Hockey gear shops

[PeCh09]

Which shop in the lower mainland offers the best prices and best customer service in terms of hockey equipment? Looking to buy full player gear...

Source for sports?
Sportschek?
Cyclone Taylors?
The Hockey Shop?

Any opinions or past shopping experiences are greatly appreciated.

Thanks

[chin3se604]

honestly.. these stores are overpriced .. i suggest you order from www.hockeymoney.com and get it shipped to point roberts and pick it up .. or even get them to deliver to you... other than that... you listed all the places i go to in the lower mainland haha

[SumAznGuy]

What level of hockey are you looking at playing?

Are you a total noob looking to get into hockey?

Most sport checks/sport mart are going to be carrying middle to lower end gear, limited selection and experienced hockey knowledge may be lacking. The Richmond center sport check might be a place to check out with their new hockey section.
There is a (maybe more than one) RS member who works there.

Cyclone and THS will have experienced staff that is somewhat more specialized in hockey, but you will end up paying a slight premium as thier list prices usually are higher, especially with THS.

THS is a Source for sports. Ice Levels in richmond is also a Source for sports. I find their knowledge to be pretty good.

[jdc430]

Discounted price on older NEW gear:

http://www.the-sports-exchange.com/

[stewie]

ive always bought all my stuff from scoff's in burnaby on hastings

i still buy all my lacrosse items from there.

[PeCh09]

i would say im a average player at best playing in the ice604 league.

ive owned gear before when i was younger and have played recreationally 8 years ago.

i know i would like a nice helmet and nice skates. as for pads and stuff, maybe mid tier products.

essentially looking for a shop that has the best prices.

[SumAznGuy]

The find out what size that fits you and shop online.

Hockeymonkey is prolly the biggest online store.

[cdizzle_996]

Hockeymonkey

Or Local, the Hockeyshop.

[Leopold Stotch]

i like hockey monkey, but they have very little stock. as for skates i'd buy them locally, i'd wait for a sale at Sportchek like the friends and family one. i like to try my skates on personally, but everything else for me is fair game.


i've recently bought some stuff on icewarehouse.com good prices.

[the_rickster]

as mentioned... the sports exchange will offer you great products at great prices. for skates, they dont have top models, i think the highest they go in bauer is X:40 and One70... to go up to X:60 or One100 from a place like cyclone, you're looking at a $250+ price increase over the models i mentioned. for gloves, you can get warrior franchise, easton eq5, bauer 4 rolls, etc for $150, rbk 8Ks & easton S19 helmets are $125-$150. sticks are anywhere from $60-$150 for top end OPS, and shins, shoulders, elbows and pants are available at pretty much every price point.

as mentioned, its new equipment but either discontinued or limited sizes... sports exchange isnt an authorized dealer for all of the brands they sell, they've just established relationships with the vendors and buy left overs that the other stores wont/cant.

[mickz]

Originally Posted by chin3se604

honestly.. these stores are overpriced .. i suggest you order from www.hockeymoney.com and get it shipped to point roberts and pick it up .. or even get them to deliver to you... other than that... you listed all the places i go to in the lower mainland haha

I'd only order from Hockey Monkey if you know exactly what you want and in what size. I wouldn't take a shot in the dark and just order it online in the event it doesn't fit, especially with skates. Don't expect to get a free baking or anything either.

Originally Posted by PeCh09

Which shop in the lower mainland offers the best prices and best customer service in terms of hockey equipment? Looking to buy full player gear...

Source for sports?
Sportschek?
Cyclone Taylors?
The Hockey Shop?

Any opinions or past shopping experiences are greatly appreciated.

Thanks

You can't have both. Sportchek is OK when they have sales and you know exactly what you want but don't expect any knowledgeable service of any kind. They'll tell you stuff like Vapor skates are for forwards and Supremes are for defensemen or something along those lines.

