pick up hockey (shinny) pet peeves

[gxc999 7]

Most of the guys that I play with are pretty cool and laidback...the games are competitive, but don't usually turn into some huge contest or one-man show.

That said, there is this one real asshole who shows up every once in a while, and who actually is an assistant coach for a good hockey team in our area (hard to believe). He's a good player, but takes everything way too seriously. Some of the things you expect to put up with when he comes to play:

Here's the best story about this guy though...

One day I'm at pickup, and it's a good game until I see this guy show up. Sure enough, he finds something to blow up over in the pickup game, even though he has dominated the game with his coast-to-coast showboating and one man team play...he's scored a lot of goals, can out-skate and fake out most people, as he used to play high level club hockey, which is better than most people at our average pick-up game.

So after he has scored countless times, he is off on yet another break away. Some newbie who is there with his girlfriend watching in the stands goes after the hotshot, of course not being able to catch him skating, so gives the guy some poke checks with his stick, and inadvertently trips him on the breakaway. Most guys might be pissed off, but this kid is obviously new and doesn't really know any better, just wants to play some hockey...the hotshot of course gets right back up and starts yelling (wasn't able to score his 30th breakaway goal of the day), skates up to the new guy (who doesn't know what the hell is going on, and who's girlfriend is happily watching this "friendly" game from the stands), drops his gloves, and just starts wailing on this poor guy until his helmet comes off and he hits the ice...totall gets his ass kicked by this hotshot in front of his girlfriend and everyone there. The new guy skates off the ice in shame, as the hotshot gives a big fit before storming off himself. To make things even better, this asshole does coaching with the youth teams in our area also...one of the kids he coaches was there in the stands watching the game, and saw a really great example of how to behave in a sport that is supposed to be about fun.

He supposedly was not allowed to come back and play after this incident, but that hasn't stopped him, as his coaching status gets him into the rink regardless of his antics, which still do continue when he shows up.

So that's your average pick-up asshole, who seems to frequent many rinks...other than him, everyone is pretty much just wanting to have some fun and get some exercise while playing. <_<

I have a solution for an assclown like this, it involves "accidentally" tripping him. Act all nice and be like "Oh, geez, I'm sorry". And be aware, you can be arrested or sued for on ice incidents. There is a limit on consent, especially in pick-up hockey, so if you see this idiot jumping kids, remind him he CAN face legal action.

[Fletch 219]

This story goes right along with this topic.This past christmas I was at a drop in. We had a good group going but there were these 3 brothers that brought thier wives and kids to watch the pick up game. Well during warm ups these 3 (mind you are in their mid 40's) are just looking for trouble. I guess its their annual skate to show off to the wives. These guys start messing with the young 15 year old kids. One brother completely laid a kid out. The kid does nothing and gets up as this guys ask YA WANNA GO!!!. Ok, well another brother was fighting in the corner for the puck, he drops the gloves and grabs this 15 year old kid and wrestles him to the ice. This kid is yelling I'M NOT FIGHTING. So I go over and try to break it up. The other OLD guy comes up to me and says let it go. I told him no its drop in for christ sake.. by that time another 15 year old come up and says the kid your fighting is only 15. The brother talking me turns to him and says YA WANNA GO! and starts chasing him around the rink. Go thing that young kid is fast!!

The old guys proceeded to leave after that. I guess they showed off for the wives enough.

What a bunch of douchebags. I hate people like that.

[-brady2 0]

This story goes right along with this topic.This past christmas I was at a drop in. We had a good group going but there were these 3 brothers that brought thier wives and kids to watch the pick up game. Well during warm ups these 3 (mind you are in their mid 40's) are just looking for trouble. I guess its their annual skate to show off to the wives. These guys start messing with the young 15 year old kids. One brother completely laid a kid out. The kid does nothing and gets up as this guys ask YA WANNA GO!!!. Ok, well another brother was fighting in the corner for the puck, he drops the gloves and grabs this 15 year old kid and wrestles him to the ice. This kid is yelling I'M NOT FIGHTING. So I go over and try to break it up. The other OLD guy comes up to me and says let it go. I told him no its drop in for christ sake.. by that time another 15 year old come up and says the kid your fighting is only 15. The brother talking me turns to him and says YA WANNA GO! and starts chasing him around the rink. Go thing that young kid is fast!!

