Beginners: The Hockey Noob Chronicles II (Beginners' Thread)

[CanucksSayEh]

Great to see so many people starting late. It may seem intimidating, but well worth it. This thread is proof!

 

[hilega]

It's never too late to start

Great to see so many people starting late. It may seem intimidating, but well worth it. This thread is proof!

I'm 33 and my be a player class has 8+ in their 40s including three women and a mom and her son. Pretty cool!

On another topic, the regulars at stick time are pretty closed off and clique-ish. Especially some goalies that won't square up or try on your shot if you don't have a 100 mph clapper. (Calling out the Quick wanna be's at the Toyota Sports Center). Anyone else experience this?

 

[MattGTI]

I'm 33 and my be a player class has 8+ in their 40s including three women and a mom and her son. Pretty cool!

On another topic, the regulars at stick time are pretty closed off and clique-ish. Especially some goalies that won't square up or try on your shot if you don't have a 100 mph clapper. (Calling out the Quick wanna be's at the Toyota Sports Center). Anyone else experience this?

Yes. We recently had a new rink open up. I went to stick time a couple times during their day time session(11a-1p/ 5.00) while I was using up some vacation time at work. The first day I has the rink to myself. It was kind of nice to just get out and work on things. The next two days a group of 3 guys showed up, and didn't even acknowledge I was there. Even after a couple attempts by me, to see where they played and work on some drills they were doing with them. The irony was that they thought they were superstars, and weren't even that good at all. I consider myself fairly approachable, and very easy going, and it was like I was invading their space.
However, this same rink has stick time on Sunday nights, and the crew of 15-16 all seem to be a decent group. Its a good time.

 

[TheRedShadow]

Great to see so many people starting late. It may seem intimidating, but well worth it. This thread is proof!

I'm 49 and started learn to play last summer. And I'm not the oldest there - the 65 year old dude came back to the latest sessions.

 

[canuck88]

Just following up to my previous post - had my first game on Saturday, and ended up with 2 points (1G, 1A)! Talk about trial by fire! We lost 4-3, but it is beginner league so who really cares. I had an absolute blast, got knocked over twice (both by accidental collisions), realized how out of shape I am, and came to the conclusion that all the road hockey I played as a kid really helped with puck control, shooting, and positioning. My skating is middle-of-the-road for the group (can crossover and stop), and definitely the main thing I need to work on. So glad I took the plunge!

 

[SacredPetra]

I had a rough set of games this past weekend. My coaches have been playing me as a center the last two weeks and doing some positional drills like that, but they played me as a winger in games (except for the one face-off where I ended up as the center on a penalty kill, which we're done absolutely no work on), and they weren't at these games so I couldn't ask then for help during the games. I'm not offensively minded, I hate taking shots, and I am hopeless at carrying the puck so playing wing is hard for me at any time, but especially when I don't know where I'm supposed to be, or what I'm supposed to be doing if I get the puck, and have my teammates yelling at me when I do something wrong on top of all that.

Playing wing makes a lot more sense for me at drop-in where I'm not really getting the puck and I'm just focused on finding open ice somewhere close enough to block a defenders passing lane and making sure I'm not on the same side as the other two forwards. Granted, I tend to unintentionally get myself into drop-ins that have a lot of significantly more advanced players, but I rarely feel as completely lost in those situations as I did in my games. I'm going to talk to my skating coach (who used to help coach the team I'm on) tomorrow and see what he suggests, abd I've been reading a bunch of articles about positioning, but understanding positioning in theory isn't restarting over well to getting things done physically.

 

[ripham23232]

Well folks, thought I'd give an update. I am now 4 weeks into my first I-league session, which has been fun and entirely frustrating at the same time. I definitely learned I should have done Learn to Skate first, as I am easily the worst skater in the entire league. It hampers my play considerably. Otherwise, I currently lead the league in penalty minutes after two games with six. One incidental high stick, one trip, and one fall that lead to a guy falling over me and resulting in another tripping call. My team has been together for a while now, and we've won both games pretty easily, so I'm not hurting the squad to bad. For the most part, they've been great putting up with me.

I think once the season wraps up, I'll do a learn to skate and then another I-League in the fall. Hopefully the skating thing solves many problems.

 

[Baemon Severson*]

I'm 22 and from NJ. Growing up, we had a roller hockey rink less than a mile from my house and I was there a lot.

A few years ago, my buddy gave me an old pair of ice skates, but I only skated maybe once a year. Fast forward to a week ago and I noticed there was a pond behind my house (I go to school in Rhode Island) that froze over. I've been going out with a stick and puck and I'm hooked. Skating forwards, backwards and turns have transitioned well from roller, but stopping and crossovers are a pain.

Stick handling is actually easier with puck, but my shot is terrible. I'm trying to get on the pond as often as possible and I've been improving a lot. I want to get better so I can play open hockey and I've been purchasing equipment\pads piece by piece.

