How long does it take sum1 to be gd at hockey?

[mew1838 0]

How long do you guys think for a fit person with basic skating skills to be pretty good at hockey, playing once or twice a week? a year? couple of years?

[pantherfan 0]

How good do you mean? And most depends on how hard you try IMO

[Neo5370 132]

As a beginner I think you should consider block training. Work on your basic skills in progression but make sure you learn each one properly and supplement that with pick up games or a rec league and a workout routine.

If this is just a hobby for you like some of us then consider some instructional videos/dvd's and books, move at your own pace and have fun.

If you're more serious, consider skating coaches and hockey camps. This will cost much more money. But you should still have fun :D

EDIT: Also as a beginner I believe cross training will help generally with dexterity. Get out and learn how to dribble/juggle a soccer ball, play basketball, juggle etc. You'll have quicker feet, hands and overall agility/dexterity.

[Neo5370 132]

I threw the juggling thing in there because I saw Paul Kariya mention it in an interview once.

Don't know what led up to it but he said someone suggested he learn to juggle to help with his hands. He also stickhandles with a golf ball to get quicker.

I taught myself how to juggle in 4 hours (instead of doing a book report when I was a kid) No, no I don't need a cookie, you all can keep them for yourselves :)

Back on topic, I forgot to mention that skating is your far and away most important priority as a beginner. I polished skater with other skills at average can still stand out.

[Dante2004 0]

Basic skating skills...how basic are we talking?

When you skate 1-2 times a week, is this a practice? Hockey lessons? Pick up? Mens league? Keep in mind that you play a typical mens league game that lasts an hour (or slightly less), you will only be on the ice roughly 1/3 of that time. And you may skate several shifts where you don't even touch the puck, of if you do it is only for a brief moment. So you may only have the puck on your stick for 60 seconds (or less) in an entire game. Especially if you are one of the weaker players on your team (not carrying the puck up the ice every rush).

My point is...don't over estimate the "practice" you really get from playing games. A scrimmage here and there is great, but to develop from the true novice to intermediate level, you really need to do more drills, excercises, etc. if at all possible. If league games are all that is available to you, don't hesitate to play, but there are better ways to learn the game (initially). Wait to incorportate your skills into the regular game setting...until you HAVE some skills. Make sense?

[ash_96 0]

Basically the way I have been taught is the more the train the more you'll get better, and faster you skate the faster you'll get better....

So basically if you work your ass off and train often you'll get good quicker. Ive been playin about 4-5 seasons of roller and now i play for Great britain, whereas other players on the team have been playin much longer.

Also the quality of coaching and how well you learn each skill etc will make a huge difference,you can have 3 years with a rubbish coach and it still not be as good as one season with good coach.

[Cheesehead 0]

what you put in the more you get out meaning the harder the work the better you will be.

but first, you have to learn to type/ spell :D

[chk hrd 164]

How long do you guys think for a fit person with basic skating skills to be pretty good at hockey, playing once or twice a week? a year? couple of years?

it depends on what you mean by good...maybe never, maybe years, maybe months.

Some people just don't have what it takes to play hockey. It is not that they are bad athletes it is hockey is differnt than other sports because you have to learn a new mode of transportation...skating is alot different than running.

I have seen guys who are good athletes be terrible hockey players because they can't get past the skating part of the gasme to get good at any other part of the game. But then I have seen guys pick it up really quick.

[pantherfan 0]

How long is a piece of string?

[rieth8 0]

A lifetime

[Vash 0]

I would just say to learn how to skate well first. I remember when i first started playing hockey 10-11 years ago, i had a coach who for half the practice would have no pucks on the ice and all we'd do were skating drills. Those were a big help in helping me become a decent player.

[Dante2004 0]

Since you were initially probably looking for advice...and it seems like want to expedite your learning process as much as possible, I would suggest learning from as many sources as possible. Coaches, teammates, videos, websites, etc. There isn't a "correct" way to do probably 95% of what I player does during a game. So if your coach is trying to teach you how to, for example, take a wrist shot, and you just aren't getting the results, perhaps someone elses method will work. The kinetics of your movement/end result may be identical, but the though process and technique you use to get there may vary.

When I first learned to take a slap shot, I couldn't get any power behind it for the life of me. I tried and tried and "practice" wasn't making "perfect". Then one day I was at the rink, a little early for a game and I was watching a hockey school run through their drills. The coach was teaching slap shots and he said something that clicked with me. I used that in advice in warm and took a slap shot and almost like magic my shot improved dramatically. It still isn't a "cannon", but it is where it should be based on my overall ability. I was simply just looking at it the wrong way all along. Simply issue of transfer of body weight and use of your bodies core muscles.

[Jbone 0]

Well I'm amazing. I've been playing for like 8 or 9 years so I'd say about that long.

[Neo5370 132]

Jbone Posted on Jun 28 2006, 03:04 PM

Well I'm amazing. I've been playing for like 8 or 9 years so I'd say about that long.

At least you're modest.

