Shopping for Hockey in Toronto

[sogaduch 0]

Yah Dukes is awesome if you like really cheap prices so low they shouldnt be offered.....but hey when you own the building I guess 10% margin is ok....

hahahahaha awesome line man. Hey hope you and your family have an awesome christmas bud and im sure ill see you in january.

[bmxbrendi 0]

Hey OTG

Wow, love what you did with my skates - amazing wish other people had some way of getting you to do work for them ..... thanks and have an awesome christmas

[oldtrainerguy28 478]

Hey OTG

Wow, love what you did with my skates - amazing wish other people had some way of getting you to do work for them ..... thanks and have an awesome christmas

Well I will see you one more time before Christmass so you can give me my present then.

OTG, do you work at one of the LHS in Toronto?

I might be going back there soon... need new skates and stuff! Hong Kong really isn't the best for hockey gear :)

Yes sure do in fact starting Thursday we have XX and XXX Lite sticks on special for 99.99 thats right Pro stock no warranty sticks $99.99

[Eazy_b97 1]

Are these like the Dolomites where it's a mixed bag, or are these all as marked?

[oldtrainerguy28 478]

Yah sorry there all a mixed bag and not much can be done when there Pro Over Runs. But still an awesome deal if there is one or 2 that you like.

[NuggyBuggy 0]

Yah Dukes is awesome if you like really cheap prices so low they shouldnt be offered.....but hey when you own the building I guess 10% margin is ok....

hahahahaha awesome line man.

And what consumer doesn't like really cheap prices, when the service is as good as it is at Dukes ? Who looks to buy things from stores that charge big margins ? We're not talking about a fly-by-night operation that just set up shop, has no service and only a crappy selection of merchandise of uncertain origin. I'll suffer with good prices and service any day of the week, thank you.

As for the margins and what that has to do with ownership - judging from prices and the above argument it would follow that both National and Just Hockey must be tenants - and furthermore, it would seem that the landlord must have made Just Hockey pay their rent in advance.

[flashgordon 0]

Yes sure do in fact starting Thursday we have XX and XXX Lite sticks on special for 99.99 thats right Pro stock no warranty sticks $99.99

For all you righties, virtually no Vapor XXX Lites at National - only left hand...

[Chadd 916]

Looks like I may have to trek downtown again when I'm up there next week.

[fastmiele 59]

Looks like I may have to trek downtown again when I'm up there next week.

downtown where ? back to Sport Chek ?

I did pass by today and saw some pro stock "12 Iggy" Synergys for $129

A virtual copy of the retail Drury curve.

[Chadd 916]

Looks like I may have to trek downtown again when I'm up there next week.

downtown where ? back to Sport Chek ?

I did pass by today and saw some pro stock "12 Iggy" Synergys for $129

A virtual copy of the retail Drury curve.

Anywhere is "downtown" compared to our hotel out by the airport.

[sogaduch 0]

Looks like I may have to trek downtown again when I'm up there next week.

downtown where ? back to Sport Chek ?

I did pass by today and saw some pro stock "12 Iggy" Synergys for $129

A virtual copy of the retail Drury curve.

Anywhere is "downtown" compared to our hotel out by the airport.

why you guys staying out by the airport thats a trek to the convention centre

[Chadd 916]

Looks like I may have to trek downtown again when I'm up there next week.

downtown where ? back to Sport Chek ?

I did pass by today and saw some pro stock "12 Iggy" Synergys for $129

A virtual copy of the retail Drury curve.

Anywhere is "downtown" compared to our hotel out by the airport.

why you guys staying out by the airport thats a trek to the convention centre

Why would I be going to the convention center next week? If it's a nice day I may go to the CN tower but there's no reason to go to the convention center next Wed.

[oldtrainerguy28 478]

Yah Dukes is awesome if you like really cheap prices so low they shouldnt be offered.....but hey when you own the building I guess 10% margin is ok....

hahahahaha awesome line man.

