danno25nh

While I no longer flex sticks and when I did it was a fairly light push to get a feel for the stick, I will say that long ago, say the 1970s we would always flex sticks prior to purchase or use, sticks of the same model would often have significantly different flex characteristics. I recall in high school purchasing 50 sticks for the season and discarding at least 10 due to poor feel or flex. The discarded sticks would go to the pond hockey pile. Some habits die hard.

My current gloves are the first pair I've owned in 40 years of hockey that didn't have laces..... Never got them caught on anything.

For the record, I personally would prefer to shop at a LHS. I nearly always support local retailers over large chains. Even at the cost of a couple bucks. What I won't support is poor service and bad attitude.

60 or so adult teams in town, quite a few youth teams and 2 LHS's neither of which carry more than a couple pieces of gear and zero upper mid-range gear. Hard to be loyal when the LHS tells you to try going to St Louis or Chicago if you want to look at quality gear. I did stop at Total hockey in St Louis on the way through this weekend. The service was excellent. I bought a couple hundred bucks worth of stuff including tape, wax, etc that I could buy at the LHS but why put up with the aggravation of a kid that doesn't even play trying to tell me that the white tape is for blades and the black tape is for the butt end...it's sticky on both sides and helps you hold on to the stick... I'm actually considering buying a trunk load of sticks and selling them to other players.

Reviewer 6'0 190 lb Adult B league Forward Fit These are 15" pads. I prefer a fairly slim pad that can be worn over the skate tongue though I often wear them under the tongue but not completely flopped. The length on these is nearly perfect for my needs. The asymmetrical shape gives a fit that hugs the knee and shin pretty well. The upper strap is quite wide and has enough elasticity to hold them in place pretty well. The lower strap is a standard strap that sits a bit low for my taste but is fairly functional. The knee pocket isn't as deep as it could be but I don't notice any slippage. with RBK Edge socks I'd recommend tape if you like a really tight fit. I sometimes skip the tape with regular socks though habit finds me taping even if not needed. 8/10 Protection Over all protection is about what can be expected for a slim pad. I block a fair number of shots covering the point. Straight on the protection is good. Maybe not the best choice for a defenseman that blocks shots at angles as opposed to charging the point straight on. Plenty good for my normal use. The weakest protective area is the calf wrap. It's not horrible and it does contain a perforated plastic similar to a honeycomb. Unfortunately it doesn't come to the back of the calf. There is some extra padding at the outside of the knee at the joint. 8/10 Weight These are quite light, I'm not sure I'd trust pads that were a lot lighter. 10/10 Durability I've put a season and a half in two concurrent leagues on these and only notice a little scuffing. The padding hasn't compressed noticeably and stitching remains intact. I've washed the removable inner pad in the washing machine on delicate a couple of times. No noticeable problems there. 10/10 Intangibles The size and asymmetric shape make these a great mid price pad that is seemingly designed for a forward that seeks quickness and agility. 9/10 Conclusion This is a solid pad for the price. Once I bump to A league I'll probably upgrade but for B and C leagues this is good bang for the buck. 9/10

I try very hard to support my LHS. I have fond memories of walking in to Peter Webbers in Waterville Maine as a child and looking through all of the equipment. Talking to the employees about things like the new blades with plastic holders from a company called Tuuk. Saving my money for the latest Christian Bros. stick etc. Here's the problem. I searched through Kansas City for a hockey store and was presented with 2 options. One carried no skates higher than a vapor 30. The people were very nice, helpful, and willing to order better equipment if I put the cash up to bring it in. The other was a proshop at Pepsi Ice Center. There I'd call and ask if they were open and be told, "Sure come on down" I'd get there 15 minutes later only to be told,"He's busy try coming back in 3 hours" After 3 times doing this I finally get into the shop and ask about upper mid-priced skates such as Vapor 40 and up. I was promptly told "We carry top of the line only, perhaps you should drive to St Louis (a 4 hour drive.) "Real hockey players wouldn't skate on anything less than Total Ones or possibly Vapor 60's. Here's the new Easton skate, it's really light but I don't have time to try and fit you." For some of us the LHS isn't much of an option.