Hooah4

In relation my most anticipated price point $75-100 (US) how much of the performance trickles down the line for us dads with mortgages and kids in college?

Eli Wallach RIP

The quarter package of the skate has been updated with ribs for additional flex; down spec'd versions of the quarter package extend down to the 26k. You're still getting the Pump, liner and felt tongue from the 20k, however, the SB 4.0 holder which debuted on the RBZ skate is on the Ribcor - but with a black version of the SB steel. The SB Black will also be on the 30k skate as well. seems like there are not a lot of changes. Haven't seen the skate though.

Influenza a in our house as of today.

f-ing TMJ is killing me for the last 2 weeks. Had it "fixed" when I had my wisdom teeth out 20+years ago. Came back with a vengeance thanks to hockey. Shoulder to the jaw.... not his fault just muckin' in the corner.

I've been under the impression that the new Iginla (or whatever it will be called) is a clone of the Bauer P88

Went to my Aunt's "remembrance picnic" on Saturday. Great lady. She passed two months ago and she'll be missed. Was my dad's last surviving sibling out of 9. Her house was always the July 4th party for our extended family. A Yard full of laughing, singing(in their native language), drinking second generation Austrians. In her fading days she asked my cousin if anyone would ever remember the good old times we all had through the years. He told her that of course no one would ever forget. We didn't let her down. We started another generation this past Saturday of laughing, singing, drinking family that has reconnected and has vowed to never let the memories fade away.

Blocked a shot last night and both bruising a bone and spraining the posterior tibial tendon. Walking boot for 6 weeks. Spring season's over for me :(

Back on the ice again for the first time in 18 months. Thanks rehab. and I thought I was slow before!

Based upon what you described the U foam has been replaced or upgraded? Or is it the whole boot that is now mold-able similar to a supreme idea? Is the fit different through the entire line or does the old U/vector fit remain at a certain price point? I'm asking mostly for my son (15) as he loves his CCM skates and can't fit in much else.

agreed with the old iginla. when it came out it really resembled the recchi IMO.

I enjoy mine so far. Use it for coaching, etc..so it's not game used. Mom spent too much $ on orthodontic work for me to play without a cage.

looking to get into inline after rehab. I currently wear Easton stealth (as it's the best ice boot fit for me). Does alkali offer a comparable fit?

Thanksgiving...... I love my parents but am just lost when I try to figure out how none of my siblings will ever have them over for Thanksgiving. When was it decided that my wife and I "take them". Yep that's what my sister said...."take them".

Having to take 7 leadership assessments. Hours of BS just so I can now be "labeled" through the development/HR pipeline.

Mission Intake EPP Cage:Itech Fantom Time Used: 3 years Previous helmets used: Nike 0004, Jofa 690 I'd been on the hunt for ther perfect helmet for my head for some time. Spent some time comparing price and features, etc.. the Intake was the talk of MSH @ the time so I figured it was worth a try. Went on Ebay and ended up getting one with cage for $60. Fit: Fit is wider than the NB helmets and more similar to Jofa helmets IMO. Sits a bit higher on the head due the the EPP and ventilation system. Gel pads on the EPP were great for the first 2 years but started slipping around and coming loose in year 3. A little liquid nails fixed that easily. Bottom line for me -comfy and cool for my head. Ventilation is great all around this lid. 10/10 Protection: I've taken my share of unintentional hits(usually more dangerous) with this helmet as we're a no check league. Great all around. I feel safe and secure when on the ice which is my primary concern. 10/10 Durablility: As others have said the outside shell and EPP have not been an issue since purchase. the adhesive on the gel pads will loosed up with excessive heat so be sure to check them. If you feel someting pulling your hair as you take the helmet off check then right away. A little liquid nails worked great(thanks JR!) to anchor them in place and extended the life of the helmet. 8/10 Price: I got this for a steal on Ebay for $60 (with cage!). Retail was $99 which is also stellar for the features included. 10/10 Intangibles: I really can't complain except for the gel pads sliding around after 2 years of use. I have not had any rust problems with screws like other posters have had. It is cooler than other helmets but not crazy cool like the ads led you to believe. I don't want to worry about my helmet or sweat dripping in my eyes during play. I do notice the sweat on the bench but you have EPP which IMO makes you hotter so hopefully the vents do their job during play. does the "dynamo" liner help evaporate more sweat? If it does it's not as dynamic as we're led to believe. 9/10 Overall conclusion: A great helmet at a great price. If it fits your head you won't be disappointed. this product has been discontinued due the Bauer/Mission merger and I'm sad to see it go. I recently purchased a VN pro stock model for coaching and the fit is very similar. I hope to stock up on another one before they're all gone.

Oktoberfest this weekend. Marzen style pils, brats, and alka seltzer. Good thing I have a DD Saturday.

The smell of fresh ice. Nothing quite like it. It's like coming home from a long, bad day of work.

I think you just gave me my #2 fav site.

Interesting link that I found a bit pertinent to this recent thread about studio recording, autotune, click tracks, etc..

After working with women for 20 years and being married for 13 it's not a matter of if if they are crazy it's that 95% are some form of crazy. Plus what level they want to amp it up to. After a while you just start saying "WTF" and move on.

