Ice hockey equipments for a young boy (Raleigh: house, buying)

[xiaoyue]

My son wants to play ice hockey. Where to buy those equipments for a starter? Ice house rinks where he will be taking classes in sell them, but expensive. Any other suggestions?

[MaimounaKande]

For good condition used eqipment, have you tried Play it Again Sports? There are a number of them in the area--you could call around and see if any of them have any. They always have new things coming in, so you never know.

Also, how about ebay?

[lamishra]

Try the second hand sports shops first! PLay it again Sports and Second Chance sports.

[bluedevilz]

Originally Posted by MaimounaKande

For good condition used eqipment, have you tried Play it Again Sports? There are a number of them in the area--you could call around and see if any of them have any. They always have new things coming in, so you never know.

Also, how about ebay?

I would second the eBay notion...

Maybe not so much on Play it Again Sports....my personal experience with Play it Again is the equipment isn't THAT much cheaper than what you would pay at Dick's or Omega for new stuff...(sometimes MORE expensive, I ended up returning some beat up LAX sticks I bought for my daughters when I found NEW ones at Dick's for less money)

Also look at Craigslist....

In the Northeast, many rinks sponsor "swap meets" where parents can trade skates and equipment their kids have outgrown with other parents or just sell the stuff often at great prices, check with the local rinks here to see if they do something similar

[halln27]

I second all the recommendations about craigslist, ebay, play it again. As for finding a specialty shop, there is a place in North Raleigh that specializes in hockey equipment. Its in the plaza off of Six Forks and Strickland near Rudino's Bar.

[lamishra]

The Ice house actually has their own ebay store. I think you can access it from the Ice house website. If not, go onto ebay and search icehouse or icehouserinks in ebay stores.

[Crooklyn Lover]

If you would like depending on his age and desire he can try roller hockey first, the start up cost will be a lot less. At least if he decides to quit, he will be still able to use the roller blade for general skating until he grows out of them.

The biggest problem you are going to run into no matter what will be finding proper fitting skates. You don’t want to buy them too big or too small because that will cause problems with comfort, safety, and proper skating mechanics. If you buy them that fit just right, you may run into the problem of him outgrowing them quickly which may be a financial burden for some parents.

For items such as sticks, gloves, helmet, and shin pads you can try Play It Again Sports, visit the pro shops at the ice and skating rinks, you may be able to find those items on clearance. I would not suggest Coolsports, their prices are just outrages on most items.
What I have done with my son is have him try on the equipment at the store to make sure they fit him properly and compare the prices with retailers online, some will not charge shipping depending on the purchase amount. Plus, with hockey season being over a lot of the higher quality gear are being sold sometimes up to 50-70% off the season price.

[xiaoyue]

Thanks everyone for your suggestions. They are all great. I tried Craigslist. No reply so far. I tried ebay. The sizing is tricky. But, they seem have lots of selections. It takes time to go through all of them for an ice hockey dummy. We went to Play it again. There are couple things fit his size. We ended up buying most of stuff from ice house pro-shop and helmet (with cage) from Dick's. I am more experienced now. I will pay more attention to Craiglist and ebay so I can get a good deal next time when he needs something new.

Thanks. You are all wonderful people.

[RLamothe]

I highly recommend Play it Again Sports! I have gotten a majority of my equipment through them...

Although..I am from New England and their stock may be much different than down here?

Good luck! Hockey is such a fantastic sport!! Go Bruins!

[xiaoyue]

I forgot to mention, HockeyMonkey.com - #1 Online Hockey Equipment - Ice Hockey Skates, Hockey Stick, Inline Hockey Skates, Hockey Gloves, Hockey Helmet, Hockey Equipment Bag, Ice Hockey Equipment, Hockey Gear is good website to look. There are tons of stuff. Just a little overwarmed for someone new to ice hockey.