And what consumer doesn't like really cheap prices, when the service is as good as it is at Dukes ? Who looks to buy things from stores that charge big margins ? We're not talking about a fly-by-night operation that just set up shop, has no service and only a crappy selection of merchandise of uncertain origin. I'll suffer with good prices and service any day of the week, thank you.

As for the margins and what that has to do with ownership - judging from prices and the above argument it would follow that both National and Just Hockey must be tenants - and furthermore, it would seem that the landlord must have made Just Hockey pay their rent in advance.

There is a HUGE diffrnece between large margins like a margin that is 50% or over but as most would agree a 40% or so margin is what keeps the lights on and rent paid at the average store.

I had a bunch more to say about this but its not the place and the people working there know what there doing to the other business and I will leave it at that.

Soggy knows for sure when I used to work with him....nothings changed in over 3 years even after they became SFS and we were told it wouldnt be happening anymore.......

[Scottish Maple Leaf 0]

I'm travelling from Scotland to Toronto next week. I need a new helmet & pants. I've researched previous threads but all of the stores seem to be a bit away from the downtown area. I'm staying in Front St East but will have to rely on public transport. I saw Hockey Life in another post but can't figure out how to get there. Any suggestions on good shops that are easilly accessible via public transport? Thanks

[althoma1 574]

Here are a few easy places to get to via public tranportation off the top of my head:

National Sports at Yonge and Sheppard. Go to union station, take the subway North toward Finch and get off at Sheppard. Walk out of the Subway station and you should be able to easily find the National Sports at the SE corner of Yonge and Sheppard.

Sport Check at the Eaton Centre. Take the subway to Queen or Dundas on the Yonge line or just walk there.

Toronto Hockey Repair. You'd take the subway up to the Bloor line (either the University or the Yonge line will get you there). You'd then take the Bloor subway west toward Kipling and get off at Dundas W station. The address is 1592 Bloor Street West.

Just Hockey on Don Mills isn't that hard to get to via transit, but it's not right on the subway line. You'd take the subway up to the Bloor line and then go east on the Bloor line to Pape subway station. Take the 25 Don Mills North. The address is 900 Don Mills Rd. It's about a 15-20 minute ride from the subway station. You could also get there by taking the 25 Don Mills south bus from Don Mills station on the Sheppard line, but you'd only do that if you were already up North (like if you stopped at the Nationals at Yonge and Sheppard first).

[Scottish Maple Leaf 0]

Thanks for that. Is it worth making the effort to try to get to Hockey Life or will your suggestions be just as good?

[Law Goalie 147]

Just Hockey is wonderful, if you can get there; the two I'd highly reccommend which are easily transit-accessible are Toronto Hockey Repair and Duke's Sports. Both are really nice places to browse around. You could also go to the shop at the Air Canada Centre and see if they'll let you poke through the used Leafs gear.

[aarondevera 0]

you'd probably have to take the GO-Bus to Vaughan Mills to check out Hockey Life, but it'd probably be worth the trip, seeing as how the store's located in Ontario's biggest shopping centre. you'd probably be able to take care of any overseas shopping while you're at it.

if you're heading to Mississauga, check out Hockey Experts at the corner of Grand Park Dr. / Burnhamthorpe Rd. not quite as big as Hockey Life, but they have about 99% of what Hockey Life carries, and the majority of the people who work there know the game inside and out.

[flashgordon 0]

Just Hockey is wonderful, if you can get there; the two I'd highly reccommend which are easily transit-accessible are Toronto Hockey Repair and Duke's Sports. Both are really nice places to browse around. You could also go to the shop at the Air Canada Centre and see if they'll let you poke through the used Leafs gear.

I was at the ACC store the other day and no game used stuff. Not to say that there won't ever be any, but there wasn't anything out on display when I went...

[mrusse01 0]

Just Hockey is wonderful, if you can get there; the two I'd highly reccommend which are easily transit-accessible are Toronto Hockey Repair and Duke's Sports. Both are really nice places to browse around. You could also go to the shop at the Air Canada Centre and see if they'll let you poke through the used Leafs gear.