Stick reviewer:40yr old beer league player. Play in 2 leagues: one general men's league, one over 35. Play D and Wing. Player specs: height 6ft, weight 218. Experience level: 8 yrs of moderately competitive hockey. Used for 20-30 open hockey sessions throughout the last 2 years. Why buy a non performance price point shaft? My wife was looking to get me something for christmas that wouldn't bust our budget. I showed her this becuase I really didn't want to subject my "game" sticks to the abuse open hockey can bring. Paired this up with an old Nike apollo PM9 blade and out we went Shaft shape and flex: NB Vapor XVI standard shaft, 87 flex cut to 95. Stick'um grip with the vapor Micro feel :slight concave w/rounded corners. Overall clean shaft white w/yellow accents. Not bad feeling but not like the AK that this was replacing. Flex was a tight 95 once cut down and I'll attribute that to having much more fiberglas than carbon in the makeup. It never did feel right to me and the kick was not very smooth and it felt unyielding and forced. 5/10. Weight and balance: listed @ 360 grams. Meh. Not a feather nor a club. Paired with a decent composite blade it rounds out and balances OK but when you buy this it's not for performance or weight. 6/10. Stick handling and passing: It's pricepoint so there's nothing to write home for this one. I will say that the stick'um was too much grip for my liking and I believe it's one of the reasons I've never really liked this shaft. The shaft just never felt right to me. 4/10. Shooting: Very harsh when you could get it to kick. Supposedly there is a "low" kickpoint on this thing. I never found it. 2/10. Durability: Very durable. Even the paint was durable. Not many chips or scuffs and it neve felt fragile. These are the tradeoffs with a more fiberglas based construction. 8/10. Intangibles: It is what it is. An affordable shaft akin to an Easton Octane, etc...Now the thing is that the graphics are made for a RH shooter as the NB logo is on the L side of the shaft. The R side is the Vapor one. If you're picky this may bother you. 8/10. Overall: If I had to do it again I wouldn't but this shaft. I would reccomend it to someone who is on a tight budget or just getting into the game as it should last you a long time. You won't get the performance but you'll get longevity and take it easy on your budget. 33/60=55%. Coming from an AK may have clouded my judgement. This same shaft is now offered as the Bauer Vapor X20. They may have changed it but @ this price my bet is that it's a repaint.

Stick reviewer:40yr old beer league player. Play in 2 leagues: one general men's league, one over 35. Play D and Wing. Player specs: height 6ft, weight 218. Experience level: 8 yrs of moderately competitive hockey. Stick: Easton S11, non grip, 85 flex Zetterberg curve. Stick used approx 40 games/open hockey sessions. Brief background: I caught this one on the giant for $70 US. Wanted to try one of these for a while as they are popular in the 35 and over league and figured I wanted to go down in flex to experiment. I flop between curves like Zetterberg, Vanek, and Drury types, depending on the situation. For D more of the Zet/Vanek, and forward using the Drury wedges. Blade: good enough, not bad feeling imo. no problem with putting the puck where it needs to go, etc..Zetteberg still the nice mid/heel that it has been. Nice and stiff without having a harsh feedback through the shaft. I tape from the heel all the way to and including the toe. After about 10 games in things didn't feel right so I undid the tape and was missing a 1x2 cm part of the underside of the toe. Gorilla glue to the rescue! Fed some in (allow for expansion!) and sanded it down. No more problems. 9/10 initial score, post surgery - 8/10. Shaft/flex: Nice graphics, and rack appeal. smooth and very nice with a clear coat covering up the decals. Shaft had a decent kick on wrist shots and snap shots, but slap shots were non existent. The 85 did indeed play lower (close to 77 imo) than advertised even after cutting to the 85 mark on the shaft. Shaft got scuffed up and such as is normal in league play, etc...but has held up. I think it may be about done though as it's feeling "noodley". 6/10 for being playing way lower in flex than listed. Stickhandling/Passes - passes are right on the money, but stickhandling felt like it had abit of lag due to the low flex, kind of like using a broom with very loose bristles. I'll give 7/10 though as it was my mistake in getting too low of a flex in the first place. Shooting: As said before wristers were good and snaps were OK, but slap shots were not for this flex and my strength combined. 7/10 again. Weight and balance: This stick is light and no complaints. 10/10 Durabillty: Shaft, good no problems here. I play in two hacking leagues (unfortuntely)and it's taken its hafe of bumps and bruises. Blade, other than the home remedy, pretty darn durable imo. 9/10 Intangibles: I had heard about the stealths being way whippier than listed but had hoped it was not the case for the S11. I was wrong. My fault in choosing lower than I normally used (90-100) but caveat emptor. Summary. Good stick. I like to buy a stick that's one below the top of the line as I feel you get 80-90% of the tech at sometimes 50-60% of the price. In this case I got my money's worth but I also take good care of my sticks and don't slam them on the ice or hit crossbars when mad (OK, once). Your mileage may vary. I'd but another one if they changed the flex issues which is something they seem to have done on the latest series. I'll use my one70 for the next year and wait for the next stealth line to go to clearance and try the S13(?) when it gets more price friendly.

"atta boy Ricky, give'em the heater" RIP.

It makes me cringe every time I see them do that. CJ..News flash...other teams have figured it out.