Amateur Hockey Thread

[meow]

This is exactly why C level is dangerous. It's not incidental contact. The guy had the puck and you got in his way. The contact is completely your fault.

A and B leaguers that play lower levels are idiots. Why play at a lower level? All it does it rustle the jimmies of the lesser skilled players. I have no idea how blowing past guys that can barely skate is any fun.

[yubb]

I often wonder the same about the more skilled players. I get wanting to help your buddy's team out if they're getting killed all the time. But it really ruins it for everyone if you play in a league below your skill level.

I don't disagree that the contact was at least partially my fault. I just don't see the danger, or even harm in it. Our best defenders do a great job of standing people up at the blue line without checking them. It's a fine line between a body check and just not getting out of their way. I don't think you should be required to get out of the guy's way, or give him easy access to the zone. I mean, it's hockey! You can't hit, so what can you do? You can poke check and try to slow him up by getting in his way. And it's not like I just popped up in front of him magically, he saw the path I was taking and decided not to deviate enough to avoid me.

I'm more concerned with guys who can't seem to keep their sticks out of my face. Most of my team just recently switched to cages for this reason and due to a few people losing teeth due to pucks to the face. Pansies.

[Idoit40fans]

Sometimes you just want to play on a team with your friends. I never had this problem but id rather play down with friends than just play in a more competitive league with strangers.

And yeah i always wear a cage. I like my eyes and teeth.

[meow]

It is all in how you handle yourself. Also, I don't think a C level player going down to E is as big of a talent gap as an A level going to C.

[mikey287]

Yeah, if you play down...don't make a spectacle of it. Just keep passing, keep the puck moving, just support well...no need to show anyone up...no one is impressed that you're playing down a couple levels...but no one would care if you play with friends and aren't a *****...

[meow]

My dilemma with playing down is that I don't want to pitch a dominating shutout, but I can let those benders score.

[mikey287]

Good chance to work on fundamental things or things that you need to work on...stickhandling, adding more stand-up into your game, pokecheck timing...

You don't want to willingly surrender goals to benders though, no...let's not be inhuman here...benders don't get to score as a gift...

[MalkinIsMyHomeboy]

I've never heard of the term bender before but it's absolutely hilarious now that I looked it up. So true.

[Idoit40fans]

Did you just admit that you didnt know something?

[yubb]

Bender: "A wild drinking spree." Makes sense.

I play center usually and take most of the faceoffs. Played one dude who was THE MOST INTENSE DUDE EVER, especially on face-offs. He was certainly better than the rest of us. It really ruined the fun of the game.

Most skilled players don't just skate around and pass. Most. But even if they do, it's evident they're very good and they really just don't belong in C. How much are you really going to hone your poke checking skills against a guy that skates half as well as as you?

[mikey287]

If that's in reference to my post, meow and I - as usual - were talking about goalies...

[MRandall25]

I like(d) to try to shoot off of faceoffs when I had a wooden stick. Hit the goalie a few times, which made me proud of myself.

Now that I switched to composite, I'm afraid of doing anything that would break the stick, because most of them are goddamn expensive.

Not really sure what that has to do with anything (mostly because it's faceoff-related), but I thought it was a cool story, bro.

But yeah, I hated playing beginner (the lowest level) intramural hockey with guys who could skate circles around everyone (especially the inline hockey players who decided beginner was a good idea).

[shoeshine boy]

I often wonder the same about the more skilled players. I get wanting to help your buddy's team out if they're getting killed all the time. But it really ruins it for everyone if you play in a league below your skill level.

I don't disagree that the contact was at least partially my fault. I just don't see the danger, or even harm in it. Our best defenders do a great job of standing people up at the blue line without checking them. It's a fine line between a body check and just not getting out of their way. I don't think you should be required to get out of the guy's way, or give him easy access to the zone. I mean, it's hockey! You can't hit, so what can you do? You can poke check and try to slow him up by getting in his way. And it's not like I just popped up in front of him magically, he saw the path I was taking and decided not to deviate enough to avoid me.

there's "not getting out of their way" and then there's going out of your way to get into his path. if you are moving into his path with the intent of making contact that is a penalty and he has every right to be pissed off about it even if he got the infraction wrong. non-check does not mean no-contact but in the end we all have to go to work/school the next day and no one wants to be injured by some guy in a beer league hockey game that means absolutely nothing.

[slappybrown]

I'm not the best skater. Every time I approach a guy with a puck I make an attempt at a poke check and just skate "through" the player. If neither of us moves, we collide. Sometimes people don't expect this. I play in a C league.

So last night I do this, skate "through" the guy, and end up colliding. He falls down and starts MF'ing me for elbowing him. He had his head down. I had my arms in. It was my shoulder pad that hit him, pretty much in his head.

Sorry, not sorry. It happens. There was no penalty called on the play and the DoPS is not reviewing it.

.............wat

Do I nee to clarify something?
I was trying to illustrate how upset people get playing hockey during incidental contact. I consider this incidental, not an all-out body check, since I wasn't trying to run into him. I put myself in the best position to take the puck from him and stop him from entering the zone. If neither of us deviate from our course we collide.

