PRO'S CORNER: GOALIE GEAR MAINTENANCE
Now that tryouts are past for many areas, the off-season is almost over, and thoughts are beginning to turn to the new season of hockey, it’s time to think about making sure your gear is ready to go. Of all the hockey equipment, none takes abuse quite like goalie gear. From pucks, sticks, and even skates, it’s important to check your gear regularly and take care of any issues that are or can become a safety problem down the road.
Helmet
Whether you call it a helmet, mask, or bucket, you can’t deny that it is essential to your safety in any hockey game. To keep you in the game longer, check over your mask for any chips, cracks or splitting. While you can do repairs to superficial damage, any chips or cracks that have abnormal movement, are visible all the way through the mask, or have otherwise caused a piece of the mask to be missing is cause for alarm and you should replace the mask.
If the shell is okay, check over all screws, snaps, clips and straps for broken or missing pieces. These parts ensure that your mask will fit properly and stay on your head against the toughest opponents. These issues can be easily repaired with a helmet repair kit.
Last, look over the cage portion of your bucket. If it is significantly bent or there are any broken welds, you need to replace it ASAP. If you’re concerned about the condition of your mask or even if it is fitted properly, contact Jason to set up a fit appointment.
Chest & Arms
Uppers. Chesty. Body Armor… Care for your upper body protection is similar to player’s gear. Check for any rips or tears that will interfere with proper fit and longevity of the equipment. Also look for any stretched out, missing or worn straps and buckles. Again, this is an issue for proper fit and safety. If you’re concerned about the condition of your chest and arm protection, contact Jason for an evaluation and to schedule refurb service.
Hockey Pants
Your hockey pants may seem insignificant in the great scheme of things, but if they are showing their age, it can become a safety problem. Be sure to check over your pants for rips and tears or missing pads. While missing pads can be difficult to replace, Binnie’s may be able to sew back together tears and frays to get a little more life out of your pants.
Leg Pads
Your pillows are one of the most expensive pieces of equipment and should be treated as such. When it comes to caring for your leg pads, make sure you clean them periodically (a Magic Eraser does wonders) to remove excess puck marks, embedded dirt, and any other micro debris from the surface of the pads, especially on the inner “landing gear” area. If your pads are well loved, you can try to restore some of the sliding feel of a new pad with ski wax or other specially made wax protectants. These will help seal out water and fill micro-abrasions on the pad surface making it easier to move. Last, check over all your straps and buckles. Just like all the equipment above, if it’s worn, broken, or missing contact Jason about getting your investment repaired.
Gloves
Your catcher and blocker are an extension of your hands and body. Keeping your gloves in top shape can be difficult with the amount of abuse they receive on a regular basis, but if you are diligent, your favorite gloves can last many years. When looking your gloves over, as with everything, look for tears or signs of significant wear. Good news is that some may be repairable! Check over the strings in the webbing too. Gloves with skate lace webs tend to be softer from the get-go, but they are typically not as durable as the heavier cord webbing. If you see signs of fraying, slices from errant skates (or the skates in your bag), or if the webbing is significantly stretched out, consider having the pocket re-strung.
Skates
We’ve covered skate maintenance many times over through this blog. As we’ve mentioned before, to get the most life out of your skates, be sure to let them dry out properly, change the laces as needed, and get the right profile and sharpening. Improperly dried skates can lead to rusty, failing rivets and eyelets – both of which are repairable – but it can also lead to boot rot, which will have you dropping a few bucks on a new pair of skates. Get regular sharpenings to take care of the nicks and rolled edges from clipping posts, and to get the right hollow and profile for your playing style.
After reading this, do you think your goalie gear is in need of some TLC? Binnie’s Skate Sharpening & Equipment Repair can help you out! Contact Jason to schedule an equipment evaluation or repair service today so you can stay on the ice down the road.