When did you start playing and where are you playing now?

[falcons22 0]

I started skating at about age 4. Started playing at 5. I'm 16 now playing midget AAA minor.

[DCott 0]

Started ice skating at 5 or 6, played organized youth hockey at 7. Played mostly youth hockey as a goalie until last year and I don't play ice anymore. I'm 19 now and I only play inline (not as a goalie, though) for my school's club team. Maybe I'll get back into netminding later, not sure as of now.

[ahearn10 0]

I started skating and playing hockey at age 5. I played all the way up till gr 03 but something happened that year between my brother and dad that would cripple hockey in my family for quite awhile. Dad coached the pewee A team and he cut my brother cause he wasn't putting a good effort in at tryouts. My brother quit and hasn't played since, and I decided to play basketball instead of hockey.

I played highschool basketball and wasn't too bad. But I always wanted to get back on the ice. So my second year university I went out and my grandmother bought me all new gear. $2000 later I was playing hockey for an intermural team in university. I have to admit I wasn't very good but I could still skate as I had learned very young.

3 years later I play 4 times a week during the season and 2 times a week during the summer. Next year I plan on playing senior in my hometown. It took a lot of effort to make a come back, lots of skating sessions, pond hockey and just watching the game to see how to play it. In the end though its all been worth it as I can play with and keep up with all my friends that played Highschool hockey.

Thats my story haha

[marc_9 0]

started hockey when I was 9 played house both years in atom (didn't try out), Then in peewee played house first year and second year I made A. Last year in bantam was last cut from the B team just because I was too small and didn't hit enough <_< this year I am playing bantam A I was really close to making AA but didn't make it because of the same reasons as last year.

[JR97 2]

Played a lot of street hockey as a kid and some pond hockey. Grew out of my skates at age 12 and didn't get back into it until I was 18 and roller blades came out. Played inline with the occasional ice drop-in up until a few years ago when I went cold turkey. I"m back on the wagon as of Nov. and playing only ice. 37 now and my best years are clearly behind me. I'm hoping to get up to D2 in the local county league by age 40 for at least one season. I"ve got a long way to go... :(

In my prime I was playing A level inline hockey but after age 32 or so the skills started diminishing pretty rapidly.

[LkptTiger 1]

Started skating when I was 4 (when I was still living in Jersey). Got involved in a novice program here when I was 6 and then started playing Mite when I was 7. Once I hit Squirts, I began playing AAA. I played one year of varsity HS hockey when I was a freshman, but after that I decided that the "split season" schedule in the area was a detriment, so I played my next couple of seasons for a AAA team across the border in southern Ontario, which was a lot better for my development.

I'm currently sidelined (long term) by a knee injury (ACL, MCL, meniscus) sustained after I had caught-on with a Junior A team in the OP. I'm hoping that I can recover well enough to salvage my last season of Junior eligibility next year...but it's been really, really tough (I quote the Stone Temple Pilots: "I'm half the man I used to be"). I wanna be able to go out on my own terms, but I'm not sure it's in the cards. If nothing else, this experience has given me a whole new level of appreciation for the guys who are able to make a strong recovery from these sorts of injuries and go on to play at/return to the highest level(s) of the sport; it's absolutely unbelievable to me.

[#44wannabe 4]

Starting skating at 13, starting playing hockey 2 weeks later and now i play 'semi-pro' here in England. (I'm 18 now)

[jon93 0]

Started skating when I was 4 (when I was still living in Jersey). Got involved in a novice program here when I was 6 and then started playing Mite when I was 7. Once I hit Squirts, I began playing AAA. I played one year of varsity HS hockey when I was a freshman, but after that I decided that the "split season" schedule in the area was a detriment, so I played my next couple of seasons for a AAA team across the border in southern Ontario, which was a lot better for my development.

I'm currently sidelined (long term) by a knee injury (ACL, MCL, meniscus) sustained after I had caught-on with a Junior A team in the OP. I'm hoping that I can recover well enough to salvage my last season of Junior eligibility next year...but it's been really, really tough (I quote the Stone Temple Pilots: "I'm half the man I used to be"). I wanna be able to go out on my own terms, but I'm not sure it's in the cards. If nothing else, this experience has given me a whole new level of appreciation for the guys who are able to make a strong recovery from these sorts of injuries and go on to play at/return to the highest level(s) of the sport; it's absolutely unbelievable to me.

Why didn't you like the split season?

[sjsharks11 0]

I started skating at 3. Where I was living, there wasn't enough kids to make a whole team, so I played house until my first year of squirts, played peewees and bantams, with one year of high school at home, then went away at 15 and now I'm playing at prep school.

[Doctor Hook 0]

Learned to skate when I was in kindygarty. Played house league then high school, then beer league now. I'm not great but I'm a decent stay at home D man and I can keep up with B level type of play.

[saber26 0]

i started skating when i was 4 and started playing hockey when i was 6 and i am now 14 playing bantam A

[dalebert 8]

Started Ice skating around age 4, never really was a hockey player until i played house leagues starting at age 10 stopped after 7th grade due to some financial issues, in 9th grade I picked up roller pretty much for the sole fact it was a lot cheaper, played that through HS now I'm in my first year of college playing adult league roller and finally getting back into ice after a 6 year hiatus doing open hockey and I'm on a men's league team.

