Have you ever played with an NHL player?

[Dover]

Thanks for sharing guys! Pretty cool stuff

[everfeb]

Played against some future NHLers a long time ago. Does that count? In Jr. “A”...played a season against "Battleship" Bob Kelly. A couple Jr. exhibition games against the Flin Flon Bombers who had Bobby Clarke (very dirty for no good reason), Reggie Leach (very strong), Gerry Hart, Chris Worthy on that team. It did not go well for us. Played against but, not in Jr. A...Henry Boucha...Tim Sheehy...and U.S. Olympians Billy and Bob Christian. Did play with a couple guys who were drafted fairly high who had lengthy pro careers but never made the NHL. Was coached for 2 years in Sr. A and University by a gentleman who had 10 year career as NHL D-Man with Hawks and Wings. All this was around 1967. Hung the skates up 46 years ago. Mostly, I had fun. I never ever thought of or dreamed about making the NHL or even minor pro, just not strong enough and not a good skater due to a shattered ankle at age 17 which really affected my ability to skate forward.

[PenguinHunter]

When Jeff Odgers retired from the NHL he joined a Senior Team in our league and we played against him for a handful of years.

[Grapes]

Played against some future NHLers a long time ago. Does that count? In Jr. “A”...played a season against "Battleship" Bob Kelly. A couple Jr. exhibition games against the Flin Flon Bombers who had Bobby Clarke (very dirty for no good reason), Reggie Leach (very strong), Gerry Hart, Chris Worthy on that team. It did not go well for us. Played against but, not in Jr. A...Henry Boucha...Tim Sheehy...and U.S. Olympians Billy and Bob Christian. Did play with a couple guys who were drafted fairly high who had lengthy pro careers but never made the NHL. Was coached for 2 years in Sr. A and University by a gentleman who had 10 year career as NHL D-Man with Hawks and Wings. All this was around 1967. Hung the skates up 46 years ago. Mostly, I had fun. I never ever thought of or dreamed about making the NHL or even minor pro, just not strong enough and not a good skater due to a shattered ankle at age 17 which really affected my ability to skate forward.

So cool. Great story. Tough era to play. Couldn’t imagine playing against Clark no matter what age or level. My Jr.B days were in the early 70’s , 70-73. Even then you had to play with your head on a swivel. Lol.

[2014olympicgold]

I'm friends with a former OHLer (short stint) and "Canada East U19" player and he wasn't a scorer or anything like that, but he's prolly one of the most gifted hockey players I've played with. Actually while typing this I remember I've played with a former OJHL that went on to playing Div3 in the states. He's the best player I've played with. He was the guy who would come out to beer league and try and get others goals, then just go end to end when you needed a goal.

It's insane the level these guys were at let alone OHLers/NCAA Div1 would be. I can't imagine trying to play even with a TOP athlete.

[Bramuin]

Two stories: first one is humorous and can’t really count it. When I was in 4th grade, we played a little chase game after lunch before the afternoon classes. There was a 6th grader named Sam Bowie. Sam was probably better than 6 ft tall then. So I was chasing him to catch him. Never did! I describe it as. Sam running. Whoosh…whoosh…whoosh. Me dadeet, dadeet, dadeet, dadeet, dadeet, dadeet. Whoosh whoosh whoosh. Dadeet, dadeet.Dadeet. LOL. Sam ended up being an NBA trivia question. Who was drafted before Michael Jordan? I ended up working with his step dad. Haven’t seen Sam since school.

So I never really played ice hockey. A little bit on the ponds, but very very little. We played organized ball hockey. We were pretty good. Did some traveling. Played in some on the Mylec dek hockey circuit. There were some really talented players. Seen one guy enter the zone. Flip the ball in the air, bat it down, the swing level putting the ball top corner. I chased a guy from circle to circle behind the net full tilt while he was tapping the ball on his blade.


Any way, one summer they had a league at Hershey outdoor rink. The league never completed, which happened a lot due to insurance reasons. A guy asked me if I could get a line together to help him out In this league. So the team was pretty bad. My line carried the team. After a few games here comes a team with several Hershey Bears on it. We got crushed, but my line was 1-1 against them. I really don’t remember who all was there. I do remember Mitch Lamoureux. Never really knew the man. More of an AHL Lifer. He was a little shorter than me but man was he solid. Tough as H to move out from in front Even in sneakers. Probably the hardest I ever had to play. Constantly moving. The grit! The battling for position. I had played against some really good Dek players. Yes it is a different game. But it was intense playing against him. Really enjoyed it. I think he decided to stay in the area.

[Aviator]

I have never played ice hockey against NHL player, but I did play street hockey as a kid against NHL players. Street hockey was super popular among kids here in Slovakia in 90s and 00s. It was played with hockey sticks and tennis ball on any concrete/asphalt surface. During summer, local amateur ice hockey club would organize tournament for kids and every time, they invited some hockey players from nearby professional team to watch the finals and sometimes "play exhibition" against us. This is where it gets interesting, because nearby professional ice hockey team is Dukla Trenčín, which produced a lot of NHL players. Even when they were already playing in the NHL, they would come and watch us as they spent summer with families here.