The old guys proceeded to leave after that. I guess they showed off for the wives enough.

If I was one of the 15 year olds or they were my friends I would of flipped out and propably axed him, or just ran and crushed one while he was being a douchebag. Guys like that piss me off to no end.

[li7039 0]

This story goes right along with this topic.This past christmas I was at a drop in. We had a good group going but there were these 3 brothers that brought thier wives and kids to watch the pick up game. Well during warm ups these 3 (mind you are in their mid 40's) are just looking for trouble. I guess its their annual skate to show off to the wives. These guys start messing with the young 15 year old kids. One brother completely laid a kid out. The kid does nothing and gets up as this guys ask YA WANNA GO!!!. Ok, well another brother was fighting in the corner for the puck, he drops the gloves and grabs this 15 year old kid and wrestles him to the ice. This kid is yelling I'M NOT FIGHTING. So I go over and try to break it up. The other OLD guy comes up to me and says let it go. I told him no its drop in for christ sake.. by that time another 15 year old come up and says the kid your fighting is only 15. The brother talking me turns to him and says YA WANNA GO! and starts chasing him around the rink. Go thing that young kid is fast!!

The old guys proceeded to leave after that. I guess they showed off for the wives enough.

If I was one of the 15 year olds or they were my friends I would of flipped out and propably axed him, or just ran and crushed one while he was being a douchebag. Guys like that piss me off to no end.

being 15 years old myself. It dose not bother me if kids my age screw around with me and my buds but when 30 year old guys do it its just creppy

[Nutella 0]

If I had to sum up:

1. The douche bags. Guys acting like complete dicks that you showed up to "their" shinny party. It's open hockey, get over it.

Happens here SO much. If you're 'new' or not part of their little club you can expect:

1. No speech directed at you, whatsoever (negative included, which is good, I guess).

2. No passes to you. Never. Don't even entertain the thought.

3. If you're the last one on the bench and you're not one of their pals they are going to take 30 minute shifts and keep you there on purpose.

This !@#% was extremely annoying when I had just started.

[Fletch 219]

being 15 years old myself. It dose not bother me if kids my age screw around with me and my buds but when 30 year old guys do it its just creppy

Haha....hey man, sometimes that's the only ice time us old farts can get!

[Doctor Hook 0]

People who think it's the f'n NHL.

That's it.

Wow...after scanning through some of these horror stories, I'd be so tempted to turn my stick around and really wail at dudes faces as if it was a samurai sword.

[moose77 0]

So after he has scored countless times, he is off on yet another break away. Some newbie who is there with his girlfriend watching in the stands goes after the hotshot, of course not being able to catch him skating, so gives the guy some poke checks with his stick, and inadvertently trips him on the breakaway. Most guys might be pissed off, but this kid is obviously new and doesn't really know any better, just wants to play some hockey...the hotshot of course gets right back up and starts yelling (wasn't able to score his 30th breakaway goal of the day), skates up to the new guy (who doesn't know what the hell is going on, and who's girlfriend is happily watching this "friendly" game from the stands), drops his gloves, and just starts wailing on this poor guy until his helmet comes off and he hits the ice...totall gets his ass kicked by this hotshot in front of his girlfriend and everyone there. The new guy skates off the ice in shame, as the hotshot gives a big fit before storming off himself. To make things even better, this asshole does coaching with the youth teams in our area also...one of the kids he coaches was there in the stands watching the game, and saw a really great example of how to behave in a sport that is supposed to be about fun.

