Intermediate vs Senior for blocker/trappers?

[giogolf 9]

Hey All,

From what I gathered from most forums intermediate vs senior is just a small sizing difference, but quality and protection is equal. What do you guys know or think?

Reason I ask is I came across some Eagle Sentry Intermediate Blocker/Trapper from Goalie Monkey $49/$69. Since I am starting out and looking to piece everything together this looked like a good deal. Are these going to be smaller that senior, because they say they are both NHL legal? Thanks all

[Law Goalie 147]

Believe me, this sizing thing is a mess...

So back before the lockout, there were three basic sizes of gear: Senior, Intermediate and Junior. Some companies made Youth as well, but we'll leave that out. On top of that, you had quality designations indicating professional-grade gear: Sr. Pro and Int. Pro (and a very little Jr. Pro) indicating that even in the Int. size the gloves were built to professional standards of workmanship, protection, performance and durability, as opposed to price-point gear. The old Senior size was HUGE: usually a 47-48" perimeter on catching gloves and 9"x16" blocker boards to go with the old 12" wide pads. The old Intermediate sizing was closer to the current NHL spec: 45-46" catchers, 8x15" blockers, and 11" pads, generally speaking.

Post-lockout, all of this went out the window. The new NHL specs were introduced right where the old Int. size was: 45" trapper perimeter, 8x15 blocker, 11" wide pads. The old Sr. size was completely abandoned.

As of now, Int.-size gear is basically all price-point gear. Very, very rarely, you might see a pro-grade piece for smaller hand sizes (ie. internal glove on the trapper, palm on the blocker), but I can't name a single instance of this off the top of my head. The new Int. designation is essentially about quality: if you buy Int., you're buying cheaper, less protective, less durable gear that's a little smaller than NHL-spec to bridge the gap for a smaller kid.

Two things suggest that these Eagles are the new, lower quality Int. gloves: first, they explicitly say "NHL spec", which makes me think they're post-lockout; second, while they 'look like' they're Senior Pro counterparts, the construction is totally different. The best way to confirm would be to call GM and ask where they were made: Eagle shipped its price-point construction offshore right after the lockout, IIRC.

[giogolf 9]

Two things suggest that these Eagles are the new, lower quality Int. gloves: first, they explicitly say "NHL spec", which makes me think they're post-lockout; second, while they 'look like' they're Senior Pro counterparts, the construction is totally different. The best way to confirm would be to call GM and ask where they were made: Eagle shipped its price-point construction offshore right after the lockout, IIRC.

Thanks, I will call GM tonight if it is not late and see if they can tell me where these are made. Buying gear would be alot easier used or new if I had a shop in NJ that has a decent selection to try things on and handle the gear a bit. Thanks, Gio

[hamstercaster 2]

I just went to the goalie monkey website and can confirm that the blocker and trapper you were looking at are not pro gear and I would not buy that. Notice how it says Sentry 1 on the trapper. Sentry one is only intermediate and senior gear, not pro. If you don't mind paying a few extra bucks, the Eagle Fusion Pro at 144$ is a good deal. I paid less on my side of the pond on Ebay but they are pretty much non existent on Ebay anymore. Look for the PM1 Pro or Eagle Fusion Pro blocker to match at 89-99$ and you have yourself a pretty good set of gloves for less than 250$. Hard to beat on new gear for sure. I like my Fusion Pro trapper. Nice deep pocket, well built and protective. The blocker should be equally as good.

[Law Goalie 147]

Thanks for the confirmation hammy - figures that I'd spend all that time scrutinizing the pictures without seeing the "Sentry 1" designation!