CCM Tacks 7092

[Cosmic 178]

Recent Stick History: STX Surgeon RX2.1, Warrior QR Pro, Easton Mako shaft with Warrior blades

6'2, 215 lbs

Position/ style- Winger/ JVR- I like to stand in front of the goalie, create a problem for the opposing D men, and try to deflect shots and knock home rebounds. I can fire some wristers too, when opportunity presents. Definitely not a dangler, not a great skater, but I am strong enough and have an athletic background. Sometimes I put my whole body into my shots, which slows my release. Other times, I like to shoot without any load, which makes for a weaker shot but a quicker/ more masked release.

CCM Tacks 7092
P30
75 Flex
Grip

After having been through about 10 blade patterns (Easton Igninla retail, P88 Kane, P28 Yakupov, P92 Backstrom, PM9 Stamkos, Base BC71 Malkin Pro, Sheiffele pro stock shaved down at the toe),  in the last couple of years, I saw the IceWarehouse CCM P30 blade video. I had to question if I was dreaming, as I often thought that a P88/P28 hybrid would be perfect for me (which it turns out to be). I had heard great things about the Tacks sticks- specifically the Ultra tacks, and then saw that the 2.0 line was going back to some Ultra Tacks features (like the soft handle), so I gave the stick a try.

Blade/Feel: Incredible. I have never enjoyed a stick with terrific puck feel (I heard that certain sticks had good feel, just never tried them), as I have never splurged on a top-of-the-line stick (either go one down from top, or 2 piece). This blade is crisp. I do not like a dampened feel, and I have never felt pingy. This blade is also very stiff, which I like, as I am 6'2, 215 lbs and work out alot. So, when I feel that I have flexed the blade, and then the puck does funny things, I am not happy. This blade is always reliable. When a pass hits the blade, it makes a "crack" sound as when a wooden bat hits a baseball, and the feedback in the hands is perfect as well. I know the puck has arrived, but there is no vibration, and it just gives a nice feel into my hands. I think that the blade is last year's top of the line Super Tacks or Ultra Tacks blade. I would love to try the 2.0 blade, as I can only imagine it must be better (or perhaps not, and I am just speculating),
10/10

Shaft: I had not used a mid kick, so this was a bit of an adjustment at first. (Now, I struggle with using my QRL pro stock low kick.) The mid kick, coupled with the soft handle and stiff hosel, does not seem to make me lose any speed of release on wrist shots. Everything is much more accurate though, since I feel I can control the blade a little better, when the stick is flexing in my hands, instead of way down at the blade. This is more a Cosmic/ relationship with low kick and mid kick issue, than a Cosmic relationship with this 7092 Tacks stick in particular. As I never used a mid kick before, I did not really know what to expect. Everything seems good now that I have adjusted. Just a note, that I added an internmediate STX Surgeon RX2 end plug, to give me a more natural finger wrap on my top hand. When I have an STX Surgeon RX2 or this extension as the end plug, then I pretty much catch every routine pass. With a traditional T shaft geometry in my top hand, catching easy passes can quickly become a trainwreck.  
9/10

Flex: When this stick was fresh out of the box, the flex seemed perfect. However, once I "broke the stick in," (fired a ton of shots, and compromised the integrity of the fibers- standard for any stick that I get my hands on), and have since used it in a couple of competitive games, it is now too whippy. My fault. I heard that it was a stiff stick, so I went admittedly low on flex. I should go either 85 or 95, and will likely buy both in the near future, and figure out which one suits me best. No rating really necessary- the stick flexes where it is supposed to flex, it rips shots, and it does what it is supposed to to. For casual outings, I think the 75 ought to continue to work for me.  For more intense games, I think I need 85/95 flex.

Weight:  I think the weight is around 450-460, pretty ok'ish for this price point. Very well balanced, so it is hard to tell the difference between this and my pro stock QRL, if I have my eyes closed.
9.25/10

Shooting: It is hard to separate the P30 blade pattern from anything having to do with shooting. In order to do so, I would need a bunch of sticks with the P30, so I can rate the different sticks. I think that Tthe blade pattern (P30) makes my shots spot on. I literally scored about 15-20 goals in pickup a couple of nights ago (it was 2 hours, and we had 2 subs, and for whatever reason, the other team's speed, that had subs, was mirroring our team speed). So, just having time to get to where I wanted to shoot, pick a spot, and then get the puck past goalies from spots in close enough (15-25 feet) that they had no chance to react, says something for the accuracy features, as well as the power and quick release that this stick offers. A couple of nights later, in a competitive game, I do not even think I got any shots on net, because I was leaning on the stick so hard (to prevent stick lifts) that I was noodling it and could not control passes or get my shots off. This was when I realized that I need a higher flex. Again, not the fault of the stick, just my own failure to know ahead of time, how this stick would react to the full force of my weight on it.
9.5/10

Durability: After 1 skate, I noticed some little dents in my first stick's blade. I contacted CCM Warranty, they sent me a 2nd stick, and said "keep the first stick." (Thank you again, CCM) No dents in either stick since then, and both are going strong.
9.25/10

Verdict: This is a great all around stick. I have really no feedback for how to improve. My main intention of writing this review, is to provide CCM people reading this form, feedback on how the P30 is working with this stick. Love the blade pattern, the stiffness of the blade itself, and the soft upper handle and mid kick, and how everything ties together. All of these are new features for me, and they seem to be working harmoniously. The only issue that I am having is dialing in my flex, but anyone who knows me (Farmer's walks with 100 pound dumbells in each hand, leg press with 7-45 pound plates on each side, lat pulldowns with the entire rack, pushups with a Swiss ball under my hands, and another under my feet, etc.), and sees the 75 flex always responds the same way, "Are you serious? You need 90-100 flexx!" What I have learned, is that in low intensity games (where I am shooting with lazy mechanics, and not leaning hard on my stick), this flex is indeed pretty much perfect. However, in higher intensity games, this stick is noodling under the force on my leaning into it on stickhandling and shooting. 

Regardless, this stick is pretty much perfect, with the slight modification that I make, to accommodate my my lack of hands: the Surgeon RX2 end plug). Most guys like the T shaft geometry though, so this is more of an issue of mine, than an issue with the stick.