I hope this jerk didn't run the newbie out of hockey for good.

[nexusrage21 1]

Last night we had some good ones.

We had a goalie who wouldn't move, which when my team was shooting on him made it real boring, but when we were defending him we all had fun making sure no shots were taken.

We also had a hotshot who wasn't that good, but because his team was all so terrible, he couldn't play with them and quit halfway through saying he didn't even know why the rest of us bother playing hockey. I love the guy who is so good that his team must be the reason he's playing like crap.

My biggest peeve though is the people who go out and try and lay everyone out with no regard for anyone's well being. A couple of weeks ago there was this one guy, pretty big, who would basically go out of his way to hit you even if you didn't have the puck near you. On one play the puck got dumped in our zone and as I started to turn to come back for it he nailed me from behind. I wasn't even in his path to get to the puck. I get up and we change. As I'm sitting on the bench the guy levels someone who clearly hasn't skated much before, just nailed him into the boards. The guy is pretty shaken up and this goon doesn't even check to see if he is ok. So my teammate switches off and I jump on, and as I do the tough guy gets the puck across the rink and starts driving to the net, well I picked his angle off and laid him into the goal as he tried to cut around our goalie. He got up, looked at me and just skated off.

I'm pretty big and strong on my skates so usually when guys start playing like that I can get them to stop without even having to go that far.

I don't mind hitting in open hockey as long as they aren't dirty, you aren't trying to take anybody out, and you aren't picking on guys who either are a lot smaller than you, or can't skate.

[usahockey22 0]

I hope this jerk didn't run the newbie out of hockey for good.

The guy wasn't totally new, but definitely a beginner...and I don't believe I have ever seen him out at the rink since this event took place, so there's a good chance he was run out of hockey for good. Which is understandable, if you get your ass kicked in front of everyone during open hockey you might be too ashamed to go back. Quite unfortunate

I don't mind hitting in open hockey as long as they aren't dirty, you aren't trying to take anybody out, and you aren't picking on guys who either are a lot smaller than you, or can't skate.

Yea, we all enjoy playing the body at our open hockey, at least the regular guys who are all fine with it. No one is trying to take anyone out, but just make the game a bit more realistic and competitive. Then of course there is always the guy who takes things too far, or the guy who strictly wants to play no-check, so you have to be mindful of the situation.

[fliteskates 2]

I haven't had many problems playing pick-up over the years for both roller and ice hockey... but I probably have a story that trumps anyone in this thread, sadly enough.

I hate playing on feet, but when I was a teen, I would play with some friends who can't skate.

Any idiot can play on feet so, foot hockey games bring out the "coal miners".. guys who can't play the game very well, but know how to swing a stick.

These are the kind of guys you can outskate and make them fall, etc when you are playing ice and roller. But on feet you can't really get away from them, right?

We had this one guy who would play with us all of the time, Dave. He had avg. skills, but he was dirty as hell.

He took the game way too seriously and always made it his life's work to get into at least one fight everytime we played.

We always had huge games 15-20 guys or more, and at least half a dozen new guys each time.

This one night my buddy brought his friend, DJ. DJ could play the game well, all around cool guy.

After about an hour or whatever of playing, he puts this nice move on Dave... then goes down and scores. Doesn't celebrate or make a big deal of it.

Dave comes back to our bench and is muttering how he is "gonna get that guy" etc.

We all look at him like whatever... then told him not to start anything.

So a few shifts later Dave roughs up DJ in the corner almost to the extent of an assault. So DJ finally turns around and pushes him, and knocks Dave down.

So Dave gets up and pushes him, and of course my boys and I step in and break things up.

Things settle down and the two of them are walking back to the bench, doing alot of lip jousting.

Dave finally tells DJ that he better STFU before he puts him in the hopsitial... DJ of course says something to him, and Dave swings his stick tomahawk style over the top and smashes the blade right into DJ's head like an axe. The stick broke off and the blade was stuck in DJ's head..