I was at the ACC store the other day and no game used stuff. Not to say that there won't ever be any, but there wasn't anything out on display when I went...

I usually see a lot of game used sticks and a variety of gloves and possibly some protective every time I'm at the ACC. Are you sure you were looking in the right place? I ALWAYS see a rack of sticks at least, usually dumb prices though. The gloves are usually $100, not a terrible deal if you can find a good pair, I must admit I've been highly contemplating a pair of Stajan Easton Pro's for a loong time.

I would not suggest going out of your way to get to the SportChek in Eaton's Centre, they have a good selection of skates but that is about it in my opinion, also I wouldn't trust anyone there to fit me properly.

If you head out to Hockey Life there is a Hockey Experts very close by at the 400 and Highway 7, excellent selection.

[Law Goalie 147]

They have a ton hidden away.

[mrusse01 0]

I actually went to Hockey Life this weekend for the first time and I must say overall I was very disappointed.

First of all they have RIDICULOUS prices. $299 for ALL pro stock OPS. Yes, you read that right. Doesn't matter what it is. 05 Stealths? $299. CNT stealths? $299 Synergy ST's? $299. Anything and everything is $299.

They have a really huge selection of pro stock sticks, but seriously who are they trying to kid? They are selling pro stock ST's for way more than the retail sticks that come with a warranty that are literally 5 feet away. I was shocked. Put me off the entire store. I bought my Warrior Dolo pro stock for $120 at National like a year ago, I know pro stock 7k's have been selling everywhere for around $100, you can find older stealths for around $100, and Hockey Life tries to pull this 299 bs?

Also pretty stupid to have this massive massive hockey store and you don't carry and Graf or any Eagle. Like c'mon. Oh, and the shooting range to test out sticks is $12 or something retarded, when Hockey Experts is free.

[Scottish Maple Leaf 0]

Just back from Toronto. Thanks to everyone for their help. Thought I'd just leave some feedback on my experiences:

Sportcheck Eaton Centre - Not bad selection of stuff but staff not really that knowledgeable.

National Sports - Firstly the huge one in Scarborough. Great selection of all types of equipment but it took me ages to get some assistance. Unfortunately they didnt have the pants I needed but quickly called the store at Yonge St & told them to keep a pair for me. Other than that a great store that you could spend hours in. The Yonge St store is smaller but has a great selection of stuff & very helpful staff.

Source for Sports (Don Mills Rd) - Great shop. Got skates there & staff very very knowledgeable & helpful. Massive glove inventory & sticks galore.

Toronto Hockey Repair - Very dissapointing. Lots of goalie stuff but not a lot for players. Not worth the trip to be honest.

Whilst I was there Hockey Experts opened in Scarborough. Unfortunately I didn't manage to go there. Maybe next time.

[TopProspect91 0]

Just back from Toronto. Thanks to everyone for their help. Thought I'd just leave some feedback on my experiences:

Sportcheck Eaton Centre - Not bad selection of stuff but staff not really that knowledgeable.

National Sports - Firstly the huge one in Scarborough. Great selection of all types of equipment but it took me ages to get some assistance. Unfortunately they didnt have the pants I needed but quickly called the store at Yonge St & told them to keep a pair for me. Other than that a great store that you could spend hours in. The Yonge St store is smaller but has a great selection of stuff & very helpful staff.

Source for Sports (Don Mills Rd) - Great shop. Got skates there & staff very very knowledgeable & helpful. Massive glove inventory & sticks galore.

Toronto Hockey Repair - Very dissapointing. Lots of goalie stuff but not a lot for players. Not worth the trip to be honest.

Whilst I was there Hockey Experts opened in Scarborough. Unfortunately I didn't manage to go there. Maybe next time.

I'm heading to the new Hockey Experts at Kennedy Commons on Friday. I'll let you guys know what it's like.

[shifter 0]

is hockey experts a new store? where is it exactly or closely too?