Who actually plays hockey on HF?

[Kayen]

Started a year ago. Progressed my way to almost cracking my way on a Jr. C team. I play sub for a div b team in one Lleague, and sub in for a cou[le higher div teams in other leagues.
I'm a goalie by the way. I hang with alot of Jr. B, Jr. A players so i had good training for myself over the summer. Back in school now so only playing 1-2x a week which is horrible. Wish i played when i was younger ... like at 10 opposed to 17.

 

[SauceHockey]

14 and stuck in A

 

[Kulluminati]

Been playing since I was 7 or 8 and capped out at AA (played at this level for 2 years) spent most my time in single A though, I'm 19 now and play pick up and in mens leagues in the summer.

 

[mpir3]

Played since i was 10..played midget aaa and high school in the northeast. Made the jump to the EJHL when i was 17, got my ass kicked, hockey lost its fun and went back to hs for senior year. Play in mens leagues for the past 10 years.

 

[GreenEggs and Mayhem]

I played up to completing high school, and briefly in beer leagues. Between class and work I've been forced to call it quits except for the occasional open hockey at the rink where I work. Now I just work in a hockey pro-shop at the said rink.

 

[Cousin Eddie]

i currently play junior b in newfoundland.

 

[cptjeff]

Poll is gonna be pretty biased in "the rink" isn't it, since the only people who come to this sub-forum are people who play hockey?

Anyways, yes, I play. Started playing in a league when I was around 8 (7 or 8), highest level I played at was HS hockey, just play men's league now.

Yeah, the whole point of these things is to judge the percentage of people on the main board, many of whom are saying things many of us who play hockey know are just moronic, actually do play. Last time somebody tried to sample that population, it was also folded into a thread in the rink, which really biases the result and makes the poll utterly worthless.

Seriously, stop screwing around with threads like this.


And yes, I play. Beer league.

 

[RandV]

Yeah, the whole point of these things is to judge the percentage of people on the main board, many of whom are saying things many of us who play hockey know are just moronic, actually do play. Last time somebody tried to sample that population, it was also folded into a thread in the rink, which really biases the result and makes the poll utterly worthless.

Seriously, stop screwing around with threads like this.


And yes, I play. Beer league.

Personally as someone who started playing hockey late (started at 27) I find there's little difference in my hockey knowledge from before and after. Playing hockey will give you some insight into the game, and not playing it could leave some people with the wrong idea, but overall I don't find it makes that big a difference when it comes to being an NHL fan. Remember that even some NHL players are/were anti-fighting, not sure of any current players who've come out and said it but Mike Bossy has been pretty outspoken against fighting before.

 

[Samuel Culper III]

Personally as someone who started playing hockey late (started at 27) I find there's little difference in my hockey knowledge from before and after. Playing hockey will give you some insight into the game, and not playing it could leave some people with the wrong idea, but overall I don't find it makes that big a difference when it comes to being an NHL fan. Remember that even some NHL players are/were anti-fighting, not sure of any current players who've come out and said it but Mike Bossy has been pretty outspoken against fighting before.

Therefore you never played seriously organized, competitive, coached hockey. So why would you expect it to enhance your understanding of the game? A bunch of guys getting together to play shinny isn't going to suddenly give you new insight into the game of hockey. Repeatedly working on breakout drills, PK drills, etc. will (can).

 

[cptjeff]

If you're playing shinny with better players, or an organized game at any level, you'll still learn. Not always the big strategy of the game stuff, but you'll know what the player's PoV is like. It doesn't take competitive league play.

For instance, the numbers on helmet crap we're seeing this season to acclimate us to seeing stuff there in preparation for future ads. A lot of posters on the main board bought the line that refs need an additional number to keep track of who's who on the ice. If you've ever seen hockey from the player side, at any level, you know just how laughable that really is. Even in beer league games where guys often don't even wear numbers, I've never had trouble picking out one guy from another based on whatever else. You know that even if there's not a number exposed, if you have a jersey with numbers on the back and sleeves, one will be exposed in half a second.

There's a difference between seeing the game from the stands or TV and seeing it from up close in 3D. And I don't think you need to play competitive hockey to see that.

 

[greyraven8]

Play 'scrub' aka 'pickup' hockey.

Played from age 5/6 to bantam then quit for a couple years.
Played some 'scrub' and then on a high school team my last year of high school.
Played many years of 'beer league' in various local leagues for many teams.

Due to my last 'beer league' team folding and soon after working all weekday nights (in addition to being too slow, skill limited, and old) am now playing 'scrub' 2 times a week in the afternoons.

Played organized hockey as a kid and adult as a defenseman. Play all positions with varying degrees of 'skill' in scrub (though don't play very often in goal).

 

[Renbarg]

If you're playing shinny with better players, or an organized game at any level, you'll still learn. Not always the big strategy of the game stuff, but you'll know what the player's PoV is like. It doesn't take competitive league play.

For instance, the numbers on helmet crap we're seeing this season to acclimate us to seeing stuff there in preparation for future ads. A lot of posters on the main board bought the line that refs need an additional number to keep track of who's who on the ice. If you've ever seen hockey from the player side, at any level, you know just how laughable that really is. Even in beer league games where guys often don't even wear numbers, I've never had trouble picking out one guy from another based on whatever else. You know that even if there's not a number exposed, if you have a jersey with numbers on the back and sleeves, one will be exposed in half a second.

