CJ Boiss

1 hour ago, insertnamehere said:

I'll be playing in a bit of a 3 on 3 league (cross ice games) this spring and summer, provided there's not a 3rd provincial shutdown affecting hockey, and I'm looking for advice basically on what adjustments others have made when playing 3 on 3. 

Obviously I've played some 3 on 3 in practice or just ice rentals, but never in a manner as competitive as an organized league.

Any discussion about 3 on 3 is welcome!

Since 2-on-1s happen all the time, I make sure that *everyone* on my team knows that I want them to take away the pass, unless I'm actively yelling at them to take the shooter. I'm also more aggressive about playing the puck, because it's much harder to turn the puck over on a pass when there's only 3 opponents on the ice.

Keep a close eye on the backdoor, and work on that explosive lateral movement, you're going to be doing a lot of it.

[Edit] Just saw this was cross-ice, and... fuck if I know. Losing your faceoff dots and crease and lines is a big enough challenge as is; make sure you're tapping off your posts, that's your only lifeline to knowing where your net is.

1 hour ago, Teezle said:

What difference does the thin (stock) vs. thick shin option make? What would be the reason to choose one over the other?

Pure speculation but, if the pad weight is the same, a "thick" shin would have to be using lower density foams than a "thin" shin. So a "thick" shin should flex more, and give out softer rebounds.

Probably best to ask someone in the know, however.

1 hour ago, D6_EBUG said:

Love, love, LOVE my Coveted Combo.  Ron is excellent to work with and surpasses expectations re: customer service (which is more than I can say for other mask manufacturers...).

Can confirm. Ron was an absolute pleasure to talk to when I ordered my 3:13.

3 hours ago, Teezle said:

As the article points out, this is not the case. Part of the "Operation Warp Speed" contractual agreements with the vaccine producers prevent the US government from distributing the doses procured with those funds from going outside the USA. 

If you want to argue that we should rewrite/renegotiate the agreements as we now have more than we can use, then I completely agree - but our hands seem tied until that is resolved. The government cannot, legally speaking, do whatever they want with those doses; they have to respect the terms in the contracts they signed. 

Could we spin up a separate production operation using the Defense Production Act as justification, and have its funding come from an unrelated source? Maybe, but I'm not familiar enough with the intricacies of vaccine production to comment on whether it could be done on a short enough timescale to matter here.

I was just saying that it is not as simple as packing up the extra doses in a refrigerated FedEx truck and driving them across the border, as much as we both might like it to be.

There's a difference between distributing doses the US government purchased to other countries, and not letting other countries purchase doses.

This situation is the latter, not the former.

4 hours ago, Teezle said:

We want to, but due to the contracts negotiated by the previous administration, cannot.

https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2021/04/why-the-us-still-cant-donate-covid-19-vaccines-to-countries-in-need

Emphasis mine:

 

The US can do whatever the fuck it wants with the vaccine it produces domestically. Trump's decision to prioritize vaccine distribution for Americans was an executive order, and Biden could rescind that with a flick of his wrist. Besides which, it's not a donation when  Canada's signed contracts to purchase vaccine. (and even if it was, Biden could "renegotiate" those contracts in a heartbeat, if he wanted to)

3 hours ago, motowngoalie said:

Also, Trudeau isn't exempt from scorn on this one either. He seemingly spent most of last year running from scandal to scandal instead of, ya know, prepping his country for vaccination. 

As of February 2nd, of the currently approved vaccines, Canada purchased:

• 20 million Moderna vaccines on July 24th, 2020, and optioned another 20 million in early December
• 20 million Pfizer vaccines on August 1st, 2020, and optioned another 20 million in early 2021
• 10 million Johnson & Johnson vaccines on August 24th, with options for another 28 million
• 20 million AstraZeneca vaccines on September 24th

Of the vaccines awaiting approval, Canada purchased:

• 52 million Novavax vaccines on August 27th, with options for another 20 million
• 52 million Sanofi vaccines, with options for another 20 million
• 20 million Medicago vaccines, with options for another 56 million

Our problem is not that we were slow to secure vaccine contracts (we were consistently one of the first countries in the world to secure vaccine contracts, sometimes *the* first), or that we didn't secure enough (we've got contracts for 400% more vaccine than our population needs), or that our supply chain has failed to get needles into arms (we are, and in any case healthcare is provincially administered, not federally)

The problem is countries capable of producing vaccine, like the US, are hoarding it for themselves before anyone else.

(and Canada's loss of domestic vaccine production happened under Mulroney's administration back in 1980, so blame for that falls on every administration since then. The Trudeau administration is investing ~$170 million in upgrading the NRC facility to give us domestic production capacity)

Alberta is going back into Stage 1 lockdown, because we don't have enough vaccine supplies to vaccinate the general population (thanks America), and now the variants are ripping through our communities like a hot knife through butter.

Despite that, I managed to get some ice today for some 4-on-4, on an "outdoor" rink that has its own refrigeration unit. Tried out my new G4s for the first time, and they felt great from the moment I did my first butterfly.

And now I'm probably going to have to wait until the fall for any more hockey. Fuck me.

2 hours ago, Puckstopper said:

 

Bauer has redesigned/changed the graphics on their knee pro for this year.   I haven't seen either of these in person yet to know if there are differences beyond simply cosmetic changes.

Are they not making the 4-strap Supreme models anymore?

2 hours ago, ThatCarGuy said:

No kidding. Trying to sell my G4 set and people are trying to push for $400 even though it has no wear spots, factory core stiffness (I didn’t bend them), and glove has a G5 palm because that’s all I could find. The knee binding is also repaired for them. 

