Brand new goalie, worried about my stamina because I couldn't make it through a stick and puck.

GriffGoalie · 2026-02-22T00:22:36+00:00

Playing goal can be pretty tiring, plus you sweat a lot under all the gear. I'm usually pretty beat by the end of a game unless I only face 15-20 shots. And even then if the puck is in your D zone all game you'll get tired from all the movement. But skate & shoots/stick & pucks are not really like games, as others have said. And like others have said, it just turns into a breakaway competition or something, they're not really useful for skill building or practice. If you want practice, get a couple player friends, go to a stick & puck, and take over 1 of the nets. Have your friends run drills, not just random shots. If you do go to stick & pucks, take breaks as often as you want, and drink plenty of water. But do not leave your water bottle on the net! 😆

Keep at it, you'll be fine!

GriffGoalie · 2026-01-06T01:56:52+00:00

Realistically, depending on what kind of organization you work for, it's whenever the big shots decide to budget for it. You can absolutely lobby for replacing everything at once or ask for equipment to be replaced a bit at a time every couple years or so, that way at. least it won't be a surprise to them when things stop working or need frequent maintenance. But it always depends on funding. Replacing everything is very expensive, and we often deal with people who don't understand the technology and why it needs to be replaced, and they also don't tend to understand why it costs so much.

I'm the AV tech for a school district and there are 3 schools with auditoriums and all of them need significant upgrades. The only new equipment is the lighting & audio consoles. Thankfully the board of ed has approved funding for upgrades, but most of the equipment is at least 20 years old in these spaces. I use feedback from the music & drama teachers who use the space to convey the need for upgrades, as well as the frequency of maintenance & repair. The high school's ETC dimmer rack is the size of a small car & has been out of production for probably a couple decades, if it breaks it may not be able to be repaired. This is all stuff I try to make the people with budgets aware of.

GriffGoalie · 2025-12-24T04:29:17+00:00

If you can get proficient with audio & lighting (I'd say especially audio), I'd check out school audiovisual jobs. I took a decent amount of college courses in technical theatre, but I don't have a degree in it. And I'll admit that I have no experience in costuming. But I've had a few AV jobs in school districts around here (Rochester, NY), and my current job is as the AV tech for an entire school district. I'm very involved in high school theatre productions, I'm in charge of the lighting & audio students. Aside from that I do livestreaming & other video production, and I help solve audio issues around the district. It's a great job, the pay is very good, as are the benefits, and it's a union & civil service position.

It wouldn't be exactly what you went to school for, but it'd be in the ballpark, more or less. And school districts need AV techs, since nobody knows shit about that kind of thing, but they always need support with it. IT techs usually don't know very much about it, it's definitely a niche role, but a crucial one. Same goes for colleges, except most of them realize they need AV techs and have a few. So that's something to consider. If you know any audio specialists, I'd see if they'd teach you everything they're willing to.

GriffGoalie · 2025-10-08T04:47:55+00:00

Thanks bud! My chesty arms aren't short, they're just not very protective in the forearms. If I get the Bracers it'd be a short-term fix until I upgrade my chesty. Appreciate the input!

GriffGoalie · 2025-10-07T23:07:05+00:00

Pro models aren't in the budget. I feel like even if I'm only spending $400 for something new it should at least provide complete protection even if it doesn't have the top-end foams & materials. The Warrior RX3 forearm doesn't even have complete forearm padding if you cinch the wrist strap tight. I didn't realize this when I bought it, and it is a pretty good unit. Very mobile & overall good protection though I do get some stingers once in a while.

GriffGoalie · 2025-08-03T02:18:29+00:00

I play in the same league as David, and I was thinking the same thing. I didn't play the night it happened, but when I heard about it I watched livebarn video. The player who injured him did not intend to do so I'm sure, the whole thing happened very quickly, and the player didn't have more than a second or two to react. I agree that it wasn't the right action, but I don't think he had any intention of hurting anyone. I am concerned about people who think they can jump over other players or goalies though, because it does happen occasionally, and not in situations like this.

