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How Do You Properly Fit Hockey Skates?
When it comes to a hockey player’s performance, properly sized skates are a very important piece of the game. When a player wears a skate that is not sized correctly or is uncomfortable, it can cause blisters & discomfort. To avoid this, you want to ensure your skates are properly sized.
Having strong ankle support, with good stability, is vital to a correctly sized pair of skates. You want your skates to have a solid exterior to protect your feet from other skates & pucks. A strong boot also provides proper alignment so your ankles do not lack support. Usually, your skates should be about 1 ½ sizes smaller than your normal shoe size. As you try on skates, try to wear socks similar to the ones you would wear while playing hockey.
When fitting youth skates, you want to be able to place a finger in the middle of the heel of your foot & the boot. This allows room for growth in the skates. Next, kick your heel into the back of your boot. Keeping your foot flat on the ground, tightly lace your skates so your foot stays firmly in place.
Walk around in your skates to check the comfort of them. It is important to focus on a few things. You want to make sure that your heel is laying flat and not moving around when you walk. You should have a little bit of space in the toe (if your toe is lightly brushing the toe box that is okay). This ensures that the skate is the proper length. Likewise, it is also important to make sure that the width is not too tight or too loose. Skates come in many different widths depending on the make of the skate. The skate should fit snugly, but should not feel like it’s digging into the side of the foot.
Most skates are now heat moldable, so the break-in process has become much easier, but it can take a few wears to break in your skates.
For more questions on properly fitting your skates, you can contact us at 781-646-1600 or stop by our Arlington store.
Sports Etc Review: The Bauer Vapor 1X Hockey Skate
The Vapor 1X skate from Bauer has officially hit the market, and a few of the Sports Etc guys were lucky enough to have the chance to try them out. Bauer has made numerous changes to the Vapor skate line, but these were a few major takeaways from the staff after their time on the ice:
- New and Improved Tongue: The tongue on the Vapor 1X skate has undergone some positive changes from its APX 2 counterpart. The APX 2 had a 52 oz. felt tongue, which we felt limited some of the forward lean that is needed to help generate a powerful stride on the ice. The new tongue has been thinned out and a Curv composite insert has been added. This makes the tongue more similar to that of the Bauer Supreme MX3. This new and improved tongue allows for a better forward lean, as well as a more moldable material for a more comfortable fit.
- LS4 Steel: The 1X features the brand new LS4 steel, which is 3mm higher than any other steel from Bauer. The higher pitch to the blade allows for a tighter and quicker turning radius.
- Heat Moldable Footbeds: The all new heat moldable footbeds are exclusive to Bauer and the Vapor 1X skate. This makes the 1X skate truly 100% heat moldable as the “Bauer Speed Plates” mold to the bottom of your foot, while the Curv composite boot molds around the foot itself.
Bauer continues to push the limit with changes in the hockey industry and they are consistently coming up with innovative ways to change the performance of their hockey skates. We can confidently say that the Bauer Vapor 1X skate is an improvement from the APX2, and we feel strongly that customers will enjoy the added benefits of this high performance skate.
Behind the Scenes: Vaughn Custom Goalie Pads
When it comes to custom goalie pads, nobody does it better than Vaughn Hockey. Recently, Vaughn gave us a behind the scenes peek at the manufacturing process for one of our goalie customers, Casen Janko of Matignon High School.
The process begins with the custom design from the goalie themselves. In this case, Casen went with a vintage cali-tan set up, which mimics the original leather look that we sold back in the 1980s!
Vaughn brings the pad to life by cutting the outside design of the pad wrap, and hand-stuffing it with high density foams. The goalie pad is tightly sewn back together to give a rigid and firm shape for unmatched durability.
The hand-made process allows for an extreme attention to detail, which creates consistently high quality goalie pads. When we visited Vaughn Custom Sports in Oxford, Michigan it became clear that owner Mike Vaughn cuts no corners when it comes to making goalie equipment. He routinely checks the quality of the materials that go into his goalie pads himself in his personal workshop. Trust us- we’ve seen it firsthand; the same effort and attention to detail goes into making a pad for Tuukka Rask or Jonathan Quick, as it does for any customer off the street.
The resulting product for customers like Casen Janko is the reason that goalie customers keep coming back to Vaughn, and it is the reason why nearly 77% of NHL goalies are wearing at least 1 Vaughn goalie product.
CCM RBZ Hockey Skate Available NOW!
CCM RBZ Hockey Skate Available Now!
CCM, the legendary skate maker, launched it’s Freakishly Fast new skate CCM RBZ this July! This skate is setting the hockey world abuzz! The all new CCM RBZ skate is engineered to provide you the most extreme foot speed in hockey. Featuring new custom support insoles for greater reaction speed, the advanced SpeedCore composite quarter package for explosive turns and the all new SpeedBlade + 4.0 holder that increases your turning radius by up to 10% for the most aggressive angle of attack in hockey. This is Speed to the Extreme.
Not sure if this skate is for you? Well we have a fleet of CCM demo skates which you can try RIGHT NOW!!! Contact us for details!
Bauer Supreme NXG LE Team U.S.A. Composite Hockey Stick
Show Your True Colors With The Bauer Supreme NXG Team U.S.A. Composite Hockey Stick!
The Bauer Supreme NXG Composite Hockey Sticks is the most popular performance stick in the game. For a limited time Sports Etc has NXG stick in the Team U.S.A. limited edition graphic! What better way to show you’re patriotism and get ready for February 2014 Winter Olympics! As the name would imply these hot sticks are only available for a limited time and when they are gone, they are gone! Don’t delay, get your Bauer Supreme NXG LE Team U.S.A. Composite Hockey Stick now!
New Bauer IMS 7 Hockey Helmet
Bauer IMS 7 Hockey Helmet
The New Bauer IMS 7 hockey helmets combines the assets of 2 of hockey’s most innovative helmet makers. Utilizing and improving the proven Seven technology so popular in the M11 “Messier” helmet along with the know-how that’s made Bauer the #1 manufacturer of hockey helmets, the Bauer IMS 7 helmet provides a comfortable, protective, reasonably priced choice for players at any level
AVAILABLE NOW!
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