PlayYourGame.com - Playing in Europe

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Playing in Europe for many players is now becoming more of an option. For some, it may be the right decision. For others, it may be the wrong decision. This article is not meant to give you a definite answer on whether or not Europe is right for you as a player, but it will however give you the facts about playing overseas as well as the pressures and cultural differences you can expect to face.

Expectations
Players will find playing overseas drastically different for one reason. Once you step off the plane in another country you have become an "Import". The word import parlays itself into simply put "Pressure". Every League in Europe has import rules. That is the number of non-citizen players it can have on the team at any given time. The range in the number of imports you can expect to see is between 1-12 depending on the country and league. To put it in perspective, when you try out in Canada there are generally 18 spots that are available. When there is an import rule of lets say 3, there are 3 jobs open. Through filling one of these spots comes high expectations. As an American or Canadian, you are now expected to score goals, and play tough night in and night out. Teams and fans will expect nothing less. If you don't, there are 100's of guys who want and can fill your spot. As long as you know what the expectations are, then they aren't as much of a surprise.

Facilities
The quality of the facilities that a player can expect to find is definitely a step down from that of North America. You will run into rinks that have no glass, only wire and mesh. You may even have the treat of playing in a rink that doesn't have a roof. What you can expect however is in most cases an Olympic size ice surface.

Style of Game
To speak generally about the style in Europe, a player can expect it to be more wide open with less hitting. Due to the Olympic ice surface, there is more room and that tends to lead to the game being less physical but at the same time wide open and exciting. Depending on the country and league, you can expect to be playing anywhere from 40 - 70 games in a year. The practice schedule will vary once again according to league, country and team but you can expect anywhere from 3, 1hr and 10min practices per week to 4 practices a week, 2 hours per day.

Cultural
One of the biggest adjustments that a player will have to make is adapting to the culture. Language and food are the two biggest challenges one will face. English is a universal language, but a player will often find that many players, coaches, grocery clerks, fans, etc will often not be able to communicate in English. This is frustrating and can often be intimidating. What this does force players to do is to adapt. By learning the language, experimenting with new foods and customs a player can expect to learn a lot. You will get out of your experience what you put in.

European hockey is not for everyone but at the same time is perfectly suited for others. It is competitive, as is anything in life. Your job is never guaranteed and can be taken from you in a heartbeat. If you go to Europe and play hard and well, 9 times out of 10 you'll be fine. I hope these facts and personal experiences will help give you better insight into what European Hockey is all about. Granted this article is vague with regards to country specific, however the generalization of European Hockey is simply meant to give you a panoramic view of key points you can expect to encounter. I wish you luck with your decision.

For more information on European hockey, be sure to Ask the Vet. We will do our best to get you the information you are looking for.