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Check out this new Italian Hockey company. Bags are a little pricey, but we always say we wish we had more options.

That was a great way to feel it out. I think you got the answer you were looking for. 1:1 power skating sessions at age 13 - is that common in your area? It sounds expensive, but more so - it sounds like work more than fun. Not a lot of kids that age want to spend an hour with an instructor one on one working on fundamentals like that. It's usually the parents setting it up and convincing the kid it's what's necessary to "get better and get ahead". The kids want to be with their buddies goofing around and having fun, in addition to hopefully working their butts off and maybe learning a thing or two in the process during a practice or group power skating session. As soon as it feels like work or a chore instead of fun - the enthusiasm is lost and the flame starts to fan out. All you really want to do up to age 16/17 is make it as much fun as possible and safe. Teach them that the the outcome of how much they can improve is a direct result of how much time they decide to put in, and then leave it to them to determine how much time that's going to be. The kids that crave getting better will put the time in, the kids that just want to have fun will end up developing other interests/priorities by age 18 and will tail off. Both are fine outcomes - either way their love of the game doesn't get snuffed out in the process. That's the worst possible outcome. It happens far too often when kids are pushed too hard at too early an age and no longer enjoy going to the rink. They carry that guilt around a while before it eventually becomes too heavy to bare and then they drop out altogether, with a fear of disappointing their parents. Hockey's no fun after that. I've seen kids who were star players at 13 drop out by highschool and not even play at the rec level in their mid teens, while the kids they came up with are playing highschool hockey together and having the time of their life with all their classmates in the stands cheering them on. Not saying that's the case with this young man, but it's something that's happened in rinks everywhere countless times before and for anyone who hasn't seen it first hand it's important to be aware of. Next time you watch him play or practice - even if he's more of an introvert - is there a smile on his face? Is he having fun? If not - try working on taking everything serious about hockey off his plate and work on sharing some smiles and laughs regardless of the mistakes he's making. See what that does for his game.

Having the ability to slow the game down in person's mind is an amazing skill that I think many people tend to overlook. The best players in hockey have had the ability to do this, break down the play, slow things down in their minds, and even generate time and space to create new opportunities. I think in Europe they are better at teaching these skills than in the USA.

He is always smiling at practice, during skate sessions, and when doing open ice/stick time, etc. The kid is truly a rink rat and spends all of his free time at the rink. With the 1:1 sessions he has been taking them for a while now, not sure how long, but long before I was in AZ. He seems to enjoy them and the instructor does make things fun for him. The teaching method is very unorthodox and unique, similar to how Katy Jo and Maksim Ivanov really change things up. The only time he isn't smiling ear to ear is when it's game time. When it's game time he looks very serious.

Nothing new in 2021, possibly 2022 would be it. Go buy the bag from your favorite retailer now!

He plays center. We tried wing and that was no better or worse for him. Haven't considered a defense role, he is a bigger kid and a good skater so maybe that is an option. He could be a solid two-way defenseman. I might suggest to the head coach moving him to D in practice just to see how that goes. He moved to AZ from MN and I don't know any of his previous coaches though I am sure I can find that out easily. His stats previously are very good, but he was playing with same-age kids and no he is playing up a level with kids that are older than him. I understand a slump but have been told it's been this way since the start of the season. His mom and dad are at every practice and game. They seem like great parents and are very involved. In fact, they are just as concerned as we have been. We have scrimmaged the lower AA team and he absolutely dominated them in the game... and I truly mean dominated, something like 3 goals and 4 assists. He had no problem skating with the puck and seemed very confident. He knows many of the players on those teams though which is why I think he seemed more confident and comfortable and was happy to skate the puck instead of making panic decisions. Big in physical size., especially for his age. I asked him his motivations and he said "everything about hockey" but didn't say much more than that, he is a bit of an introvert. He does seem afraid of getting hit. In practice, we have a strict light contact policy so it would make sense if he isn't afraid in a practice situation but then in a game, he is terrified of getting blown up. As for puck locked, I think he is very good with creating time and space for himself. Just something he gets into a panic and throws the puck away as fast as he can without looking or waiting even though he has a good 8 ft of space between him and another player. He just seems rushed and panics.

Growing like crazy. Plus there is a huge influx of people moving to NV from CA, OR and WA. I am hoping that this will eventually lead to being able to expand into AZ. While AZ has BTM and Ice Den, they need a real pro shop.

What everybody else said but to add, this is AAA hockey and everyone including his teammates are seeing a kid who doesn’t perform play on the first line. Hard to argue it is making the team better and it is sending a message to other players who are probably putting in just as much effort as him. Does he have a history of playing well in games? Do you know his past coaches? It’s one thing to keep a player in a spot to work through a slump because he has performed before, a different thing if he hasn’t. Sports psych, depends on the kid. Just like anything, the kid has to recognize the issues and want to work through them via that avenue.

Been out of the loop for a while, saw this thread and have a few comments. I have tried the quads ( Thanks JR ) and initially asked about how the different radii were "blended". Never got much of an answer so being a part time machinist I mounted a Quad 1 up in the mill and swept it. On my blades you could pick up the transitions to the different radii but the change was so subtle I can't believe even the best skater's would be able to feel it. I'm talking numbers is the .002 to .004 inch range spread over about .500 to .700 length of blade. My GUESS is the new profile is continuously varying with the subtle transitions gone. I'd bet in blind taste tests about 3 out of a hundred skaters could tell it apart. I've been wrong before!!! Dave

What Mojo said. It’s not like they have a scalloped profile where each radius butts against the other on a quad. There is an easement between each radius. Don’t have an engineer tell what an ellipse is! Tell me how an ellipse benefits my skating. There are too many profiles IMO. The only way that works is if you have a very educated buyer or consistently educated retailer to guide that buyer to the right profile. And given how expensive profiling is if you were to try out a bunch through trial and error, the chances of landing on an optimal choice seems very low.