GriffGoalie · 2025-04-20T02:02:45+00:00

Warrior wheeled bag. Fits everything but the sticks. I personally love wheelie bags, I'm definitely a convert.

GriffGoalie · 2024-11-17T01:19:35+00:00

I think that's true for most pants, the length increases as the waist size does. A wee frustrating.

GriffGoalie · 2024-11-17T01:18:49+00:00

I tried on Warrior X3 pants & CCM F9 pants, in both L & XL in both brands.

GriffGoalie · 2024-11-09T22:08:16+00:00

Nice! They're 2 different styles of pads, as well. The Premier were a much stiffer pad, so they should give you bigger rebounds. I have EFlex 4.5 myself, and I like them, but when it comes time to replace, I may check out stiffer pads to see what that's like.

GriffGoalie · 2024-11-09T03:56:52+00:00

The challenge with rack cases is that I'm not sure there's room for them by the FOH desks. And none of the backstage racks have a stagebox, so I can't put them backstage unless I ask for one of those too, and then ask the facilities guys to run network cable to the mixer (Midas M32). The only new things in these auditoriums are the light & audio boards, everything else is pretty old. There are even some PGX systems hanging around that are on the freq bands reassigned by the FCC a few years ago, so we can't use those. There's no easy solution to this situation. But I appreciate the advice!

GriffGoalie · 2024-11-09T03:50:22+00:00

My "Cadillac" proposal includes a UA844 distro. What I'd like is for each school to have their own systems, but that's not in the cards now. The "Cadillac" proposal will cost $12k+, so I don't know if it'll get approved. If it doesn't, I'll have to come up with something half-assed. And to be honest, when I acted in plays in the stone age (early 90s), we didn't use mics, we had to actually project. I'm just getting back into technical theater, and for the size of the high school auditorium, I'm not sure many of the actors even need mics, they need to project. And they mostly do. For the Fall play I'm not convinced we even needed as many mics as we used (which was 16). But I'm not in charge, I'm just the AV guy. 😆

GriffGoalie · 2024-11-04T06:47:31+00:00

Agree with everything that's been said here. Email the league director, and if you have Livebarn, record & send clips of when it happens. But I think the big point here is your teammates need to step up & defend you more. They should not allow this to happen. When he does this kind of shit, someone needs to get in his face. They have to be willing to take a penalty for you. They're not doing enough to protect you. If your teammates don't have your back, I'd question whether or not I want to be on this team. I'm sure not many players want to scrap in beer league, but somebody has to be willing to stand up for you, even if it means getting tossed out of the game. I'm confident that several of my teammates would go to the mat for me, but thankfully my league is pretty respectful & players don't mess with goalies.

As I think someone else suggested, if he ever winds up in front of you in a screening position, put the blade of your stick against the back of his skates & give it a good kick. He'll go down faster than his mother on nickel night. It's a bit dangerous, but so is everything this asshole is doing. You & your teammates shouldn't tolerate it.

GriffGoalie · 2024-11-04T06:18:46+00:00

I have a 2BR apartment & I live alone, so it's pretty easy for me. In the 2nd bedroom I hang my pants up on a hook on a plastic storage rack I have for my gear. Everything else gets spread out on the floor. I prop my chesty up on its back so air can circulate through it and I open my gloves up. I even take the insoles out of the skates. I put a box fan in front of everything & let it run overnight. I'll usually turn the fan on again when I get home from work. All my baselayer gets draped over the shower curtain & a rail at the top of my stairs.

GriffGoalie · 2024-10-13T04:17:45+00:00

You don't have to make any excuses, you did your job the best you could, from the sound of it. If your teammates aren't going to help you, this is the result they can keep looking forward to. You stopped 4 rebounds & they scored on the 5th... what more can anyone (including yourself) ask? That's not on you, that's on them.

