3 on 3 Scrimmage - 2011-06-05

A friend had rented some ice at an undesirable time for most skaters, but for me, I was looking forward to it. 11:45 in the morning is a strange time to play, but ice time is ice time, and I needed the work. I got there early, and the ice was empty. I hit the ice before anyone else and focused a lot on my crossovers from the previous practice. I skated around the circles, and I was surprised at how quickly I was going. I'd fall occasionally from leaning in too much, but if you don't push yourself to the line and over, you don't know where the line really is.

I worked on my shot a little bit. Getting it off fast is a real problem for me and getting any elevation on it has become an issue as well. One out of five times I would get it moving well, but most times it felt like just a lob if I ever tried and lifted it. Something to work on.

We didn't have many skaters so we played 3 on 3 most of the time. We played with the nets in the middle for a while, which really forces you to start, stop, start again frequently. There isn't a lot of time for rest, and that's great for conditioning (especially because we had no subs). At the end, I was definitely feeling tired and you could tell everyone was the same way.

I felt I played well. My passes weren't as crisp as they have been in the past, but I did make some really nice ones. I felt I didn't have a whole lot of speed in that it took me a while to really get moving compared to normal. I'm not sure if I was tired, or the ice was just slow. It was nice to have the ice early to myself pretty much because I could take a lot of room to do whatever I wanted. I wasn't worried about getting hit with pucks, running into someone, or falling. We could have used more skaters, but what is done, is done. I should be good to go for the Goaldiggers game on Tuesday.

Practice and Drills 2011-06-02

I hadn't played in over a week because of the holiday weekend and I was under the weather. It was really unfortunate as I was playing really well. Playing multiple times a week seems to be a good way for me to keep playing well. When I was invited to a beginner team practice, I took it.

These practices usually feature a lot of drills, and those help me out a lot. I look at them as a way to focus on the basics and improve on specific aspects of my game that may only get used once or twice per game, making it difficult to get better. The first drill was a crossover and stopping drill. I felt crossovers I was fairly strong at, but stopping needs work. These crossovers are the ones though with just your feet, and I'm not any good at those. I really struggled with getting my foot over the other foot. It is strange because I feel my crossovers are fairly strong when I skate. This drill tore up the ice, so by the end of it, it was really difficult. We focused on tight turns, and using the boards to make practices. I'm not sure if I was just tired or something else, but I feel I didn't perform up to par on this task either. The puck would get away from me when I'd turn, my passes along the boards were soft, and my breakaway attempts were average.

The scrimmage I played ok in. I didn't go full out always as some skaters were still struggling, and I want their practice to help them get better. There was one skater who was smaller than me on nearly every aspect who did bounce off me, but he was arguably one of their best players.

It was a good practice for me after a week long layoff. Served as a reminder to keep playing

Goaldiggers - 2011-05-22

I went into the game tonight with a big boost of confidence from yesterday's tournament. I knew it'd be faster paced, and be more wide open, but I was prepared. I left everything the same way as yesterday. I started out playing well. I helped generate a big scoring chance, had a great shot on net from right in the slot, and it felt like I wasn't being moved from inside the slot. Their goalie was big though. He covered up a lot of the lower part of the net, and that is where goals go in at my level.

As always, the Goaldiggers have defensemen who like to jump up in the play, and it was happening more frequently tonight than normal. I'd stay at the blue line when I recognized it and tried to cover for them. With it being 0-0 in the second, they caught me on the blue line and got past me. I back checked as hard as I could and dove to at least make his shot somewhat more difficult. Unfortunately he went down, and it hurt our goalie. The shooter missed on his penalty shot but the damage was done. They scored 3 quick goals, and that just turned the game around. We ended up losing by two goals.

I skated and moved well, but I didn't get as many scoring chances as I would have liked. I made a bonehead play where I just through the puck out of my own zone that is still giving me nightmares. I need to recognize to still just slow down and take my time.

I'm starting to get a cold or something, and I believe it is from not enough rest, or allergies. I'm honestly not sure which. I've skated 3 days in a row, and that usually spells trouble for your health in general. I played 5 times in 5 nights last weekend, so I assume it is just rest. I've got a few days off and will be using them to relax and start to get over whatever it is I have.

3 on 3 Studio Ice session - 2011-05-21

I really love doing 3 on 3 or 4 on 4. That is how I learned how to play inline hockey, so it just seems a lot more simple to me. I don't get a chance to do it often, so when a friend asked me if I wanted to do this, I didn't even hesitate. I should have though because it means I would be playing three nights in a row.

