Update

Followers of THE HOCKEY CORNER,

Please bear with me as I am out of town and will be reviewing some new equipment when I get back.

300 PRO Hockey Glove Review

Brand: Harrow
Name: 300 PRO Hockey Glove
Price: $88.00 on Harrowsports.com
Features: Couldn't find any specific features on the Harrow website...

Review: The 300 PRO Hockey Glove is the standard hockey glove. What I mean by that is that there are not any special features. This glove would be fine for a beginner hockey player or maybe a younger hockey player but definitely not for the older hockey player. The glove is not durable and the palms ripped within a month. They were our team gloves this year and out of the 18 guys on my team 16 guys had ripped gloves by the end of the season. One cool thing about these gloves is that they are extremely customizable. We had our team color and logo on the gloves this year. (I would put a picture up, but threw the gloves away a long time ago.) I was not a big fan of the gloves but liked how customizable they were.

Rating: 6/10

Bauer X:60 Skates Review

Brand: Bauer
Name: Bauer X:60 Skates
Price: $359.98 on Hockeymonkey.com
Features: Hydra-Max Liner
               Form Fit 2 Tongue
               SuperFit + Footbed
               Heel Support
               Ankle Padding
               Blade Holder and Runner

Review: The Bauer X:60 hockey skate is the perfect skate for anyone. It is comfortable, durable, and it looks cool! If you want to buy this skate then now is the time to buy it. Bauer just released its newest hockey skate, the APX skate, so the Bauer X:60 skate will be a lot cheaper than it was just a couple of weeks ago. The X:60 is pretty much the same thing as the new APX skate and the only differences that a player will notice is that they look different. The X:60 skate is probably the most comfortable skate on the market and one of the safest. I have taken numerous shots off of the skate and although it stings for a minute the boot of the skate keeps me from breaking my foot. One complaint that I do have is that the outside of the skate gets beat up pretty quickly (puck marks, paint chips away, etc.) Other than that the X:60 is the perfect skate for anyone.

Rating: 8.5/10                                                                                                                                               

                                  

Bauer 9900 Helmet Review

Brand: Bauer
Name: Bauer 9900 Hockey Helmet (above picture is combo helmet)
Price: $189.99 on Hockeymonkey.com
Features: FXPP Liner
               Bio-mechanical Shell
               Poron XRD Technology
               Slow Memory Comfort Foam
               Ventilation Ports
               Microban Antibacterial Protection
               Tool Free Size Adjustment

Review: If your looking for a helmet that will offer the best comfort without sacrificing safety then look no further. This is hands down the most comfortable helmet and safest helmet on the market today. The Poron XRD Technology (which is specific to BAUER) can dissipate 90 percent of force on impact. I have a lot of friends who like the Reebok helmets but a lot of those same friends end up with concussions. I've been noticing a pattern, those of my friends who wear Bauer helmets are less prone to concussions than my other friends who wear different types of helmets. This is a great helmet but a little pricy, but you cant put a price on safety.

Rating: 10/10

Bauer Total One Stick Review

Brand: Bauer
Name: Bauer Supreme Total One
Price: $229.99. on Hockeymonkey.com
Features:  Power Core 3 Blade
               Square Dimensions

               Monocomp Technology 
               TeXtreme Carbon Fiber
               Amplified Mid-Kick Flex

Review: I got this stick a month ago and it has quickly become the best stick I have ever had. I will admit, it took a week or two to get used to the square dimensions that the Total One has. A great thing about this stick is amplified Mid-Kick flex. This type of flex on the stick makes the top end of the stick softer and easier to flex while making the bottom part of the stick stiffer and harder to flex. This technology gives the shooter more power when shooting and it makes the stick more durable so that it will not break as easily. This is a great stick and would recommend it to anyone.

Rating: 9.5/10

Bauer 4 Roll Gloves Review

Brand: Bauer
Name: Bauer 4 Roll Gloves

Price: $110.00 on Hockeymonkey.com
Features: EPP Foam
               Unique 2-piece Free Flex Thumb
               Pro Nylon Shell
               2-piece segmented fingers
               Thermo Max Liner
               Soft CLARINO Palm

Review: The Bauer 4 Roll Gloves are a great pair of gloves for any type of hockey player. The 4 Roll Gloves give the player wearing them maximum comfort and maximum protection available on the market today. Whats great about the 4 Roll Gloves is that they are extremely durable. Durability is important in gloves because now a days with gloves being so expensive your going to want a pair of gloves that will last you a long time. I have had these gloves for 6 months now and they are great. The palms are very durable which is good because one place gloves will start to wear out in is in the palms. Most gloves after about 6 months will start to rip in the palms and that will make it uncomfortable to shoot and pass. Another unique thing about the 4 Roll Gloves is that the glove is very customizable and it looks cool in any colors. Great glove for any player but on the higher end of ones budget.

Rating: 9/10

USHL VS. CHL

This is a very touch subject for most 15 or 16 year old hockey players in the United States and Canada. The USHL (United States Hockey League) is based out of the mid-western United States. The CHL (Canadian Hockey League) is based out of all of Canada. The CHL is broken down into 3 sub leagues. The WHL, OHL, and the QMJHL. The WHL is based out of Western Canada, the OHL is based out of Ontario, and the QMJHL is based out of the Province Quebec.

The CHL is considered professional hockey because all the players in the CHL are payed to play for their team. The USHL is still considered amateur because the players are not payed to play. This is where the major conflict comes in. Players have to decide whether or not they are going to take the college route or the CHL route. If players decide to take the college route than the USHL is the best option for them because it is the best amateur league in North America. If players decide they want to take a risk and go to the CHL and try to make it to the NHL than they cannot go to college and play hockey because the NCAA considers players in the CHL to be professional.  Now saying that, it doesnt mean if you go to the USHL you cant make it to the NHL, because you can! If you go the USHL route, your path to the NHL will be different from a kid who goes to the CHL because you will be able to develop your skills in college while the kid who went to the CHL will be developing his skills in the minor leagues or maybe in Europe.

With all that being said, each leagues has its pros and cons. The CHL produces more NHL players than the USHL does at this point in time, but the USHL gives a kid the chance to get a college scholarship and get an education. At the end of the day its your decision but make sure you go some place where you are happy and will do well.