What's your least important piece of gear?

[Lucky Pucker]

I'm curious.

Always lots of great conversation around most important/personal gear (trappers and C/As esp), but what is your least important piece of gear?

For example, what could you just borrow from any other goalie who is same-size, same-handed, and not even notice?

Similarly, what do you spend the least amount of money on, and/or the least amount of time researching and shopping?

[seagoal]

Great topic!

My order from least to most in terms of specificity being critical:

9. Jock

8. Pants

7. Knee pads

6. Mask (assuming same cage)

5. Blocker

4. Chest

3. Skates

2. Stick

1. Glove

[seagoal]

Corollary question: if you had to choose 1 piece of gear to play without for 1 game, what would it be?

For me: jock.

 Hands down. That's where I get hit the least.

[coopaloop1234]

11 minutes ago, seagoal said:

Corollary question: if you had to choose 1 piece of gear to play without for 1 game, what would it be?

For me: jock.

You're a nutter. Even if you don't get hit there, just knowing that the boys are vulnerable like that is such a shake in the confidence that I may as well play behind the net.

For me, it's either jock or neckguard. I've been using the same ones for both for the past 7-8 years.

[stackem30]

I've never been too choosey about pants. If they fit me and they're black, I'm happy. The only pants I've ever had a problem with were a pair of Kohos that were simply too large. I went back to an *ancient* pair of Don Simmons pants from when I was 14, and I was fine. I may have gotten an extra bruise here or there, but they worked for me, despite being from 2002.

Having said that, I got a nice pair of Tackla's a few years ago, and I'm quite pleased with them. 

[seagoal]

19 minutes ago, coopaloop1234 said:

You're a nutter. Even if you don't get hit there, just knowing that the boys are vulnerable like that is such a shake in the confidence that I may as well play behind the net.

For me, it's either jock or neckguard. I've been using the same ones for both for the past 7-8 years.

Ha, fair enough.

But, the likelihood of getting hit in the nuts is slim. Most shots come head on, so we're more likely to get hit in the pecker which is way better than the nuts.

It would be horrible,  for sure. But I'll take that probability if I had to choose.

That said, I wouldn't enjoy that choice.

[Moose75]

I agonize over everything on my main gear. From cup, to helmet, to what socks I wear. I will spend several minutes before the game making sure the wrist strapping on my glove is just right.

Maybe my neckguard? Stick tape?

[bunnyman666]

When I played in a Vaughn senior chest unit, I used separate elbow pads. I forgot them, but it was too far for me to drive and get them. I cut up towels to stick around my elbows.  I watched how I fell to the ice, I agonised over it.

I can’t think of one thing I would not play with; ALL of the bits and bobs are important.

[BadAngle41]

Least Important: Laces... as much as I like waxed... I could make do with unwaxed. 

What could I play without: Socks. It would be weird... but like laces I could manage the change.

[Mroy31]

Least important: Neck guard I guess, because I don't wear one.  But I do wear a dangler.  If that doesn't count, maybe blocker or stick?  As long as the blocker glove isn't crusty or anything I could make do.

Play without:  Socks I guess

Like @bunnyman666 said, all the bits and bobs I have preferences with.  I haven't quite found knee pads/garter belt that sit perfectly yet.  Socks I get annoyed with if they only have loop velcro on the front of the sock and not the back too.  My dangler has to be a certain shape (for aesthetics), and can't make too much noise when I turn my head.  Pants have to sit up high on the waist.  C/A I'm still wrestling with, 4 in 5 years.  Even though I said I could probably switch blockers with someone else as long as it wasn't crusty, I've only used Bauer blockers for the last 15 years, so anything different might actually be pretty noticeable. 

[Math.]

Neck guard or dangler, but I'd pick neck guard over dangler I think. 

Otherwise, I could probably do without my player's cup under my "real" cup without it affecting my confidence too much.

In terms of gear I am not too picky about:

- Pants.  I'm small on a fairly small frame and I play some XL pants because they were givent to me and I never bothered shopping for newer ones, and I found a way to make it work. 
- I guess also stick as long as the paddle is the same length as my CCM Price, I probably wouldn't even notice as I don't play the puck much so curve doesn't really have an impact on my playing.
- Lid as long as it fits decent and is not overly too big or too small.  I do love my cateye though.

[Math.]

24 minutes ago, Mroy31 said:

Least important: Neck guard I guess, because I don't wear one.  But I do wear a dangler.  If that doesn't count, maybe blocker or stick?  As long as the blocker glove isn't crusty or anything I could make do.

Play without:  Socks I guess

Like @bunnyman666 said, all the bits and bobs I have preferences with.  I haven't quite found knee pads/garter belt that sit perfectly yet.  Socks I get annoyed with if they only have loop velcro on the front of the sock and not the back too.  My dangler has to be a certain shape (for aesthetics), and can't make too much noise when I turn my head.  Pants have to sit up high on the waist.  C/A I'm still wrestling with, 4 in 5 years.  Even though I said I could probably switch blockers with someone else as long as it wasn't crusty, I've only used Bauer blockers for the last 15 years, so anything different might actually be pretty noticeable. 

