shooter27 116 Report post Posted December 26, 2018 What was the first box-style pad, with a truly flat sliding surface engineered for the butterfly style? The first one I remember is the RBK pad that a lot of guys wore coming out of the first NHL lockout, but I don’t know if that’s truly the first. I remember a few brands were considered “butterfly” pads back in the late 90’s/early 00’s, specifically TPS and Koho, but I don’t remember if any of those were truly the box-style that is the norm today. I also remember a very square pad from the late 80’s/early 90’s that one of my teammates wore, I believe the were called Aeroflex. Is it possible they were the first? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
IPv6Freely 2083 Report post Posted December 27, 2018 I’ve never heard of “box style”. What are you referring to exactly? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shooter27 116 Report post Posted December 27, 2018 (edited) Maybe I’m using the wrong term (I’m not a goalie). I’m referrring to the modern style pad that has a flat surface intended for sliding in the five hole area and was engineered to be worn lose on the leg and rotate to a square position when the goalie is down in the butterfly and allows the goalie to use sliding as the primary form of lateral movement. Pretty much anything like this https://goo.gl/images/J9UB6a I’d consider this a more traditional, non-box pad https://goo.gl/images/Q49pJA Edited December 27, 2018 by shooter27 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JR Boucicaut 3759 Report post Posted December 27, 2018 Aeroflex was the first flat pad - what Puppa and Barrasso used to wear. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Buzz_LightBeer 962 Report post Posted December 27, 2018 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
psulion22 402 Report post Posted December 27, 2018 (edited) The first pad truly designed to facilitate lateral butterfly movements was probably the first generation Velocity, designed by Pete Smith. Yes, there were flat pads, like what Barrasso wore (also designed by Smith), that provided a more stable surface to seal to the ice. But those were not meant to be worn loose or rotate on the goalie's leg, nor did they have a landing block to keep the pad square to the ice. https://warriorhockey.com/2016/09/30/30-years-of-innovation/ There were only a few gear designers that innovated the gear to suit the new style that pros wanted. Other than Smith, you had Michel Lefebvre, who designed the gear for Koho (working with Roy and the Allaire brothers to develop butterfly style pads) and then designed the first RBK Premier line that was so familiar. And there was also Brian Heaton and Dave Wilcox who were the designers for TPS, and ghosted gear for many of the Heaton pros, like Brodeur. Edited December 27, 2018 by psulion22 2 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites