This. If you're on the ice, you should be moving. If you find yourself standing still, you're not working. If you're constantly moving, you're gonna get tired quickly. Change early, change often.
Don't worry about the results. Go out there and try and play good positioning; understanding where to be is more important than being the fastest guy on the ice or having the hardest shot. Try to stay in front of guys in the defensive zone, and try to get to open areas in the neutral/offensive zone.
If you get the puck, fire it on net! It might be a while 'til you score your first goal, but so many guys take their time hoping for the perfect opportunity. But it rarely works out that way -- your first goal is probably gonna be a dinker, or a misplay by the goalie, or a deflection, etc. Too many guys simply *don't shoot the puck.* Don't be one of 'em.
Have a good time!
Great points but if this guy is as new as he says he is then saying "play good positioning" is essentially french to him.
Just give a little explanation of what each positional role is and where to be *most of the time*
Winger: whether it be left or right your objective as a forward is to move that puck from the defending zone to the offensive zone, or help facilitate that. In your own zone you want to stay up too near your blue line on whatever side wing, in between the opposing teams Defensive player and the puck. Your job here is to stay up in that zone and try getting or intercepting a pass and exiting your zone and create a rush towards their zone. This is really hard to do if your near the goal line in your zone as any loose puck just gets scooped up by the opposing D.
In the offensive zone your job is to be by the face- off dot on your wing ( left or right) and move around to open up space and get a pass from a team mate or pull a defender off the puck carrier by being in a threatening position. The guy Im responding to is absolutely right if you get the puck and your anywhere near the right position just shoot it and try and get a rebound, same as if your team mate shoots the puck and it ends up in your zone, that's your puck so chase it and try getting another shot off before the defense collapses on you.
That was way more work than I anticipated but defense is kind of the opposite to what the forwards do. Centers are the roaming player that helps on defense and offense so they skate a lot, they are the extra player on defense and should shadow the other center or take the open man in a dangerous position if the play breaks down.
Defense is rarely passed to in beer league so I'm the offensive zone they are mostly trying to keep the luck inside the offensive zone and get back to the neutral zone in time to defend if the puck gets turned over.
Defense they are around the goal line and in the corners trying to get the puck off the puck carrier or push the puck carrier to the boards by taking up space so that the puck carrier has a bad angled shot that's easy for the goalie to save. When you go into the corners to try and get the puck sometimes your center will come down too to help pass it up to the wingers and get the puck out of your zone.
That's a really simplistic view of positioning and I hope people add to/contradict what I wrote down so that this person can learn a bit more about hockey 🤷♂️
TL;DR - GET TO OPEN ICE and look at the puck carrier for a pass no matter what position you play and skate like hell.
Yeah I didn't want to overwhelm OP before their first game, so I deliberately kept it simple, just injecting the idea of "solid positioning" into their brain and figured they could watch some YouTube videos about it if they wanted to learn more. But you went ahead and did it for em lol
Yeah fair enough haha I liked what you said and figured I would expand on it, hope the guy who asked the original question had a good game, and a ton of fun while playing
Agree, if everyone knows what they’re doing. My women’s team (made up of mostly former college players) will run 45s-1min shifts even with 2 lines and it works really well, but on my men’s league team (a 50/50 mix of former HS players and guys who started playing as adults) a 1min shift, even with 3 lines, throws the entire forward rotation off-kilter, it sucks from a “playing actual hockey” perspective, but the guys are such beauts it makes it worth it and I’ll just adapt my entire style of play to stay out for 1:30-3:00.
I will say conversely though, follow the general vibes of the team. My team takes shifts that are way too long and I’m the short shifts crank but I also try to tone it down. If everyone else is taking 2 min, don’t take 1 min and get no ice team
It really depends. Generally you aren’t getting off at the EXACT same time but similar ish times +- 15 ish seconds but you can also get caught on there and end up longer and that’s ok (eg you are playing defense). I try to always look at the clock before I go in. Otherwise you have no idea how long it’s been esp when you first start. It’s more about looking to make a change when it’s close to go time (or you’re tired) and then finding a safe opportunity
Lines sometimes break down and are mixed up but it’s generally better to keep them together. But at beginner league it’s just about ice time so don’t skip a shift to get lines back in sync. The end of period can fix that.
Drop the gloves with the opposing team’s goalie on the first shift to establish dominance.
Or go have fun. Hustle and short shifts. Do the best you can and listen to your teammates.
Either option works.
Short fucking shifts.
Hustle, you can suck but if people see that you're genuinely trying they won't care.
Short fucking shifts
If you're looking to make extra friends, bring an extra six beers or so for when the main beer supply ends.
Short fucking shifts
Don't be an asshole, have fun, You're paying to play, not getting paid to play. Remember that.