There's a difference between seeing the game from the stands or TV and seeing it from up close in 3D. And I don't think you need to play competitive hockey to see that.

1) NHL hockey is probably 3 times as fast as beer league hockey.
2) There hundreds of different hockey players, some who may only get a couple shifts a game. Its not that easy to distinguish one guy from the next if they are essentially wearing identical equipment and you have never really seen them before.
3) The numbers on the helmet will rarely be useful, however if a Ref can get an ID quicker than usual 1 outta 100 times its well worth it. His eyes could be on the play rather than waiting that extra half beat to see a number or distinctive feature.
4) I'm sure part of the reason is that its easier to market players.

 

[Hounsy]

I read somewhere that another advantage to numbers on the front of helmet is for cameraman to pickup the right player on bench during broadcasts.

 

[CanadianHockey]

Highest level I played was high school hockey. When I was younger I'd get affiliated all the time though and usually wore an A. Currently play intramural hockey and shinny.

 

[Avshockey85]

been playing since i was 13..26 now

 

[Axman]

Beer league.
It's a blast having guys 15 years younger than me and twice as fast set me up with perfect passes.

 

[member 30781]

Been playing for 4 years......wish I started WAY sooner.

Same with me. Been playing for almost 5 years. Started playing on my 17th birthday and am a month shy of 22 now. The amount I've improved has been night and day. I am now one of the best players out on the rink.

 

[Seanconn*]

was too busy with school to join a beer like this season...


I think it's pretty ****ing pathetic the University of Regina doesn't have intramural hockey anymore...

considering this city is absolutely hockey crazy.

 

[SidGenoMario]

was too busy with school to join a beer like this season...


I think it's pretty ****ing pathetic the University of Regina doesn't have intramural hockey anymore...

considering this city is absolutely hockey crazy.

I go to the U of S, and our intramurals are filled with ex-WHL and ECHLers. Of course, this ruins it for me.

 

[combsatl]

I'm 27 now and I played a mix of ice/roller through high school and into college. I tore my medial meniscus in my left knee when I was 20 and haven't played ice since.. just stick to roller. Plus.. it's a LOT cheaper in GA.. ice time is ridiculous down here.

But I play 2-5 times a week depending on the week.

 

[edog37]

been playing ice hockey over 20 years now since high school. Beer league at present, since you definitely lose a step in your late 30s.....

 

[OpenIceHit42]

Played high school ice and roller. Played club roller for STLCC-Meramec. Currently play ice in HNA (Hockey North America) here in STL and a couple roller teams.

 

[mirm]

I started playing in April this year at age 33. I was only on skates maybe 5 times before that & my first time out was overwhelming to say the least. I stuck with it - did the parent lecture on myself, "I just bought you all this gear, you aren't going to quit after one class!" Once I got my own skates, I did much better, obviously stuck with it & now I am hooked.

I started with a learn to play hockey for women class, then started playing beginner pick-ups in May & then joined a beginner's "draft" (1 fully formed team, 5 draft teams) league in June. I just finished my first power skating session, again overwhelmed, in a good way, but having a great time & hopefully improving!

Also picked up dek hockey in August, which was a nice way to learn to play the game better, without having to worry about skating.

 

[Subnordi]

Started skating when I was 4 and played in league the year after. I had to quit when I was 16 due to a major knee injury that required surgery.

Incident happened on ice when one of my teammates got hit from behind (playing in midget AAA). I immediately dropped my gloves and jumped the guy that did it and that put a target on my back for the rest of the game. Late in the third, someone intentionally stuck out their knee and caught me as I was rushing the puck through the neutral zone. The pain hit right away and I couldn't put my weight on it at all.

Since then, I play for fun on out-door rinks but am still dealing with the pain even today. That's pretty much held me back from even playing in a beer league.

Did you slap that hoe?

 

[Law]

Started playing on LI when I was about 7, my parent's garage door still bares the scars of post-school shooting to this day. Started with roller, but it quickly moved to ice and travel. Played with a few teams before playing Jrs with Apple Core in the EJHL.

Got a few D1 offers, but I knew I wasn't going anywhere with hockey so I went the education route -- went to Cornell and played club (they were in the process of officially transitioning to ACHA when I graduated). Did get a tryout with the varsity, but short of 4-5 defensemen getting hurt in the pre-season, it wasn't going to go any further than a nice story to re-tell on a message board.

Hung up my skates after college and eventually moved south for work. While down here in Miami, one of my good friends at work was from Montreal. We were doing the old-guy thing one night -- watching hockey while sitting on the couch drinking beers -- when we both just started talking about how much we missed playing.

Called up a few rinks the next day (aren't many down here, didn't take long) and ended up running into my old pee wee coach who had moved down here around the same time. Been playing beer league ever since, even run the teams myself now ('Team USeh' as a homage to our US and Canadian roster).

Not too bad down here, few ex-NHLers floating around and more than a few guys who played Jr or college. Don't plan on hanging them up again for a long time. Even destroying my ankle last year during a freak rut-in-the-ice injury (surgery, plate, seven screws, etc) hasn't deterred me.