Communicating
We get asked all kinds of questions about our game where all players play blind. Each of these questions is a variation of, "How can blind players acquire enough information about their surroundings to even play the game effectively, let alone very well?" The answer is that we have developed a system of player communication that works very well to give every player a good idea of what is happening in the game at all times.
The outline is: the goal beepers tell you where the goals are, the puck siren tells you where the puck is, the blue lines tell you where the zones are, and the players tell you where your teammates and the opponents are. It works for everybody...
Communicating is a very important skill in the game of Sonic Hockey. Many times, the most effective player in the game is not necessarily the most skilled, but the best person at fully communicating. The player receives information about the game from the feel of the skates on the playing surface, the feel of the stick on the surface, and when playing the puck with the stick. One player feels contact from another player when they are both trying to acquire the puck. The sense of touch conveys a lot of information in playing the game, but Touch takes a back seat to Hearing in the hierarchy of important senses in Sonic Hockey.
The player hears where the goal is, the player also hears directions from his goalkeeper, and the opposing goalkeeper as well. If you are dis-oriented, or unsure of direction, call out and ask your goalkeeper where he is: "Black, Edgar, where are you?" His answering call should orient you fairly well.
Special note: New players often think that playing silently in some situations is a positive thing. Since nobody can see anybody, players might feel they can have success if they play in "stealth mode." Please get rid of this idea entirely. There are no secret plays in Sonic Hockey! You absolutely must tell your teammates what is going on at all times! As you must deliberately communicate to your teammates, yes, this informs your opposition, but hey, that's the way it is in every form of hockey (and all other sports as well). There is nothing worse than not knowing what is happening in the game. If any player does not know what is going on, his or her teammates are not communicating effectively. Frankly, this is how we knew we were moving our tactical game up to a higher level, because everybody knew what was happening on the floor at all times.
Our rules dictate two things in player communication:
1. All player communication must be prefaced by calling out your team color. You must say, "Black!" or "White!" before you declare any other information.
2. If you begin to make an attempt to play the puck or even play toward the puck, you must say so, "Black going!" or "Black Looking!"
All player communication is for the benefit of your teammates. You truly don't care that anything you say might also be informing your opponents. The Mooses might be looking into learning to communicate in another language...or not...but It is worth repeating: There are no secret plays in Sonic Hockey!
Many new players are hesitant to display a loud, projecting voice when communicating. We encourage every player to call as loud as they can when telling their cross-rink teammates something, to the point "where even the little old lady on the popcorn machine can hear it!" Since she is in the concession stand, she's pretty far away! If she can hear you, then everybody can, which is what you want.
When making a play for the puck, it is wise to communicate your status every three seconds or so, "Black looking...Black looking...Black looking...Oops, black kicked it...Black, Got it!" When you finally do acquire it, you should tell your teammates that you have it, so they can be ready for the next potential play, which you are about to do, no doubt. A good, loud, "Black, Got it!" is very important. If you lose it again, say so: "Black, lost it, looking!" If you figure out that your opponent got it, and maybe did something with it, you might announce that also, for the benefit of your teammates: "Black! White got it, and cleared it!"
Here are some other examples of player communication:
When telling a teammate you are available for a pass: "Black here...here...here!" Repeating three times with a slight pause in between enables your teammate to pinpoint where you are on the floor.
When passing, say so, and just prior to the pass, not as you pass, nor after you have passed it! "Passing!"...pause...then sending the puck. When shooting, do say so as you shoot, or perhaps slightly after you have released the shot. Your teammates don't need to know you are shooting, but they do need to know that shot has been made, so they can be ready for rebounds, deflections, and if the opponent intercepts, they will recognize that has happened. Sometimes you can give direction information as to where you are passing the puck. "Black, Wrapping it!" or "To you!" or "Mickayla!" or Tapping!" are useful when you are trying to get it to a specific teammate. Sometimes, you are besieged by bad guys, and its all you can do to simply get the puck away toward where you hope a teammate might be. "Center!" or "Slot!" or "Point" all tell where you hope you are sending the puck, while alerting your teammate that he or she is probably going to have to hunt it down.
If deliberately passing the puck ahead of a teammate to run onto, you can call, "Black! Ahead of you!" or "Black, go 3," "Black go 1," "Black, go 2." Your teammates must understand that you are voicing your intent, your actual performance might be a little off on direction.
