During pregame warmups the ice will be littered with pucks and dozens of shots will be taken. While players love to stickhandle and shoot, nobody likes the cumbersome task of removing all of the pucks from the playing surface before starting the game.
Milk crates, puck bags, duffle bags, and pails have all been popular options when it comes to storing/transporting pucks but they all require you to bend down and pick them up individually by hand. Not only do players loath doing this but it is also time consuming. Those who don’t fancy this method can simply flip the pucks over the boards but how many pucks have you lost already as a result of that?
There is another option, The Puck Catcher (www.PuckCatcher.com).
This product is replacing my current set up of a 1 gallon Akzo Nobel (shameless plug) plastic paint colorant bucket. It can hold roughly 20 pucks so I will use the same quantity in The Puck Catcher to give you an idea of how much it can actually store.
Assembly:
It’s quite simple actually. If you have put together a hockey net before it will make things even easier as the construction is similar but on a smaller scale, especially when it comes to stringing the net. An instructional video on how to put it together is available on their website: http://puckcatcher.com/assembly/
Construction:
The steel and netting on this product are similar to the ones you’d find on a real hockey net. The fold out ramp and base are made with a high quality plastic. An adjustable nylon strap is also provided for easy carrying. The base measures approximately 37cm x 30cm and it is 33cm tall with the ramp closed.
Capacity:
The Puck Catcher advertises itself as being able to carry upwards of 40 pucks. After throwing 20 pucks from the paint bucket into this, it is indeed roughly half full. Rather than filling it up to the brim with pucks I intend on storing my water bottle in it as well.
First Impressions:
The Puck Catcher just arrived today so I haven’t had the chance to take it out to the rink yet. I was a bit hesitant to shoot too hard at the ramp at first but after a couple of pucks went in it was obvious this was designed to take a beating so I had no problem shooting harder and harder.
I am very impressed with the overall build quality of this product fresh out of the box. Though I am not surprised as this is Made in Canada and not outsourced to some unknown company off-shore.
There are already imitations of this idea out on the market but they are made with inferior materials and the companies do not pride themselves on where the product is manufactured. When given the choice at the retail level we will have preference for domestically made products over off-shore goods whenever possible.
As with many of the products we have featured on ProStockNation.com, we will check in periodically with reviews and comments. If you would like more information about The Puck Catcher please check them out at their website at www.PuckCatcher.com
– M
Professional Use Only, No Warranty. 