the other day one of the hubs' customers gave him four tickets to a hockey game. i will wait while those of you who know me well laugh.
you see, we are not sports people. i did not intentionally set out to marry a man who doesn't watch footballbaseballgolfbasketball etc. it was just icing on the cake.
i have never been interested in watching sports of any kind. i've never had a favorite team, i don't root for anyone. i've watched boxing and find it interesting for a little while. soccer, eh, it's ok. the holy trinity (baseballfootballbasketball) bore me to tears.
the kids wanted to go to the hockey game and the tickets were free so we went. i sort of screwed it up a little. i took the tickets out of my purse when i got home and laid them on the table. when we got to the coliseum--a 25-30 min drive? yeah, the tickets were still on the table. dear sweet hubs drove home and got them, even though up until that time the kids were being totally freaking obnoxious.
we missed the first 15 minutes, but omg! that was fucking cool! i'd seen one hockey game before but it was long ago and i didn't remember it being so much fun! wow. and, i sort of caught on to what was going on, though during the last 10 seconds or so i noticed our goalie was missing and the hubs had to explain why.
i personally think that hockey has to be one of the more challenging sports because not only are they trying to score they are speeding around on skates. not just running down a field or a court and throwing a ball or hitting something w/ a bat or a racket, but all of those skills PLUS the ice skating. awesome. and even though it's violent (i didn't realize how cool THAT part was) it's also so fluid and graceful.
i do have questions though.
this is what i know:
you can body slam someone against the wall and that doesn't get you fouled out
however, if you and the other guy start beating the hell out of each other and it turns from hockey into a boxing match you get a time out (i love that part) 2 mins in the box
up to six players can be on the ice at a time but if you're bad you can lose a player for awhile
there are three time periods
if you are REALLY bad the ref takes 5 mins off the clock (not sure if that's right or i just misunderstood something and lost track of time)
questions:
what DOES get you fouled out if it's ok to body slam someone?
is there ever anything like the free throw in basketball (it is called the free throw right? when a player gets three tries to make a basket w/ the other guys lined up beside him?)
it seemed like players just came and went on the ice as they wanted, like the team was together but separate. how do they know when they have to get off the ice and someone else comes on?
it seemed like the coach wasn't much involved, like in football or basketball the coaches are more obvious, more active. in hockey the players would argue w/ the refs not the coaches
tonight the twin city cyclones lost 3-4 to the richmond renegades
9 comments:
OMG. I CAN answer your questions!!!!!!!!!!!
ahem.....it's not called fouling out~it's called a penalty. You are allowed to slam someone into the boards, but not above their shoulders with your elbow. You cannot "hit them from behind" though because you get a 5 minute major (aka being really bad-it's called 5 for fighting, you know, like the band).
no free throws. there are, sometimes, penalty shots, but they are rarely given. If a player has a clear breakaway (ie they are heading toward the net with the puck all alone) and they they get hooked (player takes them down with their stick) they are allowed a penalty shot to make up for the shot they would have had on goal had the other player not taken them down.
the players play on lines~usually 3 or 4 players to a line~and they know when they are to go on the ice and come off the ice.
The coach is very involved, but during the intermissions they discuss strategy. There are many bench coaches that coach during the game so the head coach seems like he's just watching.
ask me more!
I love, love sports. Especially football and baseball. I have never been to a hockey game, but we were just given tickets to the Cottonmouths, and now for sure we will go
Oh, and in basketball sometimes they get 3, sometimes 2 and sometimes only 1 free throw. There are 87,341 rules that determine how many... I don't really get that part.
I don't know much about hockey...but I do know (and this is VERY cool) when 2 players start wailing on each other the refs will not break up the fight until one of the fighters hits the ice. That's why you see them holding on to each other's jersey with one hand while they pound on each other's faces with the other hand: they are holding each other up so they can fight longer. Now that's a manly sport!
IB
OMG. I know more about hockey than these guys! hahahahahaha
I love hockey!!! I went to college in VT, and we didn't have a football team because it was considered to lower academic standards (*ducking* hey, it's not my rule!), but HOCKEY, look out!!!! Our women's team was *awesome*.
I don't know that much about hockey either, but love to watch it. Glad you all had fun!
k--i knew you'd comment on this one ; ) and i knew you'd know alot and fill me in. i will email you more questions because i am interested.
hotch--that's why i don't like the other sports cos there are so many different rules and i can't keep up and i just don't get them.
ib--i love the fighting part! and, i have to admit, the kids did too! LOL
astarte--actually, i get that hockey seems more cerebral than football. perhaps it is not TRUE, but it totally seems like it. and? for whatever reason whenever the kids ask where are we going? the hubs says vermont. we've never been there. but he's always said that. some day i want the kids to ask that and for us to REALLY take them to vt. : )
bea--we really did have a blast and i think we'll go again. next time i'll wear gloves though cos dude, it gets cold in there! i want to drive the zamboni. that would be cool.
hockey rules! i love the pace, i love the fighting and you are right, the spouse and i often discuss how much more challenging and physical it is and the players don't get the credit for that. not only are they constantly moving - like soccer - but it is better b/c it is on ice and involved balance too. plus look at their schedule, hockey teams play SO many more games a season than any other sport. they start in october and the stanley cup isn't until june. and they probably average three games a week. crazy!
also i like that even if you don't know the rules (i still can't get a handle on offsides) it is very easy to follow what is going on.
speaking of coaches, teams in the nhl even have video coaches who watch the plays and report back to the main coach occasionally with advice. very cool. i have a friend who's bil is a video coach.
broad--i have no idea what offsides are. and the thing about coaches i didn't expect them to be on the ice of course but i found it interesting that the players spoke to the refs instead of the coaches. it all seemed to flow w/out any OBVIOUS direction from the coach but i'm sure they are way involved.
Post a Comment