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Finally made it to the end of the thread! I did some learn to skate classes years ago at Kettler Ice, then promptly moved and lived somewhere for three years where I could go to a rink only about once a month at most. Now I'm in the NYC area and have started doing the learn to skate with hockey gear on class at Chelsea. No car, so it's really the only option despite it being really expensive. Classes have been good, though, and each time (if you pay a little more of course) the last half our or so is a coached stick and puck with various drills. Last time they did a one-on-one scrimmage where the coach dumps a puck in, two people fight for it and try to pass back to the coach, then get open for a pass to score. First time ever doing something like that and I was terrible - I think I looked slightly better than the guy in the Bobby vs. Beerleaguer board battle video. Could barely stay on my skates. But at least the other guy didn't score either. I'm not a terrible skater, but it made me realize just how little mobility I have in terms of going anywhere I want in a small area. So much fun, though. One thing I really want to work on is quick starting. I always feel like I put myself off balance when trying to really dig in and push myself forward, and I'm thinking partly it's from not having my head/shoulders far enough forward. Also probably just need to be lower overall. My work has summer Fridays for July and August so I'm planning to try Friday drop-in. They also have a hockey instructional class that I might look into.
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May 19, 2016 17:57
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xzzy posted:What do you mean by quick starts? Building speed from a complete stop, or adding speed while moving? Building speed from a complete stop - like those first three or so pushes they say should be getting you roughly to top speed.
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May 19, 2016 18:22
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I actually just figured out (to an extent) backward crossovers recently! I also have been getting better at transitions and where my skates should be to not slow down or get caught. Stuff's coming along!
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May 19, 2016 19:10
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Henrik Zetterberg posted:I swear heavy barbell squats in the gym made me more explosive off the line. I did powerlifting for years up until a few months ago. I had wound my hips up so tight that one day I crouched down and my back seized up like an eighty-year-old. I've laid off the barbell squats for a while and have been spending the past few months working on core stuff, unilateral movements like weighted pistols, etc. So luckily leg strength I don't think is too much of an issue at the moment. I think it's finding the right balance/position. From lifting I'm likely so ingrained with "weight back on your heels" that I'm still not letting myself go forward enough.
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May 19, 2016 20:42
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Henrik Zetterberg posted:Ha, that's actually pretty funny. I just got into powerlifting at the beginning of the year (just did my first comp a couple weeks ago). My squat day is the same day as hockey If you're anything like me, take extra time to work on hip mobility. Figure-4 stretches were a godsend until I cranked it a bit too much and my knee popped. 
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May 19, 2016 20:56
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MajorJohnSteed posted:I play at Chelsea Piers as well. I did the Wednesday night hockey instructionals, for a bit and I've been skating with one of the coaches every week. I just finished up my first season in the lowest level rec league and I'm loving it. I was wondering if there were other NYC/Chelsea Piers goons out there. Did you find the instructionals worth it? In terms of time and cost I'm not sure how much I can really sign up for at once so I'm trying to decide if it'd be best to do those or just try jumping in to the rec league. Which coach do you work with? We generally have Craig, who I really like, and a guy who's name I didn't catch early on and still can't quite figure out but he's European and it sounds like Yeebo or something. Habibi posted:I'm not a big fan of typical squats, period. It's great if you're a bodybuilder or a strongman competitor or something, but for purposes of athletic performance and injury avoidance, I think there are as or more effective exercises that don't place the same strain on the back, hips, knees, even shoulders. I would agree, in general, that barbell back squats are not the best idea for 99% of people. And for those, the vast majority actually shouldn't be shooting for below parallel, because that final few inches is where most of the difficulties start popping up. Front squats or safety bar squats, though, are something everyone should add to their workout even if you already do unilateral stuff.
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May 20, 2016 14:10
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Loqieu posted:An alternative to Chelsea Piers is City Ice in Queens. It's just over the river from Manhattan and the 7 train runs right by it. The quality of the ice in the summer is akin to a swimming pool, however they let you drink beers in the locker rooms, which is a plus. I live in Jersey so Queens is just too much of a trek for me. Definitely want to check out Lasker, though.
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May 20, 2016 16:40
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A 7'2", 250+ pound guy flying around on skates sounds absolutely terrifying.
