bunnyman666

lol about "natural padding"; I have plenty and it STILL hurts like a mofo when I got hit in the love handle on Wednesday! I am going to see a Passau in the flesh in a couple of weeks and make a decision on my future purchase soon. I was going to put my ducats towards a new set of leg pads, but a CA is DEFINITELY on the MUST BUY list!

Stick and puck report: Facing better shooters has been paying off for me. I am starting to figure out how to cut off parts of plays. I am trying to play more aggressively. Though I was one of five people at the rink both Monday and Wednesday, we would play three on two or three on three. I feel that this change of scenery may help my drop-in hockey at my home rink, as the chance of playing against good players is better. Monday, I faced the hardest shot I had EVER faced, as this guy dented my wooden goalie stick. He also gave me a few stingers. Speaking of stingers- I am going to make a "love handle" guard. I got stung pretty hard on a love handle yesterday! No bruises, oddly enough; but I need some protection in that area. Ouch!!!! Next Monday is back at the "other" rink; then Thursday at the "home" rink.

Your stories of his antics are making me hope you punch him the the throat with your blocker. Yes, I would probably do that against him, as well ;)

Make certain your camera works well. I hope you give him at least ONE blocker punch to his throat!

When do you play against mis-match sock pony tail boy again, Opti? That is a game I can't wait to watch, and I hope you make Hextall and Smith proud against that tosser!

Not trying to get weird on you, but you really have a special situation, mate! Cherish that group!!!!

It sounds like your teammates love you! That is AWESOME!!!!!

I wanted to buy a CA to try the position, so the Vaughn did it's job as far as I am concerned. I was able to bolster it enough to not give me stingers; but I need better since I am serious about the position of goaler. I think you may end up liking using player elbows if you go that direction, as the elbow pads bolster areas of the elbow and forearm well. The best elbow pad I found for this purpose? The lowly Reebok 4K, as there is no biceps protection to get in the way. But as always- your preference may dictate something different.

Passau is where I am thinking of going, Opti; which is why I say that my next CA will more than likely have integrated elbow protection. The elbow pads actually help with bolster the somewhat lacking arm protection that Vaughn CA's infamously possess.

Thanks. I will show the downright futile and frankly SCARY substitutes for "elbow protection" tonight. I never felt comfortable with the so-called "elbow protection" that were in my Vaughn LT80 CA. I could have seen problems with those cups, frankly.

The elbow cups in my CA are very deficient. I unlaced them and NORMALLY wear player elbow pads. Let's just say I was a lucky, lucky dude today. When I get my next CA, I will have much better, INTEGRATED elbow protection with it.

In the loosest sense of the word.

Stick and puck turned drop-in hockey report: Different rink.I was the singular goalie. It broke into 3-on-3 half ice. Exhausting isn't the word for it. But I was playing with a higher skill level than normal. I am also convinced that a few people who frequent my home rink are kinda jerks. Not all, mind; but a few have elitist attitudes that are not deserved. Anywho- yeah, I let in a few stinkers, but a lot of the goals I let in were set plays- i.e. "tic-tac-toe-bam!" I made some weird saves, as well. The worst part: I normally wear player elbow pads with my CA. Dopey, old me FORGOT them, as well as my neck guard :0 I will put pix of the protection I fashioned on my instagram page, user name bunnydevildude. Look for them after 6 p.m. Central.

In the end, it is going to take getting a custom pad for me. I am, of course, talking to Dennis Dombrowski and we have come to a few conclusions: 1) my weird body proportions dictate that I need something custom, especially with my short thighs and small boot size 2) few, if any off-the-shelf pads will do for me without significant alteration because of issues mentioned above 3) I can't get the cool, aged horsehyde look that my Factory Mad catch glove has through any other manufacturer, therefore I need custom ;) I will continue to tinker until I finally get my pennies together for my pads.

Landing gear.

Opti- There are not that many games in your season, so yes- a 14 goals against will make it bad. But still- you ain't bad, mate.

Opti- an .85 spt is NOT BAD!!!! You are doing very well, sir. I have short thighs.My knee flaps are short, and I have a triangle in my butterfly. My other pads are shorter, but I close that 5 hole. I may just have someone make me new knee flaps that are just a hair bigger before trimming my pads. They would still be NHL legal (like that matters). I just believe I could squeeze my knees together without that extra stuff. I could be dead wrong here. But I am trying bigger knee flaps first.

Drop in report: 3-on-3, one sub, two goalies. Yes, my "team" tried to switch goalies, but they had one skater who made up for my lack of goal tending acumen. He was a bender, but a good bloke. But I ended up making some crazy saves. I am a scrambler, though if I could learn angles, I could be better. I made the improbable saves, but was scored on with some of the simplest goals. I think I am going to take an inch from my thigh rise, as I can't close the 5 hole when down. But my stick was good, even cutting off a few passes. Incrementally, I am improving. But I have a long, long way to go before I am mediocre.

I switched from the old 12" pads and it wasn't a big deal. Of course on my 12" pads, they weren't mobile until I chopped 6" off of the thigh rise. That being said, they became a LOT more mobile. But a pure butterfly pad like a Vaughn V5 is generally more mobile than my Vortek pads that were neither pure butterfly or stand up. I play mostly stand up with some butterfly saves thrown in. I think going from a Nike/Bauer Vapor to a pad made in the last three years would be a huge difference. Improvements in foams and such have thinned pads down a fair bit. It is a totally different feel these days from the pads of yesteryear. Keep in mind that I have been only playing goal on ice for nearly a year. Most of us here have played goal fewer than five years.

Daytime skates are a mixed bag- some are full, some are not. But it is a guarantee that when word gets around that a goalie is there, it will fill up. As far as beating yourself up over your last game, badger_14: Don't. Have fun. Don't take it too seriously. Are you going to get fired and become homeless after letting in 6 goals? I think not.

Drop-in hockey report: Had a ten minute shut out going, then the deluge happened. Stopped Donnie McDangles a couple of times, but he got a hat trick and a half on me. I did stuff him good when he tried getting too "cute" on me. Stopping break aways is NOT my strong suit. I just SUCK in a 1 on 0 situation. I made some weird stops, and made a couple good ones. I also let in dumb ones. I got pucks banked in off of my skates and the handle of my stick. I also froze the puck against the outside of the net with my stick handle. I see incremental improvement, but feeling comfortable playing leagues is a bit into the future for me.

Good onya, matey!!!!!

Sir, I do not disagree in the least. Hexy gave good stick therapy, as did my idol Billy Smith. I believe mismatch sock ponytail boy needs a therapeutic session with your goal stick. Maybe get out the composite for the next time you play against "classy".

Did you take chirpy out? I hope you did, Opti. Edit- just watched the game. The next time you play against ponytail boy, you need to make certain he doesn't want to get anywhere near you, if you know what I mean. He needs a bit of stick therapy.

That's the way!!!!