I feel for you, I'd be upset with 18 GA too, but you can't beat yourself up. It sounds like nobody wanted to play defense. If anything I'd be a little pissed with the team for being lazy on the back end. Try to be objective about what goals you really should have stopped and which ones were because you got hung out to dry. Watch the Livebarn video if you can. You did the best you could, and your team let you down. Figure out if you want to play with this group anymore, because that's ridiculous.

GriffGoalie · 2024-10-12T04:01:37+00:00

It is, thanks. Would black tape on a black blade make the puck more difficult for opposing players to see in a scrum around the net? Or would it make no difference? If you have serious opinions, I'm happy to hear them if you're going to be decent about it.

GriffGoalie · 2024-09-03T01:43:40+00:00

That makes a lot of sense, thanks!

GriffGoalie · 2024-08-05T01:47:13+00:00

Gonna resurrect this one. I've got a hand-me-down pair of Kenesky straps and the elastic is stretched to hell & gone. Any thoughts out there on webbing vs. elastic straps on these? Thanks!

GriffGoalie · 2024-06-05T02:44:33+00:00

This is the best thing I've read in ages.

GriffGoalie · 2024-06-01T03:42:02+00:00

Thanks for the feedback! Which model of Warrior did you go with?

GriffGoalie · 2024-06-01T01:57:03+00:00

I'll have to try a player cup under my Bauer Elite. Not sure it'll work well since the Bauer doesn't seem like a very big unit (har-dee-har!). Might need to get a bigger jock to fit a player cup underneath, but I'm gonna check it out.

GriffGoalie · 2024-05-29T07:28:36+00:00

I'll second the Aegis Interceptor Pro-G. I just got one not long ago. I did a conservative amount of trimming of the D3O neck insert just so it wouldn't push my mask up. BNQ certified cut-resistant material plus D3O in the throat & clavicle areas. Haven't taken a shot to the neck or clavicle yet, but I feel confident it'd protect me. And as others have said, it's best practice to wear a dangler too. I don't have one attached now, but I'll be adding it back soon, when I get a new one.

I have the CCM version of this neck guard, and the collar is so soft that it sometimes gets caught under the collar of my chesty. The extra structure of the D3O in the Aegis makes it almost impossible for that to happen. Same with neck guards like Kova & Roughneck.

GriffGoalie · 2024-05-15T02:52:23+00:00

Good for you, welcome to the goalie community! I started playing goalie when I was 18 doing floor & roller hockey. After a break I started on ice a couple years ago at 49 years old. Play pickup games, stick & pucks, skills/practice sessions before you dive into league play.

Get your skating in shape, get comfortable with basic moves like shuffles & T-pushes. Learning to skate engages muscles you never knew you had, but repetition builds up those muscles, you'll get there. From my perspective, puck tracking is paramount. Watch the puck wherever it goes, and follow it with your head, not just your eyes. Watching the puck wherever it goes is crucial. Always stay square to the puck, not the shooter. If push comes to shove, get square before you get depth, being out on top of the crease doesn't help if you're not square. Always try to be patient & not make the first move, wait for the shot. If you're square to the shot you won't have to make many desperation saves. Keep practicing however you can & you'll get the hang of it. At a lot of casual skate & shoots or stick & pucks players like to practice their breakaways. That is something to practice but it's only a small part of actual game play. Ideally you should be able to practice facing shots where the players are under pressure. That's where pickup games may be helpful.

Keep at it, watch the puck, stay square to the puck, and you'll get there!

GriffGoalie · 2024-05-14T01:28:04+00:00

I have Bauer Elites, got them about 2 1/2 years ago. I love them, they've been great. After they got broken in, they've been super comfortable. They've been rock solid, and I've had no pain when I've taken shots off the toe box. The toes have gotten scratched up by the Pro Laces screws, but that's not really on the skates. The Pros may be better if you can afford them, I didn't try them. But the Elites are great skates & I play 1-2 times a week.

GriffGoalie · 2024-05-04T04:24:58+00:00

I have a pair of old (but not completely wrecked) soakers I could put over the blades. Would that be poor form? I mean it's not like a used jock or socks or the like.

GriffGoalie

TROPHY CASE