Warrior Ritual CR1 Goal Stick

[IPv6Freely 2092]

First off, a HUGE thank you to JR and Warrior for giving me the opportunity to try out the new Ritual CR1.

Intro

While I may be just a beer league goalie, I still know what I like in a stick and so far I have not liked composites at all. My first stick when I switched to goalie was a Bauer Supreme composite. I had been warned against them but decided that if I was new to the position it made sense to just start with composite because I wouldn't know any better. 

When I tried the Supreme, I found it would vibrate like crazy every time it would get hit by a puck. Kind of like an aluminum baseball bat getting hit in the wrong spot. If a newbie goalie who doesn't know any different hates the feeling, it must be pretty bad. 

I switched to a wood stick, and man was it great. The pucks would hit it with a solid thud and I knew exactly where the rebound was going. The problem was that they were heavy. REALLY heavy. After that, I went in-between with a foam core. Started with a Twigz and it was okay, but then I switched to Warrior and it was so much better. I could actually flex the stick! I've been very happy with them. However, when I saw Warrior announce their new VibexLite technology that is meant to reduce vibration in the stick I thought it would be a great time to give composites another shot. JR and Warrior hooked me up and here we are.

About Me

• Male
• 5'9
• 235lbs
• Div 5 Goalie, with about 3 years experience

Previous Sticks

• 2012 Bauer Supreme One70 Composite 
• Twigz Timber Wood (26in. T31)
• Twigz F95 Foam Core (26in. L01)
• Warrior Swagger LT (26in. Quick/Mid)
• Warrior Swagger Custom Pro Foam Core (26in. Quick/Mid)

Initial Thoughts

When I got the stick out of the packaging my first thought was WOW THIS IS LIGHT. I didn't really find my foam cores to be all that heavy but this thing is featherweight in comparison. The other thing I noticed unfortunately is that it's pretty ugly. I mean, the stick itself looks great for the most part, but the bright green/yellow in the grip area is a bit over the top. However, I completely understand that they're trying to call attention to their new technology. It's worth pointing out how disappointing it is that the stick only comes in black or white. The lower models have more colors (though unfortunately still only a white base) but with the CR1 your options are limited. I suppose the idea is that they expect a ton more sales of the CR2 and CR3 at retail, and that buyers of the CR1 would likely go the custom route anyway? I'd love to hear Warrior's explanation for that, which I'm sure is calculated.

Two other features that really stood out to me were the grip, and the shaft. First, the ugly green area is where there is built in grip which Warrior is calling "Slide Grip Technology". It's not especially grippy but I'm going to give it a shot. I normally put stretch wrap on my paddle for grip (along with a "ridge" I create out of some wadded up tape to put my index finger on) but I'm open to trying it as-is. 

Finally, the shaft had some ridges in it. It actually kind of reminded me of the CCM Ribcor ribs, except they go all the way up the shaft. I'm not sure if this is part of the VibexLite tech or what, but I kind of like it. It may be a bit hard to see in the photo but it's definitely noticeable. 

I'm going to give the stick a try tonight at pickup and see how it goes. Looking forward to seeing if Warrior has managed to make a composite that doesn't vibrate! 

[IPv6Freely 2092]

I've played with this stick in about 6 pickup games and two league games now. I ended up putting my standard grip on the paddle because I felt like I didn't have enough grip with the grip built into the stick, especially since I add a small "roll" of tape to rest my index finger on.

Anyway, one thing I noticed immediately was how well I could flex the stick compared to my foam cores. Now, I assume that will help with my puck handling, passing, shooting etc. but my technique for all of those is crap so it's hard to say. 

Now for the really important part and, really, the entire point of this review. Has Warrior managed to make a stick that doesn't vibrate? 

Well, yes and no. It doesn't give you the annoying vibration feeling in your fingers like some other composites I've used, but at the same time it still feels quite pingy. There have been times where I've had a puck hit my stick and I wasn't completely sure where it went. So while this is a whole lot better than other composites I've used in the past, it's still not in my opinion worth the cost increase over a foam core stick.

Part of me thinks I could get used to the pingyness of the stick, but at the same time... why would I want to? I don't think it makes sense to try to get used to something that I like less and costs twice as much. I am disappointed. Not because the product is bad, but because I was very excited about the idea of a composite that has a better feeling to it. It just didn't live up to what I was hoping for, if that makes sense.

I think my next step is to pass this stick on to somebody who is much more used to using composite sticks, who can give the stick a more thorough review. 

[Hills 712]

Big thank you to @IPv6Freely for handing this stick off of me to continue this review. In turn thanks to JR and Warrior for supplying the stick as well.

I got this stick right during playoffs for my summer goalie team so I haven't gotten many game in with it yet, but I have gotten 1 so far when I subbed in.

My initial impressions so far is how incredibly light the stick feels, it is my first time using a composite and the lack of heft to a goalie stick does take some time getting used to. I also learned that shooting with this stick is going to also take an adjustment period, while I am not a great shooter I have never felt a goalie stick flex this much when I am trying to shoot. Finally I have found rebounds off this stick to be pretty crazy and so far unpredictable. When a puck hit the paddle or blade it would bounce off rather than be directed where I was expecting it to go. This could be because of poor stick work on my part, and the puck deadening abilities of the foam core sticks I have used in the past have compensated for my lack of abilities.

Both of my goalie teams start up at the end of September, so I will be using this stick multiple times a week shortly and will write more about my time with it.