Short fucking shifts
Thanks I’ll keep that in mind, I’m usually good at not staying on for too long but how does that work in game? Should I go off even if my line is on (assuming I’m not winded)
Lines rarely mean shit in beer league. Just get off after a minute. Doesn't matter if your tired, if you covered a guy and barely moved the whole time, switch it up. If it makes you feel better, you can always just ask if your team has very strict lines that they Stick to. Most teams it's a guide at best, at least till you get to higher level play.
Do you even have lines? My league has small teams so we often have 7 or 8 skaters. We are swapping 1:1 and you often are playing a different position every shift.
So you will have three lines.Edit-you will have three wing lines and two centers....follow your other winger...my bad...lol...Follow your center, when the go off, you go off\*. Try to stay with your line. Even though it's beer league, your captain has a strategy in mind with putting folks on certain lines. But most line changes in the beer leagues is on whistles, so it's simpler. But there will be 'on the fly' changes....So if you're right wing, know who the other right wingers are, and figure out your turn in the rotation. You go on when the dude at right wing in front of you comes off. Have fun, work hard, don't be a D and best of luck...cheers!
Generally if you’re moving the way you should be and forechecking in the O zone and back checking in the D zone, you’ll be winded after 60-90 seconds and ready for a rest.
But if you’re still a bit worried about it, just tell the guy behind you (IE the 3rd line RW if you’re the 2nd line RW) that you’re not used to changing lines to give you a yell if you’re late on a change.
Lots of good advice in here.
I will add:
Warm up when the goalie is in net is for the goalie, not for you. Leave the Zegras moves for the other goalie during the game.
Shoot at the goalie’s pads, blocker or glove. They need to see and feel the puck. Avoid the head and apologize if you accidentally shoot one there.
Don’t shoot when the goalie is not looking at you.
I personally prefer to send rockets from the top of the circle that either leave the goalie with possible CTE later in life/miss the net high and wide by 15 feet, or put on my best Patrick Kane impression in order to send his jockstrap/groin into the rafters, but you do you dawg.
> Don’t shoot when the goalie is not looking at you.
Fortheloveofgod please listen to this one. Besides just the padding issue usually one guy shoots from the backside then others join in. Rather than taking my 1-1:45 minutes getting used to seeing pucks bounce away I get 15 seconds of watching pucks sail behind me from every direction and 1:30 or so of extra stretch time.
I’ve not yet gotten an opportunity to play again since I was younger but want to get back into it one day when I get the chance. Full apologies if this is out of line or an ignorant query (I really don’t have a large knowledge base in this area).
Is this a thing in all leagues? I’d like to play again someday but don’t drink and am not a massive fan of locker-room drinking culture from what I’ve seen of it. Are there adult leagues that aren’t drinking centric? Or is this problem not even a real thing and I’m going down a rabbit hole that doesn’t even exist?
A majority of my team are not heavy drinkers, myself included. I'm the captain of my team and I bring a cooler stocked with a 12 pack of beer and a 12 pack of root beer. The root beer started as a joke but I keep bringing it because it goes faster than anything else. We all chat in the parking lot with our drink of choice and bullshit for 30 minutes or so before everyone goes their separate ways. There's some teams in our league that bring a little grill and lawn chairs and the whole nine lol.
Guys drink beer in the locker room and chill while shooting the shit, showering and getting changed after games. If you don't, or have a club soda, no one gives a shit. At beer/rec league level, that's the culture.
Recent leagues I’ve played in you’d see maybe one or two guys have a beer in the locker room after the game. Usually we were the last game and the rink guys were looking to head home, or there was a game after us and the next team was waiting for us to clear out so they could get dressed
I'd say: bring what you'd enjoy and a few extras to share. Some people bring beer, some bring whiteclaw, some bring ginger ale, someone even brought ramune once. My locker rooms have 100% been positive and not like "locker room culture" at all. People talking about kids and vacations and cars and just coming down from the high of a game.
Keep your head up, play safe, use caution going over the boards, keep your shifts shorter than you think, don't try to be a hero, have fun! Your teammates will appreciate it if you try your best to not be offsides, that tends to be the biggest headache as far as rules go for beginners.
Have fun! Remember it's not the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Keep your legs moving, and two hands on your stick & stick on the ice so you can receive passes.
Shifts should be 100% effort, for like 30 - 90 seconds.
If you get the puck on your stick, pick your head up & take a few strides. Look for an open teammate. If you get it in the offensive zone, take a shot on net. It's a puck, not a hot potato. Don't just fire it off immediately. Look around.
Ask questions about positioning, and other situations from more experienced teammates.
Stretch before & after.
The hot potatoes thing is so true. I'm playing out for the first time ever after being tender my whole life and I immediately panic and get rid of puck instantly
> but I’m still not entirely sure what Icing is lol
if the puck crosses two lines without being touched and goes past the goal line, it's icing and there's a faceoff in the offending team's (the team that last touched it) end. If you are carrying the puck and want to dump it up, don't do it before you cross the red line (center). If everyone is completely winded and needs a change desperately, just whip it from wherever you are and don't worry about the icing call.
