chk hrd

Make sure to check the toe box really good. I took a shot square on the toe and I felt small piece break loose into my skate. The toe box didn't look worse for wear and stayed on for the rest of the game. When I got home and was able to look a little closer the toe box was pretty much seperated from everything. If I had taken another shot off the toe during the game it would have came off completely and really caused some damage.

Las Vegas Update: All hockey is suspended.

Las Vegas: Just spoke to our league. All the rinks in town have suspended youth activities. The rink in the Fiesta (where I play) is still playing men's league. Not sure about City National Arena or Las Vegas Ice Center.

Not to be a downer but it is harder than it looks and if you have only skated a few times and have zero hockey experience you would be more help off the ice. You need to have some skating abilities just to get around the ice and you can't really help with drills if you don't know how to play. You need to be pretty stable on your skates with little kids. If one takes you out by accident it might not only be you that gets hurt. If you have some skating abilities you would be more stable on your skates and less likely to go down. As a coach I wouldn't want you in the locker room because of the liabilities. If you haven't gone through the system with background checks then being in the locker room can be sketchy. All it takes is one parent to make a comment because the misunderstood what a kid said. You also have to think about what the other kids might say to your kids about your abilities. Even at that age they can be rough. And last, you have to think about the other parents, they are worse than the kids. My suggestion, enjoy learning the game and being able to watch and focus on your kids. Start taking lessons and go to stick & puck with your kids. You might even consider taking lessons and try playing.

I got a gift certificate to Hockey Monkey and didn't need anything so I bought three pair of Reebok protective socks with kevlar. The foot section is a very thin but durable with the portion from below the ankle up kevlar lined fabric. Very comfortable, good feel in the boot and a little extra protection from getting cut on the back of the leg.

When you skate at lunch do you just wear skates or do you ever wear gear? If you don't normally wear gear I'd suggest doing some skating with full gear on before going to a drop in. It's an entirely different feeling.

I think they had no choice with O'Halloran. Whether the call was right or not there would be to much controversy following him around. He would be under a microscope and it would be impossible for him to do his job.

Seen this a hundred times. Sometimes it is the parent living vicariously through their kid or they think their kid will make the show. At higher ages and levels I've seen coaches demand the kids who are not their super stars dedicate all their time to hockey. It really is sad. I've seen to many kids burn out or start to hate the game from parental pressure like this. Most of these parents don't even bother asking what the kids want, it what they want the kids to do. It's not just this sport, it's every sport.

I completely agree with what's been said. I wore a half shield for quite a while. One day I had a feeling that it was time to put the cage back on, which was a good thing because I took a puck to the face that night. The guys that chirp about cages are dopes. I tell them I would much rather be a pussy and were a cage that be Mr Macho and bleed all over the ice because I took one to the face. I didn't sign a huge paying beer league contract so I still work for a living.

Just do like most Refs in our men's league when there's only 1, skate blue line to blue line and make sure you stay on the side the score keeper sits so you don't have to skate to far if something happens...

I did my time through the youth hockey grinder (both as a coach and parent). I'm your son is having fun and give you a lot of credit for handling it the way you did. Systems are fine and dandy for older and upper levels, but because hockey is so fluid, systems fall apart when the game starts. Most parents have never seen drill diagrams drawn out, they look like road maps to an alien planet. Some drills can get complicated and trying to explain them to young minds doesn't work. Bottom line is it's a freakin' game. If the kids aren't having fun then why do it. I've seen kids take development leaps and bounds by going to stick and puck or playing pick up because they are free to try anything they want and not get hammered for it. Things they wouldn't dare try in practice. I have always thought a player's body will figure out the basics for them and a coach fine tunes it. Not ever kids wants to play at elite levels which is completely fine. It's the players who are forced to do this that suffers. You did good for you kid.

Depending on how the game was going I might have said run the clock sooner. When everyone's having an off night and your chance of winning is gone, sometimes it's best just to finish and get off. Been in to many games where it's not going good and emotions get hot. One player gets pissed because they didn't like something that happened and it goes downhill fast.

I thought I was back in the 80's with the puck tracking. Didn't like it then and still don't like it now. The only use for it might be for a replay showing what happened. If they used the player track when everyone is still, like a face off or maybe during a replay it might be useful. But if you watch a lot of hockey you usually know who the players are so then it is more of a distraction. I like the idea that the NHL wants to use technology but I would rather see it done in other ways. Maybe a sensor in the puck that lets them know for sure if it is a goal. If you are going to clock shots maybe something that also shows where the puck went, almost like with a MLB pitch.

I was starting to get burned out also. Years of playing with little break, a team that was going through a dysfunctional period and parts of my body starting to fail me were really getting to me. It took an non-serious injury to get me straight. I hurt my shoulder (the one I already had operated on) and I was seriously thinking about hanging up my skates. At almost 54 my glory years are behind me and I have nothing to prove. The more I thought about stopping the more depressed (more like down) I got. It made me take a hard look at why I'm still playing. I realized how much the game means to me, how much its done for our family, how much the friendships I've made mean, especially with a few that have become like 2nd children. I still play as hard as I can and try to be competitive but my outlook on winning and loosing has changed some. Depending on how my body holds up I may not have to many years left for league play. So now every time I play I remind myself that and try to make the most of it. If my body needs a break, I take a game off and when I do I am looking forward to getting back out there. It sounds like it might be time for you to stand back and take a look at everything from a distance. Be honest with yourself and you'll know what to do.

IMHO, If you want to learn better edge control and balance take lessons from a figure skating coach. The problem with watching videos or having someone who is inexperienced at teaching helping you is you don't know if you are doing things correctly. They may feel like you are doing it right and you may not be falling over but the technique could be bad. Good skating has a lot to do with conservation of motion.