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May 20, 2016 19:58
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Our final class closed out with a 20-minute, 5-v-5 half-ice scrimmage. First time I've ever scrimmaged outside of a brief 3-v-3. We got shellacked pretty bad. I hopped on as sort of D, promptly caused* two goals, then moved to left wing. I managed to score one on a pretty nice shot down the middle that I actually elevated, almost scored a pretty nice backhander, had a pretty OK pass to the front of the net that my teammate couldn't quite get a shot off from, and otherwise had an enormous amount of fun and felt like a kid wanting to implore dad "five more minutes!" at the end. Haven't felt that exhausted in a while, and it was funny watching everyone else slow down to a glacial pace by the end and half stop moving. I'm planning on doing some instructional class next that runs hockey drills and apparently has a scrimmage at the end of each, then either signing up as an alt for the rec league or waiting and trying to do a full season as a regular in the fall. Issues are time and cost. Being an alt apparently costs like $47 per game played, $460 for at least 10 games plus playoffs for a season. There's also Friday drop ins that I should be able to make over the rest of the summer. *In fairness, at the start of the game our forwards weren't pressuring their guys in the slightest so basically they had freedom to shoot from pretty much wherever, so I was too far from them to do anything and definitely not maneuverable enough to block the shot. I did do a couple bad things though that basically gave them the puck.
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Jun 14, 2016 14:08
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Welcome to New York. And no masseuse in any of the several overly narrow, tiny locker rooms. But on the plus side, sometimes they don't smell like death warmed over.
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Jun 14, 2016 14:33
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MajorJohnSteed posted:I think this summer season might be shortened, so if you're concerned about cost, the fall season might be a few more games (and therefore probably a bit more money). There doesn't seem to be a lot of turnover of full time players in the league, so I would definitely sign up for whatever you can and not count on one thing over the other. When I signed up, there was a random 5th team added due to interest, but now they're doing 4 teams again. I don't know if a teams worth of people didn't want to play in the summer or they were just out of luck for registering late. I know that registration was opened to alts after it was opened to previous full time players, but don't know how many spots that was. I'm going into it keeping in mind what you (I think?) said, that really you only get a couple opportunities to practice whatever they're doing. That's more or less the same as the skating class, so I figure it'll be fine if sometimes frustrating. And they also said there were generally scrimmages at the end just to mess around. I'll see about the rec league in the fall and hope there are open slots.
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Jun 15, 2016 14:07
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Had my first hockey instructional class and man am I ever bad at moving with the puck. I'd love an hour with a puck and a stick and two cones. Did some basic drills with the puck and some simple passing stuff. Then split up and did a pretty fun drill where 3 forewords would basically do a zone entry with the first guy at the wall to receive a puck along the boards, the second guy going to the net, and the third hanging back to try to make the triangle. Then there were 2 defense, with the first trying to stop the pass and the second guy tying up the foreword by the net. It was pretty fun. Last 10 minutes were scrimmage and I basically just tried not to do anything too stupid. There some guys there who are already pretty experienced and I got some solid advice/tips. I also semi-boarded myself when I slipped near the boards and my neck is slightly stiff today. Nothing broken at least. One goalie showed up and I felt really bad for him because it was basically a giant waste of his time. Hopefully he didn't actually pay for the class.
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Jul 7, 2016 16:38
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That half circle definitely formed. Since it was my first time on the ice with a goalie I didn't really try to shoot on him. I just skated and warmed up my edges and then picked up pucks on my way and shot on the empty net at the other end. Too afraid to breach practice etiquette.  The instructor even made a point to say to everyone during the drills not to shoot on the goalie if he wasn't looking at you since the whole objective was to hit his pads so he could practice. Overall the guy probably spent more time putting/taking off his gear than he did actually facing shots.
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Jul 7, 2016 19:45
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Had another scrimmage and I am terrible at everything. Also, defense is hard. We had a 2-on-1 drill and I tried playing the d-man and I might as well not have been there. Gap control and matching speed while going backward are all really, really difficult. Also a dude (accidentally) laid me out pretty good. I was off balance as he was coming toward me head on but he basically didn't really stop so more or less just checked me. Trying drop-in for the first time tomorrow so I'll have a full hour to be bad at hockey!
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Jul 14, 2016 14:28
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Development posted:If you're not a strong skater playing D, you can make up for it through positioning and anticipation. Noobie D spend a ton of energy just chasing around the puck carrier and are absolutely gassed after an hour. Won't get better that way. Use yer' noggin' I'm definitely still trying to get a sense of "in this situation, do this; in that situation, do that." I know general rules like "keep them to the outside," etc., but am still putting that all together with being able to skate where I want to, when I want to. I find myself sometimes trying to go sideways with some weird lateral motion and then realizing, oh yeah, skating doesn't work like that. When not in a game situation I'm actually relatively happy with how my skating has progressed, but when you have specific targets, it becomes a whole lot different.
