WillyGrips13

still an appropriate use of this meme

Won Upper C in Antioch Ford Ice Center. We went undefeated. Good group. 

nice trophy 

Tournament in Nashville at Centennial Sportsplex this past weekend. The tournament had a photographer for all the games. Here are some pictures. We won one and lost two. Good news is we didn’t have to wake up early to come back for the final Sunday morning. 
I have more if you like, but we’re old-ish, so might not be all that interesting. 

Let’s see some pictures. The only pictures of the gear is what Brown sent. 

You know what he would think of her. 

Does Edmonton have the market cornered on goalies that play like beer leaguers? Pickard and Campbell play like beer leaguers trying to keep their heads above water at this level. At least Skinner looks like a professional as he plays. Of course, I root for guys like Campbell and Pickard, I’m just surprised they’re out there. 
And I know that Campbell is currently in the minors. 

Got a stick for the first time in a million years. Gift card to Perani’s for Christmas paid for it. I’ve since transferred the Buttendz grip from my broken True stick to this one. 

I can’t speak to their RECENT offerings. But, I’m still using a set of Simmons pads and gloves purchased in 2012. I did have the gloves refurbished back in 2017. I’ve been using various measures to cover wear spots on the whole set. First ShoeGoo, then electric tape, now PadSkinz. I’ve also replaced leg pad leather straps and the knee elastic velcro. But everything still functions and preforms how I like. 

Just got done playing five nights in a row. Haven’t done that in a while. I slept pretty soundly last night. 

I’ve had mine for over ten years. Gel to cushion landings. They have the garter belt attached. I’ve had my girlfriend mend all elastic and the garter belt once. I may need her to do it again. Still structurally sound. I too never get hit there so I don’t know if there’s been any loss of protection. 

Defending has just been fishing for the puck, chasing the puck around and trying to block shots for a while now. It’s hard to watch such incompetent defending. I didn’t watch hockey for a while because of it. I almost had to make a deal with myself that I just had to accept the subpar defensive play and try to enjoy the rest of the game. Goaltending has never been better, regardless of whether numbers reflect it. I’m sure the more granular advanced stats do show how good they are. Offense is more lethal than ever. The players have gotten smarter about shot and pass selection. Rarely are there many easy saves to be made. 
All this is to say that body contact is still the most effective way to stop or at least hinder an attacker in a one-on-one situation. It doesn’t even have to be a big hit. Simply having good gap control and essentially guiding the opponent into your frame will slow them down. I’m not asking for Scott Stevens shoulder-checks or Darius Kasparitus hip-checks. Just focus on the body and slow the guy down. How many “highlight-reel” goals are as much about the defender going fishing for the puck and getting undressed than the attacker being amazing? I really hope we get a return of emphasizing body contact as the primary method of defending one-on-one plays. Also covering players without the puck and defending passing lanes. Teams can’t hold leads anymore because defensive zone play is so chaotic. 

7 hours ago, coopaloop1234 said:

I still have a ways to go before I hit the coveted "old man in gym locker room" era of boldness though. 

I’ve mentioned before, the women goaltenders have better flair than the men when it comes to their gear.

What was the story behind Maltese ending? Moved on to other things? Arrested? Died? What happened?

https://www.nhl.com/news/unmasked-save-percentage-on-the-decline-despite-better-goaltending

I read this article the other day. Interesting insight as to why goaltender save percentages are going down. As you might imagine, it's NOT because goalies are getting worse.

Weren’t the Knights heavily Canadian? I think the Ducks were, too. I know more than one Canadian who are fans of American teams because of some hometown kid came from there and play on an American team. Or they came to visit their school to give a speech and made a lasting impression.

Anecdotally, I feel like the pressure playing for the Leafs must be crushing between the media and all their childhood buddies and family friends being so close at all times. 
I’m guessing the Canadian pride comes into play more with international tournaments like World Juniors, World Championships, World Cups and Olympics.

10 hours ago, Wake42 said:

Hoping to find a deal on one after they are out for a bit, otherwise that is Brown price range. 

As a certified Brown fanboy, I can tell you that the standard Brown 2400 CA is actually much cheaper than that. The current price is $839.95 CDN which currently translates to $631.33 USD. Over $100 cheaper than the CCM. 

I’ve never been able to carry my pads separately. I’ve tried to do it, but it never works for me. Either the pads are sliding down my left shoulder or the bag is sliding down my right shoulder. Maybe I have sloped shoulders, IDK? Putting them over the same shoulder doesn’t work for me either. The pads end up trying to choke me. 
For those who do carry the pads separately, do you really need a goalie bag for the rest of the stuff or wouldn’t a player bag fit everything else?

I’ve used wheel bags and shoulder bags. Been using shoulder bags for the last decade or so because I’ve lived in houses with steps and stairs that would make the wheel bags not worth it.

Currently using a John Brown 2400 bag, which I’ve had for five (?) years.

On 12/12/2023 at 4:58 PM, Fullright said:

@WillyGrips13, here you go:

 

Nice

16 hours ago, dreadlocked1 said:

Agree with coop.  Prolaces are great.  I'm on my 2nd set of TGN spec and they're awesome for me.  This time around I added small skate lace spacers for that lace-post integration that's become a talking point lately while still having bungee effect.  It's been working better with than without them.

Can you share a picture of that setup?

I use this one and have for years. One gentle pass before each game. I don’t get my skates sharpened often, maybe once every few months give or take. Immediately after sharpening I won’t use this but maybe after my third game I’ll start using it again. Works good for me. I have Graf 750 Goaler Pros sharpened at 1/2”.

It’s always fun to watch the old way to play, especially when it’s done well. Of course, most of these techniques are no longer able to be successfully applied with how the game at the highest level is played today.

Another note, I noticed many of the former goalies who were coaching in this video not articulating exactly what they meant. Numerous times they said line up with the man, not the puck. Of course, we know it’s the other way around. Also, kids take what adults say literally. So saying never or always is dangerous, because it’s at odds with what kids will discover in their experience. Sometimes is more accurate. 

@Fullright Can you post pictures of your pads when convenient? I only ever saw them from the back in your GoPro videos.

3 hours ago, Hockey34 said:

I like the black holders better 

Alright, here you go.

Do you have other places to play or other leagues at the same place to play? If so, you could always take a break from this league and focus on those leagues. Then come back to it when you think you’re ready. Or maybe skate out in this league and play goalie in others.