Brash 87 - Our Sticks, Your Game!

Happy Thanksgiving Weekend!!!

Some of you have been asking for a lighter stick so as a Thank You for your support, we met up with Donald Brashear and Jibin Joseph from Brash 87 at the CBHA Nationals to get their all new Storm 440 Pro Stock Lite hockey sticks. 

As you may know, Donald Brashear had a career in the NHL and played for several teams such as the Montreal Canadiens, Vancouver Canucks, Philadelphia Flyers, Washington Capitals and ended with the New York Rangers. 

He played a total of 1,025 regular season games for the NHL with 85 goals and 120 assists. Brashear was well known for his ability to fight and his statistics proved it with a total of 2,634 penalty minutes in the regular season totals. 

Hockey will always be a passion for Brashear. Although he may be retired from the NHL, that 

that doesn't stop him from being around this amazing sport. In fact, he was not only promoting his new line of high performance hockey sticks at the CBHA Nationals, he was playing in the tournament for the Québec Capitals. 

The new Storm 440 Pro Stock Lite is now available at Ballhockeygear.ca right HERE. This one-piece composite stick weighs in at 440g which is now the lightest stick on our site. All our sticks in stock are currently at the 95 flex with the Sakic curve. 

They retail at $179.99 however since it's Thanksgiving weekend and we'd like to show you our appreciation, we are offering the sticks $20 OFF the retail price. 

Thank you for shopping with us and we hope you have an amazing weekend!

Salming Shoes

Last week we introduced the MK5 shoes and how they were specifically designed for ball hockey. That's not all we have. This week, we're going to show you the Salming Goalie Shoes and Viper Player Shoes. These shoes have been designed for the growing sport of Floorball which is mainly played in Europe but is gaining traction in other countries including Canada. What we realized is that when it comes to running, both sports are pretty similar.

Salming has designed their shoes for optimal grip as well as many other features that can be extremely beneficial for ball hockey players. Our first stop, is the Salming Slide Goalie Shoe. 

**Please note: We'll be partnering up with Salming at our booth coming up this Thursday, August 13th to Saturday, August 15th at the CBHA Nationals in Ottawa at the Jim Durrell Centre.**

Salming Slide Goalie Shoes

This shoe is very light weight sitting at approximately 255g. Despite that fact that it feels like there's no weight at all, there is sufficient protection on the toes and along the inner sole. The material is a very durable polyester nylon providing excellent sliding properties no matter what floor surface you're playing on. So when you're in butterfly and you're trying to move across, you won't have the grip of your shoes holding you back. 

The sole of the shoe is designed with an archflex allowing maximum flexibility and a gap for your pad strap if needed. The grip on the sole gives you the grip you need for complete control on those quick side steps allowing you to have more power in your strides and slides if using a slick sheet or pad cover. 

There is asymmetrical lacing covered by an exo tongue construction that keeps the lacing in place and protected throughout the game. Here's what Nathalie Girouard, 2015 Women's Team Canada, had to say:

Salming Viper Series

Our next popular shoes are the Viper Series. These shoes will give you everything you need to increase your performance. It has a 3 layer construction for comfort, stability on lateral movements, and durability. The ErgoHeelCup stabilizes and fixates the heel giving you great fit and comfort.

The shoes come with a T.G.S. 62/75 (Torsion Guide System). That means that the distance from your heel to the ball of your foot (62% of the shoe) has been designed with extra stability and ends in the so-called "ballet" line, a 75 degree angle. In front of the 75 degree line, the shoe is equipped with greater flexibility to stimulate your foot's natural movements. All this is necessary in order to soften the strains caused by friction during lateral movements.

Another feature is the Lateral Movement Stabilizer. This unit is a light weight design integrated with dual torsion supporting your foot during fast and irregular lateral movements. The inner sole consists of a Roll Bar facilitating rolling the foot inwards and a toe push off while the outer sole has the Lateral Movement Stabilizer Plus preventing your foot from rolling outwards during those fast lateral stops.

The two biggest features of these shoes are the XR110 rubber traction on the sole of the shoe giving you extreme grip and the RunLite that features a special High Abrasion Injection EVA giving the shoes a weight of approximately 290g.

A bonus feature is the new Anti-Odour/Anti-Bacterial Inner Sole sock liner. With a high level of comfort and integrated anti-bacterial technology, the shoes will help keep your feet fresh during your game. The anti-odour shows positive effects on both mileage and your surroundings.