[Hills 712]

This stick was my first experience with a composite goalie stick. I never really bought into composite goalie sticks before as in my mind the only benefit would really be shooting with a significant price increase and a less durable product.

Personal Details
Male
6'3"
220 lbs
A-B level hockey
Usage time: 6 Months

Stick History: Simmons Pro Series 6, Torspo Surge 421, Warrior Swagger, Vaughn 7600, Fischer GF750, Infinity Exosphere, Warrior Ritual CR1, CCM Premier 2, Bauer Supreme 2S Pro

I ended up using this stick for about 6 months before the blade broke on me and it has been relegated to a practice/backup stick.

Weight: Compared to foam cores the Warrior Ritual CR1 is ridiculously light, compared to its competitors it falls behind other companies top end stick and competes with the 2nd tier sticks (Bauer 2S) that share a similar $200 USD price point. 7/10

Shooting: I honestly didn't have a tonne of time shooting this stick, the blade broke too quickly for me to really get a chance to test and practice shooting with it. When I did get some shots off they had more pop than a foam core but I am not comfortable putting a score to this section and comparing it to other composite sticks.

Rebounds: At first I thought the rebounds with the Warrior Ritual CR1 were atrocious in the sense that they were totally unpredictable. I first saw this as a negative, I switched back to a foam core to find out what the difference was. I realized that when the Warrior Ritual CR1 was giving off bouncy and unpredictable rebounds it was when the foam cores were giving off dangerous and soft rebounds that are available to be easily picked up by opposing forwards. Since using the CCM Premier 2 and Bauer Supreme 2S Pro I have noticed the CR1 doesn't have quite as active rebounds as those stick, but it is significantly more active and unpredictable compared to foam core goalie sticks. 7/10

Performance: The huge benefit in using a lightweight composite goalie stick is the increase in movement and activeness in the blocker and stick itself. I found myself much more active with my stick, pushing rebounds away, swatting pucks out of the air, and more poke checks. The lightweight gives me more confidence in the stick and making pokecheckes or active stick plays. I found the Warrior CR1's lightweight also made my blocker quicker, I didn't think the weight difference would be enough for me to actually notice a difference, but going back and forth between foam core sticks and the CR1 I could instantly notice the difference. Pucks directed into the corners also came off faster and more aggressively allowing me to direct the puck off the glass (and sometimes over the glass) easier than my favourite foam core goalie sticks. The only reason the CR1 isn't a higher score is because of my experience with Bauer's and CCM's newest offerings are lighter and have more active rebounds and blade. 8/10

Durability: The shaft and paddle of this stick is in almost perfect condition, with only paint and paint transfer marks (from the post) showing any kind of wear. Even the blade is in perfect shape on the toe and heel, the heel is where foam cores usually break or go soft first and the Warrior Ritual CR1 has impressed me in that regards. But I noticed the blade of the Warrior Ritual CR1 going soft after about 2 months of use. Closer inspection made me realize the blade was cracked and delaminating on the top of the blade. At this point shooting with the CR1 became a challenge as I could feel the blade bending and flexing on every shot. The stick is still usable from a stopping the puck standpoint, but I lost confidence in the stick in regards to shooting, but the performance benefits (in terms of lightweight) made me continue to use the stick until the Premier 2 and 2S Pro were available.

While the shaft and paddle impressed me with durability compared to foam core goalie sticks, I have only really had 1 foam core stick break this soon on the blade (Fischer) and I am pretty disappointed in how quickly the blade went soft and broke on the Warrior Ritual CR1. 6/10

Grip: Warrior's Slide Grip is the best I have seen and felt on a goalie stick. It gives enough grip while still allowing you to poke check easily without getting caught up on the jenpro of blockers. The ribbed shaft gives a nice feel similar to how textured grips on player sticks. I feel like Warrior's choice of grip on the Ritual CR1 is the perfect compromise between full grip and gloss. 10/10

Intangibles: Warrior offers custom colours in a 3 pack of sticks, an option not available from other companies for composite goalie sticks. With that said the Warrior Ritual CR1 goalie stick feels like it is a tier down in quality compared to Bauer Supreme 2S Pro and 2S, CCM Premier 2, and True ABP 6.0. The Warrior CR1 feels similar to the Sher-Wood BPM150, in that if feels like the stick is almost a hunk of carbon fibre which ends up making up the paddle in blade attached to a shaft. The Bauer, CCM, and True all feel like the stick is designed to be a goalie stick first. I find this very hard to explain, but it is a similar feeling to picking up a no-name composite hockey stick and a top end stick from a big manufacturer. The weight is similar but something just always feels a bit off. I am not sure if this is the balance or the pingyness of the stick that causes this, but picking up the Warrior next to the other 3 and I always felt it was slightly lacking. 6/10

Overall: The Warrior Ritual CR1 is a very good performing composite goalie stick. So much so that I ended up buying 2 more composite sticks once this one went soft, but since the blade broke on me slightly after 2 months of use I was concerned about durability and ended up not purchasing another CR1 goalie stick and instead went to the competition. Since I didn't trust the durability with the Warrior to end up purchasing one, it would be disingenuous for me to suggest the Warrior Ritual CR1. If I didn't have to worry about paying for sticks I might have gone back to Warrior, but I expect my sticks to last more than 4 months of use and if I can't find a composite to do so I will end up going back to foam core options. 6.5/10