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Here’s a link the the VA Tech Helmet study thread, so people can rehash the same debate over and over in that thread, rather than this one.

Well, at this point a year later, we are at another organization. He tried out for the previous organization. Due to multiple issues and a desire to play other sports we left. He was going to play in house at that rink. The inhouse program closed. At that time he was asked to play for a tournament team at another rink a little further away. He joined their inhouse program then they let him join late season on their travel team. He actually played his old team and was accosted by players calling him names and hitting him after the handshake line. So long and short he is happy where he is. The program he came from and rink all seem to be in jeopardy. It is a shame. But he enjoys his new team so much and the game.

Ok so...5/8 was definitely a faster ride last night. I didn't lose any turning capability and my straight away speed was improved. I'm going to play tomorrow night on 5/8 and then think about trying 3/4 on a set. Also maybe a slightly more aggressive pitch. Don't want to jack with more than one manipulated variable at a time though. Going in the right direction...thanks all!

Have the same issue with my a6.0 stick as well as a shaft I have of theirs. Both super gummy.

Get away from Bauer. Try other brands or worst case, go custom.

If you like a 75 in the A6x I would go with a 68 in the AX9. I should note that the shaft on the AX9 68 flex will be smaller than the 75 flex. TRUE changed the shaft dimensions for intermediate sticks this year so the dimensions are smaller than the previous years and the senior sticks.

thanks for the replies. I ended up getting them baked, no difference in comfort but the responsiveness is much better. Felt like I had an extra spring in the legs. They're still quite easy to put on, not too hard to remove either so I'm probably rebaking them with shrink wrap

I have the same issue, but only with certain brands of grip sticks. I also store my hockey sticks in the garage, where it can reach over 100 degrees in the summer. I’ve had the grip turn into goo for the following brands of grip sticks: retail True, retail STX, pro stock Easton, one pro stock Warrior, and the worst, TPS rubber.

You can't light a fire in your kid to love the game, but you can certainly snuff it out. The most important thing is finding them an environment where their love of the game can flourish. If they love the game, they will work hard at it, because it doesn't feel like work if you love it. It shouldn't feel like a job or like a chore - because it isn't. It's supposed to be fun - kids play sports to have fun.

This is incredible to read..just horrible. Very sorry to hear. This coach or organization just doesn't get it and prob never will until people stand up and start making some noise about it. Sounds like a nightmare and I'm very sympathetic to your situation. I know first hand how quickly a kid can sour on something that they used to love doing, /// I'm somewhat surprised it hasn't been brought up yet but our organization has adopted USA HOCKEY standards for youth development ADM / LTAD. Boundaries and expectations are made crystal clear before coaches are allowed to coach on the ice with the kids. We have mandatory, age-specific training that involves classes, seminars.. online courses and modules.. etc... lays out age-specific guidelines for every youth age group. Covers everything...to the point where a bad apple like this would stick out like a sore thumb... doing things that were way off base for the age they were coaching. Foul language, harassment, singling out players, benching them. Over-emphasis on systems... yikes....at u10 and younger. wouldn't last long. I'm thankful we're in a great club with a lot of support from parents and multiple coaches on Ice every game and practice, I don't think a single head coach could have that much influence over the entire team below u10 around here.The other coaches and parents simply wouldn't tolerate it.

Final chapter. I emailed the board. Made it strictly about my sons lack of expeirence and not having fun. I did speak the other coach prior, but made it only about my son. Apparently the other team needed players and he likes my son having coached him last year. Got an email today that even though this is not typical protocol they granted our request, considering other circumstance, and this may not happen in the future. My son is happy his new coach reached out immediately to welcome us and talked to him. We didnt have to go through a team manager. He starts practice tomorrow. THANKS FOR YOUR SUPPORT.