We all stood there in shock, not believing what we just saw. DJ didn't seem to know what happened for a minute... then he felt his head and and the blade and flipped out.. he tried pulling it out and we had to restrain him while someone called for an ambulance. There where no cell phones then, so it took awhile for someone to get to a pay phone and for the ambulance to arrive.. maybe half an hour. We had to keep DJ calm and we knew if he removed the blade he could die... dude had to sit there all that time knowing he had a blade stuck in his head... I can't even imagine what was going through his mind.

Dave got slapped with an assault charge, but got a suspended sentence. Never did any jail time because he was 17.

He of course has been in and out of jail since.

DJ had surgery and just got hit in the right spot where there was no brain damage or anything of that nature.

I am not friends with him, but people who know him told me he has really bad migraines from time to time.

[AnthonyJTa 0]

I had quite the doozie last night... I've been skipping the hour my brother runs on Saturday nights (so has he, actually) for the last month, and the guy 'running' it in our absence brought some meathead. I'm a beginner, but I've grown up around my brother, and watched/followed/learned about hockey since the age of 12... so I'm not 100% naive. And with 13 years of ball hockey, I'm capable of stickhandling, and shooting... so I'm coming into the zone, and this guy keeps backing up on me, obviously thinking "This guy's a homer...let him shoot" and I ripped one top corner, and the goalie gave him hell...

Few minutes later, he comes at me quick- so I slipped the puck between his legs and went by him.... so with about 5 minutes left in our hour, I head into the corner for a loose puck.... I see dude coming from my left hard..so I slowed up and homeboy threw a hip?!?! Dude left his feet, threw a hip crashing into my stick/the boards.... but if I didn't see him, he would have destroyed me.....I can't stand that crap man, pickup hockey??

[Nutella 0]

I haven't had many problems playing pick-up over the years for both roller and ice hockey... but I probably have a story that trumps anyone in this thread, sadly enough.

I hate playing on feet, but when I was a teen, I would play with some friends who can't skate.

Any idiot can play on feet so, foot hockey games bring out the "coal miners".. guys who can't play the game very well, but know how to swing a stick.

These are the kind of guys you can outskate and make them fall, etc when you are playing ice and roller. But on feet you can't really get away from them, right?

We had this one guy who would play with us all of the time, Dave. He had avg. skills, but he was dirty as hell.

He took the game way too seriously and always made it his life's work to get into at least one fight everytime we played.

We always had huge games 15-20 guys or more, and at least half a dozen new guys each time.

This one night my buddy brought his friend, DJ. DJ could play the game well, all around cool guy.

After about an hour or whatever of playing, he puts this nice move on Dave... then goes down and scores. Doesn't celebrate or make a big deal of it.

Dave comes back to our bench and is muttering how he is "gonna get that guy" etc.

We all look at him like whatever... then told him not to start anything.

So a few shifts later Dave roughs up DJ in the corner almost to the extent of an assault. So DJ finally turns around and pushes him, and knocks Dave down.

So Dave gets up and pushes him, and of course my boys and I step in and break things up.

Things settle down and the two of them are walking back to the bench, doing alot of lip jousting.

Dave finally tells DJ that he better STFU before he puts him in the hopsitial... DJ of course says something to him, and Dave swings his stick tomahawk style over the top and smashes the blade right into DJ's head like an axe. The stick broke off and the blade was stuck in DJ's head..

We all stood there in shock, not believing what we just saw. DJ didn't seem to know what happened for a minute... then he felt his head and and the blade and flipped out.. he tried pulling it out and we had to restrain him while someone called for an ambulance. There where no cell phones then, so it took awhile for someone to get to a pay phone and for the ambulance to arrive.. maybe half an hour. We had to keep DJ calm and we knew if he removed the blade he could die... dude had to sit there all that time knowing he had a blade stuck in his head... I can't even imagine what was going through his mind.

