You are currently viewing our boards as a guest which gives you limited access to view most discussions and access our other features. By joining our free community you will have access to post topics, communicate privately with other members (PM), respond to polls, upload content and access many other special features. Registration is fast, simple and absolutely free so please, join our community today!
If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact contact us.
Go to Page...
Thank you for crosschecking our sponsors!
About This Page: This is a discussion on Hockey Players Forum within the LetsGoKings.com forums, at Los Angeles Kings Hockey Fan Forum. Where would you guys say is the best place to buy new skates around here? Both in terms of price, selection, and knowledgability of the sales staff? It's time to
Where would you guys say is the best place to buy new skates around here? Both in terms of price, selection, and knowledgability of the sales staff? It's time to retire my used pair of Bauer 3000s, and I'm eyeing some top end skates, including Grafs.
I don't want to be one of those shmucks who goes to a store to try on the product, then buys it on the internet. (Not to mention I want to get the heat-molding and sharpening.) So I want to find somewhere that is pretty much guaranteed to be a good deal.
Any thoughts? HockeyMonkey? HockeyGiant? Toyota Sports Center's Pro Shop?
Hockey Giant and Hockey Monkey are definetely the two best places to go. I would check out their websites to get an idea of the price you're going to be paying for the skates you want. Hopefully that helps you out.
Discounthockey.com
5331 Derry Ave Suite I
Agoura Hills, CA 91301 Phone:1-800-650-4834
Email: discounthockey@att.net
Store Hours (Pacific Standard Time): M-F: 10:00am-6:00pm
Sat: 10:00am-6:00pm
Sun: 11:00am-5:00pm
__________________
Vote For Team Sexy
Quote:
"If you can accept losing, you can't win." Vince Lombardi
Like i said he's slumped before, it appears from the past few days he's starting to come out of it. Kopi will finish with 85+ points this season, you can quote me on that.
Graf's are the best skates....However, the forward pitch might be a little tougher for a beginner skater to learn on. Also, Grafs are more expensive. However, there quality and performance make up for the cost.
But everyone really should go with a skate they feel most comfortable with.
__________________
Last edited by mudfisher; May 21st, 2008 at 08:00 AM.
if you have wide feet like me, dont go to hockey monkey. when i bought my skates 2 weeks ago i only had 2 skates to choose from that were in my price range of <$200. i would bet money that in a higher price range i still wouldnt have had any more to choose from then the higher models of the 2.
however, i bought my inlines at hockey giant and i actually found the service to be better then monkey's (even though everyone else seems to have had the opposite experience). in addition their supply of skates in my size was better at giant.
if you dont have wide feet then hockey monkey or hockey giant would be about equal in my book. they're both great stores and are priced the same, outside of closeouts or sales. good luck!
my brother went to Anaheim ice. yeah, i know its the ducks' place, but the owner of the shop there was really helpful. he spent two hours with my brother making sure the skate fit him perfectly. i just bought some pads from there and my brother was right. the owner is really helpful. the prices could be better, but if you want service, check them out.
__________________ Cornell Hockey - LETS GO RED!!!!
accidentally went to anahiem ice one time cus my buddies navigation led us there instread of hockey giant (guess they used to be there or something). walked in and the old cliche came to mind while staring at a 20 foot tall cutout of chris pronger; "we're not in king's territory anymore dude...."
it smelled like a$$ in there too for some reason. seriously.
Discounthockey.com
5331 Derry Ave Suite I
Agoura Hills, CA 91301 Phone:1-800-650-4834
Email: discounthockey@att.net
Store Hours (Pacific Standard Time): M-F: 10:00am-6:00pm
Sat: 10:00am-6:00pm
Sun: 11:00am-5:00pm
I totally agree with Len-Det here. I shop at both discount hockey and hockey giant ALOT. The guys at discount are awesome and take their time with each coustomer. Prices are about the same for both places and discount has a heat molding machine, not sure if hg has one or not. just my 2 cents
__________________ Some people are like slinkeys, they serve no purpose but bring a smile to your face when you push them down the stairs.
Vote for the Team LA Pro Shop @ Toyota Sports Center. Got my Grafs there a month or so ago and they were extremely helpful. I am just starting out, so I was in need of a lot of help. I had gone to Hockey Giant and Hockey Monkey, service was eh... to the point that I was given a skate 1.5 sizes to big for my foot and let out the door . Monkey and Giant did have a big selection though.
