Heard some neighbors chatting about adult hockey tournaments last month, got curious myself. Always loved casual puck sessions but never tried organized stuff. So I started digging around for our local Shamrocks club events.
First step was a total mess. Googled “Shamrocks hockey near me”, just got Irish pubs and kids’ leagues. Drove me nuts! Finally remembered that community center bulletin board near the grocery store. Ran over there after work.
Squinted at like fifty flyers under scratched plexiglass. Found it! Tiny green shamrock logo near the bottom. Said “Adult Rec League Signups – Spring Session”. Almost missed the dang thing. Wrote down the phone number with a leaky pen, ink all over my hand.
Called next morning, got voicemail. Tried again at lunch, some guy named Bob answered sounding half asleep. Said registration was already OPEN, filling fast. Panicked! Told him I’m brand new. He laughed. “New or old, everybody pays the same!” Signed up right then over the phone while eating a cold sandwich.
- Paid the fee online – website looked straight outta 2005, honestly.
- Dug my ancient gear out of the garage. Smelled like dead raccoon.
- Took skates to be sharpened – dude asked if I found ’em in a dumpster. Rude!
First game night was chaos. Showed up, locker room smelled worse than my garage. Team jerseys were some ugly neon green. Our “captain” Derek handed me mine – had a mustard stain already. Whatever. Skated out, legs wobbling like jelly.
Spent most of that game tripping over the blue line and gasping for air. Got my butt handed to me by some accountant named Steve. Took three games just to stop crashing into our own goalie.
Tournaments kicked off last weekend. Thought it’d be chill rec stuff. Nope! Felt like the dang Olympics suddenly. Wives and kids cheering, dudes wearing matching socks, everything. Got eliminated Saturday afternoon after a brutal slap shot nailed my shinpad so hard I saw stars. Worth it though.
Gotta say – best decision all year. Met weirdos who became buddies, laughed until my stomach hurt (mostly when falling), and found out Steve the accountant accountant secretly has a wicked wrist shot. Already planning for the summer league. You should totally jump in, seriously.