Dave got slapped with an assault charge, but got a suspended sentence. Never did any jail time because he was 17.

He of course had been in and out of jail since.

DJ had surgery and just got hit in the right spot where there was no brain damage or anything of that nature.

I am not friends with him, but people who know him told me he has really bad migraines from time to time.

Jesus Christ. What was the prosecutor's office thinking? Why not attempted homicide? He should have at least been put in a funny farm for a bit.

[crazylegs_9 0]

My skills sound frighteningly simlilar you yours jta, and I have issues with people trusting me with the puck to pass ti to me. MY\y biggest pet peeve is when a couple varsity players show up, and skate like all-stars and only pass to eachother.

[usahockey22 0]

Dave got slapped with an assault charge, but got a suspended sentence. Never did any jail time because he was 17.

He of course had been in and out of jail since.

DJ had surgery and just got hit in the right spot where there was no brain damage or anything of that nature.

I am not friends with him, but people who know him told me he has really bad migraines from time to time.

Wow, completely outrageous. That guy belongs in prison...at the very least it should have been assault & battery, not just a simple assault, but he easily could have killed that guy.

That kind of reminds me of our high school floor hockey games in gym class...just a bunch of lunatics running around with aluminum sticks, hacking away at each other. I rarely played, just because I had learned my lesson early on that there was no skill involved here and I always ended up with bruised shins, or on the brink of a fight after someone would smash me with a stick.

Anyway, yea the one good thing about playing regular ice hockey with goons is that they usually can't skate, or have little balance, so on the ice the playing field is usually balanced against them. On feet, then anyone can show up and start trouble.

[fliteskates 2]

Jesus Christ. What was the prosecutor's office thinking? Why not attempted homicide? He should have at least been put in a funny farm for a bit.

Some of us wondered why he didn't get some kind of attempted murder charge, but who knows.. he might of been charged that way then pleaded to the assault charge.

I honestly have no clue what all went on with his case, because I didn't talk to him for years.

I just heard through friends what charge he got.

I saw him in a convienience store a couple of years back... he had put on weight and I didn't recognize him at first. He asked me if I still played hockey, where I play and such... he said he wanted to play again.

I lied and said I didn't play anymore... then made an excuse about being late for a party and got out of there.

[AnthonyJTa 0]

My skills sound frighteningly simlilar you yours jta, and I have issues with people trusting me with the puck to pass ti to me. MY\y biggest pet peeve is when a couple varsity players show up, and skate like all-stars and only pass to eachother.

Yeah, it bugs me... I may not be the best on skates, but I'm perfectly capable of shooting, passing, taking away my passing lanes... I mean, I have a pretty decent knowledge of the game. Just because I've just starting playing ice hockey a year or so ago, doesn't mean I'm completely ignorant to the sport. Skill levels aside, the whole point of pickup is to go out there and have fun with a group of guys you know.

It just annoys me, because my brother knows the rink owners... and he got this hour specifically for me, and a good friend of mine (practically his older brother too) to learn to skate and play for a steal (we pay $100/hr)... now it's been run up with morons, and meatheads...

[lotus 2]

I gotta say I haaaaate the guy that doesn't quit in pickup. There's been so many times where I beat someone, or out hustle them to a puck, or am on a breakaway. Since it's pickup, and I don't want anyone to die, I'll slow down to a glide once I have picked up reasonable distance. Assuming they realize they're beat. But no, i slow down, they keep busting their asses, and attack me with their stick as they feel great that they recovered from otherwise pickup-failure.

You're beat. If someone blows by you, you're not going to catch up to them. don't go so hard in pickup. I'd prefer not to be going my absolute max speed right at the goalie in a game of pickup.

[scorer75 9]

I gotta say I haaaaate the guy that doesn't quit in pickup. There's been so many times where I beat someone, or out hustle them to a puck, or am on a breakaway. Since it's pickup, and I don't want anyone to die, I'll slow down to a glide once I have picked up reasonable distance. Assuming they realize they're beat. But no, i slow down, they keep busting their asses, and attack me with their stick as they feel great that they recovered from otherwise pickup-failure.