[bulletproof_funk 0]

In response to the original post:

I asked myself the very same question when I first started hockey 7 or so years ago at age 23. I had been ice/inline skating for 3 years before that. I found out quickly that hockey skating was so much more demanding than just public skating. Fast forward to today, I have improved alot for a guy who isn't a natural athlete. My goal at the beginning was to be good enough to keep up with the average beer leaguer, and in overall I think I've met or exceeded my expectations. It's not to say I'm anywhere near an elite player, but nor do I outright suck either. ;) Any improvement I have time to make now is just icing on the cake for me. It really depends what your definition of "good" is, and that may change as time goes on.

It goes without saying that everyone's rate of progress/iimprovement will differ and you shouldn't put expectations on yourself to be "good" by a certain time, so don't rush yourself unnecessarily. My conditioning was relatively poor so it needed more time to catch up than my balance, for example. I found what worked best for me was to mix up hockey clinics and pickup hockey. The clinics teach you the skills and give you the opportunity to handle the puck alot more than in a game, the games allow you to figure out when to use your skills. I also found it is entirely possible to overdo hockey: playing 5 times a week probably set me back more than it helped me. I didn't give myself time to mentally digest things so I probably went out and did them wrong immediately after, which isn't good for developing good habits. Also, if take advantage of any ice time before or after a game during warmup. Even playing outdoor hockey in winter (if possible) is a good way to work on little things you normally don't get to.

This is up to you, but I suggest taking a break from hockey during the summer. I found that taking my mind off of hockey doing other things helped me with my game in the long run. The things I was consciously thinking about the previous season seemed to be second nature the following year.

Good luck!

[mew1838 0]

In response to the original post:

I asked myself the very same question when I first started hockey 7 or so years ago at age 23. I had been ice/inline skating for 3 years before that. I found out quickly that hockey skating was so much more demanding than just public skating. Fast forward to today, I have improved alot for a guy who isn't a natural athlete. My goal at the beginning was to be good enough to keep up with the average beer leaguer, and in overall I think I've met or exceeded my expectations. It's not to say I'm anywhere near an elite player, but nor do I outright suck either. ;) Any improvement I have time to make now is just icing on the cake for me. It really depends what your definition of "good" is, and that may change as time goes on.

It goes without saying that everyone's rate of progress/iimprovement will differ and you shouldn't put expectations on yourself to be "good" by a certain time, so don't rush yourself unnecessarily. My conditioning was relatively poor so it needed more time to catch up than my balance, for example. I found what worked best for me was to mix up hockey clinics and pickup hockey. The clinics teach you the skills and give you the opportunity to handle the puck alot more than in a game, the games allow you to figure out when to use your skills. I also found it is entirely possible to overdo hockey: playing 5 times a week probably set me back more than it helped me. I didn't give myself time to mentally digest things so I probably went out and did them wrong immediately after, which isn't good for developing good habits. Also, if take advantage of any ice time before or after a game during warmup. Even playing outdoor hockey in winter (if possible) is a good way to work on little things you normally don't get to.

This is up to you, but I suggest taking a break from hockey during the summer. I found that taking my mind off of hockey doing other things helped me with my game in the long run. The things I was consciously thinking about the previous season seemed to be second nature the following year.

Good luck!

Thnx for the advice :)

[sonsplayhockey 0]

Bulletproof has great advice.

I thought I'd work hard this summer to improve and I joined 2 beer league teams. The 2nd team is at a higher division than where I'm normally playing and I regret it. I'm not getting anything out of that team other than exercise. I am using the 4 minute warmup to handle the puck as much as I can and now I"m just concentrating on forechecking and passing. Handling the puck against these guys is rediculous for me. Locally here we have a clinic that runs Saturday mornings. You get the ice for 20 minutes before hand then do drills for an hour. They actually TEACH you stuff and if you want to work on something all you have to do is ask. Local pickup is great because your so much more relaxed. No on gets all that pissed at you if you mess up (except if you are a puck hog). I almost feel like bailing the 2nd team and just adding a pickup once a week to my schedule. I get way more out of stick and puck, clinics and pickup than actualy games. But having at least 1 game to play a week does let me apply what I'm learning.

I have another way to make your statement "How long does it take to not embarrASS yourself at pickup?". We have 2 levels of pickup around here and at the lower level, most the people I see start to look better within a year.

I've seen some people who are totally non-athletic and slow that they have been playing for 4 years and people who have been playing for 2 months look better than them.

[jjalb29 0]

Not to make this post sound like a broken record, but practice, drills are really important to improving overall. I help instruct an adult intro league where we run drills for half the time then run a scrimmage for the other half. But even just after a few weeks you can really start to see the improvements in some players.

But drills are really where there is the most benefit, IMO, as oppose to playing games where there can be minimal puck contact.

[KYHockey3 0]

in my opinoin some are natural athletes and some are not.

a very conditioned athletic persoon may be good at hockey in 3 years or possible 1.

but someone who isnt very athletic or isnt a natural skater, they willl take longer to excell as a hockey player.

[mew1838 0]

I think most of us have trouble having enough time with the puck...

[EBondo 232]

I threw the juggling thing in there because I saw Paul Kariya mention it in an interview once.

Don't know what led up to it but he said someone suggested he learn to juggle to help with his hands. He also stickhandles with a golf ball to get quicker.

Juggling a soccer ball is the best thing I have done to date. I just started again after watching the World Cup and it has helped a lot. The stickhandling with a golf ball works too. I've been doing that one for years, and it works also.