dsjunior1388

I've missed way too many of these the last few years, I need to get back into the fold

4 years after getting a stunning deal on some Vapor XXXs when they were two models behind, I picked up some pristine X 7.0s when they were two model years behind. Thank God for late model markdowns, keeping me in high end skates on the cheap.

Stiffness - 100 flex 
Pattern – W88 Zetterberg Grip finish

 First Impression/Appearance 8/10 The Stick has graphics that are a good continuation of the Dynasty’s of the recent past, particularly the AX1. The scalloped cut-out graphic was tweaked, but the muted gray, black and yellow were adjusted to a white/black/red design that’s a little sharper and crisper. Warrior is continuing on their path away from outlandish designs and towards simple, powerful graphics. A serious stick for a serious player. This stick does a good job of representing the serious but still flashy MO of the Warrior brand.hose brands are on the smallish side, a step away from the ever-growing brands we’ve seen lately. Apparent even from a distance is the grip pattern, which has raised patterns across most of the shaft. While I miss Warrior’s more tactile, smooth grips which felt like a velvet finish, this sticky version is not too sticky that it feels like a hindrance as I move up and down the shaft. Blade - 9.5/10 I often find myself looking for an impossible blade, that which feels lively while stickhandling and shooting, but feels dampened on recieving passes and making smallish moves on a loose puck. It’s a paradox that never seemed possible, but since soft hands have never been my forte, I hoped instead for such an unholy union. And Warrior, with the HD1, has somehow delivered. I can be in a bad posture and flick the stick and the puck immediately gets on it’s way, seemingly all blade, and I will still feel as though I got good, solid “wood” on the puck. I noticed this a handful of times when I was in a tangle on the boards or behind the net, blindly swiping at the puck, made contact and the puck did exactly what I hoped it would. I couldn’t find a bad spot to shoot or pass from. Even my meager backhands felt true. Shooting with this blade was terrific. As I said, I loved chipping the puck with it, just getting a little piece, but I also loved unloading on it. Gone is the feeling of the blade twisting or splaying a bit, the way I felt with the QR1 after some time, or the Dolomite HD. The blade was rock solid on slapshots, snapshots and hard wristers, and it stayed true regardless of where or how I was shooting. Because of the consistent feel of the blade, my saucer passes didn’t lose anything in terms of power or height, even though I was downgrading from a W28 and P92 to the much milder Zetterberg pattern, which is somewhere between Easton’s old Heatley/Iginla and Bauer’s P88 Kane pattern. 

Shaft/Flex/Balance - 8/10

 The shaft was very nice in that it was extremely consistent. I didn’t find myself chasing the ideal flex point like I do on many sticks. I just shot, and the shaft delivered each time. However, it did run a bit on the stiff side. I used a 100 flex, which is typically my maximum flex, and cut it down about 2 inches. I expected it to play like about a 102-104. What I got instead felt like a 110-112. Unyielding is the term I would use. While the blade “played along” with the flaws in my game, the shaft seemed to magnify them. I felt like the blade was the whole show and the shaft was too rigid to get into the action. As I grew accustomed to the shaft I really liked it’s performance, but there was simply no doubt it played to the heavy side of the flex spectrum. If you’re debating between two flexes, take the under. Durability - 10/10

 I say in all my reviews that I am not tough on sticks, but apparently this is the exception. I had at least three major incidents where I thought I could have broken the HD1. Each time, I found that not only had it not failed under pressure, it had barely been marked. The first was a hard slash my first time out. I was hovering around the net on offense, and a defensive player decided to challenge me. We jostled legs and elbows, a shot headed our way, and he quickly cut down on my shaft to prevent a tip or a move for the rebound. The sound of stick-on-stick was loud enough that I immediately swore at the guy, but when the puck was cleared I leaned on the stick and it showed no signs of giving. Back at the bench I looked for a mark, even a ding, but found only some paint from the other stick. The HD1 hadn’t even been scratched. The second incident was a classic move where I jammed the blade perpendicular to the boards. I hit the boards flush to the edge of the blade and expected some crumbling, but none were found. And finally, I really did a number, as in that same first session I managed to escape a sure stick-killing moment. My blade was lodged in a gap in the boards and stuck there. I instintively let go and the play quickly cleared around it, so there wasn’t a real chance to torque the blade while it was held in place, but even so I was nervous retrieving the stick. Once again, it had stood up and take its lumps without a hint of damage. Intangibles As I’ve said, the stick made all the little plays with aplomb, and the blade just couldn’t find a situation it couldn’t handle. The blade is the best I’ve used, hands down, and with that I’m including the Bauer0ne95, which to this point was the best I’d used. HD1 tops it. Conclusion Warrior is no longer “Johnny-Come-Lately.” No longer the brand with a decent stick with a funny name or a cool graphic. Warrior has evolved in the quickest possible fashion and consistency puts an incredible product on the shelves. The Dynasty and Covert lines have only gotten better each time out, and they have taken advantage of lapses and missteps from Easton and Reebok/CCM to take strides in the market and on the ice. This stick is $259 at retail and as it compares to the other top offerings, is absolutely worth every penny. Overall score - 9/10