If you flub the pass, say so, "Black! Lost it!" tells your team that your effort has gone awry. You then should make an assessment whether the flubbed pass has come to rest closer to you, "Black! Pass short, I'm looking!" or the pass mostly did get to your target teammate, "Black! Pass short...you go, you go!"
Trying to find where available teammates might be: "Black, where are you?" When you are in a defensive posture, and you have acquired the puck, turned it as necessary, and are ready to send it up to a teammate to start an offensive play, you can simply call, "Black, Yes!" This is a shorthand way to tell your teammates that you would like to send the puck immediately.
Telling your teammate where you are before the play happens: "Black 1, if you need me," "Black 3, wrap it!" "Black 2, Black 2, Black 2," "Black 3, straight up, here...here...here," "Black coming 3, coming 3."
Anytime you are moving, it is very informative to call out in a voice that anybody within fifteen feet or so can hear, "Black moving...black moving...black moving..." and to continue this litany as long as you are moving. If you should accidentally run into another player, then, frankly, the collision is their fault. They heard you coming, and neither moved nor called out to you, "White here, white here, white here," or some such.
Lanes
Divide the rink into three corridors going up the floor, traditionally referred to as the left wing, right wing, and center. We find "left," and "right" nothing but confusing, as players relative directions are changing all the time. Instead, imagine that your goalkeeper is the catcher on the baseball diamond. To his right wing is first base, up the middle is second base, and to his left is third base. This is how we describe our position to our teammates. "Black 1," means I am toward the wall to my keeper's right wing, Black 3 is the opposite wing by the wall, and Black 2 is somewhere in the middle. You can add more descriptive phrasing such as, Black 1 deep, Black 2, slot, Black 3 corner, Black 3 Point, etc...
Zones
Your defensive zone is the Black zone (if you're the Black team, anyway), the attacking zone is the White zone, the neutral zone is the Neutral zone. As the puck moves across a blue line the Referee will call out, "Neutral zone, the puck's in the neutral zone," Black zone, the puck's in the Black zone." All these communications also work relative to the white team, of course.
The referee might also call out "Loose!" puck in front of the goal, or note a puck "Behind the net," "Side of the net," as pucks motionless around the goal can be tricky for both teams in the usual crowd around the net. If there is a puck motionless anywhere on the rink, and no player from either team is going to it, the referee might call out, "Loose, neutral zone," or some such.
While there is a need for all players to consistently communicate, continuous, random calling out to a teammate is not very helpful. Each player should be aware of where the puck is, and which of his teammates is after it, either in possession, or trying to defend it against the bad guys. You then communicate as needed. We stress that everyone (on both teams, actually) should know where the puck is, and also who is "on the puck." If you are standing there and you don't know what is happening, then somebody is NOT communicating their action on the puck.
We stress one player going to the puck at a time. However, there often occurs the situation of the puck in between two teammates. We encourage both to declare, "Black going, black looking!" until one player believes he/she is not the closer of the two. The abdicating player then calls out, "You go, you go," assigning full authority to his/her teammate, and declaring he/she will not interfere.
Often, especially when traveling back to defense, or hastening up to join the offense, a player will be making a comparatively long sprint up, back, or across the floor. We suggest that player repeat in a talking-level voice, "Black coming up, black coming up," to avoid collisions (as noted above). This really works. We will have 3-5 players making long course floor lane/zone changes, and nobody will interfere with anybody. We go weeks at a time in between inadvertent player contacts, which are always just minor bumps, never major crashes. "Black coming up 2, Black coming up 2," also works when you are making a forward run up the ice to get into the attack. When you are moving, if you are announcing such, then you can avoid collisions.
You can also use your teammates to orient yourself on the floor if you are lost. "Black: Kayla, where are you?" in a quieter voice that brings an equally quiet "Black here, 2...2...2," orients you to where the center ice position is, as well as where your teammate is. I usually respond, "Good, Black coming 3," to let my teammate know where I'm going to set up for the next play.
These are the basic player/team communications we use. We will develop more as we progress through the next season of play. Our Mooses' system of tactical play and communication is by no means perfect. Every player goes through moments of dis-orientation or mis-orientation. One day in practice, I shot four goals: two in the white goal, and two in my own black goal (In my defense, I was passing back to my teammate, who was inadvertently very close to behind our own net). Misdirection happens to everybody!
Communication is the key, not only to achieving a high level of play, but also a high level of fun. It's no fun when you don't know what's going on. It's a lot of fun when you do know what's happening with everyone, and you can be able to anticipate and create the next play!