For my foot, the Grafs are a great fit, but I can see that forward pitch being a problem for some. Like was said before, go for the best fitting boot, not the name on the side.
Problem with the Pro Shop is that they only seem to carry Graf, Bauer, and some Eastons(?). Everything else was cool, they have all the machines/processes needed for a good fit, heat mold/punch/blade holder mount and some CCM balloon fitting device
Also Graf hasn't been bought out by anyone, but they did open up another manufacturing plant up in Canada a few years ago (me thinks, if not, then its a distribution center).
Does anyone know when and if the Pro Shop will be having the Kings sale? I'll ask them next time I'm in there.
Last edited by dowhatnow; May 21st, 2008 at 11:28 AM.
Hockey Monkey has better quality and selection of skates than other stores. They pay more attention to detail and are not selling second hand or cheaper products
TSC's Pro Shop is having a sale Saturday on all Kings used gear. I was there yesterday, and was told so by the woman behind the counter. (I think they're holding it on the roller hockey rink.)
I've been skating for two years on Bauer Supreme 3000s with heel lifts, so I've already got a little bit of a forward pitch going. I'm hoping the transition to Grafs won't be so difficult.
I haven't really compared the skate selections between Monkey and Giant, but when I was helmet and stick shopping, Monkey beat Giant, hands down.
the grafs in america are from graf canada. not the same as the european grafs. the european ones are much better quality wise and offer some extra colors. but they're pretty much the same and have pretty much the same models. but there have been some horror stories with graf canada's quality and customer service. but i owned two pairs and didn't have any issues with them.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mudfisher
Hawk Hockey/Hockeymonkey
Graf's are the best skates....However, the forward pitch might be a little tougher for a beginner skater to learn on. Also, Grafs are more expensive. However, there quality and performance make up for the cost.
But everyone really should go with a skate they feel most comfortable with.
definitely go with the best fitting skates. i had grafs and loved the comfort. but they were a little heavier. i went with nike/bauers (haven't worn bauers since i was 14) and while i like the weight, the fit isn't as well on my feet. so i'll probably go back to grafs later. but there are pros and cons to all the skates out there. it's just what you're willing to accept, how much you want to pay, and how you want it to fit.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Juniordog
if you have wide feet like me, dont go to hockey monkey. when i bought my skates 2 weeks ago i only had 2 skates to choose from that were in my price range of <$200. i would bet money that in a higher price range i still wouldnt have had any more to choose from then the higher models of the 2.
however, i bought my inlines at hockey giant and i actually found the service to be better then monkey's (even though everyone else seems to have had the opposite experience). in addition their supply of skates in my size was better at giant.
if you dont have wide feet then hockey monkey or hockey giant would be about equal in my book. they're both great stores and are priced the same, outside of closeouts or sales. good luck!
i think most shops right now are starting to stock the new season's lines. they might not have all the new gear in yet. i would still rather go to monkey just because of the brands they offer and the guys that work there. if you don't see the right size, if they have it at the warehouse they will order it and you can try it. if you don't like the fit, no problems. i think that's pretty cool of them.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Juniordog
accidentally went to anahiem ice one time cus my buddies navigation led us there instread of hockey giant (guess they used to be there or something). walked in and the old cliche came to mind while staring at a 20 foot tall cutout of chris pronger; "we're not in king's territory anymore dude...."
it smelled like a$$ in there too for some reason. seriously.
Used to be a hockey giant there. now it's a different shop.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Juniordog
giant and monkey both heat mold. i know monkey sharpens, not sure about giant (im assuming they do though)
giant does sharpen also. i saw a picture of someone's skates that were really messed up from one of giant's sharpenings, but that could've just been a one time deal. but i have tried a few pro shops around the area and they couldn't get it as good as the guys at hawk. i'll always go there for sharpenings. the good thing about if you buy skates at giant, they give you free lifetime sharpenings.
Quote:
Originally Posted by spjon25
Hockey Monkey has better quality and selection of skates than other stores. They pay more attention to detail and are not selling second hand or cheaper products
I know two people who've gotten horrible sharpenings from HG. My experience at Hockey Monkey was very good, they answered all my questions and fitted me into some nice Grafs. I don't have any experience with the pro shop at TSC, but I do see they have used pro gear there, so I'd be interested to check them out.
Best place to buy skates? 
Len-Det64
. Monkey and Giant did have a big selection though.