Any tips for skating and shooting?

 

[Canadiens1958]

Learning

I had a rough set of games this past weekend. My coaches have been playing me as a center the last two weeks and doing some positional drills like that, but they played me as a winger in games (except for the one face-off where I ended up as the center on a penalty kill, which we're done absolutely no work on), and they weren't at these games so I couldn't ask then for help during the games. I'm not offensively minded, I hate taking shots, and I am hopeless at carrying the puck so playing wing is hard for me at any time, but especially when I don't know where I'm supposed to be, or what I'm supposed to be doing if I get the puck, and have my teammates yelling at me when I do something wrong on top of all that.

Playing wing makes a lot more sense for me at drop-in where I'm not really getting the puck and I'm just focused on finding open ice somewhere close enough to block a defenders passing lane and making sure I'm not on the same side as the other two forwards. Granted, I tend to unintentionally get myself into drop-ins that have a lot of significantly more advanced players, but I rarely feel as completely lost in those situations as I did in my games. I'm going to talk to my skating coach (who used to help coach the team I'm on) tomorrow and see what he suggests, abd I've been reading a bunch of articles about positioning, but understanding positioning in theory isn't restarting over well to getting things done physically.

Just appreciate the learning experience, the versatility and diversity it adds to your skill set.

Things you hate - taking shots, etc are just part of the game. When opportunities present themselves you cannot look to the bench for a replacement. You have to step up and do your best.

Coaches seem to have faith and appreciation of your skills. They trust your ability to at least try and eventually succeed.

Do your best.

 

[CunniJA]

Had my first ever start in net in a game of ice hockey last night. Prior to that, I had done it quite a bit in jsut drop-in roller hockey as a kid and I had a bit of pond hockey lately. We won 5-2! I was pretty damn excited about that. My friends said 25/27 saves but the official scorekeeper said 30/32. Either way, I'll certainly take it for a first game ever.

My captain thoughtfully stuck around after the final horn to bring me back a game puck in the locker room. My team was really positive and supportive the whole time. Isn't it great to have nice teammates?

 

[SacredPetra]

Just appreciate the learning experience, the versatility and diversity it adds to your skill set.

Things you hate - taking shots, etc are just part of the game. When opportunities present themselves you cannot look to the bench for a replacement. You have to step up and do your best.

Coaches seem to have faith and appreciation of your skills. They trust your ability to at least try and eventually succeed.

Do your best.

After venting on here, I did manage to tame my competitive streak down from crazy person to healthy and motivational. I have to remind myself that this is rec league hockey. It helps too that the teammate who would yell at me moved up to a higher level, so there's a little less pressure.

 

[Braeden]

I'm just getting into skating at the age of 20. Went to Stick and Puck on Tuesday and my back hurts so bad... Everything else went fine. I've gotten better since the last time I went. I don't know how to stop or how to skate backwards yet though.

ALSO, should I buy new skates? I have a pair of Sherwood 6000's that you can't even buy anymore...

I have the money to go and buy BRAND NEW top of the line skates. But should I if I'm just a beginner?

 

[ripham23232]

Had another game last. We won despite the whole team playing pretty flat as a whole. I had my best game to date with a couple slick plays and some nice passes. Best part, no penalties! Haha. Got my first assist on a slick two liner into the offensive zone where the left wing caught it in stride, beat one defender and went top right on the goalie. It was awesome to get a point! Best feeling ever in my book.

 

[ripham23232]

I'm just getting into skating at the age of 20. Went to Stick and Puck on Tuesday and my back hurts so bad... Everything else went fine. I've gotten better since the last time I went. I don't know how to stop or how to skate backwards yet though.

ALSO, should I buy new skates? I have a pair of Sherwood 6000's that you can't even buy anymore...

I have the money to go and buy BRAND NEW top of the line skates. But should I if I'm just a beginner?

Someone correct me if they disagree, but just starting out, I didn't and dont think you should sink a ton of money into it until you decide its something you're going to be sticking with. I have an old pair of Bauer Impact 100s that get the job done for me. I suppose its a matter of personal preference though.

 

[flomarilius]

I'm 6'1 and a bulky overweight kinda guy. I can cross over my strong side and get around the ice pretty well for a guy of my stature. However, I have no idea how to to make quick turns on the ice. I have a hard time getting on both inside and outside edge when making a turn, does anyone have any advice or drills for this?

Thanks!

 

[BlueJazz]

I'm just getting into skating at the age of 20. Went to Stick and Puck on Tuesday and my back hurts so bad... Everything else went fine. I've gotten better since the last time I went. I don't know how to stop or how to skate backwards yet though.

ALSO, should I buy new skates? I have a pair of Sherwood 6000's that you can't even buy anymore...