Make sure to check out the Canadian Ball Hockey Nationals this week in Ottawa at the Jim Durrell Centre. You can follow CBHA on twitter @CanBallHockey or on Facebook by clicking here.

The tournament runs from Monday, August 10th to Saturday, August 15th. BallHockeyGear.ca will be teaming up with Salming, August 13th to 15th, so make sure to come check out the tournament and check out our booth. 

Have an awesome week!

Shoes designed for Ball Hockey

The most common issues ball hockey players such as yourself are having right now is having the right footwear. Whether you're playing on Dek, Gym Floor, or Slab, you can't quite seem to be getting the edge you're looking for. Edge is not the only factor that's lacking, it's protection and durability. Within half a season, your shoes are torn up and those shots to the toes make your teeth grind.

The solution? Ball Hockey Shoes. That's right. There are shoes that are specifically designed for ball hockey. The MK5's, MK3's, and Mids are all designed to have a solid grip, with toe protection and durability. The MK5's and MK3's are also available in women's sizes. Each model contains similar features with slight differences.

MK5

The MK5 model comes in 3 different colours. Blue and Black for Men and Pink/Black for Women. The shoes are designed with a tire tread giving you more grip on smooth surfaces. They have been tested on all floor types, including the dek surface when there's morning due at 6am. The T-Guard is a solid rubber that protects your big toe area from sticks and shots. The shoe has also been designed with torque resistance, an anti-roll bar along the outer edge, and spy foam at some of the edges of the shoe to give more endurance.


MK3
The MK3 Model has the same tire tread as the MK5 along with ventilation in the centre of the sole. The toe protection is a little more soft but can still withstand a shot from a ball. The material used for the shoe is a little lighter giving the shoe less weight than the MK5 however this can reduce the endurance level. The MK3 will still last longer than your traditional running shoe.



MK5 Mid

The MK5 Mid is a mix of the MK5 and MK3. The tire tread remains the same as the other two models however the toe protection is at it's best. The highlight of this particular model is in the toe protection.

There's a solid rubber T-Guard for your big toe but has the same toe protection as the MK3 for all your toes. The shoe material is identical to the MK5 so it will last a long time. The mid cut design gives you more ankle support and protection.

If you're tired of slipping on the floor, not having enough traction, or you simply want to avoid this...

...then it's time to start thinking ball hockey shoes and there's no better place to shop for them than 

You can browse our shoe selection or you can click on the following images to view that shoe. 

MK5

     

MK3

     

MK5 Mid

Knapper AK Series Ball Hockey Sticks

A new brand has been released. Knapper is bringing in a whole new line of product starting with the AK Ball Hockey Sticks. These sticks take into account the nature of ice hockey and what players enjoy most, lightness in their sticks. The twist is that it is designed for ball hockey.

We spoke about ABS Blades and how they can improve the life span of your stick as well as reducing friction on hard surfaces. If you're looking for a new stick with ABS, you now have a choice. What Knapper did is they took the design of a composite stick and inserted a strip of ABS on the bottom of the blade. That way, your blade has the same Carbon/Fiberglass ratio as your stick. A very similar design was once available however today it is hard to find.

We currently have 3 different series of AK sticks in stock.

The AK5:

• Under 600g in weight
• Shaft: 10% Carbon and 90% Fiberglass
• Blade: ABS Blade with Composite Reinforcement
• 75/85 Flex
• Mid-Curve (Sakic)
• Length: 66"

The AK7:

• 565g in weight +/- 10g
• Shaft: 30% Carbon and 70% Fiberglass
• Blade: ABS Blade with Composite Reinforcement
• 75/85 Flex
• Mid-Curve (Sakic)
• Length: 66"

The AK9:

• 500g in weight +/- 10g
• Shaft: 85% Carbon and 15% Fiberglass
• Blade: ABS Blade with Composite Reinforcement
• 75/85 Flex
• Mid-Curve (Sakic)
• Length: 66"

All sticks are available on our site, www.ballhockeygear.ca, starting at only $79.99. No more splitting blades and no heavy wood sticks with ABS. You will now be able to improve the speed of your shot and keep your blade lasting much longer.

Get your stick HERE

Using BladeTape for Ball Hockey

BladeTape is not your ordinary hockey tape. In fact, it's better than your ordinary hockey tape. BladeTape will provide you with more grip and better control in your play. It has grown more popular in the world of ice hockey and it's starting to make its way into ball hockey and roller hockey. It's the new alternative to taping your stick.

