Help me learn to play hockey!

[Fury of One 6]

Yup, no problem dude. I've done the hockey shop tour of NJ numerous times with a bunch of friends. I think I've hit up almost every one from North to South Jersey. And I'll never miss the oppurtunity to hit up the Arby's on the way home.

[sdh 0]

some tips and advice ...

practice stickhandling before skating. use gloves.

when stickhandling, most of the work is done by your top hand (the one near your hip).

keep your head down. technique is more important at this point and once you are confident, your head will pick up by itself.

play foot hockey with some friends if you can. you learn a lot this way and might even get some other beginners to join you on your quest.

get a hockey ball and go everywhere in your house moving it. standing still while you stickhandle isn't nearly as useful as moving around.

if you want to play ice hockey, but start with roller hockey, be sure to rocker your skates. the good thing about inline hockey is that you can do it anywhere. the bad thing is that ive notice skaters who start with inline make these slow gliding turns on ice. inline is great for building leg muscles.

buy cheap gear. you will thrash it starting out ... especially playing roller hockey.

make sure your skates are properly fitted. most people buy skates that are too big when they start and it hurts their skating development. there is no hard rule, but skates tend to be 1-1 1/2 sizes below your shoe size. remove the laces from the skate and put your foot in. you want your toes to barely touch the front when full weght is on the skate (opinions will differ on this).

you will learn to skate a lot faster if you are playing.

have fun! :)

[92hatchattack 0]

What do you mean by rocker the skates? I really dont think skating is going to be an issue. I can skate for the most part. Just gonna have to work on the old hockey stop when i hit the ice.

As far as stick handling goes i am working on that now. Lika i said i just got a smart hockey ball that im going to work with. The handing is moving along slowly. I m actualy doing ok with keeping my head up. It alows me to kinda concentrate on keeping my arms still, my bottom hand loose, and my wrists turning, which is the hardest thing to get used to.

As for skate size, i normaly wear a size 11 shoe. The guy at the store measured my foot with the mission scale, and it was touching the 10 line so he said the proper size for me would be the 11. When i tried on the 11 i could just barely feel the tip of my toe touching the front of the boot. So i hope i didnt get them too big or anything. I felt like i had a ton of control in the skates though, so i hope its all good.

my next step will be getting a set of gloves to practice with. Anyone know how the proper fit of a pairof gloves should be??? Hoe do i know which sizes are the right fit for me?