I remember "playing" against Marián and Marcel Hossa, Gáborík, Sekeráš, Lintner or Radivojevič. Well, playing, it was more like Hossa would just dangle through a swarm of 12 y.o. kids. When Gaborik attended once, he played goalie and just snipe it top corner from his net over and over again. It was huge experience for us kids, still have some signed hockey cards.

Two pictures just for fun. It is me and my team on one picture, and Marcel Hossa, Radivojevic and Gaborik signing my "jersey" (that T-shirt I was wearing). This was I believe in 2004.

tim.jpg Gaborik2004.jpg

[stevegamer]

Yes, but not hockey. I went to prep school with a former NHL player and we had mandatory athletics, plus it being an all-boys school people just played stuff as well. The funniest part of this, is that when I got into my first fantasy hockey league, the guy who got me into the league and knew I knew sports, and that I played fantasy baseball/football. He asked me if I had done and prep, and I said sure. He first asked me about the guy I went to school with, and I gave him an answer which was more "nice enough guy, great athlete, really skilled." which he found odd. I then told him he picked the one player in NHL history I knew personally.

I've played street hockey with former minor leaguers, plus basketball against a then current 76er (Leon Wood) - I was of course on the wrong team, plus a couple guys who pro careers, just not NBA.

I can't ice skate at all, and roller skate poorly.

[Eskimo Brother]

My brother is 1997 born and we grew up in North York (just outside Toronto), and he played AA/AAA as a kid so I watched him play McDavid, Marner, Strome, Stephens, McBain, Cirelli.
Skated with Dom and Steve Moore a couple times. They would rent out the pad that our hockey camp was also on, and they came on early/stayed late with us a couple times.

Also played against Victor Mete and Sean Durzi in summer beer league a few times when they were still prospects. Mete didn't stand out much except for being super fast.

[LawMan]

When I was very young I played my first 2 years of organized hockey (then called "tom thumb" I think) with and against 3 different players who would go on to make the NHL.
One was the largest and most talented from the outset, one was tiny the last time I saw him at about 13, and grew into an enforcer, and one was just the best player by a mile the whole time.

The other interesting part is the renowned most talented player in the Hockey group was the only one touted to be a star, made the WHL and put up pretty big numbers but never played an NHL game.
So remember parents, the star at 6 is not necessarily the next NHL All-Star.

[Catfish On Ice]

I can skate, like the normal person can skate, but what blows my mind while reading many of these is the perception you all had of these players at the time when they were much younger. Many of them were bigger, could skate really fast or had other special hockey tools that made them stand out or others were just really hard workers. If I would ever get on the ice with any player whether they be elite women's players(since I am a female) or any NHL or AHL player, I would just be in awe of the skating and just physical ability they have for the game. They would just blow right by me.

[Chuk]

I went to a camp called Halliburton Hockey Haven that had NHL players come every week. The Stevens brothers were awesome, Scott and Mike, they played water basketball with us and were literally tossing kids in the air.

Steve Yzerman came on the ice. We also had members of the women's national team at the time and they were damn good.

The funniest visit was Paul Coffey. Showed up late, did not come to the arena, but finally agreed to play ball hockey with our cabin. The guy winds up and cranks a slapshot off a kid's back. Much crying involved but left a welt to remember for the rest of the week.

Then a few years after I left, this guy dropped by:

[Mika Magic]

I have never played Ice Hockey with an NHL player, but I have shared the same ice with an NHL player. Well at the time he was far from becoming an NHL player. He was a little kid and I was a teenager. Growing up I was a pretty good figure skater in my area and even at the age of 32 I can still skate. Well there was this kid who would show up at the ice rink with his hockey gear and he would skate circle around all the kids that were older than him. This kid was none other than San Jose Sharks Kevin Leblanc. Little did we know he would be in the NHL back then, but he was showing the talent against the bigger kids that is for sure.

[DangerCat]

Skated in a hockey camp with Jason Strudwick when I was a kid. Also one team in our Rec league in the playoffs called In a sub - Jake Lee who at the time was a San Jose defense prospect and I believe now on the Calgary roster or at least listed as a Flame. He put up 46 point in 66 games last year for Kelowna in the WHL haha our team was so angry I thought it was cool like yeah guys I’m sure the scouts are out here watching us let it go it’s Rec league boys! Anyways that’s my NHL player experience!

[blayze]

Had a book signed by Gretzky when I was a kid
Shared an elevator with Steve Nash
Ran into Eddy Encarnacion at his condo
Ate at the same resto as Phaneuf/Cuthbert... asked for a pic on the way out and then handed Phaneuf the camera - she let out a huge laugh