shoot_the_goalie

Not when back in the day you covered all the logos by mummifying your ankles with tape!!!

To the OP: How do you coach/support a player to be more "hungry" and engaged in the play? I see kids who are highly skilled, but don't really engage in the play, aren't the first ones to the puck. They let the play come to them vs them initiating the play if that makes sense. Then I see kids who are less skilled, but they are constantly on the puck, always aggressively engaged, always trying to initiate play. It's not cause the passive kids are lazy or scared; they are very hard workers...to me it just seems to be a personality trait. For what it's worth, the skilled players always perform better in drills/practices, but in games, the less skilled but more "hungry" players create better plays and better results. Maybe a confidence issue? Or a scared to make mistakes issue?

That was a sweet skate too. Grafs were the bomb when I was growing up, but they were kinda hard to find unless you special ordered them where I grew up.

I had the Micron Mega 10-90s and they had the white "Power Clips". They were totally gimmicky and it was a real problem if they broke cause the eyelets were a part of the clip. That said, I wore those things for almost 7 years (playing 3-4 times a week) before one of the clips broke and I had to trash them. They were indeed a fantastic skate. Comfortable, durable, and looked good (though I wasn't a fan of the blue Tuuks, but they were all the rage then cause of Gretzky). Think Bauer eventually bought them out?

Nope. I can tell you from experience. Like I said previously, I wore CCM Supras back in the day, and I took a check into the boards that fractured my collarbone. (clean, shoulder to shoulder check) The one thing I would say, the old plastic cap style pads seem to do better against direct strikes, like getting hit with a puck or an errant stick. I would assume lacerations too.

I guess if there's any silver lining to this, maybe rinks can resurface their ice for when hockey/skating resumes, improving ice conditions all around. However, most of the local rinks here are completely dark.

I've been playing since 1990 and I gotta say my current True Skates are the best piece of equipment I've ever owned, and worth every penny. Never had a skate fit this well, this comfortable, and this level of performance. 2nd place is probably the CCM Ultra Tacks stick.

Yes. It's jaw-dropping playing against elite talent in any sport (who are probably not even trying their hardest if you get the opportunity to play them)

Hockey sticks are generally about 5'-6' long, give or take. I think I'm gonna take a hockey stick with me on the few occasions I go out now.... it can be used as a social distance measuring tool, a self defense weapon, and well...a hockey stick. lol. On the reality side, did anyone catch CTV, taping their mics to hockey sticks in order to interview people on the street?

As a fellow OCDer, you know what would really drive you crazy? Leave one skate with dirty laces and put new clean laces in the other. I can guarantee you that's all you'll think about when you're playing.

Get out of here! You mean to tell me your beer league games don't draw big crowds or scouts!? heh.

I remember we used to call the Flak shoulder pads "flak jackets" back when I was a kid, for obvious reasons.

To the OP: IMHO, I would suggest not helping on the ice until your skill level is high enough to play with kids around 1.5X their age. Most parents wouldn't have a problem with a less skilled parent helping out, but there are a few (and they are always the loudest) who do have a problem with it. So it's just best to avoid it. Plus, like many said, if you can't keep yourself safe, then it's really hard to aid in the safety of a large group of little kids. With that said, you certainly can do things off the ice to help. I know some parents who assistant coach on the bench, who can't play very well at all, but know the game and study the game. It's Mites, so it's not like it's high strategy or anything (usually), and if you have a good understanding of the game, even if you didn't play, you can certainly help at that level. You can also be team manager (under appreciated role, but very valuable), or you can even simply be the parent that helps your kids and other kids gear up in the locker room. And while you're doing that, take lessons, skate with your kids, practice yourself, and in time...you'll be on the ice with them. It's a joy that you're giving something to your kids, that you yourself didn't have a chance to experience at their age. And it's even better that you want to be very involved with them while they're doing it.

God, I love this thread Amazin'. You have really shown the MSH community what one can do when someone who clearly loves the game, put their heart and mind into it. And to your credit and to the MSH communities' credit too, people have given you great advice and feedback, and you've just taken off with it... kudos.

I had CCM Supras back in the day and thought they were the bomb (they also made you look a bit like a stormtrooper, with the black padding and white plates). However, they were bulky, heavy, and limited your range of motion quite a bit, vs anything on the market today. They were super protective though.