That's crazy. I've got my G3 set listed for $700 CAD, had a guy try to lowball me for $400 CAD.

I will absolutely get it at the first opportunity.

If I'm very lucky, that'll be June.

5 hours ago, SaveByRichter35 said:

Lol.  I can count on one finger the amount of times I have taken a puck in that vicinity.  My five hole is completely shut when I am in my butterfly.  The one time I took a puck there was a weird scramble and it just snuck through somehow.  Until I start losing my flare I just don't feel the need to wear them...yet lol.

You haven't ever taken a puck off your trailing thigh when a guy tries to go five-hole after pulling you cross crease?

3 hours ago, SaveByRichter35 said:

I don't wear protective knee guards.  I only wear these padded sleeves because the padding in my knee lock has degraded.  I wear them under my compression pants.  Skinny calves but big thighs/quads, I can only get them so high. 

No knee guards? Brave man.

2 hours ago, RichMan said:

@SaveByRichter35 is talking about under knee pads padded sleeves, like if you wore volleyball knee pads under the knee pads for added protection when dropping into the b-fly. I can understand his delima as the friction caused between both pads could be the problem.

I am as well. I also wear padded sleeves, and I've never had an issue with them sliding down my leg, which I attribute to everything I wear overtop them.

7 hours ago, SaveByRichter35 said:

I've been using these as well.  Sometimes I have a hard time keeping them from sliding down my leg but they work great as far as cushioning goes.  I think I would have been better off getting the next size up so I can slide them up a little higher on my leg.

I've got Bauer Supreme knee guards, the ones with four segments, and I wear socks over those to keep the Velcro from catching on my pants or pads. Never had an issue with them sliding around.

47 minutes ago, ThatCarGuy said:

As the title says I’ve recently had tons of knee bruising from dropping to butterfly. I have pretty bony knees so I’m unsure if it’s just time for new knee pads (had Warrior X2 Pro for since they came out) or need to fill the knee landing on my pads with a different foam. The knee landing area on 2S isn’t exactly soft and comfy. 
Looking for solutions and/or knee pad suggestions.

I had a similar issue when I switched to my G3s, so I started wearing a pair of McDavid hex knee pads underneath my goalie knee pads. Problem solved.

2 minutes ago, RichMan said:

The thing guys is, it's like leg pads, some 6'5 guys can wear 34" or 35". I'm 6'2 and have worn 35" and 36" pads. 

My torso isn't super long otherwise I would be a 6'5 god for sure  

3 hours ago, johncho said:

Shame, I have a Passau large, and I'm finding it just slightly big. Arms fit well though.

I'm 6', 180lbs. I might try on a Medium at a store the next time I'm out.

Funny how that works. I'm 6'1, 200lbs, and my Large Passau fits really well.

4 hours ago, Maxpower29 said:

I know this is a bit old but my ball hockey gear also needs replacing. I have been buying ice gear for the month and am in a spendy mood. 

Wondering if anyone has a review on the full set of this including the chesty? 

I've been using a Passau chest protector for about a year now? Very mobile, but much more protective than my old Vaughn was. Only took a couple skates to break in.

1 hour ago, RichMan said:

 

You guys don't just shave your legs?

Look, all I know is that I feel way more flexible after switching over to a thong.

10 hours ago, Puckstopper said:

I'm not sure how this is even humanly possible.  I guess maybe the procedure wasn't "open heart" as I understand it.   My understanding is that open heart surgery involves cutting through the ribs/breastbone to allow the surgeon room to work.   I thought I also read the he had to have a valve replaced and that the typical recovery was over 3 months!  I've never been the biggest Hank fan, but damn this is nothing short of superhuman!

Full replacement of the aortic root, aortic valve, and ascending aorta; so, yeah, full-on open heart surgery. Most of the recovery apparently takes place in 4-6 weeks, 28-42 days, but to be back on the ice in 47 days? Extremely impressive.

28 minutes ago, dualshowman said:

I think you're heading in the right direction. I had to play with the height/drop of the back plate in concert with the placement of the side straps that velcro at the ribs. Having infinite adjustment EVERYTIME I put the thing on was kinda frustrating at first, so you learn by feel. Not my preference, but learnable all the same.

I only ever undo the velcro on one side of my ribs, which helps a lot in keeping everything consistent.

Markstrom sporting different pads than he used during camp. Still a white base, but he's using colourways on the face now.

1 hour ago, Chenner29 said:

1st question:

You can cut off as much as you want.  Most of the weight in your stick is going to come from the paddle and blade anyway.  The balance point is not where the paddle meets the shaft.

I personally don't think you should take more than 2-3 inches, and that to me is an aggressive trim.

Longer shaft helps you get more power behind the puck when you shoot (basic physics principle of leverage)
Shorter shaft helps you grab pucks close to/between your feet.  Better control when stickhandling (hands are closer together)

There's a point where the shaft can be too long, though. If your top hand is above your shoulder when you're handling the puck then you won't be able to keep that hand below your shoulder when you pass or shoot, and you'll lose power.

The Hockey Gods didn't want Henrik in Capitals gear, clearly.

3 hours ago, coopaloop1234 said:

Keep in mind too that they're in the middle of summer.

Stricter rule sets plus the ability to go outside for stretches at a time do help push those numbers down. Australia's numbers were high when they were in the middle of winter as well.

Sure, but their daily case load peaked at 721 back on July 30th, which I'm given to understand is smack dab in the middle of their winter season, and is better than any day Canada has had since early September.