Short shifts.
The puck is not a grenade. You have more time than you think you do. You don't need to get it off your stick as fast as humanly possible.
Don't take this shit too seriously. It doesn't really matter and everybody has to go to work tomorrow.
Have fun. Bring some beer. Don’t be a dick. Wear face protection. No shitty 10 ft high slapshots stick with most wrist or snapshots for beer league. Careful with some players there maybe some old skaters out there.
Don't assume somebody ran into you on purpose. A lot of beginners can barely skate and there's lots of incidental contact. To many new people assume it was on purpose and get all riled up.
My advice is ignore the assholes. There's always some clown out there looking to start a scuffle or whatever because they have a terrible life and hate themself. They're always out there. It's not unusual, so don't be too surprised.
Releasing an absolute clapper at your first opportunity is a show of pure dominance.
To further ensure your place upon the sheet look directly at the other teams bench upon release and state how familiar you would like to be with the other humans wives/gf’s/sidepieces/sisters while not directly meaning it to just one specific member of that bench but all members.
When any or all of said players immediately desire to be within your space of dominance just simply pretend no one exists and take your rest upon your throne paying no attention to any of the “drama” following you…ignore the peasants they are not worth your time.
Immediately change back on and proceed to play at least %80 of the allotted ice time because “you deserve it”
Shotgun everyone else beers following the game and remember to suggests they bring your favourite beer instead next time.
Always leave with an endearing comment such as “See you piss bricks next week, hopefully you won’t be such bitches”
For next time, watch a video on positioning. Besides getting your shift length right and changing when it’s appropriate, one of the best things you can learn is proper positioning on the ice. Being in the right place so you can help your team. (Most new players play wing, and most wings go way too low on defense. Stay above the hash marks, for example).
Due to the amount of skaters I wasn’t on the ice all that much and my stamina seems to be solid. In the offensive zone should I be very aggressive on the forecheck?
In the offensive zone, if you’re a forward you need to be making a triangle with your other two forwards, and try to stay open while doing so. If no one is in front of the net already, go there “crash the net”. Tons of goals in low level hockey come from rebounds.
I think most people think you should play the opposite of your stick handedness (so righties play left). But my coach has me doing the exact opposite (righty on the right side) and he was in the nhl so I just do what he tells me, lol. I do like carrying the puck on the outside since that’s where D will try to push me anyways.
I play both sides interchangeably a lot, you probably will too, so I wouldn’t stress about it. Game attendance will determine what side you play pretty often.
Ok so this one is a little different but has always worked well for me to build rapport. Remember who you’re sitting next to in dressing room then make a note of a goal they scored and or a play that stood out to you, then after the game mention it to them. Like hey that was a nice tap in you made or slick pass or whatever. Gives you something to break the ice with people you don’t know that well.
Otherwise another tip is, if you’re first in line it’s your job to shut the gate behind people coming off, and when you’re coming off just walk past it open to the back of the bench and let the first person in line close it, it’s not your job to shut it behind you.
Safety and common sense?? Person at the front of line is responsible for shutting the gate.
Person coming off has no idea if someone else is coming behind them. If they stop to turn around and shut the door behind them they get in the way of the next person changing.
Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hockey sticks to control, advance, and shoot a closed, vulcanized, rubber disc called a "puck" into the other team's goal. Each goal is worth one point. The team which scores the most goals is declared the winner. In a formal game, each team has six skaters on the ice at a time, barring any penalties, one of whom is the goaltender. Ice hockey is a full contact sport, and is considered to be one of the more physically demanding team sports. It is distinct from field hockey, in which players move a ball around a non-frozen pitch using field hockey sticks.
The modern sport of ice hockey was developed in Canada, most notably in Montreal, where the first indoor game was played on March 3, 1875. Some characteristics of that game, such as the length of the ice rink and the use of a puck, have been retained to this day. Amateur ice hockey leagues began in the 1880s, and professional ice hockey originated around 1900. The Stanley Cup, emblematic of ice hockey club supremacy, was initially commissioned in 1892 as the "Dominion Hockey Challenge Cup" and was first awarded in 1893 to recognise the Canadian amateur champion and later became the championship trophy of the National Hockey League (NHL). In the early 1900s, the Canadian rules were adopted by the Ligue Internationale de Hockey sur Glace, in Paris, France, the precursor of the IIHF. The sport was played for the first time at the Olympics during the 1920 Summer Olympics—today it is a mainstay at the Winter Olympics. In 1994 ice hockey was officially recognized as Canada's national winter sport.
Don’t go behind the net in warmups.
Don’t go behind your own net during the game.
Pick a position and start learning it, almost everyone shrugs when they are asked what position they want to play but have no idea what to do, so just say ‘wing’. Try to stay on your strong hand side of the ice (if you are left handed play left wing) it’s easier to catch breakout passes. Yes you can score more from your off wing, but if you can’t hammer a one timer, there’s no reason to play there.
