starting ice hockey

Question
Hi Martial, I'm Joel. I am 16 years old, I've been playing inline hockey for about 6yrs and have gotten pretty good over the years. I have gotten sick from the lack of contact involved in inline hockey so I signed up for ice hockey, which I have no experience in. I've only been on ice skates a couple of times. So my question is... Will ice hockey be to difficult for me to handle? And.. Will it me hard to keep up with other the other kids that have Been playing awhile?

Thankyou,

Joel

Answer
Hi Joel!

While there will be a learning curve for you to deal with - I have found that those who stick with it and take a few bumps in the process usually do quite well with the conversion of roller to ice hockey!!

Roller hockey uses alot of the same muscle groups - so your conditioning and most agility skills will fit right in.  IN fact I have that roller hockey guys generally have better than average puck handling skills!

You will have to adapt to differences in stopping, turning and the speed in general...  but I believe that once you take the time to do the transition - you will do quite well!!

A big part of the game is actually "mental" - having a hockey sense play a big role!  Add practice, skill building and confidence and you have a great recipe for hours of fun and success!

Take your time - be patient with your progress ...  get in some extra public skating, and stick time sessions and you should be playing and enjoying the game along side guys who have been playing for years!!

Hope this helps!

GOOD LUCK WITH THE PUCK!

Martial