jerd31

Apologize for the following rant... I got back on the ice last June after about 15 years off (played one season of club level hockey in college, then stopped playing ice altogether since I was 18 till 36). I started at open hockeys at my local rinks, then reached out to the surrounding rinks to add my name to the list, hoping to land on a team. I requested to be put into B level play, but only found a mid-C level team that was looking for a goalie. I told them I was hoping to land in B, but they asked if I can do half the games, and have another goalie from another one of their teams' cover the over half. I agreed, played very well, and won the championship. At the same time, some of my teammates also had a B-level team, and they asked me to backup their goalie last season, which I did and played a handful of games with them, playing very well- they won the championship, too. So this season, the league told us we either had to move up, or drop our two best players as they're "too good to be playing in C", according to the league. We dropped those two guys, and are absolutely stinking it up this year. A few of the games this season I've given up 5,6,7 goals, but the last two I've given up 3 and 2. Our other goalie isn't faring much better, he's giving up around 8/game so far in the 3 that he's played. I'm super competitive and have been getting frustrated- I'm shouting at guys on the ice (not directly, but just in general shouting for them to cover points, pick up a man, put it around the boards harder, etc). On the other end, I've played in 4 of the 6 games for the B-league team since their regular goalie hasn't been able to make too many games thus far this season. I fit in with the competition so much better in B and jump on any chance I get to play with them- but, they have a regular goalie. There's also another rink I've been filling in at- the owner of the rink reached out late last year and added me to the list, and seems to text me at least 1-2 times a week to fill in. About a month back, a B team needed a fill in and I showed up. I played great, we won, and they took my number cause they needed me for the next game. I've now played 4 games with them as their goalie had an injury and a family emergency. I've overheard them saying things that indicate I'm better than their regular goalie- the team captain even outright said something like, "we'd take you in a heartbeat if we weren't loyal to our current goalie". After the last game we had a couple nights ago, one guy said, "I'm lobbying to get you as our full time goalie". One guy I hadn't played with yet asked if I was filling in or their new goalie, and they said "we have to have that conversation with the team", which sounds like they're seriously considering replacing their regular goalie with me. Anyway, it's been frustrating trying to land on a competitive beer league team. I'm loving being back in net and playing 1, 2, 3 times a week. Filling in is great as it gets me on the ice, but I just wanna find a team full time, which I get is hard when so many teams have been around for years and have the same crew. /rant

Yeah I talked to Jay about doing 4-2-1 or no break on outer roll but he suggested sticking with 4-3-1 as it will still be stiffer than what I’m in now.

“I got them for $50 babe”

Buy the Bauers and put the GT2’s on their face to serve as a bassinet for the baby. The soft leg channel combined with the soothing aroma of his/her dad’s hockey stench will ease the baby to sleep.

Circling back on this, I decided to go with a Gnetik V set that’s 4-3-1. After really paying attention to how my Optik 9.0’s behave, I realized that I like the torsional flex and want a softer boot, with a stiff thigh. After talking to Jay @ TGC, the Gnetik’s should be a bit stiffer in the thigh than the 9.0’s, with similar flex down low. Pads will pretty much be stock- 34”+2”, professor strap, no boot strap, full primo boot channel, 3” added to knee and calf straps to accommodate my thicc thighs. Pro palm in glove, other than that stock glove and blocker. Should have them early (hopefully) September. First time working with TGC, Jay has been great help thus far.

GoalieMonkey 20% off clearance for Memorial Day with code MEMORIAL20 Pure Hockey running the same 20% off clearance with code MDWSAVE20

M4 was Austin Yellow. I haven't sat in a new gen X1, but I had an E84 X1 and that was more of a wagon than it was a compact SUV.

I'm not sure about the G6's but from my experience, the G5 Sr's were definitely a little too soft for my liking. I had given some consideration to the G6's but they're pretty much the same price as Brian's and, I've preferred my Optik Sr's. But the slide plate on the G6 is intriguing- I use a similar setup on my Brian's and sliding is great on them.