Going forward, just focus on learning your position, that’s going to be your biggest asset as you learn the game, you won’t have the skill to dangle, probably aren’t going to be beating anyone wide with speed, but you can play your position and stop goals against. The goals for will come eventually
You have way more time than you think you do. When you get the puck, look around and make a play. Don’t immediately think other people are on you because they’re not. You have time to make a play
Have fun and try and show yourself as a team player. Don't play risky, in these situations, it's better to miss a scoring chance than to let the other team score.
But most imporantly, have fun and welcome to the club!
If you're in the other team's zone and the puck goes out of the zone but the other team brings it back in, you're no longer offside and you don't have to clear the zone before attacking the player with the puck.
Have fun and enjoy! I like what others have said about short shifts, nobody likes an ice hog so change with your linemates. Cheer your teammates on and bring positive energy! Have a blast my man! (Playing for 37 years)
All good advice above but I’ll add—so many newbs think hockey is about being physically aggressive (in a fighty way, not in a backchecking hard way) and they ruin it for everyone. You’re not there to prove you’re a tough guy. Be cool!
For the team, short shifts, communicate, have fun.
For you , or any teammate as an individual player, take three strides, make a decision and follow it, take three more strides after you think you should stop.
The rest is simple. Repeat weekly, monthly, yearly as long as you enjoy it.
Oh, and bring beer
You should probably ask if it's a checking league. I did not, and I came from playing varsity in HS where everyone is trying to murder you. First shift, some guy carries straight down center ice, and I absolutely rag dolled him, probably detached his soul from his body.
Whistle blows*
*74, 2 minutes checking*
It went smooth, kept my shifts short and we won! I’m nervous in the future we have too many skaters, even with 3 lines I was on the ice for 3/4 minutes a period
- Keep the shifts short
- dont be afraid to tell someone to stay on the ice so you can get an extra couple seconds of air before you head back out
- look before you shoot
- only take a second beer until everyone gets one
- give the refs a break if they give a bad call. the refs do not want to be there.
I can’t express enough that short shifts will make you a better player and teammate.
This. If you're on the ice, you should be moving. If you find yourself standing still, you're not working. If you're constantly moving, you're gonna get tired quickly. Change early, change often. Don't worry about the results. Go out there and try and play good positioning; understanding where to be is more important than being the fastest guy on the ice or having the hardest shot. Try to stay in front of guys in the defensive zone, and try to get to open areas in the neutral/offensive zone. If you get the puck, fire it on net! It might be a while 'til you score your first goal, but so many guys take their time hoping for the perfect opportunity. But it rarely works out that way -- your first goal is probably gonna be a dinker, or a misplay by the goalie, or a deflection, etc. Too many guys simply *don't shoot the puck.* Don't be one of 'em. Have a good time!
Great points but if this guy is as new as he says he is then saying "play good positioning" is essentially french to him. Just give a little explanation of what each positional role is and where to be *most of the time* Winger: whether it be left or right your objective as a forward is to move that puck from the defending zone to the offensive zone, or help facilitate that. In your own zone you want to stay up too near your blue line on whatever side wing, in between the opposing teams Defensive player and the puck. Your job here is to stay up in that zone and try getting or intercepting a pass and exiting your zone and create a rush towards their zone. This is really hard to do if your near the goal line in your zone as any loose puck just gets scooped up by the opposing D. In the offensive zone your job is to be by the face- off dot on your wing ( left or right) and move around to open up space and get a pass from a team mate or pull a defender off the puck carrier by being in a threatening position. The guy Im responding to is absolutely right if you get the puck and your anywhere near the right position just shoot it and try and get a rebound, same as if your team mate shoots the puck and it ends up in your zone, that's your puck so chase it and try getting another shot off before the defense collapses on you. That was way more work than I anticipated but defense is kind of the opposite to what the forwards do. Centers are the roaming player that helps on defense and offense so they skate a lot, they are the extra player on defense and should shadow the other center or take the open man in a dangerous position if the play breaks down. Defense is rarely passed to in beer league so I'm the offensive zone they are mostly trying to keep the luck inside the offensive zone and get back to the neutral zone in time to defend if the puck gets turned over. Defense they are around the goal line and in the corners trying to get the puck off the puck carrier or push the puck carrier to the boards by taking up space so that the puck carrier has a bad angled shot that's easy for the goalie to save. When you go into the corners to try and get the puck sometimes your center will come down too to help pass it up to the wingers and get the puck out of your zone. That's a really simplistic view of positioning and I hope people add to/contradict what I wrote down so that this person can learn a bit more about hockey 🤷♂️ TL;DR - GET TO OPEN ICE and look at the puck carrier for a pass no matter what position you play and skate like hell.