We get asked all kinds of questions about our game where all players play blind. Each of these questions is a variation of, "How can blind players acquire enough information about their surroundings to even play the game effectively, let alone very well?" The answer is that we have developed a system of player communication that works very well to give every player a good idea of what is happening in the game at all times.
The outline is: the goal beepers tell you where the goals are, the puck siren tells you where the puck is, the blue lines tell you where the zones are, and the players tell you where your teammates and the opponents are. It works for everybody...
Communicating is a very important skill in the game of Sonic Hockey. Many times, the most effective player in the game is not necessarily the most skilled, but the best person at fully communicating. The player receives information about the game from the feel of the skates on the playing surface, the feel of the stick on the surface, and when playing the puck with the stick. One player feels contact from another player when they are both trying to acquire the puck. The sense of touch conveys a lot of information in playing the game, but Touch takes a back seat to Hearing in the hierarchy of important senses in Sonic Hockey.
The player hears where the goal is, the player also hears directions from his goalkeeper, and the opposing goalkeeper as well. If you are dis-oriented, or unsure of direction, call out and ask your goalkeeper where he is: "Black, Edgar, where are you?" His answering call should orient you fairly well.
Special note: New players often think that playing silently in some situations is a positive thing. Since nobody can see anybody, players might feel they can have success if they play in "stealth mode." Please get rid of this idea entirely. There are no secret plays in Sonic Hockey! You absolutely must tell your teammates what is going on at all times! As you must deliberately communicate to your teammates, yes, this informs your opposition, but hey, that's the way it is in every form of hockey (and all other sports as well). There is nothing worse than not knowing what is happening in the game. If any player does not know what is going on, his or her teammates are not communicating effectively. Frankly, this is how we knew we were moving our tactical game up to a higher level, because everybody knew what was happening on the floor at all times.
Our rules dictate two things in player communication:
1. All player communication must be prefaced by calling out your team color. You must say, "Black!" or "White!" before you declare any other information.
2. If you begin to make an attempt to play the puck or even play toward the puck, you must say so, "Black going!" or "Black Looking!"
All player communication is for the benefit of your teammates. You truly don't care that anything you say might also be informing your opponents. The Mooses might be looking into learning to communicate in another language...or not...but It is worth repeating: There are no secret plays in Sonic Hockey!
Many new players are hesitant to display a loud, projecting voice when communicating. We encourage every player to call as loud as they can when telling their cross-rink teammates something, to the point "where even the little old lady on the popcorn machine can hear it!" Since she is in the concession stand, she's pretty far away! If she can hear you, then everybody can, which is what you want.
When making a play for the puck, it is wise to communicate your status every three seconds or so, "Black looking...Black looking...Black looking...Oops, black kicked it...Black, Got it!" When you finally do acquire it, you should tell your teammates that you have it, so they can be ready for the next potential play, which you are about to do, no doubt. A good, loud, "Black, Got it!" is very important. If you lose it again, say so: "Black, lost it, looking!" If you figure out that your opponent got it, and maybe did something with it, you might announce that also, for the benefit of your teammates: "Black! White got it, and cleared it!"
Here are some other examples of player communication:
When telling a teammate you are available for a pass: "Black here...here...here!" Repeating three times with a slight pause in between enables your teammate to pinpoint where you are on the floor.
When passing, say so, and just prior to the pass, not as you pass, nor after you have passed it! "Passing!"...pause...then sending the puck. When shooting, do say so as you shoot, or perhaps slightly after you have released the shot. Your teammates don't need to know you are shooting, but they do need to know that shot has been made, so they can be ready for rebounds, deflections, and if the opponent intercepts, they will recognize that has happened. Sometimes you can give direction information as to where you are passing the puck. "Black, Wrapping it!" or "To you!" or "Mickayla!" or Tapping!" are useful when you are trying to get it to a specific teammate. Sometimes, you are besieged by bad guys, and its all you can do to simply get the puck away toward where you hope a teammate might be. "Center!" or "Slot!" or "Point" all tell where you hope you are sending the puck, while alerting your teammate that he or she is probably going to have to hunt it down.
If deliberately passing the puck ahead of a teammate to run onto, you can call, "Black! Ahead of you!" or "Black, go 3," "Black go 1," "Black, go 2." Your teammates must understand that you are voicing your intent, your actual performance might be a little off on direction.
