the invasion of Canada
Episode #10
wrist shot
In the game of hockey, there are several effective ways to put a puck in the net. One is the well known and well loved slapshot. It's big, it's bad and it makes the audience roar. It contains power and speed, but lacks control. It's not an easy shot to take because it requires time to set up the shot and take it. In that time, an opposing player can disrupt the shot in any number of ways. So it's snappy looking, but a long shot.
There is also the backhand - which is a finesse shot and requires position, timing and luck to be effective. It's hard to set up, and it's not as sexy as the slapshot, but it's just as effective and if it works, the crowd loves it.
There is also the deflection - a skill shot that is responsible for the majority of all goals scored in Hockey. It is usually found at the end of another type of shot that isn't working and somehow fate redirects the puck off of some other entity and into the net. It's not sexy at all, but the people don't care. A goal is a goal.
The game of hockey has one real talent and it's what makes one ice skater a figure skater and another an NHL All star. The wrist shot. It's not a visible effort that you can see from the stands or on television because it happens so fast that it looks like the player is just smacking the puck with his stick, but if you slow down the action you can see that there is a definite flip of the wrist that directs the puck, with a great amount of control, towards the net. It's beautiful and one of the most difficult things I have ever tried to do. The effort to make one happen is a lot like the effort that it takes to open a stubborn can of peanut butter. Of course, peanut butter jars won't get you an NHL contract, but it's just as tasty.
Life is full of wrist shots. Most of them time we run that talent into the ground from over use. It's a defining characteristic of our personality and we need it so we can feel better about ourselves. Through out your life you will be offered new chances to discover new "wrist shots" and if they work, they can be all the motivation we need to send our lives in a new direction. I can remember a time in my early twenties when I learned that I could bowl rather well and I found myself bowling three times a week for two months. I came to my senses and went on living, but for a while, I thought I would always be a bowler.
Everyone has these shifts. They create the dynamics of personal interest that make people want to know us. There are those that never see these shifts and these are the dull, uninspiring people that you can't stand to talk to or know. They are either without a wrist shot of their own or they have one wrist shot and they never try to find another one.
It's time for a new wrist shot for me. I have been slinging slapshots for the past two months and I need some time to rediscover the talent that brought me here in the first place. It's time for me to reconnect to my roots and replenish myself before I head out into a new direction. A major move is coming and I need to make sure that I have all my shots in working order.
The tour ends with a quiet night in Vernon, British Columbia and then it's the long drive hom.......
wrist shot
In the game of hockey, there are several effective ways to put a puck in the net. One is the well known and well loved slapshot. It's big, it's bad and it makes the audience roar. It contains power and speed, but lacks control. It's not an easy shot to take because it requires time to set up the shot and take it. In that time, an opposing player can disrupt the shot in any number of ways. So it's snappy looking, but a long shot.
There is also the backhand - which is a finesse shot and requires position, timing and luck to be effective. It's hard to set up, and it's not as sexy as the slapshot, but it's just as effective and if it works, the crowd loves it.
There is also the deflection - a skill shot that is responsible for the majority of all goals scored in Hockey. It is usually found at the end of another type of shot that isn't working and somehow fate redirects the puck off of some other entity and into the net. It's not sexy at all, but the people don't care. A goal is a goal.
The game of hockey has one real talent and it's what makes one ice skater a figure skater and another an NHL All star. The wrist shot. It's not a visible effort that you can see from the stands or on television because it happens so fast that it looks like the player is just smacking the puck with his stick, but if you slow down the action you can see that there is a definite flip of the wrist that directs the puck, with a great amount of control, towards the net. It's beautiful and one of the most difficult things I have ever tried to do. The effort to make one happen is a lot like the effort that it takes to open a stubborn can of peanut butter. Of course, peanut butter jars won't get you an NHL contract, but it's just as tasty.
Life is full of wrist shots. Most of them time we run that talent into the ground from over use. It's a defining characteristic of our personality and we need it so we can feel better about ourselves. Through out your life you will be offered new chances to discover new "wrist shots" and if they work, they can be all the motivation we need to send our lives in a new direction. I can remember a time in my early twenties when I learned that I could bowl rather well and I found myself bowling three times a week for two months. I came to my senses and went on living, but for a while, I thought I would always be a bowler.
Everyone has these shifts. They create the dynamics of personal interest that make people want to know us. There are those that never see these shifts and these are the dull, uninspiring people that you can't stand to talk to or know. They are either without a wrist shot of their own or they have one wrist shot and they never try to find another one.
It's time for a new wrist shot for me. I have been slinging slapshots for the past two months and I need some time to rediscover the talent that brought me here in the first place. It's time for me to reconnect to my roots and replenish myself before I head out into a new direction. A major move is coming and I need to make sure that I have all my shots in working order.
The tour ends with a quiet night in Vernon, British Columbia and then it's the long drive hom.......
posted by Daniel Loomis | 4:38 PM
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