I'm not going to beat around the bush, I was awesome. I played better than I thought I could. It seemed that I was able to just dictate the pace of the game. I know it is studio ice, but if I can go from one goal line to the other, it is going to make me feel really good. I played again with a player from the Ironman tournament who I really like playing with. It seems if I can hit him with a pass, he always gets a decent scoring chance off.

I had one play where I picked up the puck in the slot, and skated around a defensemen who poked it lose, but I was able to kick it back up into my skates and keep going, through the other defense's legs and then I scored. I didn't realize I did it until someone told me that I did it. I never try that sort of thing because it just never works for me.

So why so different? I can think of a variety of reasons. I got my skates sharpened and for the first time in a year, they feel like they were sharpened the way I like them. Despite going to the same place that always used to do them, they've felt different every time. I switched the pattern on my stick from the Sakic to the Igilna. I did it for a few reasons. I knew I'd be playing defense and the square blade is better for board work, and I haven't been happy with how I've been handling the puck lately. Of course the biggest difference is the studio ice. It doesn't take very long for me to get up to speed, so a few strides and I'm at the other side of the ice. Very different, but it requires a lot of stopping and starting. It was good for endurance, and I felt outstanding after the skate.

Franklin Park Scrimmage 2011-05-20

It has been a long time since I've been to one of these scrimmages. It usually is a really good pace. There's players just above my skill level and usually one or two that are just outstanding.

The last couple of times I've been there though, including tonight, the skill was probably too much for me. There were quite a few good guys out there who could really move the puck. I unfortunately didn't play so well. I missed a lot of passes and got out of position quickly. I've been doing that a lot. I want to get down low more and help the defense out but I go to low, and leave the point wide open. It is becoming something I need to watch.

I had one or two ok shots at the goalie, but most of the time, our side had a hard time penetrating the zone, so our offense wasn't happening. I did play center a few shifts and I felt I did really well. It seemed that there was one big guy that I was able to throw off his game just a tiny bit. Considering how talented he was, I felt that was a solid accomplishment.

Routines

Over the past 18 months, life has changed dramatically for me. I've taken on more responsibilities, and as a result, I haven't been able to prepare for my games in my normal way. When I wasn't working I was able to, and I felt my performance just skyrocket, so I do think it makes a difference.

I bring this up after the two tournaments because you really can't go through your routine. You're not at home, you can't pack your bag, or listen to the music the same way you normally would on the way to the rink. It throws you off.

I've been working on developing my routine again, and it is starting to come back. It starts with food. I like to have just some noodles fried in a pan with some olive oil and garlic. Occasionally I'll throw some chicken in there if I haven't eaten well all day. Shortly after, I brush my teeth and wash my face. It just feels like it helps me breathe or something out there. I usually get dressed to get to the rink after that. Sometimes it just may not happen. If my equipment needs to be put together (jerseys, equipment back in the bag, retape sticks), I take care of it next. Everything gets set by the door, ready to go. I spend some time with the dog before I leave. Usually we rough house a little bit, but sometimes we only have time for a short walk. By then I do a double check of everything, and I'm ready for my trip to the rink.

But I guess really preparation always starts after the last game. I always wash my jerseys, socks and anything else that is easy to wash. I let them air dry, and that all gets done right away, allowing me to play the next night if necessary. I then put the skates in the right spot to make sure they dry and don't rust, and let the equipment out of my bag so that it is mostly dry for the next day. It really hate putting on wet stuff.

Sometimes I can go through all of this, others I can't. It is just interesting to see how it impacted me the past couple of weeks.

Goaldiggers Game - 2011-05-17

This was the first game for the Goaldiggers after our Kalamazoo trip. It is the start of our new season, and I knew that meant we wouldn't get off to a slow start as our team usually does after long layoffs. The problem this week is that we were missing our two best players. This caused a real lack of offense on our team. I think we entered the zone once in the first period. It wasn't good. The opponents were one of the top teams in our league.

So we had 10 guys again, meaning we were only rolling with two forward lines. I knew I could keep up simply because my conditioning felt good the night before. I got a lot of extra ice time throughout the night, and I was fine with it. I still feel like a greedy player when I do it though. I used to be able to play an entire game and not come off the ice, and I'm trying to get back to that level again.

The first half of the game was bad. We couldn't generate anything, and our forwards were just sloppy. I think we started playing better when we upped the pressure on our fore-check. We'd force them to make passes they didn't want, and they would either miss the pass, or put that player in a position where he didn't have much help. Our defense is outstanding, and I think that if we can keep it to 2 on 2 situations, we'll come out ahead frequently. We really play better when we have our guys spread out.

Still, we lost 5-0, but we gave it a good effort. Missing 3 guys, and two being your best players is tough.