STX Stallion 500 elbow pads Any review with Elbow pads has to start here: I hate elbow pads. I’ve had the high end stuff, pro stock Jofas, and I have had the low end stuff, sherwood 5030s that sat on a shelf for 15 years. I’ve had big ones and small ones, Grafs, Eastons, bauers, I’ve tried them all. And I’ve hated them all. The simple fact is that elbows all have the same problem. They slide down your arm, they wiggle around, and one pair liked to leave my elbow and try to flip around to “protect” the crook of my arm. And STX knows it. They’ve put every effort into securing the elbow pad to your arm. An inner sleeve as well as a 360 degree strap are designed exclusively for the purpose of making your elbow pad stay put. Fit The fit is very, very good. The sleeve across the forearm as well as the 360 degree strap does what it intends to do, and the elbow locks in better than any elbow pad I’ve tried. There’s still a minute amount of movement, but it’s better than most. Often you’ll find that the pad feels like it wants to move, but mostly it stays put. 8.5/10 Comfort Comfort out of the box is not incredibly high. The rubber strips inside the pad are great for helping to hold the pad in place, but they’re not friendly on skin and arm hair. Compounding that, when I wore a long sleeved shirt, the pad slid much worse than when I went with bare arms. Beyond that, the pad likes to pinch a bit, about an inch below my inner elbow, and I typically take the pad off after a skate to find a bright red line about an inch long. The pad is a bit stiff still, so I’m not sure how that will feel with more breaking in, but it’s a bit annoying for the rest of the day after a skate. I typically don’t feel it when skating though. 7.5/10 Protection Belaboring the point, a pad that stays home will be the best protection. But beyond that, I felt very confident in the Stallion 500 and the elbow cap. While compliant with the new softer foam expectations, the pad is still strong and will structured. The pad comes down to a nice point on the forearm, at just the right length and taper to fit inside the cuff of a glove without being in the way. You won’t see a downturn in protection with this pad. 10/10 Weight The foam allows the pad to be surprisingly light without sacrificing the feeling of protection. But adding to this, the pad is also very slim, an excellent low-profile elbow pad. As jerseys become slimmer (and I typically wear a Reebok Premier jersey when I play) a slimmer pad is long overdue. If you roll up your sleeves to prevent binding, this pad will help. 10/10 Durability Durability is typically tough to assess on an elbow, other than the wear of the inner pocket of stress and wear, and sweat accumulation. I haven’t seen any of that in six weeks because the inner liner is pretty robust and not too dependent on cloth that can get grimy, pill, or start to turn brown. (Granted, the pad is black so we probably wouldn’t notice that last one.) So far the stitching and contact points look to be strong, no reason for concern, and the straps don’t depend on too much typical elastic so they’re less likely to stretch out. Still, if the 360 strap starts to go, the entire effectiveness of this pad goes with it. 9/10 Conclusion While STX hasn’t fully created a pad that stays put, they’ve come the closest of anyone I’ve seen. Beyond that, they’ve created a light and strong pad that will play nice with your other equipment and your jersey. It could be a tad more comfortable, but if you can stomach little pinching and rubbing it will save you from a broken arm by staying where it’s supposed to be. Final Score: 9/10

Took delivery today of the new STX Stallion 500 elbows, a demo set. Already very impressed with their ability to stay put.

