Bauer Proto-R

[GoalForFun 176]

Height: 5’10”

Weight: 150 lbs

Shoots: Left

I've been playing hockey since I was 7 with roller and started ice when I was 11. I've played as high as midget AAA but was a career AA player at best, along with high school varsity hockey in New Jersey. I've used many sticks throughout my time on the ice. To give you an idea of what I have to compare the Proto-R to, I've used:

• Nike Bauer Vapor XXX Lite
• TPS Response R8
• RBK 7K SicKick
• Easton Synergy SL
• Easton Stealth CNT
• Easton Stealth S19
• CCM pro stock with XX-stiff blade
• TRUE A6.0 SBP (pro stock)
• Warrior QR Edge
• Bauer APX2
• Bauer Vapor ADV (both retail and pro stock)
• Bauer Nexus 1NXL
• Bauer Nexus 2NPro
• Bauer 1X Lite
• Bauer Pro Custom 2NPro + Vapor 1X Lite blade
• Bauer Nexus ADV

Stick specs: 70 flex, Pastrnak (MyBauer custom)

Blade/Receiving Passes - 9.5/10

Even with the stiff bridges blade it's very easy to receive passes with this stick.  Not sure how much of that is my ability versus the stick's construction, however, I don't find that pucks ricochet off the blade even when I'm not consciously making an effort to cradle the pass.  The only minus I would give the blade is that it's not the most durable, as evidenced by the top layer of carbon peeling off after a slight chip.  It hasn't affected the actual performance of the blade, but I worry that it'll lead to a breakage soon.

Shaft/Flex – 10/10

Nothing much to elaborate on here, the traditional shaft taper with the Nexus hybrid corners has started to grow on me.  My Pro Customs had the square corners found on the Supreme, but since that was not an option on these limited customs I could not pick it.  However, not missing the squared-off shaft at all.  As far as the flex goes, I will say that the stick responds fairly quickly to my inputs.  I can confidently say that this stick gets pucks off as quickly as my Vapor ADV does.  I don't know if that's the boron-infused carbon working but it's definitely noticeable as I can get shots off in traffic faster and passes come off the blade faster before a defender can execute a stick-on-puck defend.

Stickhandling – 10/10

Others may disagree but I find that stiff blades are better for stickhandling than softer blades, particularly when it comes to heads-up stickhandling as the extra ping from the blade allows me to feel where the puck is on the blade better than a dampened feel.  The bridges blade is certainly the reason for this, and I'm glad that Bauer finally put an XX-stiff blade on a mid kick stick available to retail customers. And the light weight of the stick allows for quick maneuvers in traffic.

Shooting – 10/10

As mentioned above, this stick releases shots faster than a traditional mid kick does, probably because of the boron construction paired with the bridges blade.  Can't find any fault with how the stick performs with respect to shooting.

Weight and Balance – 10/10

This stick weighs 354g without tape which is lighter than the retail Vapor ADV and Nexus ADV.  Many players lament light sticks, but I love them.  A lot of the complaints come down to puck feel and balance, but I think that's a factor of the entire stick construction rather than just the weight itself.  I didn't like the blade feel of the Vapor ADV despite the lightness of the stick, and I actually did like the blade feel of my Pro Customs despite the heavier weight.  This stick also feels very well-balanced as in that it does not feel blade heavy in the slightest.  Having picked up the newest Bauer Twitch stick and also held the AG5NT, both of those sticks claim to be lighter than the Proto-R (for the AG5NT I believe it; the Twitch less so) but they are so blade-heavy that they feel heavier than the Proto-R even if that isn't the case.

Durability – 7/10*

This is the only black mark against this stick.  Like many players have experienced with the AG5NT, I have experienced what I believe to be premature breakage of the Proto-R.  Durability has to be sacrificed in the name of weight savings, however, I have already broken one Proto-R after only 4 men's league games of use (roughly 4 hours of total on-ice play) and the blade on another is starting to flake and peel (as mentioned above).  I hope that my warranty replacement and remaining stick from my original order don't suffer the same fate.

Intangibles

The graphics are cool, reminiscent of the Supreme 1S 2.0 combined with the APX2 livery.  However, not the best graphics I have ever seen on a stick.  If Bauer allowed a graphic mix-and-match like they do now with the Pro Custom offerings, I would choose to go with the Twitch or Hyp2rlite graphics.  I went with the blue color and will say that I love how it looks mixed with the "rainbow" effect of the holographic chrome.

Conclusion – 10/10

Bottom line: I initially said that the Nexus ADV was the best stick available for my play style, and at the time that was the truth.  However, since the release of the Proto-R I think that I will continue to use these for as long as Bauer offers them on their MyBauer customizer.  The perfect blend of lightweight and balance, stiff blade, and quick release on par with a low kick.  I will be very sad once the Proto-R is phased out of their customizer, and I don't have the funds presently to hoard more of them... hopefully by the time I do have the money the stick will still be available for customization.

Edited November 12 by GoalForFun