[LkptTiger 1]

Started skating when I was 4 (when I was still living in Jersey). Got involved in a novice program here when I was 6 and then started playing Mite when I was 7. Once I hit Squirts, I began playing AAA. I played one year of varsity HS hockey when I was a freshman, but after that I decided that the "split season" schedule in the area was a detriment, so I played my next couple of seasons for a AAA team across the border in southern Ontario, which was a lot better for my development.

I'm currently sidelined (long term) by a knee injury (ACL, MCL, meniscus) sustained after I had caught-on with a Junior A team in the OP. I'm hoping that I can recover well enough to salvage my last season of Junior eligibility next year...but it's been really, really tough (I quote the Stone Temple Pilots: "I'm half the man I used to be"). I wanna be able to go out on my own terms, but I'm not sure it's in the cards. If nothing else, this experience has given me a whole new level of appreciation for the guys who are able to make a strong recovery from these sorts of injuries and go on to play at/return to the highest level(s) of the sport; it's absolutely unbelievable to me.

Why didn't you like the split season?

Obviously, high schools aren't going to be able to fill their rosters exclusively with AAA or even AA guys, so there was a "skill discrepancy" that was pretty obvious; there were a few "higher-end" players (guys who have since gone on to play Junior A and college hockey), a lot of "decent" guys, and then a handful of guys who were competent enough that they could eek their way through each night without singlehandedly costing their team the hockey game.

I decided it would be best for my development to be in a "AAA" setting throughout the entire season; this way, I didn't have to make adjustments from travel to HS and then back to travel, the skill level was better and there weren't as many "gimme" games to be had playing AAA as there were in high school hockey.

[A_Steeves12 0]

Started skating pretty young but didnt get involved in hockey till I was 7 or 8. Played house league till my last year of bantam, was considering hanging up the skates then after not trying out for competitive but was convinced to play. ended up playing the year with the bantam B team and that sparked my love of hockey.

After that season I started trying to gain a bit of muscle and really started working on my shot. The following year I was just shooting to make midget B and ended up making A. I went on and played minor migdet AAA my second year and third year I was captain of the team. Now after thinking I would have no where to play this season I'm playing Jr. C and I'm third on a very good team in points.

Typing this up makes me think where I might have been if I had stopped playing hockey that last year of bantam. I really think hockey gave me a positive outlet to take out anger issues I have had and focus my energy.

[lamplighter 0]

started playing when I was 10, played house league for 2 years, played travel throughout high school, took 2 years off in college, played club D1 my junior year, got cut senior year (asshole coach), played single "A" pro in the Midwest the last season and a half and just hung them up to put the degree to work and am probably going to get into a beer league in whatever city I get a job.

[shooter27 116]

Started skating at 4, playing mites at 5. Played AAA during Peewees and Bantams, finished second at U.S. nationals my first year of Bantam. Moved to 3 years of New England prep and 4 years of NCAA D3. Play semi-serious men's league here in NYC now.

[CannonBall 0]

Ice skated for the first time in my life last February, playing D league now.

I had played roller competitively from 11 to 13, I'll be 25 next month.

[Spreedizzle 1]

Started playing in 1984 in Morristown NJ (Colonials) and am now living in Asheville NC playing for Free Beer (obviously a beer league team).

[thejackal 46]

starting skating at age 7, played novice in montreal, stopped until i was 13, then house league and HS varsity in montreal and Vermont. playing beer league at mcgill right now

[heatley015 0]

True, but goals are easier to come by in Lacrosse, some games have 15 -20 goals scored in them

yeah, but on a team that would win games 8 or 10 to 5 and i would score atleast 3 or 4 goals usually

box lacrosse just came to my town so we were brutal but we had a solid core of the rep hockey players who acutally got stuff done. I have always had hands and stuff but not the moves to score enough in hockey, and my badminton feet always helped me out in lacrosse.

Thats why this year i hope atleast one of the rinks here or in this town around 30 minutes of driving away has ice year round, i really want to bare down and do the stuff i hated doing in practice.

The town I live in has rink Nazi's, and on teacher convention days and exams wont let us skate even if we offer to pay for ice time, or if htey do its public skating so nothing with a puck. The town over, Bonnyville, has noon hour hockey and the rink is very close to all the schools there so the kids from Bonnyville on our team are great fundamental skaters with good moves, just not as many kids in bonnyville as here. Its awful

I'm really lucky, here in PEI I have a rink in my backyard thats great for shooting and stickhandling. Not so great for working on my skating because it is a little small, but it was great when I was just learning.

[ronnychencharik 0]

Started skating and playing at 4 or 5, played house and travel before I played high school for all 4 years. Tried out for a couple Jr. B teams and probably could've been a no. 5 d-man. They wanted me to commute almost 3 hours 6-7 days a week instead of getting me a family to live with. Played beer league for one year, and now I play on our schools new D3 college club team.