(I wrote this article for grade 11 English last semester but thought I'd share it anyways)
Hockey is a game played all across the world, but here in North America it is seen as more than a game. The game has changed over time; as rules change and players get bigger, faster, and stronger hockey was once considered a physical sport and does not need a lot of talent for. When the game first came into play there was a lot of hitting or body contact per say. One might see the odd fight every so often in the present game nowadays, but before that's what the game was about.
The rush of adrenaline going through your body two players deliver and exchange punches; this was once considered a good game of hockey. Most of the players that have been in the NHL for more than a decade have been involved or have been on a team that has had the role of an enforcer. The enforcer was once considered a tough guy that would go on the ice and beat up the opposing team, allowing the other team to be scared.
In the new era of hockey, the game is considered an elite sport that needs to be played intelligently and with speed. Being smart on the ice while playing the game at a high speed may come easy to some but for many it is very hard to learn these concepts. The ones that it just comes natural too are the players that are considered ‘great’ such as Connor McDavid or Nathan Mackinnon. These two players being the two of many fast players in the league have the ability to think and be a step ahead of other players at very high speed.
When thinking about the game of hockey it is much more than just skating around hitting the puck with a stick. Learning new plays and being able to see a step ahead will take one very far in the game. Knowing what the opposition will be doing next or where it might be going is a very hard concept to learn.
In hockey the word anticipation is used a lot. When a hockey player can anticipate a play or what the opposing player may be doing next, it will allow the player to take the puck or be that much better. One player that is considered the best of many once said “ go to where the puck is going to be, not to where it was”. Wayne Gretzky set the bar or the next level as he added more to just a rough sport. Wayne was once the only player to do this, nowadays players are taught just to read plays and to know what they are doing next.
Comments