How many of you played/play hockey, how has it effected you as a fan?

Question

It's always seemed that the higher my level of play the less interested in following professional hockey I get. Now that I'm back to playing Women's Rec I'm getting back into following the NHL.

I'm must wondering if any of you have had a similar experience?

When I first started following hockey (12-13 years ago) I was more enamored by the players then the game. I think my interest has flip flopped, I am way more fascinated by the game its self.

Answer 1

I played hockey from the time I was four until my mid 50s.
In my early 20s I played Professional Hockey in the Chicago Black Hawks organization.

I have always been a fan, and probably always will be. I've travelled 50 miles to find a newspaper that carried summaries just to be close to the game. The internet is one of the best things that has happened to the game for me as it allows me to keep tabs on several leagues on a daily basis where before I had to wait for The Hockey News on a weekly basis.

Answer 2

What happens when you start playing at a higher level is your focus begins to shift away from the NHL and you pay more attention to your own league. NHL games have no real significant to you or your team so naturally your interest dwindles.

Things that become important is how your team is playing, how you are contributing and because you're playing hockey all the time bounding with teammates in other actives outside of hockey is a way to clear your mind and have fun living out your hockey dreams

For me when I decided to hang them up I got far away from and didn't watch any sort of organized hockey but I still loved skating outdoors with a stick and puck.

When I started back playing in "beer league" my interest in the NHL was renewed and enjoy following all the teams now not just my favorites because I've played with or against guys now in the show.

Answer 3

Personally, playing hockey has only made me watch the NHL even more. That is probably because when i go to hockey schools or team practice, we always talk about nhl games. I also appreciate what the NHL players do, and i watch them during games to learn better positioning and technique. Besides that, i was a die hard devils fan before i started playing, and since i started i think i just became an even bigger fan.

Answer 4

I think playing the sport has given me a greater respect for the game than if I would have if I didn't play. I can really respect people around the league and I am really at the point where I don't like teams per se, but more I like the players on the team. I will find myself cheering for a team like San Jose because I like Joe Thornon over a team like Toronto because I hate Darcy Tucker. I am really able to tip my hat and say that a move was good no matter what team. I will always be a Flyers fan (just one parade down Broad Street in my lifetime please), but I can really respect the New Jerseys of the league because of the players they put on the ice. A normal fan would not be able to do that.

Also, I tend to see a lot of play as they are happening that others do not. Flyers/Lightning Game 6 Conferance Finals '04 ... I was jumping up cheering Primeau's goal before anyone else in the bar put their beers down.

Answer 5

I've played hockey most of my life, however I only developed the patience to watch a televised game in the past few years. I've always been one of those people who would rather be out playing a sport than watching it on television. I notice a lot more now that I'm older, I notice the subtle nuiances of the game (such as the way a goalie plays a shot, or how the offense sets up on a powerplay to develop a strong pattern of passing in the zone.)
The one thing I can't stand, is people who talk about sports and who know nothing about them/have never played them.
I hear it all day long in my office (I work at a newspaper) and these non-athletic, fat guys always chirp (loudly, they work on the other side of the floor) about various sports.
I pass them 5 times a day, and I find it hard not to stop and say "Have you ever even played hockey? Do you know how to skate? No? Then shut up and stop bitching about the Leafs and Sundin...you know nothing."
But hey, that's just me. hahahahaha

Answer 6

I currently play hockey and still love watching the professionals and i am almost playing High School Hockey. So i don't think the higher level of of hockey you play at, the less interested i get in watching it.

Answer 7

Because I play hockey I find myself watching different things during games. Like players skating technique, play development and such. If anything it has made me watch the game much more closely.

Answer 8

For me it was Topps Hockey Cards. Now the game is so different, the names of the players are so foreign to me, that they had might as well be characters from The Lord of the Rings. My favourite team The Boston Bruins have stunk for years, and playing in a new stadium for several of those years, have failed in their new building to create even a reasonable fraction of the excitement they once used to; or maybe i am just an old fart!

Answer 9

That never happened to me. If anything it enhanced my knowledge of the game and the different systems teams play. Playing at higher levels to me just increased my analysis skills for the game. That and growing a mullet...not really...I just want to be berry melrose and have the simple job of showing up on espn once and a while.

Answer 10

Yeah you become More passionate and appreciative of the Players Skill in the N H L.and you tend to watch every game more closely .