The RinkFor the not so ready for prime-time players, coaches, referees, and the people that have to live with them. Discuss experiences in local leagues, coaching tips, equipment, and training.
I have been trying out for my AA team but got demoted to A for bad passing, shooting, average stickhandling and a short stride. The coaches at double AA said I have great work ethic and I was solid defensively (Im a Center)... Today at my A tryout we had a drill/competition were we had to start from one red line skate done to the other behind the net and then turn and skate back to the red line were we started from (1st time). I won this by alot against a above-average skater mainly due to how poorly his start was and my acceleration. On the second race we had to skate backwards all the way red line, pivot behind the other net and skate forward... I had to go against a defenseman who is a very slow frontwards skater, but me and him are equal backwards. I started of with the lead but I pivoted to much from the outside and fell behind but managed to catch up before we started skating front wards. I burned him very badly frontwards when I accelerated (front wards) and won by alot too. Coaches were impressed. This was our third try out day for A and we have to more. My question is who much will this alter their decision when they chosse to keep me or cut me
You'll be cut if you can't keep up, which is not a problem for you. How tall are you and how much do you weight? Coaches love big guys that have good foot work and can play a physical game.
That's a good question, I'm trying out for A, got moved up. And I don't have the best shot( my stick sucks) so I wonder can your skating save you ?
You mean if we were to give your stick to Ovechkin he wouldn't be able to shoot? I bet he could shoot nicely with a stick from the 70's, and yours must be better than that. Sorry, it's a pet peeve of mine when players blame their poor play on equipment, except for maybe the wrong skates. And even then- it's arguable. I would disagree with your mentality, and some coaches would even cut players for that.
To the Op:
It's simple.
-Average skating (keeping up and competing with your level) - you should be fine;
-below average skating (not keeping up and loosing fair races to the puck)- you better be GOOD at something else to compensate,
-terrible skating - it doesn't sound like that's the case for you, but if you have hard time reacting to simple passes and you're stumbling and loosing balance when carrying the puck- coaches usually catch on very quickly, even at A and send you packing, no matter how good your shot or passing are
You mean if we were to give your stick to Ovechkin he wouldn't be able to shoot? I bet he could shoot nicely with a stick from the 70's, and yours must be better than that. Sorry, it's a pet peeve of mine when players blame their poor play on equipment, except for maybe the wrong skates. And even then- it's arguable. I would disagree with
your mentality, and some coaches would even cut players for that.
To the Op:
It's simple.
-Average skating (keeping up and
competing with your level) - you should be fine;
-below average skating (not
keeping up and loosing fair races to the puck)- you better be GOOD at something else to compensate,
-terrible skating - it doesn't sound like that's the case for you, but if you have hard time reacting to simple passes and you're
stumbling and loosing balance
when carrying the puck- coaches usually catch on very quickly, even
at A and send you packing, no matter how good your shot or
passing are
No, I had a CCM Vector 10 (Ovie Curve) , I could shoot with it but I don't have a rocket or a laser. Now I have a SBK Red Devil I think it's Sakic curve not sure, but I cannot for the life of me shoot or lift the puck above mid net. I ****ing hate it, stickhandlings a ***** too.
Ovie would break my stick after a pass, contrary to popular belief the stick does have an effect on how you perform. Some curves allow you to have better control. Anyways point is I can't shoot with the stick I have, the curve doesnt suit me. Before you comment on that too, everyone's different.
To the OP, what age group ?
For my city skating>>> all, there was one guy( friend of mine) who is a better skater then me that got moved up and let me tell you all he showed was skating and he got ranked higher then me. He is also 2 strides faster, but I did more at the tryout.
For me, it depends on what I plan to do with the team depends on how much I value speed. The last team that I coached was very slow with the exception of one player, so rather than cut the entire team, I just created a little more of a slower-paced style that relied on puck possession. Certainly nothing that was rocket science though.
I just oversaw a tryout and it basically came down to what I had on each line and what I felt the lineup needed. The top offensive lines had bigger, more possession-heavy forwards without elite skill. So, in my world, I look at my "bubble" guys (that is, those that could be on either side of the fence) and I'm looking for a speedy guy because I like to have an energetic forechecker to hang around and attack the weaker pairing defensemen. A nice change of pace guy.
In years past, I had a small, speedy offensive corps and in the "bubble" I was looking for bigger, stronger, more defensively aware forwards to balance out my lineup.
So, while I don't answer your question in the least bit besides "well, it depends" - I'll say that speed is valuable, but for me it doesn't compare to anticipation/positioning and passing. But that might not be a hard and fast rule across the board. Regardless, good luck!
You'll be cut if you can't keep up, which is not a problem for you. How tall are you and how much do you weight? Coaches love big guys that have good foot work and can play a physical game.
For me, it depends on what I plan to do with the team depends on how much I value speed. The last team that I coached was very slow with the exception of one player, so rather than cut the entire team, I just created a little more of a slower-
paced style that relied on puck possession. Certainly nothing that was rocket science though.
I just oversaw a tryout and it basically came down to what I had on each line and what I felt the lineup needed. The top offensive lines had bigger, more possession-heavy forwards without elite skill. So, in my world, I look at my
"bubble" guys (that is, those that could be on either side of the fence) and I'm looking for a speedy guy because I like to have an energetic forechecker to hang
around and attack the weaker pairing defensemen. A nice change of pace guy.
In years past, I had a small,
speedy offensive corps and in the "bubble" I was looking for bigger, stronger, more defensively aware
forwards to balance out my lineup.
So, while I don't answer your question in the least bit besides "well, it depends" - I'll say that speed is valuable, but for me it doesn't compare to anticipation/positioning and passing. But that might not be
a hard and fast rule across the board. Regardless, good luck!
That's me right there, the speedy ***** forechecker.
speed is nothing if you can't do anything with it, as you said, you got demoted to A for bad passing, shooting, average stickhandling and a short stride. work on those things and work on gettting quicker. pure speed is great but most battles are won with the first few steps, so getting quicker in this area should help you alot. also take a lot of stock in your passing and stick handling because those are fundamental skills that you will need to get to the next level