I have the money to go and buy BRAND NEW top of the line skates. But should I if I'm just a beginner?

The importance of getting a properly fitted skate cannot be undersold. You should get a new set of skates that fit you properly, however as a beginner you shouldn't go top of the line. Top end skates are for advanced players, and will be way too stiff for a beginner. I would suggest a mid-low tier skate ($200ish), with the knowledge that once you get good you'll probably want to replace it with a higher end skate.

Of course I'm also a beginner myself (as of about 5 months ago), so the advice I'm giving above is not personal experience, but advice that I have been given many times already, however I believe it as it has been very consistent that almost everyone gives the same advice on this subject.

 

[theMajor]

I'm just getting into skating at the age of 20. Went to Stick and Puck on Tuesday and my back hurts so bad... Everything else went fine. I've gotten better since the last time I went. I don't know how to stop or how to skate backwards yet though.

ALSO, should I buy new skates? I have a pair of Sherwood 6000's that you can't even buy anymore...

I have the money to go and buy BRAND NEW top of the line skates. But should I if I'm just a beginner?

i bought some $150 reeboks just because i wasnt 100% sure if i was going to stick with hockey and they lasted me two seasons. after they crapped out i got some really nice bauers and they made a world of a difference. if you think youre going to be playing for a while, definitely invest in some nice skates

 

[terranraida]

Hi, so I am fairly new to hockey and ice skating in general and I have a question that I would like some help with about my skates.

I bought a pair of CCM skates from a used equipment shop, and they fit well, and I think that I am tying them up tight enough (causing tightness but not numb) they keep coming loose during skating sessions. Could this be because I use tape for extra ankle support. or is it something with the laces, or is the error me?

 

[Goonzilla]

This place is great for picking up advice on that sort of stuff. I used to have to adjust and re-tie my laces two or three times a game. Now using waxed laces and they're definitely the solution to that, tie them once and that's it.

 

[terranraida]

This place is great for picking up advice on that sort of stuff. I used to have to adjust and re-tie my laces two or three times a game. Now using waxed laces and they're definitely the solution to that, tie them once and that's it.

Ok, thanks! I'll get some before my next stick and puck practice and let you know how they work. I appreciate the help.

 

[steevdeadman]

I'm 37 and just started myself. I am thinking of getting into a hockey prep program over the summer. What do you guys think of those and how far along should my skating be? I can do forwards pretty well, stopping and crossovers both ways, but I cannot go backward to save my life!

 

[Reilly]

Steev. I started at 47. Based on my LTP class as well as a few skills classes I attended in another city, you'd be fine. Forwards, turning and stopping are key in the intro class. Occasionally we'd have a drill that involved backwards skating and I would be surprised at some of the (relatively) better skaters who when made to skate backwards looked liked they had never been on skates before.

I suspect that a lot of people who learn hockey as adults will early on devote their rare ice time to getting better at forwards, turning and stopping since those are used the most in the beginner leagues. Although I'm one of the worst players on my low-level team, I'm above average on defense simply due to being able to skate backwards.

You'll be fine, but work on the backwards on your own time as it does provide you with the option of playing defense.

 

[steevdeadman]

Steev. I started at 47. Based on my LTP class as well as a few skills classes I attended in another city, you'd be fine. Forwards, turning and stopping are key in the intro class. Occasionally we'd have a drill that involved backwards skating and I would be surprised at some of the (relatively) better skaters who when made to skate backwards looked liked they had never been on skates before.

I suspect that a lot of people who learn hockey as adults will early on devote their rare ice time to getting better at forwards, turning and stopping since those are used the most in the beginner leagues. Although I'm one of the worst players on my low-level team, I'm above average on defense simply due to being able to skate backwards.

You'll be fine, but work on the backwards on your own time as it does provide you with the option of playing defense.

Wow Reilly, 47, kudos to you my friend! I've decided to go in for some skating lessons just to get my skating tight, then I'm gonna head straight from that into some Hockey Prep.

I'm just real excited to get out there and play, but I guess all things in due time.

 

[damack]

Wow Reilly, 47, kudos to you my friend! I've decided to go in for some skating lessons just to get my skating tight, then I'm gonna head straight from that into some Hockey Prep.

I'm just real excited to get out there and play, but I guess all things in due time.

I'm 48 and just starting. I'm just finishing up basic skating lessons and start 8 weeks of hockey powerskating lessons next week and a 10 week adult learn to play program in 2 weeks. The company putting on the adult learn to play program are also starting a 3v3 league as the LTP ends and hopefully that will have me set up to get on a team in the fall. I'm stoked!

 

[Weber6]

I would list myself at 5'10" 115lbs can barely flex a 75 flex, yes you read that right. I need a good stick for ball hockey. Would intermediate be best? and what kind of curve is good for a ball hockey shooter? I usually stand in front of the goalie and play right wing