Yeah I didn't want to overwhelm OP before their first game, so I deliberately kept it simple, just injecting the idea of "solid positioning" into their brain and figured they could watch some YouTube videos about it if they wanted to learn more. But you went ahead and did it for em lol
Yeah fair enough haha I liked what you said and figured I would expand on it, hope the guy who asked the original question had a good game, and a ton of fun while playing
Just want to add that this is really great advice and a solid addition to the prior comment. Spot on in terms of explaining basic positioning.
\*gasp\* I thought I could \*wheeze\* help the play by staying out a bit lon... \*heartattack\*
Yeah but what’s your advice if he starts taking 45 second shifts while everyone else is on for 3 minutes?
take 15 seconds and watch Lengthy Shift Larry suffer
A short shift is 2 mins max btw
Interesting. In my league a short shift is closer to 1:00-1:30ish. 2 min is becoming a lot of ice time if you’ve got a full bench
That's not a short shift lol Short shift is 45 seconds
As long as you have 3 lines. Don’t come in after 45 seconds if you only have 2 lines.
Disagree, we run 2 lines and 45s-1min is perfect
Agree, if everyone knows what they’re doing. My women’s team (made up of mostly former college players) will run 45s-1min shifts even with 2 lines and it works really well, but on my men’s league team (a 50/50 mix of former HS players and guys who started playing as adults) a 1min shift, even with 3 lines, throws the entire forward rotation off-kilter, it sucks from a “playing actual hockey” perspective, but the guys are such beauts it makes it worth it and I’ll just adapt my entire style of play to stay out for 1:30-3:00.
Keep your head up, don’t stay on the ice too long, have fun
Short shifts, good shifts lol
I will say conversely though, follow the general vibes of the team. My team takes shifts that are way too long and I’m the short shifts crank but I also try to tone it down. If everyone else is taking 2 min, don’t take 1 min and get no ice team
Short shifts are just better but not being a dick about is also important.
Endorse.
Ok, do people generally shift as a line or does it break down pretty quickly?
It really depends. Generally you aren’t getting off at the EXACT same time but similar ish times +- 15 ish seconds but you can also get caught on there and end up longer and that’s ok (eg you are playing defense). I try to always look at the clock before I go in. Otherwise you have no idea how long it’s been esp when you first start. It’s more about looking to make a change when it’s close to go time (or you’re tired) and then finding a safe opportunity Lines sometimes break down and are mixed up but it’s generally better to keep them together. But at beginner league it’s just about ice time so don’t skip a shift to get lines back in sync. The end of period can fix that.
Great lesson to learn early. Your team might even start doing it too if you do it enough.
Whatever you do, don't forget to take off your skate blade protectors before hitting the ice!
Hahaha happened to me once already
Drop the gloves with the opposing team’s goalie on the first shift to establish dominance. Or go have fun. Hustle and short shifts. Do the best you can and listen to your teammates. Either option works.
Hahahahah I’ll keep my options open
If anyone bumps into you, it was definitely intentional and personal. Slash them with a nice two handed baseball swing and make death threats.
Death threats to players is one thing, death threats to the refs is what really gets your team to buy you more beers
Short fucking shifts. Hustle, you can suck but if people see that you're genuinely trying they won't care. Short fucking shifts If you're looking to make extra friends, bring an extra six beers or so for when the main beer supply ends. Short fucking shifts Don't be an asshole, have fun, You're paying to play, not getting paid to play. Remember that. Short fucking shifts
Thanks I’ll keep that in mind, I’m usually good at not staying on for too long but how does that work in game? Should I go off even if my line is on (assuming I’m not winded)
Lines rarely mean shit in beer league. Just get off after a minute. Doesn't matter if your tired, if you covered a guy and barely moved the whole time, switch it up. If it makes you feel better, you can always just ask if your team has very strict lines that they Stick to. Most teams it's a guide at best, at least till you get to higher level play.
Do you even have lines? My league has small teams so we often have 7 or 8 skaters. We are swapping 1:1 and you often are playing a different position every shift.
Yeah for this game it looks like we’ll have 12 skaters and the captain set lines on the team app.
So you will have three lines.Edit-you will have three wing lines and two centers....follow your other winger...my bad...lol...Follow your center, when the go off, you go off\*. Try to stay with your line. Even though it's beer league, your captain has a strategy in mind with putting folks on certain lines. But most line changes in the beer leagues is on whistles, so it's simpler. But there will be 'on the fly' changes....So if you're right wing, know who the other right wingers are, and figure out your turn in the rotation. You go on when the dude at right wing in front of you comes off. Have fun, work hard, don't be a D and best of luck...cheers!
Generally if you’re moving the way you should be and forechecking in the O zone and back checking in the D zone, you’ll be winded after 60-90 seconds and ready for a rest. But if you’re still a bit worried about it, just tell the guy behind you (IE the 3rd line RW if you’re the 2nd line RW) that you’re not used to changing lines to give you a yell if you’re late on a change.
Lots of good advice in here. I will add: Warm up when the goalie is in net is for the goalie, not for you. Leave the Zegras moves for the other goalie during the game. Shoot at the goalie’s pads, blocker or glove. They need to see and feel the puck. Avoid the head and apologize if you accidentally shoot one there. Don’t shoot when the goalie is not looking at you.