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Jul 14, 2016 14:58
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Did my first drop in game and, despite clearly being the worst on the ice and making a lot of dumb mistakes, didn't make a complete rear end of myself and even got an assist. Also almost shoved a puck in that the goalie didn't cover and they didn't realize I was close. I also tried really hard not to take overly long shifts and be that guy. Very short bench, and only three D, but what was nice was the best guys on the team agreed to play defense. Otherwise there was a pretty good mix of skill levels with a couple younger guys who thought they were better than they were, a few older dudes who'd clearly been playing for years, and a few legitimately good players who, if they got a breakaway it was a sure goal. But the score was actually pretty close from what I remember and we even had two not-terrible goalies show up. Obviously it just comes with practice and playing, but it was frustrating how many times I knew that, if I were just a bit better, I could have gotten to a loose puck and done something with it. A lot of flubbed passes, pucks going off my skates, or I got a touch on it but couldn't get full control. Also, despite telling myself to take it slow, I definitely made a few overly rushed plays and turned it over. Was a ton of fun, though, and no one really seemed to care that much about mistakes or anything. And while I was bad, I wasn't so bad that I might as well not have been on the ice - I was able to disrupt some plays and at least participate.
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Jul 16, 2016 16:48
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So after three pick up games it's pretty fair to say the people doing pick up, at least on Fridays, have all been playing for a while and I'm the only loser out there flailing around like the terrible newbie I am. Still, it's been fun and people have generally been fine and supportive. And it's not likely teammates are scoring nhl goals while I'm off the ice so I don't feel too bad. And really I'm really happy to play against people way better than me because I'm kind of hoping that when September rolls around and I sign up for the rec league, everyone else will be that much worse.
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Jul 30, 2016 04:11
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My favorite is guys who take slappers at a gametime instructional class...while there are people lined up behind the net waiting to do the drill.
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Aug 15, 2016 16:07
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xzzy posted:sho 'nuff quote:Bauer’s Vapor series is the most popular skate in the NHL and focuses primarily on speed. Vapor’s are known for their narrow and slim fit. The skate will have a low-volume boot and the foot will feel locked in place. This skate’s low-volume fit eliminates unnecessary space in the boot and allows for pure performance. Vapor’s are meant to match every player with his or her potential. I don't think mine are working right.
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Aug 25, 2016 14:46
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Welp, barring any issues I should be signed up for my first rec league season. I'll be a "restricted" player, which basically means I pay a slightly discounted rate and if a full bench shows up of regulars, I might get bumped, but the organizer told me it's actually pretty rare to have that happen more than a couple times per season, which is 15 games plus a couple of guaranteed playoff games. Of course, there's no other way to practice, so I'll probably sign up to repeat the instructional class I'm doing, which is a whole other set of 
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Sep 15, 2016 14:42
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Unless you're absolutely destroying your legs in the gym or play really intense hockey, you'd probably be fine even with back to back days, but it's the kind of thing that, if you know ahead of time and can plan it, it's probably better to space them a bit.
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Sep 28, 2016 21:53
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Scored my first goal in my second ever game, as a d-man.  Was hovering at center ice after an O zone faceoff and the puck drifted out toward me. No one was in the lane so I shot the slowest knuckler ever. Goalie probably feel asleep by the time it got to him, but it hit the bottom of the crossbar in the top right corner and went in. Went on to win 5-0 with only 4 d-men.
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Oct 3, 2016 14:12
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This is my first season so I don't know what the standard is. Last game we had a full 6. I was a little surprised to have only 4 this week since I feel like there are a million alternates signed up but I guess none rsvp'd.
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Oct 3, 2016 16:43
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For how much I'm paying them I'm drat well showing up for every game they'll let me play.  If others can afford not to, hey, more icetime for me!
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Oct 5, 2016 01:04
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Saw a video of our game and man, I am a much worse skater than I imagined.  I also confirmed to myself that I saved a likely goal on a breakaway by lifting the guy's stick, but then the puck went right to the trailer who had a wide open net after the forward and I fell over each other and slid into the wall. But I'll blame that on my D partner and the goalie.
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Oct 18, 2016 20:56
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I love when a whole group of adults nods their heads when the coach asks if everyone understands the drill he just drew out and explained, then he whistles it to a stop after the first several pairs have no idea where to go.
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Oct 20, 2016 03:15
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The rec league I play in is pretty chill and I think part of it is that there are only four teams and every season players get shuffled around so overall it feels more like you're part of the league than a part of a specific team whose honor you need to uphold blah blah. The rink controls just about everything in terms of team names, structure, etc., which I think really cuts down on the bullshit.