                                 

Rubber better than Cloth Tape

                                                 

Cloth tape has always been the number one use in hockey whereas in ball hockey, some players don't even use tape since it adds friction to their blades against the hard surfaces. Cloth tape can provide protection and added grip however a single strip does not protect your blade and the grip is very limited. The tape also collects dust and dirt.  

BladeTape has created rubber tape with a raised cross pattern. The rubber gives you more grip and more protection to your blade. This also prevents dust from building up on your tape. Traditional tape in ball hockey is known to accumulate dust and dirt causing the ball to "slip" off your blade. 

Another feature is that you'll be able to save time from taping your stick. The tape comes in the shape of a blade so all that's required is to peel, stick and play. No more having to spend time taping your stick before the game and it lasts up to 15 games or more. For ball hockey, it has a tendency to last much longer than 15 games since the impact of the ball is much less than a puck. 

Recommended with Frontier Blades
As mentioned in our previous post on ABS Blades, which you can view HERE, BladeTape is an exceptional partner with the Frontier ABS Blades or any ABS Blade in that matter. The reason why is because BladeTape does not cover the bottom of the stick, allowing you to have 0 friction on the surface you're playing on. Unfortunately if you're using a composite blade, you won't be able to protect the bottom from splitting. That is why we recommend using ABS Blades to give you that on-ice frictionless feeling and BladeTape will give you better grip and control in your handling.

Change your game today by switching to ABS Blades and BladeTape. You will not be disappointed.

     

NHL/AHL Teams Available!!!

BladeTape is available in various colours but is also available in NHL and AHL teams. We currently only have the Canadian teams on our site however we can order all teams. If you'd like a team we don't have on our site, you can email us at info@ballhockeygear.ca to make a request. Now you can play using your favourite hockey team. 

       

         

   

Why use ABS Hockey Replacement Blades?

The big question today in ball hockey is why use ABS blades over the Composite blades? The question you should be asking yourself is why AREN'T you using ABS blades? For the price you pay for these high end sticks so that you can have the perfect flex and lightness, is it really worth it in the long run? Deals and sales on composite and wood sticks are great and they entice you to think you are saving money, but in reality you could have spent the same money on an ABS blade that would last you twice as long. Now that's a deal!

What is ABS?

ABS stands for acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (that's a mouthful), which is essentially a hard plastic. When you apply the right amount of heat, the blade can be shaped, molded or curved as necessary. This "hard plastic" is what adds durability to the blade unlike wood or composite blades. The downside to this material, is that there is a loss of feel and an increase in weight but does that actually affect your shot in ball hockey?

Ball Hockey VS. Ice Hockey
Ball hockey is a sport that is very similar to ice hockey. In fact, they're practically one in the same. The difference is the floor surface and a ball instead of a puck. It's all the difference it needs to chew up your stick. You know exactly what we're talking about. The common splitting blade.

This happens because of the floor surface. Unlike ice, there is no smooth surface when playing ball hockey. Whether you're on slab, gym, dek, or a stick's worst enemy, asphalt, the friction
between the blade and surface is no match for wood or composite sticks.

A cheap solution is to just add tape to hold your splitting stick together and problem solved. It seems easy enough except now you're adding even more friction which will now impact your shot and cause you to "stick". 

The Cure

When the blade of your stick loses it's magic, instead of spending another $100 on a new stick after purchasing one several weeks ago, simply cut off your blade and replace it with an ABS Blade. Now you'll be able to keep composite lightness of your shaft and only have your blade with added weight. Will it slow you down? Perhaps by a fraction but not entirely. In fact, you may even speed up your shot because you'll be removing that unwanted friction from your tape. 

You'll now have a smooth slide allowing you to move the ball a lot easier. You can still add tape to the face of your blade for grip on the ball. Our BladeTape is excellent for a quick and easy grip application. 

Frontier Hockey Blades

Lucky for you, Ballhockeygear.ca carries 3 types of ABS Hockey Replacement Blades that you can purchase today. We have our F-Xover Blade, F-Blue Blade, and the F-Junior Blade. 

       

The F-Xover is more of a traditional style fiberglass reinforced solid ABS blade where as the F-Blue has a shorter street hockey blade type. The F-Junior is a Junior version of the F-Blue fitting Junior shafts. Each blade have a fitting selection for regular or tapered sticks. 

What blade do you choose?