If you flub the pass, say so, "Black! Lost it!" tells your team that your effort has gone awry. You then should make an assessment whether the flubbed pass has come to rest closer to you, "Black! Pass short, I'm looking!" or the pass mostly did get to your target teammate, "Black! Pass short...you go, you go!"
Trying to find where available teammates might be: "Black, where are you?" When you are in a defensive posture, and you have acquired the puck, turned it as necessary, and are ready to send it up to a teammate to start an offensive play, you can simply call, "Black, Yes!" This is a shorthand way to tell your teammates that you would like to send the puck immediately.
Telling your teammate where you are before the play happens: "Black 1, if you need me," "Black 3, wrap it!" "Black 2, Black 2, Black 2," "Black 3, straight up, here...here...here," "Black coming 3, coming 3."
Anytime you are moving, it is very informative to call out in a voice that anybody within fifteen feet or so can hear, "Black moving...black moving...black moving..." and to continue this litany as long as you are moving. If you should accidentally run into another player, then, frankly, the collision is their fault. They heard you coming, and neither moved nor called out to you, "White here, white here, white here," or some such.
Lanes
Divide the rink into three corridors going up the floor, traditionally referred to as the left wing, right wing, and center. We find "left," and "right" nothing but confusing, as players relative directions are changing all the time. Instead, imagine that your goalkeeper is the catcher on the baseball diamond. To his right wing is first base, up the middle is second base, and to his left is third base. This is how we describe our position to our teammates. "Black 1," means I am toward the wall to my keeper's right wing, Black 3 is the opposite wing by the wall, and Black 2 is somewhere in the middle. You can add more descriptive phrasing such as, Black 1 deep, Black 2, slot, Black 3 corner, Black 3 Point, etc...
Zones
Your defensive zone is the Black zone (if you're the Black team, anyway), the attacking zone is the White zone, the neutral zone is the Neutral zone. As the puck moves across a blue line the Referee will call out, "Neutral zone, the puck's in the neutral zone," Black zone, the puck's in the Black zone." All these communications also work relative to the white team, of course.
The referee might also call out "Loose!" puck in front of the goal, or note a puck "Behind the net," "Side of the net," as pucks motionless around the goal can be tricky for both teams in the usual crowd around the net. If there is a puck motionless anywhere on the rink, and no player from either team is going to it, the referee might call out, "Loose, neutral zone," or some such.
While there is a need for all players to consistently communicate, continuous, random calling out to a teammate is not very helpful. Each player should be aware of where the puck is, and which of his teammates is after it, either in possession, or trying to defend it against the bad guys. You then communicate as needed. We stress that everyone (on both teams, actually) should know where the puck is, and also who is "on the puck." If you are standing there and you don't know what is happening, then somebody is NOT communicating their action on the puck.
We stress one player going to the puck at a time. However, there often occurs the situation of the puck in between two teammates. We encourage both to declare, "Black going, black looking!" until one player believes he/she is not the closer of the two. The abdicating player then calls out, "You go, you go," assigning full authority to his/her teammate, and declaring he/she will not interfere.
Often, especially when traveling back to defense, or hastening up to join the offense, a player will be making a comparatively long sprint up, back, or across the floor. We suggest that player repeat in a talking-level voice, "Black coming up, black coming up," to avoid collisions (as noted above). This really works. We will have 3-5 players making long course floor lane/zone changes, and nobody will interfere with anybody. We go weeks at a time in between inadvertent player contacts, which are always just minor bumps, never major crashes. "Black coming up 2, Black coming up 2," also works when you are making a forward run up the ice to get into the attack. When you are moving, if you are announcing such, then you can avoid collisions.
You can also use your teammates to orient yourself on the floor if you are lost. "Black: Kayla, where are you?" in a quieter voice that brings an equally quiet "Black here, 2...2...2," orients you to where the center ice position is, as well as where your teammate is. I usually respond, "Good, Black coming 3," to let my teammate know where I'm going to set up for the next play.
These are the basic player/team communications we use. We will develop more as we progress through the next season of play. Our Mooses' system of tactical play and communication is by no means perfect. Every player goes through moments of dis-orientation or mis-orientation. One day in practice, I shot four goals: two in the white goal, and two in my own black goal (In my defense, I was passing back to my teammate, who was inadvertently very close to behind our own net). Misdirection happens to everybody!
Communication is the key, not only to achieving a high level of play, but also a high level of fun. It's no fun when you don't know what's going on. It's a lot of fun when you do know what's happening with everyone, and you can be able to anticipate and create the next play!