I'd shop at Cyclones or any Source for Sports Store (like The Hockey Shop) because they'll take the time to fit you properly. Sure you're paying a tad more but try getting somebody at Sportchek to punch out your skates if needed, most don't even know what that is, let alone how to do it.

[SolidPenguin]

Originally Posted by mickz

You can't have both. Sportchek is OK when they have sales and you know exactly what you want but don't expect any knowledgeable service of any kind. They'll tell you stuff like Vapor skates are for forwards and Supremes are for defensemen or something along those lines.

I'd shop at Cyclones or any Source for Sports Store (like The Hockey Shop) because they'll take the time to fit you properly. Sure you're paying a tad more but try getting somebody at Sportchek to punch out your skates if needed, most don't even know what that is, let alone how to do it.

OP, Come to Hockey Experts inside Richmond Center sportchek, and I'll get you properly fitted for full gear if you want. You will find our Hockey staff to be just as if not more knowledgeable than any other local hockey shop.
We offer services such as sharpening, including Flat Bottom V, skate baking, punching, riveting and much more custom work.

Do not be like my poster above and generalize an entire company because of one bad experience he's had with certain associates/stores.

If you want more information, send me a PM, or come into the store and look for a Hockey associate with a RevScene lanyard. I'd be more than happy to help you out with any questions you have.

[mickz]

I'm not the only one that thinks this way about Sportchek. Many on MSH, the #1 forum for hockey equipment, share similar stories across Canada. A couple of you on here may actually be knowledgeable but it's still fair to say most of their Sales Associates selling hockey equipment are not.

No offense but where are all the non-employees chiming in about their good Sportchek experiences?

[BLUETIGER]

I dont work at sportchek and had a good experience there. Both metro and richmond.
Posted via RS Mobile

[TheSalesman]

I'v had a total of 1 good experience with a 1 knowledgable person at sportchek and that was when my friend was buying some skates.
I'v been there when they have the sales on their OPS before.
I got my skates sharpened there a few times as a LAST RESORT and the guy didn't even know what I was talking about when I asked for a 1/4 cut on my skates. He then showed me list of the cuts they can do which was 3/8 at the sharpest and said they've NEVER HEARD of anything else other then what they have there....ummmm ok.
And this happened multiple times.

But, to keep this post on topic, I get everything from cyclone and sports exchange. Mostly cyclone because I get my skates sharpened there too.

[03c0upe]

anyone know where i can get a wooden stick with a plastic blade, dont want to cut my stick to put on a plastic blade. need for floor hockey

[mb_]

^Canadian Tire?

[TheSalesman]

Originally Posted by 03c0upe

anyone know where i can get a wooden stick with a plastic blade, dont want to cut my stick to put on a plastic blade. need for floor hockey

get a wooden stick with the abs plastic blades. Don't buy those gay colorful plastic blades that bend.

[AzNightmare]

I wouldn't knock on Sportchek,
but I find it hard to think they would be necessarily more knowledgable than a staff working in a hockey specialized store.

Sportchek tries to hire someone hockey knowledgable working in the hockey department, which is good, but sometimes, it's not always the case.
And that's when you'll get some general service.

That being said, because Sportchek targets more mid range, I like shopping at Sportchek if I already know what I want.
Generally, I get my "service" from online by checking out reviews before hand on products. It depends on what you're buying.
I guess if you're buying something simple like gloves, you don't really need all that much service.

Originally Posted by 03c0upe

anyone know where i can get a wooden stick with a plastic blade, dont want to cut my stick to put on a plastic blade. need for floor hockey

http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/brows....jsp?locale=en

http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/brows....jsp?locale=en

Pretty cheap. They weigh a "ton" though.

[03c0upe]

Originally Posted by TheSalesman

get a wooden stick with the abs plastic blades. Don't buy those gay colorful plastic blades that bend.

where can i find one? those are the plastic blades which are already bent?