Definitely keeping my eye on this as the Mach's are on my short list. What's your reasoning behind going with the 100* soft boot vs. 120* soft?

Mine used to be an F82 M4, but fiancé told me I need to get a dadmobile so I sold it for a '19 Audi SQ5. Then two months later, I lost the Audi in a flood and replaced it with a '19 X3 M40i. I miss the M4

Appreciate it- didn't know Brian's and Vaughn use the same material! I think the Optik 2's would probably be the easiest transition for me. Appreciate it, and please ramble on haha. Good point on the torsional flex- I have a fair amount of this on my Sr. Optik's and don't really mind it, but quite frankly, I'm not sure how that factors into my play and preferences. I know I definitely play better in the Brian's vs. the Warriors, but some of that may also be due to just getting on the ice more and getting back into playing. Good point- as I mentioned I definitely like the Optik 9.0's being more stiff than the Warrior's I had previously. I'm thinking I'd want something slightly stiffer, but again with at least a little flex in the boot. I have a pretty wide flare on my butterfly and wouldn't feel the need for something that caters towards a narrower bfly.

Hey guys, long time lurker here and former gsbb member that finally signed up. So after a near 15 year hiatus from hockey, I got back into playing last June. My previous set of equipment, my beloved Smith 5000’s, were beat up and smelled like they’d be rotting in my grandmothers moth-filled basement for a decade. So I needed a new set of gear and went with a Warrior G5 Sr set. I used those for several months and while I enjoyed them, I felt they were a bit too soft for my liking and had constant pop outs with the catcher. So I moved to a set of Brian’s Optik 9.0’s (their Sr set) and have been pretty happy with them overall. The pads are noticeably stiffer than the Warriors, and no more pop outs from the catcher. I told myself I’d order a full custom set when I’ve been back on the ice for long enough and know what I want. Problem is trying to figure out exactly what I want now though. I plan to call my local Pure Hockey and see what they have in store, but iirc my local one doesn’t carry much goal equipment. For reference, I wear my pads pretty loose- my strapping setup is: knee wing removed, loose knee strap down to calf wrap. Calf wrap slightly tighter than knee. No boot strap, pro laces for toe ties. Never used a professor strap or any iteration that various companies offer, not sure if it’s something I’d use but I’d be open to trying as long as it’s removable in the instance it’s not for me. I’ve got a few options I’ve been looking at and would love some thoughts/comments. -Brian’s Optik 2/Gnetik V. Honestly not sure which of these two would be a better fit. From what I understand, my Optik 9.0’s are a blend of both the Optik and Gnetik lines in a sr level pad. I think what’d work best for me is a soft boot and stiff thighrise. Seems like I can customize either to fit the bill. Primo surface seems to get good reviews, but I’ve heard other sliding surfaces are better. Glove and blocker I’d imagine would be pretty similar to the 9.0 I have today. Not sure how I feel about the Boa system tbh. I love the graphics and color choices on either, and would definitely do a solid base with some funky colors in there. Wait time seems to be the longest at 22-26 weeks currently. -Bauer Supreme Mach’s. From what I’ve read these would be the stiffest, but again I can customize and get a soft boot. I’ve heard Bauers slide great and better than Brian’s primo material. I’m a noob when it comes to glove breaks- 580, 590, 60*, 90*- I know Brian’s measures differently and not sure how that compares to the Mach. Bauer seems to have the shortest lead time at 12-16 weeks IIRC. -Vaughn SLR 3. I always thought of Vaughns as being a softer pad but apparently the SLR’s are much stiffer than the V’s. I’ve heard Vaughns sliding surface is great- I believe it was HockeyReviews on YT that said the SLR 3’s are the best sliding pad he’s used. Not familiar with Vaughn gloves and how they’d compare to what I’ve used in the past. Lead time seems to be around 16 weeks currently. I’m open to other suggestions as well- True, CCM, whatever. Thanks in advance