Can you come give a seminar to my skaters please?
I personally prefer to send rockets from the top of the circle that either leave the goalie with possible CTE later in life/miss the net high and wide by 15 feet, or put on my best Patrick Kane impression in order to send his jockstrap/groin into the rafters, but you do you dawg.
> Don’t shoot when the goalie is not looking at you. Fortheloveofgod please listen to this one. Besides just the padding issue usually one guy shoots from the backside then others join in. Rather than taking my 1-1:45 minutes getting used to seeing pucks bounce away I get 15 seconds of watching pucks sail behind me from every direction and 1:30 or so of extra stretch time.
how many headshots do you recommend taking during goalie warmup? like 100% or maybe dial it down to 80% headshots?
Bring beer
Mic drop. Applause
I’ve not yet gotten an opportunity to play again since I was younger but want to get back into it one day when I get the chance. Full apologies if this is out of line or an ignorant query (I really don’t have a large knowledge base in this area). Is this a thing in all leagues? I’d like to play again someday but don’t drink and am not a massive fan of locker-room drinking culture from what I’ve seen of it. Are there adult leagues that aren’t drinking centric? Or is this problem not even a real thing and I’m going down a rabbit hole that doesn’t even exist?
A majority of my team are not heavy drinkers, myself included. I'm the captain of my team and I bring a cooler stocked with a 12 pack of beer and a 12 pack of root beer. The root beer started as a joke but I keep bringing it because it goes faster than anything else. We all chat in the parking lot with our drink of choice and bullshit for 30 minutes or so before everyone goes their separate ways. There's some teams in our league that bring a little grill and lawn chairs and the whole nine lol.
Guys drink beer in the locker room and chill while shooting the shit, showering and getting changed after games. If you don't, or have a club soda, no one gives a shit. At beer/rec league level, that's the culture.
Recent leagues I’ve played in you’d see maybe one or two guys have a beer in the locker room after the game. Usually we were the last game and the rink guys were looking to head home, or there was a game after us and the next team was waiting for us to clear out so they could get dressed
I'd say: bring what you'd enjoy and a few extras to share. Some people bring beer, some bring whiteclaw, some bring ginger ale, someone even brought ramune once. My locker rooms have 100% been positive and not like "locker room culture" at all. People talking about kids and vacations and cars and just coming down from the high of a game.
Someone on the other team will try to fight you. He’s an idiot, stay away from him and ignore his big mouth.
Keep your head up, play safe, use caution going over the boards, keep your shifts shorter than you think, don't try to be a hero, have fun! Your teammates will appreciate it if you try your best to not be offsides, that tends to be the biggest headache as far as rules go for beginners.
Have fun! Remember it's not the Stanley Cup playoffs. Keep your legs moving, and two hands on your stick & stick on the ice so you can receive passes. Shifts should be 100% effort, for like 30 - 90 seconds. If you get the puck on your stick, pick your head up & take a few strides. Look for an open teammate. If you get it in the offensive zone, take a shot on net. It's a puck, not a hot potato. Don't just fire it off immediately. Look around. Ask questions about positioning, and other situations from more experienced teammates. Stretch before & after.
Do not take a 30 second shift. It’s not the Stanley cup playoffs. It fucks up the lines.
The hot potatoes thing is so true. I'm playing out for the first time ever after being tender my whole life and I immediately panic and get rid of puck instantly
> but I’m still not entirely sure what Icing is lol if the puck crosses two lines without being touched and goes past the goal line, it's icing and there's a faceoff in the offending team's (the team that last touched it) end. If you are carrying the puck and want to dump it up, don't do it before you cross the red line (center). If everyone is completely winded and needs a change desperately, just whip it from wherever you are and don't worry about the icing call.
Gotcha
Short shifts. The puck is not a grenade. You have more time than you think you do. You don't need to get it off your stick as fast as humanly possible. Don't take this shit too seriously. It doesn't really matter and everybody has to go to work tomorrow.
Yeah was playing pick up yesterday and one guy was going for people’s legs. Not fun
Hydrate before the game! Huge difference maker. Like the hours leading up to the game start, slam water or a sports drink.
I always tell people to start the day before. That's where I've had the most success
Listen to the guys with more experience and have fun.
Don't forget "The Foil"
Have fun. Period.
1)Short shift, even you’r not tired. 2) play position, stay in your zone.
Get out there, have a good attitude, be self aware and dont go in thinking it’s game 7…
have fun and if no one gets hurt it’s a good game. everything else is gravy. learn some fun chirps too
Good thing happen when you put pucks on net. Quantity has a quality all its own.
They don't ask how. They ask how many.
Have fun. Bring some beer. Don’t be a dick. Wear face protection. No shitty 10 ft high slapshots stick with most wrist or snapshots for beer league. Careful with some players there maybe some old skaters out there.
