Abraham Simpson

** Sold **

Glove was only used for on-ice testing/comparing of 580/590/600 breaks. This particular goalie is gravitating towards a 600.

Almost new catcher. Used for no more than two hours, so it doesn’t stink and there are no visible puck marks. All black with silver/white logos and stitching made for The Goalie Crease. Double T pocket; combination of skate laces (outer) and nylon (middle). Beautiful glove for anyone looking for a 580 break. CCM “Game Ready”. We never baked or soaked it, so you can still shape it to your liking. CAD$300 + $30 shipping in Canada — shipping may be a little higher to the U.S.

I’ve been buying goalie gear for 12 years, and usually start snooping-around stores in the spring to snag deeply-discounted gear that is about to replaced by the new lines, which are typically released by May. I’ve never seen the existing inventory this low before, both on-line and in-store. I could actually see the colour of the walls in some stores, where normally I’d see a wall of pads, sticks or gloves. I expect supply-chain issues will also hit the new releases pretty hard, especially for stuff made in Asia. One salesperson told me that the new Mach line might even be delayed until late June or early July. And when they’re eventually available, I fully expect new gear prices to be at least 10% higher this year given the elevated shipping costs and production delays.

My kid has a few of the new Christians in his stick graveyard, both foam core and composite. They’re used exclusively for practices, with high-end Bauers being used exclusively for games. Pros: Relatively cheap, can customize the colours and can take a decent beating before they finally snap. Cons: The composite stick is pretty heavy, and the foam core heavier still. They tend to get damaged easily — had to tape the shaft a few times to minimize splinters. Not great for playing the puck. Buy again? Probably not. Best bet is to snag older high-end twigs in your favourite retailer’s clearance bin.

We know the feeling ...

Kid’s first skate with the 2X Pros after 15 months with the 1S. Initial impressions: 1. Very lively rebounds. We opted with the stiff thigh flex on the 2X Pros — definitely stiffer than the 1S, but the 1S pads may have softened-up a lot over the past 15 months. 2. Given the thin profile of the 2X you’d think the pads would be lighter than the 1S, but in fact they’re more heavy by about 8 oz. 3. Glove is definitely game-ready. About the same as the current condition of the 1S, but the latter required 15 months of use, and a lot of baking, to reach that state. 4. Terrific controlled rebounds off the blocker, but much quieter than the ultra-loud 1S blocker.

Arrived today — black/orange/silver colour scheme (just in time for Halloween). We got a decent deal: $0 for the custom options, and 15% off the whole set because we bought three pieces of gear.