Dangler noise: have you tried the car door trim trick?  It doesn't mitigate ALL the noise but helps greatly and has the added bonus of protecting your mask from chipping.

Blocker: trust me there is a HUGE difference!  I'm playing a Bauer One something (One 7 if I remeber correctly) and have tried a Reebok P? and the construction and balance is WAY different.  So much so I ended up selling the Reebok.  Just didn't like the way it played.

[Mroy31]

8 minutes ago, Math. said:

Dangler noise: have you tried the car door trim trick?  It doesn't mitigate ALL the noise but helps greatly and has the added bonus of protecting your mask from chipping.

Blocker: trust me there is a HUGE difference!  I'm playing a Bauer One something (One 7 if I remeber correctly) and have tried a Reebok P? and the construction and balance is WAY different.  So much so I ended up selling the Reebok.  Just didn't like the way it played.

With my new mask, I moved the laces on the sides from the ear holes to the bottom corners of the cage (for aesthetics haha).  That caused it to rattle around a lot.  Moved the laces back to the ear holes and it makes waaaay less noise.  Not silent, but I don't notice it anymore.

That blocker story reinforces what I thought about my nitpicky preferences...even my least important piece of gear has to be a pretty specific way

[coopaloop1234]

1 hour ago, seagoal said:

But, the likelihood of getting hit in the nuts is slim. Most shots come head on, so we're more likely to get hit in the pecker which is way better than the nuts.

Got a cock of steel or something?

I don't trust my dick to stop enough of the force of a puck to save my nuts...

[Lucky Pucker]

So very much in the “don’t care too much” category, for me it’s the stick. Undoubtedly, that is partly because I haven’t been doing this long enough to be a good stick handler or anything. 

The “play without” category doesn’t even rank with me; if I feel I can play without it, it’s already gone - or else I never owned it. Bits and bobs, as said and seconded above! I guess I would say I could do without one or two more leather straps on my pads though. Maybe.

This no jock stuff is a pretty extreme birth control method. I don’t want any MORE kids than I already have, but I’m keeping my jock!

[bunnyman666]

I guess the least important piece after some thought could be my compression pants over my goal jock and knee guards. I would play without the base cup in my triple cup set up but feel VERY exposed. But still- ANY of my pieces missing and the words “this may not be fun today” flash through my head.

[TheGoalNet]

20 hours ago, seagoal said:

Great topic!

My order from least to most in terms of specificity being critical:

9. Jock

8. Pants

7. Knee pads

6. Mask (assuming same cage)

5. Blocker

4. Chest

3. Skates

2. Stick

1. Glove

Agreed on the jock and pants 

Never had much of an issue with either. I’m always interested to hear of issues with these pieces of gear 

[Max27]

Def jock. Rarely have i been hit there and never really have needed it, but just incase anything happens, i wear it

[seagoal]

See, that's rational

[Math.]

Just had a flash: Anyone who's ever forgot their sweatband home would testify to the fact that playing an entire 90m with 2 pieces of velcro (not the soft part, the scratchy part) digging in your forehead is pretty damn annoying. And it leaves marks!

[bunnyman666]

11 minutes ago, Math. said:

Just had a flash: Anyone who's ever forgot their sweatband home would testify to the fact that playing an entire 90m with 2 pieces of velcro (not the soft part, the scratchy part) digging in your forehead is pretty damn annoying. And it leaves marks!

Thank the Great Bunny I have not!!!!

[Max27]

1 hour ago, Math. said:

Just had a flash: Anyone who's ever forgot their sweatband home would testify to the fact that playing an entire 90m with 2 pieces of velcro (not the soft part, the scratchy part) digging in your forehead is pretty damn annoying. And it leaves marks!

i keep 2 extra sweatbands in my bag in case of that lmfao

[southpawtendy48]

6 hours ago, Math. said:

Just had a flash: Anyone who's ever forgot their sweatband home would testify to the fact that playing an entire 90m with 2 pieces of velcro (not the soft part, the scratchy part) digging in your forehead is pretty damn annoying. And it leaves marks!

I forgot my sweatband once, but luckily I had an extra knit ice skating glove in my bag and I cut the thick cuff part of it off and cut it again so it would be longer so I just used that 

[varano]

This is a question that can't even be asked because we all know goalies are freaks and if we get up on the wrong side of the bed or drink a glass of water with the wrong hand, its going to be a 7 goal night...

[Lucky Pucker]

17 minutes ago, varano said:

This is a question that can't even be asked because we all know goalies are freaks and if we get up on the wrong side of the bed or drink a glass of water with the wrong hand, its going to be a 7 goal night...

A 7 goal night would be a pretty good showing for me - lmao!