Don't assume somebody ran into you on purpose. A lot of beginners can barely skate and there's lots of incidental contact. To many new people assume it was on purpose and get all riled up.
One of the unwritten rules is no slap shots in my league. Not sure if it’s the same for you.
Hockey is a social game. Make some friends.
Bring beer
My advice is ignore the assholes. There's always some clown out there looking to start a scuffle or whatever because they have a terrible life and hate themself. They're always out there. It's not unusual, so don't be too surprised.
Has anybody said bring beer? /s
Have fun
Dont be a dick, respect others.
Bring beer and everything will be ok
Releasing an absolute clapper at your first opportunity is a show of pure dominance. To further ensure your place upon the sheet look directly at the other teams bench upon release and state how familiar you would like to be with the other humans wives/gf’s/sidepieces/sisters while not directly meaning it to just one specific member of that bench but all members. When any or all of said players immediately desire to be within your space of dominance just simply pretend no one exists and take your rest upon your throne paying no attention to any of the “drama” following you…ignore the peasants they are not worth your time. Immediately change back on and proceed to play at least %80 of the allotted ice time because “you deserve it” Shotgun everyone else beers following the game and remember to suggests they bring your favourite beer instead next time. Always leave with an endearing comment such as “See you piss bricks next week, hopefully you won’t be such bitches”
🫡 I heard it’s all also a show of dominance to hit the goalie in the face face mask during warmups
For next time, watch a video on positioning. Besides getting your shift length right and changing when it’s appropriate, one of the best things you can learn is proper positioning on the ice. Being in the right place so you can help your team. (Most new players play wing, and most wings go way too low on defense. Stay above the hash marks, for example).
Due to the amount of skaters I wasn’t on the ice all that much and my stamina seems to be solid. In the offensive zone should I be very aggressive on the forecheck?
In the offensive zone, if you’re a forward you need to be making a triangle with your other two forwards, and try to stay open while doing so. If no one is in front of the net already, go there “crash the net”. Tons of goals in low level hockey come from rebounds.
Gotcha in general do most right handed shooters play RW? What are the pros/cons of playing either side
I think most people think you should play the opposite of your stick handedness (so righties play left). But my coach has me doing the exact opposite (righty on the right side) and he was in the nhl so I just do what he tells me, lol. I do like carrying the puck on the outside since that’s where D will try to push me anyways. I play both sides interchangeably a lot, you probably will too, so I wouldn’t stress about it. Game attendance will determine what side you play pretty often.
Ok so this one is a little different but has always worked well for me to build rapport. Remember who you’re sitting next to in dressing room then make a note of a goal they scored and or a play that stood out to you, then after the game mention it to them. Like hey that was a nice tap in you made or slick pass or whatever. Gives you something to break the ice with people you don’t know that well. Otherwise another tip is, if you’re first in line it’s your job to shut the gate behind people coming off, and when you’re coming off just walk past it open to the back of the bench and let the first person in line close it, it’s not your job to shut it behind you.
wtf who came up with these rules
Safety and common sense?? Person at the front of line is responsible for shutting the gate. Person coming off has no idea if someone else is coming behind them. If they stop to turn around and shut the door behind them they get in the way of the next person changing.
I would agree with you if we were coaching like a U6 team
Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hockey sticks to control, advance, and shoot a closed, vulcanized, rubber disc called a "puck" into the other team's goal. Each goal is worth one point. The team which scores the most goals is declared the winner. In a formal game, each team has six skaters on the ice at a time, barring any penalties, one of whom is the goaltender. Ice hockey is a full contact sport, and is considered to be one of the more physically demanding team sports. It is distinct from field hockey, in which players move a ball around a non-frozen pitch using field hockey sticks. The modern sport of ice hockey was developed in Canada, most notably in Montreal, where the first indoor game was played on March 3, 1875. Some characteristics of that game, such as the length of the ice rink and the use of a puck, have been retained to this day. Amateur ice hockey leagues began in the 1880s, and professional ice hockey originated around 1900. The Stanley Cup, emblematic of ice hockey club supremacy, was initially commissioned in 1892 as the "Dominion Hockey Challenge Cup" and was first awarded in 1893 to recognise the Canadian amateur champion and later became the championship trophy of the National Hockey League (NHL). In the early 1900s, the Canadian rules were adopted by the Ligue Internationale de Hockey sur Glace, in Paris, France, the precursor of the IIHF. The sport was played for the first time at the Olympics during the 1920 Summer Olympics—today it is a mainstay at the Winter Olympics. In 1994 ice hockey was officially recognized as Canada's national winter sport.
Clutch good to know
Thank you AI
Skate hard, short shifts. Remember this is for fun, don't get all competitive and hurt somebody. Everybody's gotta go to work in the morning.
Great advice. I'd add, pass the puck. Then go to the net for rebounds.
Just have fun! Don't try to do to much, just get a little bit better each time.
