Muse back!
January 10, 2010 / Sunday
There's Something To This Practice Thing
Played my first Blue game in almost two months tonight.
I actually felt a little apprehensive going into the game. Would all those practices and clinics I've been going to make any difference? Have I improved, or have I been wasting my time?
The puck dropped. I battled for it, bounced it past two defenders, and took a shot as one of my opponents knocked me down. The goalie blocked it. My teammate buried the rebound in the back of the net.
Well that wasn't so bad. I've been telling myself the last couple weeks to learn to get the puck through traffic, even if it's not pretty and clean. Don't always look for the path of least resistance; just get it through. And I did. Yeah!
The rest of the game went just as well. I had a much better idea of where to be as play unfolded. I could almost see the drills and hear my coaches as I skated. Everything clicked: passing, setting up on offensive rushes, forechecking. I tried to do all the things I was taught, and when I did them correctly I saw the predicted/desired result.
It wasn't all in my head, either. Several of my teammates noticed, too. That made me happy, not because I was playing well, but because I knew then that I really have been learning.
I finished the game with 3 solid assists. Goals are great, but knowing that you made things happen feels pretty good also. Final score: 6-1.
After the game, Gina and I had a discussion about our 1-on-1s down the ice. Generally, you don't trade notes on how to beat someone with that someone, but we did exactly that. I told her what I wanted to do better against her, she told me what she wanted to do better against me, and we agreed to try our ideas out on each other next time. I can't wait.