VegasHockey 1280 Report post Posted October 4, 2019 (edited) I play on 3 teams of varying levels. Mondays is an elite league, lots of ex-professional players; NHL, Europe and such, guys just out of college; D1/D2 and some younger guys who just finished juniors. Thursday is a B level league, some guys should be playing A and Elite but like to skate with their buddies and tone it down a bit. Fridays is a 30+ league and is a pretty solid mix of older guys who skate Monday and some other high-end players that skate in the A league. Here is my dilemma. Since I moved I was "assigned" to these teams, excluding Thursday which I skate with buddies for fun. The problem is all of these teams are new and were kind of clobbered together so there is a pretty disparate degree of talent. Suffice to say, the season has started out terrible. Every team I am playing on have all been getting slaughtered. I really dislike losing, I think most people do, but when you are losing by 7+ goals its just not any fun. I also find that I cannot develop a flow with any of the players on these teams and none of us skate together outside of games so it's really hard to get to know one another. I hear based on these facts we are doomed to a disappointing season which will be riddled with losses leaving me with nothing but regret. I dont want to abandon any of the guys, they are all really nice, but playing with them makes me want to rip out my hair and slam my head into the pavement. It's honestly that frustrating. I feel like if I go to the league director and ask for a trade it's going to lead to come bad blood but I just dont know how many more embarrassing losses I can tolerate before my sanity becomes fractured. Thoughts? Edited October 4, 2019 by SkateWorksPNW Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
marka 526 Report post Posted October 4, 2019 Howdy, Throw a party and get to know them more off the ice? Get everyone together for a practice? Mark 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
2nhockey 21 Report post Posted October 8, 2019 This was my team last year. Finally took getting bold in the locker room and declaring strategy or shift times or something as simple as where to position everyone on face offs before games to bring the team around. By the end of the season last year we were starting to come together. This year our first game is in the books (lost 2-1 in OT to a team that embarrassed us last year). Basically the captain had to become a decisive leader. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Stewie 721 Report post Posted October 8, 2019 You can ask for trades in adult league? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
caveman27 208 Report post Posted October 10, 2019 On 10/8/2019 at 3:18 PM, Stewie said: You can ask for trades in adult league? Interesting question. I've never heard of anyone getting "traded" mid-season. But, if someone is above or below their skill level, they might change division/level in the following season, and the player would need to find a new team in that new level/division. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
clarkiestooth 235 Report post Posted October 28, 2019 (edited) First off, you should ask the other guys on the team what they're trying to get out of playing. If they just want an hour of light exercise and enjoy fraternizing w/ a beer after the game, that's fine. You're more competitive and it's not a good fit. Tell them nothing personal, but I'd like to switch to a more serious team because I don't want to harsh your mellow. If they say they hate getting smoked too, introduce some easy rules to follow. Without ever seeing your games, I would guarantee you that shifts are too long (need 45 seconds hard and off) and D coverage lacking (too many odd man breaks, no backchecking). If you agree to fix these 2 items, the team will be fine. Edited October 28, 2019 by clarkiestooth Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
start_today 770 Report post Posted November 12, 2019 How long are the leagues? Does the season end in December/January, or does it run through the spring? Asking to be moved mid season seems like you might burn hockey bridges, which can be dangerous. In situations like this, I usually tough it out, but also keep my eyes open for new opportunities. Try to get friendly with people at pick ups, or even ingratiate yourself with other teams in the league, and maybe you can find a better landing spot next season. Are the teams all "free agent" teams, or were they established teams from previous seasons that you joined? I feel like free agent teams that are built of random people, no matter how skilled, are never good. I think people don't feel beholden to each other, and there's a lot of blaming everyone else and not being responsible, because you don't owe the other players anything. This doesn't help you at all, but there's something comforting to the rest of us that someone playing in an "elite" league is dealing with a problem that the rest of us pleebs have gone through. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
joshy207 15 Report post Posted November 22, 2019 Bar night. Get to know each other a little better. You might start to click on the ice if you click off the ice. At worst, it's one season, losing SUCKS, but it's still hockey... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
VegasHockey 1280 Report post Posted December 3, 2019 On 10/8/2019 at 12:18 PM, Stewie said: You can ask for trades in adult league? On 11/21/2019 at 6:30 PM, joshy207 said: Bar night. Get to know each other a little better. You might start to click on the ice if you click off the ice. At worst, it's one season, losing SUCKS, but it's still hockey... Yes, we can ask to be moved between teams, which I consider a trade. There has to be a justifiable reason though, such as a skill issue or not getting along with the other players. They really prefer to not move players unless there is no otehr alternative. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
VegasHockey 1280 Report post Posted December 3, 2019 In the end I decided to just give up on playing this season with this group. I couldn't make it work no matter what I tried. I found someone to take my place and moved to skating on a different team in another division. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