[TheSalesman]

Originally Posted by 03c0upe

where can i find one? those are the plastic blades which are already bent?

you can get these pretty much anywhere. ctire, sportchek, cyclone.
The plastic blade has a thin sheet of wood around the sides.

[SolidPenguin]

Originally Posted by 03c0upe

where can i find one? those are the plastic blades which are already bent?

The place that i've seen with the most selection for this is Canadian Tire.

Wood shaft, ABS plastic blade molded to it. Its stiff plastic that is already curved. Sometimes with a piece of wood inside the plastic to stiffen it up, usually wrapped in fiberglass or something.

But those things are HEEEAAAVY.

[skiiipi]

Originally Posted by mickz

I'm not the only one that thinks this way about Sportchek. Many on MSH, the #1 forum for hockey equipment, share similar stories across Canada. A couple of you on here may actually be knowledgeable but it's still fair to say most of their Sales Associates selling hockey equipment are not.

No offense but where are all the non-employees chiming in about their good Sportchek experiences?

Originally Posted by TheSalesman

I'v had a total of 1 good experience with a 1 knowledgable person at sportchek and that was when my friend was buying some skates.
I'v been there when they have the sales on their OPS before.
I got my skates sharpened there a few times as a LAST RESORT and the guy didn't even know what I was talking about when I asked for a 1/4 cut on my skates. He then showed me list of the cuts they can do which was 3/8 at the sharpest and said they've NEVER HEARD of anything else other then what they have there....ummmm ok.
And this happened multiple times.

But, to keep this post on topic, I get everything from cyclone and sports exchange. Mostly cyclone because I get my skates sharpened there too.

This is where Hockey Experts inside Sportchek will hopefully change the mentality. So far there is only 3 in BC, with another 6-8 being built this year. All hockey expert stores have 1 knowledgeable full time (usually as knowledgeable if not more knowledgeable than your independent shops), and all the part time staff are hired and trained on ONLY hockey, so thats going to raise the level of knowledge quite a bit. We also only hire hockey players for our hockey experts.

Skate sharpening is an area where we do need some work. However, if you are ever in the Richmond Sportchek, ask one of the Hockey Expert staff to sharpen the skates for you rather than the general service technician. All HX locations offer FBV (flat bottom V), and we do not charge any extra for it. ($4/sharpen).

If any of you guys have a bad experiance at the Richmond Sportchek (whether its shopping or skate sharpening related) please PM me, and I will try to address your concerns asap.

[AzNightmare]

Originally Posted by 03c0upe

where can i find one? those are the plastic blades which are already bent?

Did you miss my post right above yours?



Here are some links. You have quite a few choices. Can't really go wrong with any of them.

Yes, these are wood shaft, pure ABS blade, two piece stick. (they are factory attached, and not screwed in with a screw.
Blades are sturdy and pre-curved, and cannot be re-curved. Available in Left or Right.

http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/brows....jsp?locale=en

http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/brows....jsp?locale=en

--

Cyclone Taylor only has one kind of "wood shaft + composite ABS" one piece stick. (can't remember... could be two piece)
Trust me, I go there enough to know there's only one available model. It's a KOHO with the Ultimate 2100 blade.

http://www.cyclonetaylor.com/players...ate2100sr.html
(that's the blade, but there's a one piece wooden stick with that blade available)

--

Sportchek pretty much has nothing unless you're looking for the Easton Synergy ABS (wood shaft/ABS blade) molded one piece stick.
$30~. Blade is coated with fiberglass or something to give it a glossy finish and more durability.

http://www.hockeymonkey.com/easton-h...abs-sr-09.html
(this is the stick you'll find at Sportchek)

All these sticks are pre-curved blades, and cannot be re-curved. They aren't the flimsy elementary school sticks.
(Although Cyclone Taylor actually has them if you're looking for the elementary school sticks, aka, the gay colourful blades)

[gc800]

anyone have any experience with inlinewarehouse.com?