Pucks and balls fly at you from everywhere. People run at you, trying to slam the roller puck passed you and score. Street hockey is a very intense game and I enjoy the feeling of adrenalin pumping through me.

I play street hockey with my brother, Jeff, who recently turned fourteen, and some of his friends in the neighborhood. We get together in what we call The Circle (The Circle is on a dead end road by my brotherís friendís house) almost every weekend (weather permitting) and play until dark .

Along with Greg, my brotherís seventh grade friend, I set up the goals. Weíre usually the goalies and that means we deal with a lot of equipment. We put on our goalie equipment, then we get in our nets, and the game begins.

When we play, we pick the NHL players we like and become them. When we do this, our real names donít exist anymore. If you said, ìJen,î to me I wouldnít even answer you.

When we play street hockey, my nickname becomes Martin. Thatís because Iím always the goalie and my official name is Martin Brodeur, who plays for the NHLís New Jersey Devils. He is also one of my favorite goalies. I always wear my New Jersey Devils, Martin Brodeur #30 jersey plus my Devils goalie mask when we play. Iíve got both the home and away styles, but I prefer the More subdued accents of evil red and black found in the home jersey.

There are some pros to playing street hockey. You get exercise, and you learn to work with your teammates. This game also occupies your time and is easier than ice hockey, where you have to skate and play.

There are also some negatives to playing street hockey. First and foremost, you can get hurt. For example, you can pull any number of muscles. You canít play in the winter due to snow and ice, as itís pretty risky. You also need a lot of people to get a game going. Finally, the proper equipment, costs a lot of money.

Some of the sounds you hear as a goalie are the sound of the puck sliding across the tar, the sound of people yelling to each other to pass the puck, the sound of the puck going to other players and hitting their sticks.

You have to practice a lot to improve in this game. At home, I also play and I run everyday so Iím in better shape and can move around faster and improve my game. Now, Iím a better player and I also have more energy and can play longer games. Iím pretty well conditioned by now.

One of the hardest games I ever played took place in July. Jaromir Jagr, Mario Lemieux, Eric Lindros, Claude Lemieux, Martin Brodeur, Stephan Richer, Tom Barrasso, Joe Sakic, Peter Forsberg, and Brett Hull were playing. Forsberg was coming up the side with the puck, Jagr, Lindros, and Sakic behind him. Forsberg is tripped by Jagr, Jagr gets the puck, he cuts loose on a breakaway, and he tries a slap shot at me. It sails over the net. There is a scramble behind the net, trying to get the puck loose. The puck gets cleared to the other zone. There is a race for it. Two minutes are left in the second period, the score is 5 to 2. Sakic gets the puck, shoots at Brodeur and scores. The score at the end of the second period is 5 to 3.

We stop for lunch around 2:00pm and meet back at 3:00pm to finish the game. Two minutes into the third period, Hull gets slashed as he is passing the puck to Richer. Lemieux gets a quick shot to Barrasso and scores, the score is 6 to 3! There are thirty minutes left in regulation play, so anyone can still win. Brodeur makes a great save, and clears the puck to the other zone. Lemieux gets it and shoots on Barrasso, who saves it.

I have one big regret. I canít be an ice hockey goalie for a team because I never learned to ice skate.

I like hockey because thereís constant motion. There are goals, fights, and their ability to skate so well amazes me. I also like the noise and how the game can pick you up and carry you along.

Street hockey and ice hockey are my favorite sports. My hobbies are to continue to play street hockey. Iím trying to learn to ice skate now, as I think this will make my experience of hockey a lot richer, even if Iím on the street.