Advice on player in adult league team

[Deerok 3]

Need some advice,

We have a player on our team that has played with us for a couple of seasons. He was recommended to us by our former goalie a few seasons back.

I haven’t been disappointed with his play, he is a good skater and aggressive on forechecking, but he is just a mess when it comes to taking passes and shooting(flubs passes; hits goalie in the chest) . He is definitely our fastest player, and has been great for us on pk (good at reading and intercepting passes from the opposing team).

What got me frustrated was hearing from a friend that rented out ice a few weeks ago, that this guy pretty much scored at will at his scrimmage (with some highly skilled guys (college/echl). I thought he had the wrong guy and dismissed it as such, until this past week. We were up a few goals towards the last five minutes of the 3rd period, when the guy gets on the ice and intercepts a pass from the other team skates back into our own zone and proceeds to stickhandle around most the opposing team and top shelfs a back hand.

WTF?

(Understand that he hadn’t done much of anything through the whole game).

My captain and a few of the other guys that know him; were like, why doesn’t he do that all the time?

We joked around with him in the locker room after the game and asked him why all of a sudden he decided to do that. His reply was “I figured we had the game won, so nobody would mind if I was a puck hog for a bit”

This guy is a pass first, shoot never player…I told him puck hog is definitely the last thing I would think of when describing him.

(Side note: He never celebrates his own goals-no emotion at all; but does cheer when somebody else on our team does)

Is this guy mental or is he just lazy? He’s a good guy and is extroverted off the ice, but on the ice he’s just different.

Any ideas on what to say or do to get this guy to be more focused or greedy (as the case may be) on the ice?

Thanks in advance.

D

[Slapshot9123 0]

Not to be a dick or anything, maybe he is too talented for your team. I know when I helped sub for a B league team I always thought pass first. No one wants to be that one guy who blows by everyone the whole game and just makes it a one sided game.

[Jordan 13]

Slapshot nailed it!

[Sed27 0]

Not sure how high a level you are at, but it does sound like he is playing well below his skill set. Guys like this aren't being lazy, they just aren't out there to show anyone up.

I have a good friend who played junior and whenever he comes back to town he suits up for a couple games with our men's league team. He could easily be a puck hog and rack up the goals, but instead prefers to set up other guys on the team. He is also a wealth information and will offer tips on positioning, breakouts, and general hockey knowledge. For him its more about getting the skates back on and having a good time with friends rather than point totals.

Despite all the stories about beer league heros and ringers, there are some skilled guys who will intentionally drop down a div. or two so they can just have fun.

[fatwabbit 93]

uh, doesnt he seem like a team player? rather than puck hog he would rather set the other guys up? cheering his team mates on when they score... sounds like my kinda player .... I play on a team where half the players are 'team' players, trying to set each other up, passes etc... the other half, just puck hog all the time. Needless to say the 'team' players play on one line, while the others play on another.

after playing in my current league where the tempo is much higher, whenever I go back home to play with the hometown team I spend most of my time trying to set the play up instead of dangling past everyone.

[Krev 86]

He's being the polite player judging by what you interpret to be his elite skill set. But even polite players who are very skilled can get bored sometimes.

[automorph 0]

lol never thought I would see this type of thread..........your lucky to have him on your team

[shotty 7]

there's a guy like this (or an incarnation of this) on every solidly good team... he plays because he LOVES hockey and the reflection of his style is that he doesn't want to ruin the experience for ANYONE.

i knew a guy exactly like this, i worked with him and played hockey with him... he was constantly smiling from the moment we arrived at the rink to the moment we left. total passion for the game to go along with the immense skill. and it wasn't a smile of excitement, it was a smile of being at peace and in his element.

the guys that go end to end and hog the puck and go to town with those big celebrations have a passion for their skill, not the game... this guy you speak of has it the other way around. if you dont want him, i'll take him and make him captain (ours is rarely around)

[K9 Unit 1]

there's a guy like this (or an incarnation of this) on every solidly good team... he plays because he LOVES hockey and the reflection of his style is that he doesn't want to ruin the experience for ANYONE.

i knew a guy exactly like this, i worked with him and played hockey with him... he was constantly smiling from the moment we arrived at the rink to the moment we left. total passion for the game to go along with the immense skill. and it wasn't a smile of excitement, it was a smile of being at peace and in his element.

the guys that go end to end and hog the puck and go to town with those big celebrations have a passion for their skill, not the game... this guy you speak of has it the other way around. if you dont want him, i'll take him and make him captain (ours is rarely around)

definitely couldn't have said it better...hard to find these type of guys anymore, especially when there's way too many ovie wannabes

[sickwilly 37]

You can trade him to our team if you'd like!

[SuperMan3 1]

I do this all the time, I was helping my friend Div EII team(the last of the last) and I could easily play B, but decided to play for my buddy, and they were all amazed by my skill but I didn't rack up too many points because I didn't want to be that guy.

[RecLeagueHero 0]

Classic case of the guy whose too talented to be one team X, but is anyway. Maybe he can't find another team, maybe he likes you guys, or a million different things. But the reality is he's more skilled and trying to tone it down when he plays on your team. Which is a pretty good trade mark of a guy that's in the "not a douchebag" camp.

[freestyla 0]

I definitely echo everyone else in this thread, this guy is the type of player I would want on my team.

