really appriciate it. I want more than anything in my life to play hockey in the pros and whatever comments, questions, or suggestions you have are very welcome, I need some guidance because I know the path ahead of me is going to be long and hard. Thank you.

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[mercury]

First tip. . . better font. LOL

 

[f1nn]

i think this should be posted in "the rink"

and I don't mean to burst your bubble or be mean, but if you can't skate on ice yet and havn't played ice hockey yet then i don't think you have a shjot at making the NHL or even NCAA.... imagine how many kids there are that are your age and have been playing ice for 10 years atleast? Plus even if you had played ice before you wouldn't have much of a shot

 

[JMW814]

I am a 15 year old, 5'10'' 200 lb. American kid who lives in Florida. I have been playing roller hockey since I can ever remember, and I am about to teach myself how to ice skate well so I can start playing ice hockey. It has always been my dream to play in the NHL, and now I am taking all of the steps that I can to make it into the NCAA hockey system, and then eventually into the NHL hockey system. I think if i were to get into the NCAA system it would be as a walk-on, I don't think scouts go to Florida! If any of you have some tips for me, I would really appriciate it. I want more than anything in my life to play hockey in the pros and whatever comments, questions, or suggestions you have are very welcome, I need some guidance because I know the path ahead of me is going to be long and hard. Thank you.

 

[Schlep Rock]

I am a 15 year old, 5'10'' 200 lb. American kid who lives in Florida. I have been playing roller hockey since I can ever remember, and I am about to teach myself how to ice skate well so I can start playing ice hockey. It has always been my dream to play in the NHL, and now I am taking all of the steps that I can to make it into the NCAA hockey system, and then eventually into the NHL hockey system. I think if i were to get into the NCAA system it would be as a walk-on, I don't think scouts go to Florida! If any of you have some tips for me, I would really appriciate it. I want more than anything in my life to play hockey in the pros and whatever comments, questions, or suggestions you have are very welcome, I need some guidance because I know the path ahead of me is going to be long and hard. Thank you.

Well first and foremost... Florida is becoming a hockey hotbed but to advance, you need to get out of Florida.

Let me ask you a very blunt question... does your family have money? This will basically determine where and when you can go.

Keep in mind, everybody think's that it's a cinch to play NCAA but a lot of these NCAA players end up going pro so that should put into perspectice the skill level. Don't forget D-3 NCAA as well!

Give me some more details on your situation and I'll try and provide you with some more info/advice.

 

[JMW814]

My family has enough money to basically send me to whichever college I want to go to, and I have a 4.0 GPA, so I could get in on academics alone to basically anywhere I wanted, and walk-on if needed. My parents are kind of that wealthy, probably an income of $175K a year, but both sets of grandparents are rich.I am a pretty good player now, I play in the highest roller hockey adult league in Jacksonville, but I am out until early April with an LCL injury I got surfing. I'm not really that much of a hitting person, and truely try to avoid hits if I can, I'm more of a finess guy. I'm one of the fastest out there and I've heard people talk about how intense I get on the rink. Anything else you need to know?

 

[Habsfan 32]

Man that injury looks pretty I hope you will fully recover if you want to get to the NHL. Good luck man.

 

[JMW814]

or you could just instant message me on AIM or AOL at JMW814

 

[12# Peter Bondra]

Whats your style of game? Your an attacker but what are your strengths and weaknesses?

 

[Greenback]

Nice Finn. The kid isn't asking what his chances are. He's asking what he can do to increase his chances. If you can't answer the question, just sit there and lurk, mkay?


Edit: removed double post content.

 

[JMW814]

My style is kind of like Brad Richards'. I am a l & r winger. I usually try and skate around guys. On offense, I usually pass it around and only take shots that I have a really good chance on. On defense, I usually dont partake too much because I play on offense, but when I do go back on D, I'm good at shot blocking and getting it out of the zone. Some of my strengths are my intensity, my wrister, backhand, leaderwhip, and accuracy. My weaknesses are shot power, slapshot, checking, and when I am skating through the neutral zone with the puck, I usually tense up and pass it off as quick as I can (sometimes too quickly) to another player.

 

[Greenback]

I didn't realize there were two threads on this so I will post here again as this one seems to be active.

Now JMW814, you have to realize that you are a late starter so to learn to skate on your own may not be the best route. If you can, get into powerskating. It will teach you the techniques you need and will push your legs to develop. You should also hit the ice any chance you get. Wait. Make that, you should make time to skate. Frequently. When you skate, use a puck or stickhandle with a tennis ball or an egg. Anything that will get you comfortable on skates while stickhandling with your head up. Find a competitive league and join up. Try to find one that does not have hitting for your first year. Shoot pucks against your garage door (get parents' permission first), or against something that doesn't dent

Another thing is learn the game. You can compensate for being developmentally behind if you learn to read the play and know where to be and when. I don't know you so it's pointless for me to go further into this. Watch pro games and see what players do in situations; Why they pass where they do; Skate where they do; etc. I don't watch roller hockey so I am not sure how much of a difference there is between that and ice hockey.