In this case, we collided and he get a bit upset about it. We didn't collide face to face, but kind of glanced off of each other. What's more is he accused me of elbowing him, which I most certainly didn't. I wouldn't mind if he called for an interference penalty; that call is arguable. But sucking his thumb and accusing me of elbowing him isn't cool, because that's what dirty players do and I'm not dirty.

Every time I approach a guy with a puck I make an attempt at a poke check and just skate "through" the player.

I consider this incidental

This is a function of you being a bad skater, as you admit. Calling that incidental is silly, because its your fault that you're not in control of your body and skate "through" people.

[yubb]

there's "not getting out of their way" and then there's going out of your way to get into his path. if you are moving into his path with the intent of making contact that is a penalty and he has every right to be pissed off about it even if he got the infraction wrong. non-check does not mean no-contact but in the end we all have to go to work/school the next day and no one wants to be injured by some guy in a beer league hockey game that means absolutely nothing.

Yes. I agree. I often use the "work the next day" thing myself. It'd be impossible for me to explain it accurately with words and since I don't tape my games I guess I'll have to leave it at that.

The only other option I see is the "moving into his way without the intent of making contact, but with the intent of forcing him to change his line." If he doesn't change his line and neither do I, contact is a possibility. It's one of the calls refs usually do get right. Maybe that's because the right call is a no-call and refs seem to be more likely to not make a call than to make one.

[Chefpatrick871]

So should we just start an Lgp beer league team?

[meow]

If someone skated through me in adult league, we'd have a problem.

[slappybrown]

If someone skated through me in adult league, we'd have a problem.

Pretty much where I'm at.

[Idoit40fans]

In an inline league i went down to take away a pass and the guy decided for some reason to make a 90 degree turn into me. He tripped over my back hilariously. This happened maybe a second and a half after i lowered myself. I got called for tripping.

[Pruezy11881]

I often wonder the same about the more skilled players. I get wanting to help your buddy's team out if they're getting killed all the time. But it really ruins it for everyone if you play in a league below your skill level.

I don't disagree that the contact was at least partially my fault. I just don't see the danger, or even harm in it. Our best defenders do a great job of standing people up at the blue line without checking them. It's a fine line between a body check and just not getting out of their way. I don't think you should be required to get out of the guy's way, or give him easy access to the zone. I mean, it's hockey! You can't hit, so what can you do? You can poke check and try to slow him up by getting in his way. And it's not like I just popped up in front of him magically, he saw the path I was taking and decided not to deviate enough to avoid me.

there's "not getting out of their way" and then there's going out of your way to get into his path. if you are moving into his path with the intent of making contact that is a penalty and he has every right to be pissed off about it even if he got the infraction wrong. non-check does not mean no-contact but in the end we all have to go to work/school the next day and no one wants to be injured by some guy in a beer league hockey game that means absolutely nothing.

[jwest21]

If that's in reference to my post, meow and I - as usual - were talking about goalies...

this reminded me of:



http://espn.go.com/espn/story/_/page/in ... tscenterFB" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chefpatrick871]

If that's in reference to my post, meow and I - as usual - were talking about goalies...

this reminded me of:



http://espn.go.com/espn/story/_/page/in ... tscenterFB" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

glorious

[tjand72]

If someone skated through me in adult league, we'd have a problem.

Yup. I've skated through plenty of guys in college and would do the same in a checking league, but if it's non-check/contact, then there's no contact...period. If I stop short and a guy skates into me, then that's one thing, but I wouldn't skate through anyone. At 280# or so, there's damage to be done, but if there's no expectation of contact, I wouldn't do it.

[Dan H]

there's "not getting out of their way" and then there's going out of your way to get into his path. if you are moving into his path with the intent of making contact that is a penalty and he has every right to be pissed off about it even if he got the infraction wrong. non-check does not mean no-contact but in the end we all have to go to work/school the next day and no one wants to be injured by some guy in a beer league hockey game that means absolutely nothing.

Yes. I agree. I often use the "work the next day" thing myself. It'd be impossible for me to explain it accurately with words and since I don't tape my games I guess I'll have to leave it at that.

The only other option I see is the "moving into his way without the intent of making contact, but with the intent of forcing him to change his line." If he doesn't change his line and neither do I, contact is a possibility. It's one of the calls refs usually do get right. Maybe that's because the right call is a no-call and refs seem to be more likely to not make a call than to make one.

There's another option of working hard on your transitions and skating using your edges until you can gap up properly to an oncoming player, or perhaps make a tight turn to body up to the puck carrier without violently checking him. It's hard to hold onto a puck when someone is physically contacting you and lifting your stick, even if you weren't body checked.

Plus, in most situations on the ice, you're doing something wrong if the other team is carrying the puck and you're skating in the opposite direction. About the only times I can think of this should happen is if the puck just got turned over and you haven't transitioned yet, or if you collapsed to your net front because the puck went there, then had to skate out to cover a defenseman after the puck got batted back out to the point. And even in the latter situation attempting a body check would be a bad strategic move even in a checking league.

[MRandall25]

I move up to go for the pokecheck if the player receiving the puck is stationary. Gotten a few breaks that way. Easy to take advantage of a guy who still needs to start moving his legs.