I luv the game with a passion, been around it forever, once played, once coached, albeit girls hockey, lots of skill w/no contact, but trust me, they are as tough as nails and just as aggressive. Hockey also acted as a superb conduit for teaching young girls not only the game, but self esteem, team hierarchy & responsibilities. I wish I had as many positive things to say about some of the parents involved during that time, the bickering was endless ... however, the dressing room became a great sanctuary, at least for a few hours a winter week. Most of the bickering ceased after we won many championships, which also made it extra "fun".
What's with hockey and fighting?
- Thread starter amirm
- Start date
That's cool. I too played in a team when I was young...of course...I'm French Canadian.
I played hockey and skated for many years, I even watered many skating rings as an ice art and a job @ night, very late @ night when it was freezing cold, and still a young teenager.
I was a defense-man...right wing. I did not pursue a career, instead I went into natural architecture...the outdoors...designing and building forests with my hands.
But hockey is still in my heart...the good spirit hockey...the good sport. ...The ice skating with the puck.
I played hockey and skated for many years, I even watered many skating rings as an ice art and a job @ night, very late @ night when it was freezing cold, and still a young teenager.
I was a defense-man...right wing. I did not pursue a career, instead I went into natural architecture...the outdoors...designing and building forests with my hands.
But hockey is still in my heart...the good spirit hockey...the good sport. ...The ice skating with the puck.
North, it was easy to develop a plan for success initially in girls hockey, considering near every coach at that time taught his girls hockey as if they were teaching boys. Boys are stronger and naturally shoot harder with more accuracy. Young Girls, well, I had to spend countless hours teaching 'em two particular skills, passing and shooting. They couldn't even lift the puck at first, but in short order, they were pinging crossbars and hitting open wingers with ease. I also used my wingers to closely support our defense instead of covering the oppositions defense in our end. This meant that in our end, we generally outnumber the opposition 5 to 3 deep within our zone, this left their defense open to a good shot ... but since the opposing coaches didn't teach shooting skills nearly as prominently, their defense didn't represent much of a scoring threat. It really was that simple a plan, and championships later ...
So, who resurrected that thread?
* TBone, I enjoyed reading your posts...including the two above.
* TBone, I enjoyed reading your posts...including the two above.
So, who resurrected that thread?
* TBone, I enjoyed reading your posts...including the two above.
Thanks North, if I may again ...
One big playoff game, during warmup, I'm on the bench getting organized when I noticed a ref about 20 feet away glaring at me. I tried not to notice, but she stood their, arms crossed as if calling me out, me secretly intimidated by a 16 year old girl in strips, but I held my ground. She slowly made her way to the bench when I noticed it was a friend of my niece, I'd not seen her in quite some time, proud she was now an aspiring referee. We exchanged a brief conversation and a hug.
Well, after we won the game, some of the losing parents came down and accused the ref of bias.
Their justification?
The hug.
(big BIG sigh)
K, 1 more then ...
One year we had this eastern European girl join our team. She could hardly speak english, nor stand on ice without falling, never mind skate like a player. She was very proud, and with her parents support, she was wisely placed in net. Early season, we gave up a lot of goals, lost more than won, but by seasons end, our neophyte goalie had become the best goalie in the league. On her shoulders, we made the playoffs, then won the championship.
I'll never forget, after the season, I remember complimenting her on her amazing learning curve in such a short period of time ... asking her who she was training/learning from?
Her answer?
YouTube.
I have so many hockey stories, some even concerning Wayne Gretzky who I've known since high school. Some of those stories, however, I can't repeat here.
The game of yore and today's version can't be compared...it's an apples to oranges comparison. One might like the old game better (let's say before the 67-68 season expansion), but to say it is better is simply not true. Today's game is faster, the athletes themselves are better conditioned, the talent pool has expanded, there is less fighting and those are just a few things. JMHO of course.
Agreed, although the game of yore included more interesting characters and on-ice personalities, partially, I think, because they didn't wear helmets. Remember Guy Lafleur and his flowing hair, Espo's "garbage" goals, Gordie's elbows, Hull's dangerous shot, Clarkie's toothless smile, Orr's amazing grace ... they all had very different persona's. Today, they are much the same, more readily identified by name/# on the back of the jersey. As for the conditioning, today's players have to be in great shape, even during the off-season ... certainly no longer the "beer league" it once was ...
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