Goalie skates

[powerplay2k1 0]

Heres a weird question, situation for everyone. I recently started playing goalie again and have been using my CCM U+ skates. Changed the wheels to the 47mm size and love the lightness of the skates. My feet movement is quick. However, I recently bought a pair of XG Lite goalie skates...and they feel weird. They feel really heavy compared to my U+ skates...to the point that I dont want to wear them.

Is there any other goalies out there that dont play in goalie specific skates? I play beer league, A league and alot of pickups...just dont know if this is common thought amoung us goalies. Lol

Thanks!

[gosinger 122]

I've seen goalies who went for the Mako as a goalie skate, due to them being so comfortable and low-cut. You might be able to get away on some Graf models as-well, but I'm afraid the higher cut from most modern boots is going to be a problem with the butterfly/hybrid style.

[powerplay2k1 0]

i agree...the hi cut on my U+ boots get caught on the lower straps. Either I deal with the extra weight of the goalie skates or the straps getting caught on my other skates. lol

[stitchy 1]

I play using my first ever player skates, some old Missions. They have the straight chassis as Hi-los weren't invented yet and I put 59mm "Patriot" wheels on them.There have been times where I've been tempted to cut the tendon guards off, but they haven't bugged me that much lately. I also bought some Bauer goal skates but they are heavy and not nearly as comfortable, so I stuck with the Missions while the Bauers collect dust...

[powerplay2k1 0]

I play using my first ever player skates, some old Missions. They have the straight chassis as Hi-los weren't invented yet and I put 59mm "Patriot" wheels on them.There have been times where I've been tempted to cut the tendon guards off, but they haven't bugged me that much lately. I also bought some Bauer goal skates but they are heavy and not nearly as comfortable, so I stuck with the Missions while the Bauers collect dust...

My U+ have a Hi-Lo on them, but I'm running straight 47mm...and I actually like the way they feel as weird as that sounds. I know its trivial, but does it bother you that you're not wearing 'goalie' specific skates? Lol.

I'm playing tonight and will be wearing the U+ again to get a comparison since I played yesterday for 2 hours in the other skates

[stitchy 1]

When I thought about it, using hi-los sounded weird as I thought the rear two wheels would be higher. Then again, if they are 76/80mm like most modern hi-lo frames, we're talking about a 2mm difference between front and back which seems negligible...

It kinda did bug me in the beginning, but when I started playing goalie, there wasn't much selection if I remember right. There were times when i stopped shots with the frames and they would bend. (I've since stopped doing that, lol) So a few years in, I bought the Bauers and they were super heavy and not comfortable at all (for me, I have wide feet). They felt alright when I bought them but that was years ago. I actually dug them out and tried them on a few weeks ago and yep, they're still no good for me. I think what might get me into dedicated goalie roller skates would be if my current ones somehow were limiting my performance (which they are not, my lack of flexibility is) or they were no longer protecting me well. Having just gotten into playing again, I'm playing at lower levels, so that's not an issue either.

[powerplay2k1 0]

played in them a couple times this week. they are heavier than my U+'s, but a couple things i did notice that i didnt notice before. cant do any push offs in the butterfly position because the cowling prevents the wheels from getting traction (or is this because the wheels are 47mm and have flat profile?) the skates do allow the pads to be more flush to the floor because of the lower profile of the skates

[stitchy 1]

Yeah, the wheels are probably too low and the flat profile/hard compound may be bad for traction.

[Buccaneerfan 16]

Just one small story - we had an opponent's goalie at a tournament this season and he only had player skates. He took a slap shot directly onto the toe box, we needed to et him to the hospital as his big toe didn't look too good.

So playing in goal with player skates isn't the best of ideas imho.

[powerplay2k1 0]

well, i tried 2 times straight playing in goalie skates...and i just cant get the right feeling in them. theyre heavy and dont offer the same ankle support as my u+. this is especially true when im doing t-pushes and have to stop. my foot speed isnt as fast too. the pads are more flush to the floor, but thats about it. lol

[bones71 1]

I've done dozens of goalie conversions/customizations over the past dozen years and have seen many gravitate towards standard wheel sizes with softer grip wheels - allows for good approach angle and traction for a butterfly push. I've also mounted chassis' directly onto goal boots after removing the cowling and building/stiffening up the sole plate and further increased availability of traction by positioning the chassis as far towards the inside of the sole as possible. Never had a case where a foot was injured because of the absence of cowling or by use of a player skate but steps can be taken to protect toe box. PM me if you have questions...