[epstud74 24]

I find it funny when rec level players call someone else "lazy" Silly

I'm a long strider and I've been called "Lazy" on more than one occasion, but I get there more often than the other guy

I'm not one to celebrate my own goals either, but does that make me lazy or not into the game? I just hate drawing attention to myself. It is rec league, why hot dog it after scoring?

[yrhmblnr8r 69]

"When you get to the end zone, act like you've been there before."

-- Darrell K. Royal

It's a football quote, but it should apply to all sports. Aside from a fist bump or two, I don't celebrate goals. I've lost credit on the score sheet a couple of times because of it. If it's a big goal (your first ever, complete the hatter, OT winner, etc) whoop it up a bit, but there's usually no reason to celebrate a beer league goal like you just won the Cup.

[Officer Dangle 0]

"When you get to the end zone, act like you've been there before."

-- Darrell K. Royal

It's a football quote, but it should apply to all sports. Aside from a fist bump or two, I don't celebrate goals. I've lost credit on the score sheet a couple of times because of it. If it's a big goal (your first ever, complete the hatter, OT winner, etc) whoop it up a bit, but there's usually no reason to celebrate a beer league goal like you just won the Cup.

+1. I respect shitty players with class more than all stars who run they're mouth 24/7.

[Deerok 3]

Thanks guys,

I appreciate the insight. I should clarify that we definitely appreciate having him on the team. My main concern is that he feels comfortable doing whatever he wants (w/o concern of being labeled a puckhog) and is happy on our team. By lazy, I don’t mean his skating (as stated earlier he is our fastest skater). I just meant unmotivated or bored. We are definitely not a team that goes crazy with goal celebrations (especially if we are up by a few), but an occasional smile after a goal wouldn’t hurt.

After reading all of your thoughts, it does seems like he enjoys the social aspect of the team, parties, grabbing drinks after games, etc. which if he played in the upper division here he probably would not be able to do (games are on Monday/Tuesday nights).

My main thing is that we are all having fun. That’s why I posted my concern here; I'd hate to think of someone on our team alienating him by “demanding” that he step it up and play harder (there is one guy that would do that).

As far as I’m concerned if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. If he is happy with the way things are than so be it.

I’ll make sure not to mention the offers from a few of you guys to have him play with your teams; especially in Vancouver (the guy is obsessed with Kristin Kreuk; understandable). : )

[fieldofdreams 0]

Deerok, what rink/level do you play at?

[sitzlejd 0]

Thanks guys,

I appreciate the insight. I should clarify that we definitely appreciate having him on the team. My main concern is that he feels comfortable doing whatever he wants (w/o concern of being labeled a puckhog) and is happy on our team. By lazy, I don’t mean his skating (as stated earlier he is our fastest skater). I just meant unmotivated or bored. We are definitely not a team that goes crazy with goal celebrations (especially if we are up by a few), but an occasional smile after a goal wouldn’t hurt.

After reading all of your thoughts, it does seems like he enjoys the social aspect of the team, parties, grabbing drinks after games, etc. which if he played in the upper division here he probably would not be able to do (games are on Monday/Tuesday nights).

My main thing is that we are all having fun. That’s why I posted my concern here; I'd hate to think of someone on our team alienating him by “demanding” that he step it up and play harder (there is one guy that would do that).

As far as I’m concerned if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. If he is happy with the way things are than so be it.

I’ll make sure not to mention the offers from a few of you guys to have him play with your teams; especially in Vancouver (the guy is obsessed with Kristin Kreuk; understandable). : )

Add the bold part to his on-ice mannerisms, I'd say this dude definitely has his head on straight.

[RecLeagueHero 0]

Yep, just seems like a guy that really gets what beer league hockey is supposed to be about.

[fawn111 0]

Another theory, which is probably wrong, but maybe he just plays "tight" when the game is close. Maybe he doesn;t have the mental edge to play up to his ability in a close game and plays stiff and loses a lot of his skill.....

I suffered through this for a lot of my hockey "career", roller, beer league ice.... During pick-up or just messing around I would consider myself a decent player, makes some moves, score a few goals, skate efficiently... but when the game is competitive and guys turn it up a notch or two, I found it harder to play to my ability, I would get "tight" and lose a lot of the skill that I know I have. It's frustrating, definitely mental.

Anyway, I'd agree with what others have said about him just offering a different take on the matter.

[gerbe3:16 19]

Haven't read the whole thread but clearly, this guy is a freakin ringer. I've had a former NCAA D1/ECHL player on my team once and you basically described him perfectly. This guy always weaved through everyone and stopped to look for a pass. Sometimes they become disinterested and mess up because of that. Then if you need them to, they turn it on and smoke everyone. It's a total dick thing to dominate if they know they can easily and do it for the whole game so they will always hold back to keep from pissing off the other team.

[cptjeff 0]

Haven't read the whole thread but clearly, this guy is a freakin ringer. I've had a former NCAA D1/ECHL player on my team once and you basically described him perfectly. This guy always weaved through everyone and stopped to look for a pass. Sometimes they become disinterested and mess up because of that. Then if you need them to, they turn it on and smoke everyone. It's a total dick thing to dominate if they know they can easily and do it for the whole game so they will always hold back to keep from pissing off the other team.

Hey, noticed your name. Any relation to Nathan Gerbe? Or are you a fan of his of somesuch?

[sitzlejd 0]

My advice: clone him.