You're beat. If someone blows by you, you're not going to catch up to them. don't go so hard in pickup. I'd prefer not to be going my absolute max speed right at the goalie in a game of pickup.

I respectfully disagree. Pickup is still hockey and when I play hockey I give 100%.

You want your breakaway, earn it. I will not hack at you or tug on you with my stick from behind, but I'm also not going to stand around and watch you just because you may have gotten around me.

[JR97 2]

I respectfully disagree. Pickup is still hockey and when I play hockey I give 100%.

You want your breakaway, earn it. I will not hack at you or tug on you with my stick from behind, but I'm also not going to stand around and watch you just because you may have gotten around me.

Amen. Pickup hockey <> half assed hockey. Although that doesn't mean play without class and respect.

[lotus 2]

The way I look at it is pickup is just for fun so going 100% balls to the wall is being a douche. I'm not going to be pinning people to the boards and such. There's a fine line between playing half assed and relaxing because it is not game 7. IMO, half assed is not playing defense.

It's not that you shouldn't try at all, just ease off on certain things. I understand not backing off, but the point was that when some people get beat, they come at you hard with their sticks.

They reach for hooks and slashes because they cannot catch up. Of course you shouldn't stand around and watch, you've got to follow up the play. But don't reach with the stick if you can't catch up.

What I'm getting at is that people seem to take things real personal in pickup. At least around here. Who cares what the final score is, if you're counting it for some reason.

[Penguinsfanatic 0]

hey we have a group of guys come out and its fun because its intense and competitive, but we respect eachother, theres no contact cause no one wants to be the one to go overboard and there may be some tripping and slashing going on but what goes around comes around, once the game or the shift is all done we just leave it at the rink ya know.....

well anyway check this story out it is quite hilarious.....we were playing pick up one sunday and this 30 year old is a goalie, well he comes out every once and a while but i think he plays in a league case he has everything so you kinda see where this is going. his skill level is decent, not the best goalie i've played against or with but he's pretty good

well this one day he starts out on absolute fire, i mean making highlight real saves, just save after save well after about 15-20 decent shots on net my team just starts finding holes everything goes in, im hitting people with a few breakout passes and people hitting me with um resulting in goals, we're getting trash in front of the net so about the next 13 shots he faces all but 2 were goals so on the last goal he just flips out, slamming his stick on the ground, and double hands it in to the net, it just shatters while the rest of us are just standing there mouths open and dont know where to laugh or not well i can't contain it man im laughing my ass off....but anyways he skates off and goes to the bench and sits there for like 10 minuets while we play post on the net he just left....oh yeah and the d-bag has extra sticks sitting next to him....we were playing d and stuff so it wasnt like he had to get mad that no one was, we arent pros so people are gonna make mistakes....but man was that funny cause i was just thinking to myself wow dude you are a dick now i just want my team to score even more on your ass

[brettlynch11 0]

how about when 3 or 4 people from the same team come out and just keep the puck between them and not bothering to play any sort of d...

but oh well shit is never going to change there is always going to be something wrong with the pickup game

[Wolfpack_1986 154]

well, if someone gives up, go ahead and take the puck from them... but if you're in a race to the puck along the boards, and a guy has a step on you... once you get near, peel off and give him the right of way to the puck.

I'll stay on as hard as i please, and typically consider getting withing 3-5 ft of the puck as winning, and respect their space.

[shooter27 116]

The best rule to follow in pickup is real simple: Play hard within the letter of the rules as opposed to the edge of the rules like you would in a game/

Example: In a game if a guy in front of you is on a break, you're gonna tug at his elbows, stick, whatever you can find to try to disrupt him. In pickup if you can catch up to him by skating, great, but leave that other stuff for a real game.