The day I went on the great stick hunt is a day that will live in infamy, at least for me.
Disclaimer: As a newbie to the youth hockey world, I never took a close look at any of the multitude of sticks that have taken up residence in my house/car. I had no knowledge as to the names/numbers and what they all meant.
Background: We were two weeks out from tryouts and had a private coaching the session at 6 am the next morning and a pre-tryout clinic the next evening; yeah it was one of those really fun days. My husband informs me that our daughter’s coach told him at that morning’s session that she needed a different stick. Her stick was too short (thank you dreaded major growth spurt) and not enough curve which was impeding her getting proper lift.
“I see no problem with this stick Mom.”
The Hunt Begins
Okay so the hunt was on by 10am. But first, the details of what I was trying to acquire in the next 8 hours.
“He was talking about an Ovechkin, but normally doesn’t recommend CCM brand, but now really likes them, so go with them. I think he said to get her a P19. It’s a Parise,” were the disjointed secondhand instructions from my husband.
To start it was my understanding that Alexander Ovechkin, and Zach Parise for that matter, were human beings not composite material sticks and were under contracts that prevented me from acquiring either of them for any reason.
Second, what is P19? A serial number? Some code that related to the player’s name and number. I didn’t google in that moment so I mistakenly assumed Zach Parise was #19 and that’s why some crazy alpha-numeric was thrown into this mix. WRONG! (For the record Parise wore #9 for the Devils and wears #11 for Minnesota now.)
Fine, I was a hockey mom on a mission to get said stick and give my daughter as much time as possible to adjust before tryouts.
I start by calling the pro shop at the rink she was skating out of that evening for straight up ease of pickup. No, they don’t have the P19 in stock, but try their other store. Okay. Same result. Tried another store. Nope. The fourth store informed me that not many stores carried the P19 if at all.
I didn’t care dammit, I was going to find the impossible if it killed me.
Fifth phone call, opening the radius further and further and mentally running the logistics of being able to get the stick in time. “The P19 isn’t the Parise, that’s the P39. The P19 is the Nugent-Hopkins, but we still don’t have it. No one stocks that, but you can try Ebay.” No kiddo (the person on the phone was maybe 16) I can’t do that since they don’t have same day delivery. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is apparently an Edmonton Oiler who wears #18. I started to google at that point.
My blood pressure bordering on stroke level at this point. I desperately texted her coach; did he want the damn P19 or the
I found it!
Parise? Nope, still the P19. Parise has now exited the building. Once I explained no one carries it, I ask for the closest substitute. Maybe the Bauer P29 or the Ovechkin. In my mind, 19 being close to 29 means they are similar, right?
CCM vs Bauer
Wait a dang minute, didn’t we agree on CCM earlier? How did we switch back to Bauer? Wasn’t the Ovechkin the wrong choice? At this point I didn’t care. Literally, couldn’t care less. Turns out he wanted her to have a stick that has a thinner blade and more curve, which much to my surprise was what all the P# nonsense was all about. Information that would have been helpful from the get go.
I circle back to the original pro-shop (again for ease of pickup since I was now due there about 3 hours later), “Of course we have the P29 Crosby or the P92 Ovechkin, those are two of the most popular sticks, everyone has them.” Are the comparable to the damn P19 that I have spent the better part of 4 hours hunting for under the wrong name and brand for that matter? Close enough. Great, put an intermediate size aside and I’ll be there later.
Success – Sort Of
Great! Problem solved. The illusive P19 is no longer an issue. P29 it is, thank you Sidney Crosby for being so damn popular. Sure, it was a Bauer stick, but the finer details became less and less important as this saga wore on.
Cut, taped and ready to hit the ice!
I wrangle all the kiddos into the car a bit early to get the stick and leave extra time before practice to have it cut and taped. Get to the rink, get the stick and grimace as I pay the bill, but my daughter is off and running with her new “baby”.
Life is good, right? Yeah, right.
An hour later she comes off the ice, “Hey Mom, is that supposed to happen?”
This is what I am staring at:
No, no that is not normal!
WHAT THE FRIGG! I hated Bauer and Sidney Crosby by default more in that moment than snakes and every deranged dictator who has ever walked the earth combined.
I dragged my defeated, exhausted and seriously pissed self into the pro shop and ask the same question. “Is that normal?”
Thankfully, the pro shop guys were very understanding and probably were afraid that they would be calling the cops on a deranged hockey mom on a rampage in the store if they didn’t answer correctly.
They took back the stick and replaced it free of charge on the spot. Kudos to them; I appreciate them saving me the cost of a new stick and bail money.
In the end, I ended up picking up a CCM P92 Ovechkin at another store about two weeks later just to have a backup on hand so both superstars are equally represented. My daughter is getting much better lift with her Crosby and I am not awaiting a court appearance for disorderly conduct. The gear is good and this hockey mom stayed on the right side of the edge…this time.
Update
A week after tryouts my daughter broke out the P92 Ovechkin just to get a feel for her backup in case she needed it. Her coach likes that one a lot better and her performance with it, so her main stick is now the very first stick mentioned and ruled out.