Good news for you. You're big and have you still have time to grow. If you were 6'2", Philly may scout you now


The most important thing is that you enjoy it. Otherwise you'll just burn out and lose interest. I've been skating for 27 years (I started 13 years earlier than you will), playing goal for 20 years and still love it.

 

[f1nn]

like i said in the other thread, not much of a chance sorry, but i'd still work at it tho

and by the way, as a defenseman I love forwardsa who hate to get hit as they are easier to defend against usually so that is something you might want to work on

 

[Keetz]

like i said in the other thread, not much of a chance sorry, but i'd still work at it tho

and by the way, as a defenseman I love forwardsa who hate to get hit as they are easier to defend against usually so that is something you might want to work on

Not really true! there are several players in the NHL that got a late start. Not sure of thier names but I'm sure someone here know who I'm talking about.
I think I remember Modano not skating till he was 7 wich is pretty late considering others, and this thread starter has been playing the game for awhile. switching to ice will be a change but at that age its wont be drastic. but your right Finn he needs to learn to love to get hit.

 

[mazmin]

and I don't mean to burst your bubble or be mean, but if you can't skate on ice yet and havn't played ice hockey yet then i don't think you have a shjot at making the NHL or even NCAA.... imagine how many kids there are that are your age and have been playing ice for 10 years atleast? Plus even if you had played ice before you wouldn't have much of a shot

The Mullen brothers didn't skate on ice until their teens, buddy.

If you're serious about being a good hockey player you'll have to take power skating lessons while at the same time playing in the best league available to you.

Learning to skate, and to skate well is the most important factor in making ANY team. I'm a coach for guys around your age (13-14) and during the first day of tryouts all we do is skating drills. The guys that don't skate well get cut, that's a fact.

Since you're already 15, you can't only focus on skating (although this seems to be your biggest area of concern). Beside the obvious skills like stickhandling, shooting, taking/giving a pass, there a MANY OTHER important aspects to the game that you might overlook:

Mental Game:
Don't play hockey to make the NHL, play for fun. When you play with the pressure of "making it" your performance will go down. When you play for fun and are prepared for the challenge and embrace it, you will do a lot better. Too much pressure on yourself will bring you down fast. Go to the library and look up books on sports psychological skills. You'll learn about techniques like visualization that are important in making your dream come true. There's a lot to read about.

Physical Game:
Elite hockey players have to be in incredible shape. First and foremost, you'll need a good cardiovascular base (that means you need to run... a lot! You'll need to go on 20-25 minute runs 3-4 times a week). You also need to do sprints (run for 10-15 seconds as fast as you can - 2-3 times a week). You are a good weight at 200lbs but for hockey you need to be lean. You have to go to the gym frequently and work on muscular strength (lift heavy, fewer reps) and muscular endurance (lift light, lots of reps). You should also find books in the library on how to work out properly unless you can afford a personal trainer. Again there's a lot to read about, a lot to know.

I don't have much more time here but just remember, there are guys your age in the OHL, QMJHL, WHL etc that have very highly educated team trainers, coaches, nurtitionists, psychologists, biomechanists and exercise physiologists at their disposal, trying to get the best out of them. You don't have this advantage so prepare to do a lot of reading and learning on your own. Since you're serious about making it, then just do it! It's your one and only life, and it's a free country. But understand it will take dedication, money, time and persistence to become physically and mentally prepared to be a professional athlete. Good luck!

PS: msg me if you have any questions or don't understand my rambles.

EZ

 

[Anthony*]

you wont 'make it'

i hope you prove me wrong though

also, the only advice i would give you is to get recognized, and get recognized fast.

 

[Habsfan 32]

you wont 'make it'

i hope you prove me wrong though

also, the only advice i would give you is to get recognized, and get recognized fast.

How do you know he won't make it.

 

[Habsfan 32]

But man you better learn to give and take hits if you realy want to succed. Good luck!

