Ice Hockey Essay, Research Paper

Have you ever wanted to play a sport, but you were just a little too unsure if you would like it or not? Well I am going to tell you some stuff about the sport of ice hockey and hopefully make it so you decide to play the game.

First let me tell you a little about the game of ice hockey. Ice hockey is played on a sheet of ice usually 200 feet (61 M) long and 85 feet (26 M) wide. The sheet of ice is surrounded on all sides wit low walls, and plexy glass bolted in on top of the walls. You will also find two netted goals that are located at the end of each rink. Each hockey team consists of twenty players that can dress for a game. From there are three forwards, two defensemen, and a netminder commonly refered to as a goalie. There is also a black rubber thing know as a puck that weighs between 5 + or 6 ounces that the players try to get passed the goalie and into the net. The players of each team move the puck around with the use of a hockey stick. Hockey sticks are usually made of wood but with today’s new technology are made out of graphite and other light but strong materials.

Hockey is a very fast game, but also a rough one. This is why hockey players today wear a lot of padding. The modern day player wears skates, shin pads, hockey pants, shoulder pads, elbow pads, gloves and a helmet.

There are many types of levels of hockey. No matter where you are now days either in Canada or in the USA you can find a league for you to play in. The youngest a kid can be to play organized hockey in the USA is 4 years old. They also have plenty of leagues for beginners all the way up to semi-pros and pros. So if you’re a beginner and you are scared to play because you are afraid to be made fun of. No need to worry about that, because they have plenty of beginners leagues for people who are just lacing up the skates for the first time and just want to have a good time. There is also other travel leagues for elite kids that are under the age of 15 and junior leagues such as junior A and junior B for elite players between the ages of 16-20. Most of these players that play junior A hockey go to division one schools, and then end up getting drafted into the NHL. There are also three other leagues in Canada that is classified as Major-Junior Hockey. These players are between the ages 15-20. The majority of these players do not go to college, but get drafted into the NHL and go straight into the pros. So no matter what your skill classification is there is always a hockey league out there for you.

If ice hockey is not quit what you are looking for because it is too cold and other reasons then you should try roller hockey. Roller hockey is a very fun sport. You can play roller hockey two ways. One way you can play roller hockey is just for fun. You can get a bunch of friends together and start playing. The best thing about this way is that you can make your own rules and you don’t need a lot of equipment. The equipment that you will need is roller blades, a hockey stick, a hockey net, gloves, and a helmet if you want one. The second type of roller hockey you can play is and organized type of roller hockey through YMCA or USA hockey organization. The best thing about playing the USA hockey organization is that you get to travel to different big cities and be very competitive. For example if you lived played in the roller hockey league here you would be considered to be in the north east region. So this means that you get to go to big cities such as Boston, Philly, Baltimore, and more. If you win your region then you get to go to nationals. Nationals can very from places on the East Coast such as Florida, to Texas, and on the West Coast like California. So just like ice hockey, there are different types of leagues for you to play in no matter what your skill or competition levels may be.

Now that you know what ice hockey and roller hockey exactly is, and what gear you need to play I hope I have convinced you to at least give it a shot. I am not asking you to love it or make it part of your life everyday, all I am asking is that you at least give it a chance and who know maby you will wind up to like the game.