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Nov 9, 2016 15:27
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Excuse me but Hal Gill was often described as a pylon. I am mostly a pylon. Ergo, I am as good as an NHL defenseman.
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Nov 14, 2016 16:58
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Made a beautiful, hard, tape-to-tape pass right to our center and we went on to score a few seconds later. The pass was 95% pure accident - I was mostly trying a hard clear and he caught it perfectly.
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Nov 21, 2016 20:51
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Teeter posted:Are backpack-style bags worthwhile or are they junk? This one, more specifically. It's like $30 with the Hockey Monkey black friday coupon. I know they're probably better suited for roller but I typically stuff my shin guards inside my pants anyway and pack light, so maybe it would fit? A lot of guys in my league have them, but we're in the city so it's more walking/subway versus throwing your bag in the trunk. I have a roller that I got for free and it's worked OK but it's definitely starting to get worn down and I'm thinking my next bag will be one of the backpack ones even if they look really stupid.
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Nov 22, 2016 13:57
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doctor 7 posted:Guys holy poo poo I scored on my first break away today. I played wing last night, got my first breakaway, managed to put the puck over the net, chased after it and got it back, then shot it up so it touched the ceiling of the net behind the crossbar. Everyone saw it go in...except the ref. I guess he didn't think it fully went it cause he waved it off. So mad. We ended up losing 4-2 after going down 4-0 in an absolutely terrible first period for everyone. But I told the captain that I wouldn't mind playing wing more even if I don't fully switch from D. Had a lot more fun than I expected, and a lot more skating. (I backcheck.) z0331 fucked around with this message at 15:15 on Dec 5, 2016 |
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Dec 5, 2016 15:11
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xzzy posted:Get that tryhard poo poo out of here.
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Dec 5, 2016 15:32
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New Year's day scrimmage today and it was probably the best possible scrimmage you could hope for. Good mix of skills including at least one d5 player who was ridiculously fast but would always try to set people up rather than just score. He ended up only getting one kind of lucky stuff-in goal. Both goalies played really well, too, and made some fun saves. Ended up only being like 4-2 after a couple lucky shots.
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Jan 2, 2017 04:26
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xzzy posted:I want this man's shot. I assume you mean the hockey shooter because the gun shooter kinda sucks. Also, why does it seem like he's using the back of the blade but shooting with his forehand? Is that to give it more elevation?
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Jan 4, 2017 17:06
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dogstile posted:My local stick n puck session has gone from maybe 20 people on the ice at once to around 50. In the UK all the stick n' puck sessions have a coach present, so we did some drills to warm up (i got to touch the puck once in each drill) and then tried to play a game in the last half hour, I got on the ice twice. Fuckers need to cap the amount of people on the ice. I started the next "semester" of my instructional class and of course it's January and the first meeting so there's like 40 people. Luckily there are three coaches so it's manageable, but I'm looking forward to when people drop off and the remainders actually know what to do most of the time. But yeah the closing scrimmage was more or less a poo poo show.
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Jan 6, 2017 15:41
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Kevlar v2.0 posted:Just dropped $500 on gear at Jerry's. I'm officially pot-committed. Except for my shoulder pads, which I got on super clearance, I'm a walking advertisement for Bauer's lowest end stuff and it's been totally fine so far. Granted it's been less than a year, but other than gloves I'm not sure I see myself needing much better gear.
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Jan 9, 2017 23:21
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lol at the idea of anyone actually checking the helmet expiration. "Hi I'm a beer league ref can I please see your helmet I need to make sure it's still good."
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Jan 10, 2017 02:39
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Obviously this may not apply but for a lot of people lower back pain is more a symptom of things like hip and glute tightness, which can pull everything out of whack. You might try, if you haven't, something like figure four stretches and see if that relieves and of the back pain. Hockey can be hell on the hips.
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Jan 15, 2017 21:25
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The refs at my games all seem bored/mildly annoyed to be there so really the money must be OK cause idk why else they are.
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Jan 18, 2017 15:14
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prom candy posted:Blech, I had like 4 good scoring chances last night and I flubbed them all. I've been taking lots of shots in my basement but I really need to find a way to work on shooting while moving. I had a nice breakaway and just trickled the puck off my stick. Then towards the end of the game the opposing goalie was handling the puck behind the net and I called for the pass and he actually sent it right to me, and I still couldn't score! Back-handed it right into his pad as he slid into net. That's kind of how I felt after my last game. Feel like I wasted three or four good chances, including falling over at the start of what should have been a breakaway, but my line scored twice and I'm pretty sure me just getting to the puck quickly and doing something with it helped.
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Jan 19, 2017 17:56
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