 

[Ol' Dirty Chinaman*]

I am a 15 year old, 5'10'' 200 lb. American kid who lives in Florida. I have been playing roller hockey since I can ever remember, and I am about to teach myself how to ice skate well so I can start playing ice hockey. It has always been my dream to play in the NHL, and now I am taking all of the steps that I can to make it into the NCAA hockey system, and then eventually into the NHL hockey system. I think if i were to get into the NCAA system it would be as a walk-on, I don't think scouts go to Florida! If any of you have some tips for me, I would really appriciate it. I want more than anything in my life to play hockey in the pros and whatever comments, questions, or suggestions you have are very welcome, I need some guidance because I know the path ahead of me is going to be long and hard. Thank you.

Try to find an agent and move north where you can get more exposure. FLA isn't going to do it for you.

If he can roller skate really really well, he should be able to ice skate decently, but the odds are stacked against you.

Good luck.

 

[BrettNYR]

Well first and foremost... Florida is becoming a hockey hotbed but to advance, you need to get out of Florida.

The part of FL I live in has very good players, and although not many people play, the caliber is better than NY's.

 

[SkateLikeTheWind]

The part of FL I live in has very good players, and although not many people play, the caliber is better than NY's.

Thats laughable. Can you name one player who came out of Florida and made it??

If by chance you can, I can name 20 who came out of NY...just to show you the caliber isnt quite the same.

 

[Lard_Lad]

Realistically, 15 years old is simply too late to start and expect to make it onto an NCAA or NHL roster. The Mullens may have been late bloomers, but they started younger than 15, and every year is vital at this point. Some of the kids you'll be competing for jobs with will alredy be playing for Junior B/C or good midget/high-school teams. You don't have that level of competition to sharpen your skills against.

And like mazmin said, they also train year-round - at the level you want to play at, hockey isn't something you pick up casually. You mentioned being 5'10 and 200 pounds - that's a lot of weight for that height at your age. Are the extra pounds fat or muscle?

The most realistic target for you is probably a team in the American Collegiate Hockey Association. Those are schools (including several in Florida) that don't have full-scale hockey programs, but still have official teams that play intercollegiate schedules - i.e., a step above intramural club teams. Assuming you can learn to skate decently, you might have a decent chance at making one of those teams. And if by some chance you turn out to be a dominant player at that level, you could look for a tryout with a minor league team if you wanted to give the pros a shot.

Expecting to make an NCAA roster, even a Division III one, after starting this late and in an area with relatively weak hockey programs, isn't reasonable. And if you don't make it, that's it for your hockey career. If you really want to do this, lower your initial expectations a bit and work your way up.

But for any of this to happen, you need to get on the ice immediately. Look into summer hockey schools, particularly ones that'll take beginners. And get in an organized league next year, even if it's not a great one.

 

[Keetz]

Think about going to some camps this summer. I know there are a lot in Minnesota that will show you what your up against.
Don't listen to the negativity some here will offer up. Set some goals and go for it. BTW a friend of mine from high school went to a div III school and made the Hockey team as a walk on and he was a late starter to. Mind you that was fifteen years ago but still he did it through hard work.

 

[Accord]

I lived in Buffalo, NY my entire life until moving to Florida a few years ago and I hate to burst your bubble, but if you've been playing hockey, let alone roller hockey in Florida your whole life you have an extremely slim to none chance of ever making it onto an NHL roster.

Even at the highest levels of hockey in Florida, they still pale in comparison to anything up north. Also, roller hockey is a totally different type of game than ice, the way the game flows and the style of play is like comparing apples and oranges.

There's a guy on my beer league who used to play in the RHI, this is his first year ever playing organized semi-competitive ice hockey and he's just a complete beginner. Even his shots are weak because he's so used to using a plastic puck.

Unless you drop out of school, train every single day for hours on end, move Ontario, and enroll in some very vigorous hockey programs; your chances of making even a division 3 or 2 team is still going to be very very small since you're starting so late.

Unless you have the raw natural talent of someone like Crosby, you just can't start this late at the age of 15 playing roller hockey your whole life living in Florida and expect to make it to the NHL, it's just not realistic.

If you're really serious about this, it's probably too late to make it onto an NHL roster or pretty much any roster where you'll actually be able to contribute, however since you seem like a big guy at 200lbs (assuming it's mostly muscle and not fat), perhaps you may be able to go the route of an enforcer where your overall skills and abilities aren't that great, but you'll still be the enforcer of the team, you could be the next Peter Worrel .

You just need to be realistic here, even Brent Gretzky the brother of Wayne who like Wayne also has been playing hockey his whole life only had a short lived career in the NHL playing something like 5 games before being sent back down to the minors and never made it back again.

Good luck in whatever it is you decide to do, but unless your last name is Crosby, you should never expect to make it to the NHL. The odds are HEAVILY stacked against you, just be realistic about it.

 

[Sticks of Fury]

Weren't there roller hockey players like Eric Messier that made it to the NHL?