Let me begin by saying that, as a professional, paid, youth hockey coach, hearing stuff like this breaks my heart. THEY'RE. FREAKING. EIGHT. YEARS. OLD. No matter how seriously the coaches (and parents...honestly, the parents are generally every bit as bad as the coaches at this age) take it, this is NOT the NHL. And, what's more, nothing - NOTHING - that happens in any kid's 10U Minor season will either increase or decrease his chances of playing in college/getting drafted/playing in the NHL. Well...almost nothing. The one exception to this rule is, if the experience is SO negative for the player that s/he quits forever, I can GUARANTEE you that s/he'll never progress to a high level of hockey... Anyway. Instead of focusing on skill development, it sounds like your kid's coach is going to waste the entire year trying to teach 'systems' to a group of kids that do not, I REPEAT - DO NOT - have the mental capacity to understand what it is they are learning. Studies have proven again and again that treating kids like they're miniature adults doesn't work. A child's brain does not process information in the same way the adult brain does. It just freaking DOESN'T. The kids may be able to learn the mechanics of the systems...but they won't learn the 'why'; and they certainly won't learn the strategies behind them. They won't be able to repeat what they learn and, in the end, they won't become better hockey players. Put differently, solely in the name of winning, this coach seems dead set on trying to create a group of little robots that have no creativity, no individual playmaking skills, and no hockey sense. And, for your kid anyway, no fun either. (Thing is, though...I GUARANTEE that your kid isn't the only one not having fun...) So. Enough about why this coach sucks...because let's face it, no matter how many utterly meaningless 10U state/national/global/universal championships he's won, if he's teaching systems at 10U and all he does is yell and curse, he does, in fact, suck. The question you have to wrestle with is, what do you do now? I'd agree with the others that you probably need to get your kid off that team. It sounds like your house leagues are a bit of a joke (don't worry - ours are, too...) and it sounds like you have at least a cordial relationship with the B team's coach. I'd leverage that and see if you can't make a change. If not and the rosters are set, a year off from competitive hockey at 8 years old isn't going to hurt his long term development - just keep getting him on the ice in a positive environment where he leaves smiling and, most importantly, wants to come back the next time. One caveat though - in any discussion you have with ANY person that's part of your club, I'd make sure that you keep the discussion about YOUR KID - NOT the coach. You don't want to get into a situation where you're saying things like, "that coach is a jerk" or "all that coach does is yell and curse" or "my son hates that coach". All of that may be TRUE, but getting labeled as the dad/kid/family that can't get along with coaches is NOT a good place to be this early - particularly if you're going to stick with this club long term. If you talk to anyone about this (current coach, club president, B team coach, other parents, ANYONE other than your immediate family), just say that it's become apparent that your son wasn't ready for that level yet and that you want to back off before he begins to hate hockey. If people give you a hard time about it, simply say, "I understand, but this is what's right for my son at this point. The last thing I want is to push this now and wind up with a 12 year old that hates coming to the rink!" Never forget - this is a marathon, not a sprint. A million things have to 'go right' for any one kid to 'make it' with hockey...and, ultimately, the vast majority of those things are COMPLETELY out of our control as parents. As such, I believe it is our duty to make sure that we parents do the best we can with the things we CAN control...and this situation is one you can control. Get your kid back to a place where he has fun at the rink. Do it quickly. And do it without apologizing to anyone. Good luck. And please report back. I definitely want to hear how your son is doing.

Sack the coach? Just kidding but he sounds like a real pita if that is how he coaches kids. I was talking to 2 well known swedish coaches last year and the most important thing they emphasized for kids under 10 in their system - it has to be FUN, regardless of their skill set. For example one of the best times my kids had training was one year when they did a 3 month intensive course for the junior olympics. Different stations with coaches set up around the rink and kids just drifted from station to station trying things out and trying to beat their own pb's. No pressure to try anything, just have fun and the improvement in the skills (video analysis before and after the course) was quite an eye opener for a totally unstructured training course. I'd pull him out now because you aren't going to change how someone coaches, ask around about other teams / coaches. Forget about the level, look for something that makes him enjoy skating and playing again. Even if you just explain to him that we are not going to worry about your skills for the rest of the season (they will naturally get better if he keeps skating), the focus is to have fun with no pressure. Drop him back into his age group?

https://www.helmet.beam.vt.edu/hockey-helmet-ratings.html True got 1/5 stars, second lowest score possible (0 is possible) in the Virginia Tech rating. I know that some here have issues with the scoring methodology, but regardless I thought that the MIPS would have given it a much higher score. I was considering buying one, but now I'm probably going with a more affordable option.