My Hockey Story

My hockey story isn't like "The Hockey Sweater" or many other Canadian's stories of playing as a youth. I grew up in a hockey town, but didn't start playing hockey until after I moved away for university. My town was dominated by people who loved the Maple Leafs, but I liked the Red Wings, because my dad worked in Detroit, so those were the games I got to see.

When I started university I was seventeen, and not the most sociable. I maybe left my room in my off campus residence once during the first week. However, over time, I got to know the group I was living with, and that there was a shared interest among many of them; ball hockey.  Now, you might say ball hockey isn't quite as serious as the real deal, but trust me, these games got intense. There were lines drawn up, rivalries, and even fights during games. 

Now, I wasn't the most athletic person, I played soccer growing up, but I was always more a music kinda guy. So I didn't join the ball hockey team. Although I did play a couple games, and was asked as nicely as possible to not come back. 

That winter came though, and I was lucky enough to live with a guy who had taught little kids how to play hockey at his dad's hockey school. In reality, those little kids were probably better suited than I was for the task, however, he suited me up with a bunch of his old equipment, and we went to public skating to practice. I may have forgotten to mention that in addition to not playing hockey, I also had only skated a handful of times before. 

So my first year of hockey may not have been a huge success. I was the guy that everyone avoided because I couldn't stop, and even when they let me shoot, I would just fall over (I think this actually happened again this year too). However, I was determined to stick with it. I was lucky enough that I played with a bunch of guys that were fine with me coming, so long as I payed my ten bucks. 

My next year wasn't much better. I could now stop, but I was as slow as molasses, and I couldn't shoot or pass, or, well anything. This was the year in fact where my girlfriend (now wife) started taping our games, and where we all realized that while we felt as though we were moving at NHL speeds, we were actually moving at a quarter of their pace (and that's being generous). 

After university, I basically took a year off of hockey. However, I picked it up again through a summer, and then last winter I played twice a week. Hockey has been one of the funnest things I've ever taken up, and I think it's gotten a bad rep in some ways. When you are purely playing for the fun of the game (no fighting, no hitting, none of the clique stuff) it takes on a completely different meaning. You feel connected to all of the players before you, and you really start to understand why it is our national pastime. 

This summer I am playing in my first actual organized league. I am captaining my team by virtue of having a functioning email address. Although I'm never going to be the best out there, I am always happy that I stuck with it, and can at least contribute in some way to our country's great game. It's important to keep in mind I am the furthest thing from a "Jock" you could imagine. To quote Mitch Hedberg, "I'm not into sports. If I had athlete's foot, my first reaction would be, 'that's not my ... foot!". However, I think this experience has taught me a sense of competitiveness, camaraderie, and determination that I didn't know before. So whether you played as a kid or not, I would highly recommend trying out hockey, or whatever sport. You can never know if you like something or not without trying it.