When do you think it is the right age for body contact?

morty

In hockey that is.....

This is my concern as a mother in the sport...I have 2 boys that play hockey...One is a competive 12 year old player and the other, well, He know longer plays because of a hockey accident,that almost cost him his life a year ago..He is 15 years of age, but at the time of the accident, he was 13...to make a long story short, he was hit from behind and the other player broke 3 of his ribs and rupchurd his spleen....He was in the hospital for 2 very long weeks and transfered from one hospital to another via air lift....He is now almost back to a full recovery but is not aloud to play because of the body contact in the sport.( doctor will not give him the ok to return yet and I dont feel right about it either)..When he started hockey, he was 9 years old...They had no body contact till he became a "A" player, which happened the following year...Now, he was experencied in body checking by the time he played with the other kids.( only because,we sent him to a hockey clinic that summer to learn how to hit safely and right)...My problem is this, When a child plays hockey and if they have no experience playing the sport, they are more then likely to be on a "house League" which means no body contact till the age of 11 or 12 on a house league team...But, if they happen to excel over a summer or something and get picked to go on a "A" or "AE" team then they go to a team with know experience on body checking and he has all kind of kids knocking him around,,...thats when I get a little concerned...My question is this, Do you think they should start body contact right from the get go and teach ALL kids the right way of the sport? I do believe they should have some experience on body contact but really, what 9 year old do you know, knows that they should only hit someone on the ice...I just think that the training rules of the sport is a little half ass backwards...

BTW....The child that hit my son, that was his first year playing body contact with know experience on how to do it correctly,except for 2 weeks of practice before the season started...

So now, I am becoming a advocate to change the rules some how...I need some advice, what do you think?

Morty

morty

Maple Leafs

morty

what? no one wants to give me any ideas?.I kill a post before it even gets started..

bebu

Morty, wish I could give you some real advice. Hockey is not a sport I follow. (Don't hate me!) I hope someone else could help you with perspective.

Good luck. And if no one else answers, I'll be the thread killer!

bebu

Stephanus

Not a Canuck - Know nothing about hockey - Heck, if you asked me about cricket or Aussie Rules, I'd be as useful!

But, BTTT

William Penwell

Agreed something has to happen before more youths are maimed or killed. Body checking being part of the game has to stay but when is a good time to start introducing it to youths? I haven't given it much thought but the problem stems from coaches wanting to win at all costs. Maybe if they are hit with a few law suites they will do something to change the way the game is being taught.

Will

RandomTask

Theres a time and place for this kind of thing and its called College...

Oh, different kind of body contact.

Well, since you can get seriously hurt or killed playing hockey at any age I guess it comes down to when do you feel your child is skilled enough to take care of themselves on the rink, and when you feel comfortable with them taking the risks of playing hockey.

morty

Bebu.....Thats fine, if you dont follow the sport, I would not hate anyone....And you did'nt kill the thread...thanks for bringing bcak to the top though...a few more did notice because of this...

Stephanus....uummh,Cricket eh?I do believe the rules are a little diffrent...us Candians tend to use a little more force when playing a game...Is that game along the lines of baseball??It is a ball and bat,isn't?? Just wondering..... dad use to play in it England on a team when he was a kid....He says that hockey is a way better sport though...

William....I do have to agree with you, with the amount of coaches that just have to win EVERY game...Whatever it takes they must win...Well, here is some info for you....There IS A LAW SUIT,going on as we speak in my little home town....It will make the media and newspaper shortly, I am sure of it....The coachs are now running like, scared little cockroachs, when they see the light come on....and as much it is going to put a damper on a sport that my children and I love, it will sure the hell rattle a few heads....I really do think it needs to be done...enough is enough.....Just my 2 cents.

Random Task.....College? Dubs were aloud to go to college? never mind do what you had in mind....lol...I do believe as well, that it is all about when they are skilled enough....But also really think that the rules should be the SAME for all the kids....Not diffrent levels, diffrent rules....If this being the case, which it is, They should have the same guide lines for coaching.....This is how the kids get hurt...It is like been thrown to the lions to play with them....Your to good to play with the little cats, so here, go play with the big cats, but you have to use a little more force, but we arent going to show you...you have to learn on your own..am I making my point????

Stacy Smith

There have been efforts in our area to get the age lowered for contact sports. Good luck but I doubt you'll do any better than the well funded efforts in California. People love their sports and we all know there are risks. It's an assumed risk when you play any sport that you can get hurt or even killed. Many more children are killed on bicycles each year than while playing hockey or football. Your oposers will point that out and ask you if you want to get rid of the much more dangerous bicycle where you don't sign an assumed risk contract before you ride.

Badger

12...that's when kids really start taking the games a little more seriously. That's also a good age when a lot of more competitive teams in other sports (soccer, football, baseball) become more widespread. Plus, boys are less likely to cry after a hit at that age.

When do you think it is the right age for body contact?

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