Stiffness - 100 flex 
Pattern – X92 Grip finish

 First Impression The appearance falls somewhere between "Minimalist" and "Underwhelming. Black stick, slight yellow graphics. Reminiscent of the RS and RSII, and not too far from the recent CCM Tacks and Bauer Supreme. Still, graphically, I like it. New entries to the market often struggle to look like they belong, but STX and their simplified graphic looks like they've been selling hockey sticks for 10 years, not that this is their first entry. I especially like the bold "Stallion" wordmark on the lower end of the shaft, it's a nice touch in yellow, making the stick unmistakable from it's rivals. 7/10 Blade - 7/10

 I'm not tough on blades typically. Often, they are tough on me. My hand skills leave a bit to be desired, and I've known to have a hard pass bounce off my blade and into an odd man rush. That's why I was surprised by the muted feel of this offering. Pucks stopped dead whether I was prepared or not, and they'd stick with me regardless of form or positioning. Stick handling with this blade showed the same muted reactions, and I felt like I had to really push the puck where other blades needed only a tap. I prefer a livelier blade for that purpose, but I was not overly upset with how the Stallion responded to the puck. Shots still came off as strong and crisp as I could hope, but I felt the blade being forgiving. Bad form or bad posture still allowed a decent shot. As you would imagine, the sacrifice in a blade like that is precision. Still, I know a wood feeling blade, which is how I would best describe this one, appeals to a certain segment of the market, and for them or the newer hockey player, this is an effective multipurpose blade. 

Shaft/Flex/Balance - 10/10

 Here we find the hallmark of the STX Stallion 500. This shaft performed beautifully on any task I asked of it. I was truly impressed with how the shaft kicked on shots and pulled of the "flinging" feeling I prefer on hard passes and sauce passes. I felt power and control with the puck using this stick, from all hand placements. Impeccably balanced, the stick disguised it's weight well. It's heavier than some higher end sticks, but the balance is so well refined, it's not noticed on the ice. Durability - 8/10

 I must confess I haven't yet used the stick enough to really assess durability, and beyond that I am not especially hard on my sticks at any rate. Still, the stick held up to a few sizable slashes, some heavy rounds of shooting, and even one unfortunate play where I ended up jamming the blade directly into the boards. I haven't seen the blade degradation of a lot of other reviewers at this point, but I will be keeping an eye on it. As I said, the blade has a damp, muted wooden feel, but I felt that on first usage so I think it was that way out of the box. Intangibles I hate grip on my sticks, but this one is well executed. The hand moves well enough up and down, without the overly tacky grabbing of stronger grips. Its a decent tack without being overbearing. I've grown comfortable with it. Conclusion This stick is positioned at the top of the line, but it is at the $180 price point. I would be shocked to find a better stick at that point. STX is not ready to compete with Bauer, Warrior and Easton for the top of the market, the $230-$300 range, but this entry shows they're serious about being a hockey brand, and they are not far behind. Overall score - 7.5/10

Just got these Paul Stastny pro stock Sherwood T90s, Olympic spec, made for the 2014 Olympics. Brand new, unused.

They are Kings gloves given the orange sharpie treatment to match the Ducks pants.

Trevor Lewis, they say "Lewis 22"

Anaheim Ducks warrior Hustlers, and LA Kings Bauer APX gloves which were given the Sharpie treatment. Sharpie looks okay for now, but I think I'll take the opportunity to do something I've wanted to try for a long time, and black these out with India ink. BTW, I didn't filter this picture, I guess my lamp just makes it look like I live in a pollen haze or something.

Far and away my favorite jersey.

Recently went on a jersey buying spree, and now I have a decent start to a collection. Up top are 3 of my 4 Winterfest jerseys (desperately searching for the fourth) and on the bottom are the new arrivals. Thrashers, Lightning and Vermont jerseys were all NWT on ebay with terrific prices that I couldn't resist. All star jersey is used but in great shape. And yes, the UVM jersey was bought in part to validate my most ridiculous purchase of a forest green Re-Akt.

Digital was only $40, same as leather and clarino, which blew me away. I had a few repairs to add on, though, but luckily didn't need the gussets replaced.

Bought a ragged pair of Denver Univesity Vapor XXXs, sent them off to George's Hockey repair and they came back today. For someone who's only done repalms with FIBM (What a fool I've been) I'm amazed by the quality and craftsmanship here. Turnaround time was unbelievable, they only had them in the shop for 2 days.

Me too.