Watch offsides and line changes. First time players seem to have a hard time with that.
Don’t go behind the net in warmups. Don’t go behind your own net during the game. Pick a position and start learning it, almost everyone shrugs when they are asked what position they want to play but have no idea what to do, so just say ‘wing’. Try to stay on your strong hand side of the ice (if you are left handed play left wing) it’s easier to catch breakout passes. Yes you can score more from your off wing, but if you can’t hammer a one timer, there’s no reason to play there. Going forward, just focus on learning your position, that’s going to be your biggest asset as you learn the game, you won’t have the skill to dangle, probably aren’t going to be beating anyone wide with speed, but you can play your position and stop goals against. The goals for will come eventually
If you get the puck, don't panic and try and get rid of it as fast as you can, you'll most likely just turn it over.
Take your skate guards before you get to the ice.
You have way more time than you think you do. When you get the puck, look around and make a play. Don’t immediately think other people are on you because they’re not. You have time to make a play
Like others have said… skate hard, short shifts, “play your position”, backcheck.
Bring beer. That’s all …….
Have fun and try and show yourself as a team player. Don't play risky, in these situations, it's better to miss a scoring chance than to let the other team score. But most imporantly, have fun and welcome to the club!
Coast to coast. A shot from a bad angle is still a shot. They don’t ask how, they ask how many
Remember... They don't ask how, they ask how many.
Be easy on yourself. It’s a tough sport and even the most athletic people can’t be humbled quickly early on.
Keep your head up, shifts short, don’t be too hard on yourself, and have fun!
Don’t forget to put in your foil
You probably have more time than you think. It's natural to panic a bit when you get the puck. But take a look and try to make a play.
Try not to skate full speed towards the boards. Since it is a beginner league there will be some skaters falling that could actually injure you.
Have fun and enjoy the experience.
Head up, stick down, skates moving And, like everyone says.. short shifts. If you are tired, you’ve been out too long.
If you're in the other team's zone and the puck goes out of the zone but the other team brings it back in, you're no longer offside and you don't have to clear the zone before attacking the player with the puck.
Have fun and enjoy! I like what others have said about short shifts, nobody likes an ice hog so change with your linemates. Cheer your teammates on and bring positive energy! Have a blast my man! (Playing for 37 years)
Have fun. Short shifts. Don’t be hard on yourself. Bring some beers/waters for those who may not drink. Enjoy it, it’s the greatest game on earth
There are no pro scouts in the stands.
During warm up, don’t cycle behind the net, aim for the goaler’s pads, stretch.
Watch your line for shift changes
Pre-game dump. Makes you skate faster. Backcheck.
Hope your league does a good job policing ringers. Thats the biggest frustration in most beginner leagues.
It's like prison, immediately dummy the biggest guy on the other team to keep yourself safe throughout the season.
The pros take 30-45 second shifts. Keep yours short. Have some fun! Good luck.
Icing appen when da puck come down da ice, ya know, before da otter guys, hit da boards go bang, my harm comes up, play stop den start up again.
The Great One said "You miss 100% of the shots you don't take." Fire that thing at the net whenever you get 1/4 of a chance.
All good advice above but I’ll add—so many newbs think hockey is about being physically aggressive (in a fighty way, not in a backchecking hard way) and they ruin it for everyone. You’re not there to prove you’re a tough guy. Be cool!
The Beginner’s PSA post in here from a week ago is gold on this.
For the team, short shifts, communicate, have fun. For you , or any teammate as an individual player, take three strides, make a decision and follow it, take three more strides after you think you should stop. The rest is simple. Repeat weekly, monthly, yearly as long as you enjoy it. Oh, and bring beer
Make sure you’re well rested. A thirty minute Power Nap two hours before the game can be a big difference maker.
Don’t break up fights
You should probably ask if it's a checking league. I did not, and I came from playing varsity in HS where everyone is trying to murder you. First shift, some guy carries straight down center ice, and I absolutely rag dolled him, probably detached his soul from his body. Whistle blows* *74, 2 minutes checking*
It's called beer league because the more beers you drink before a game the better you'll play
Dump and chase. Beer Leaguers love that. Oh! And slap shots. Take plenty of those
Just have fun with the boys
How did it go
Went pretty well, got my shifts down but there were a lot of skater so not too much ice time. We won though
Nice usually it’s the opposite. Too much ice time because too few players show up haha
So how did it go?
It went smooth, kept my shifts short and we won! I’m nervous in the future we have too many skaters, even with 3 lines I was on the ice for 3/4 minutes a period
Know where to be during face offs
As the game goes on, the more and more you will figure it out. After a few games, you’ll have the brain for what’s going on.
- Keep the shifts short - dont be afraid to tell someone to stay on the ice so you can get an extra couple seconds of air before you head back out - look before you shoot - only take a second beer until everyone gets one - give the refs a break if they give a bad call. the refs do not want to be there.
Drop gloves with one of the oldest or biggest guys.