Getting In-Line to Play Hockey

Kids home during the winter break? Keep them in-line at Wayne Gretzky’s Roller Hockey Center in Irvine. Load up on carbs at nearby Louise’s Trattoria.

MORNING 1

Never mind that Gretzky is known for ice hockey, the Great One apparently wheeled a deal for partnership in a roller hockey venue. Besides, in-line skating is pretty similar to ice skating. Look for the higher-than-the-roof hockey sticks--signed by Gretzky--anchoring the main building.

The center features three outdoor rinks, two of which are covered. Public skating sessions are offered daily and Saturday nights ($6, $4 for children 3-12, under 3 free; skate rental $2.50).

The center is devoted primarily to hockey leagues. Leagues range from tykes (6 and under) to adult (18 and up). Tyke and Atom (ages 7-8) recreational leagues are mostly instructional; adult leagues are broken down into beginner and intermediate. Other children’s leagues include Mite, Squirt and Pee Wee. Club B leagues, which allow friends to form teams, are more competitive than recreational leagues but not as intense as Club A. You can watch pickup games weekdays during the noon hour.

If you’ve never tried in-line skates and want to learn correctly, a five-week series ($50) of one-hour clinics covers how to safely start, stop, turn and balance. The next session begins Jan. 9 and runs consecutive Fridays at 7 p.m. for youths, at 8 p.m. for 18 and up.

Roller hockey is one of those equipment-intensive sports in which the goalie resembles RoboCop. Safety items required for competitive play include hockey gloves, elbow pads, shin pads, helmet, face shield and, for kids, a mouthpiece. Noncompetitive skaters are advised to wear helmets, kneepads and wrist guards.

You can find skates--a pair for adults starts around $200--and more in the facility’s store. Much more: a signed 8-by-10-inch photo of Gretzky with the L.A. Kings for $99.95 or his signed jersey for $699.95. Or a signed Sports Illustrated cover featuring Gretzky, and a N.Y. Rangers puck--signed!--at $129.95 each.

For display only are such hallowed items as the jersey Gretzky wore during the 1989 National Hockey League all-star game and the Titan hockey stick he used 10 years ago to make his 1,000th NHL assist.

LUNCH 2

Hockey, not to mention shopping, eats up carbs big time. If you’re hungry, there’s a McDonald’s Express on site. If the carbs you crave demand less of an express approach, skate on over to Louise’s Trattoria, a clear shot down Barranca Parkway.

The menu at Louise’s includes a translation of a desperate letter written in 1927 by a Verona cook named Marco to his brother Franco. In it, Marco bemoans the fact that his beloved Louise has married another--albeit against her will. As he contemplates stealing her away, which he knows would mean certain death by order of the groom’s father, he bequeaths to Franco all the secrets of his second great love, the culinary arts. He’s hidden his recipes, inspired by his first great love, under the fourth stone of the veranda south of the villa.

Louise’s is nevertheless a postmodern affair with a color scheme one staff member described as “bluish gray and eggish yellow.”

Among lunch choices are a four-seasons pizza ($7.95), thin crust divided into quarters (zucchini; pesto and goat cheese; spicy sausage and Fontina cheese; and fresh tomato and basil) and a Tuscan bread salad ($7.95), Roma tomato tossed with Mozzarella, basil, kalamata olives, capers, ciabatta and baby lettuce and garnished with pesto and shaved Parmesan cheese.

Available any time are chile-rubbed roasted chicken ($9.95) and traditional Bolognese lasagna ($8.95).

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

1) Wayne Gretzky’s Roller Hockey Center

3150 Barranca Parkway, Irvine, (714) 653-0900.

Public skating sessions: 10 a.m.-noon and 1-3 p.m. Monday-Friday, noon-2 p.m. and 8-10 p.m. Saturday, and noon-2 p.m. Sunday. Store hours: 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Friday and 8 a.m.-9 p.m. Saturday-Sunday.

2) Louise’s Trattoria

3966 Barranca Parkway, (714) 552-5221.

10 a.m.-10 p.m. Sunday-Thursday and 10 a.m.-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday.

Parking: There is ample free parking in lots at both locations.

Buses: OCTA Bus No. 65 runs along Culver Drive with a stop at Barranca Parkway. Bus No. 382 runs along Alton Parkway with stops at Jamboree Road and Harvard Avenue.