Synthetic Ice for Goalies

SmartRink is serious about helping you understand using synthetic ice for hockey practice. Therefore, we would like to work with you to help you understand how our products differ from other synthetic ice panels for hockey players. Our mission is to provide the best overall synthetic ice skating experience on a synthetic hockey surface. Our primary advantages over other brands are:

FOREVER warranty due to our incredible synthetic panel durability for hockey training.
Superior Glide Performance for hockey training due to our uncompromising attention to our sinter pressed materials
Client Product Confidence due to our Home Trial advantage allows you, the player and/or the parent to try the product

Goalie Training on Synthetic Ice

Let’s get right to the point – is hockey goalie training on a synthetic ice rink a good idea? I’ll be the first to admit that I am far from an expert in ice hockey goalie training. But here’s what I do know from being around the game with my own kids for over 20 years collectively. Also, hockey moms and dads who have goalies for kids tend to really understand the game. They pay attention to the little details, especially how the goalies on the team are trained and how the coaching staff work with them.

In my experience, from what I’ve seen, and from when I’ve coached or been involved with on ice training, often times the goalies become an after thought when it comes to specialized training. But not every team has the budget to bring in a specialized goalie coach. I think hockey parents with goalies for children therefore tend to take matters into their own hands. After all – not every coach knows what to do to help train and develop a goalie – especially one who might be newer to the position or even struggling with certain key aspects of the position.

So back to the original thought – is hockey goalie training on synthetic ice useful? Let’s look at it this way. Would it be helpful to be at home and work with your goalie on angles, shuffles, reflexes, and lateral slides? Also, what if your kid was struggling with their high glove side? Consequently, what could it mean to their development if they could practice in full gear, including skates, and realistically replicate their movements and decision making – but at home without the pressure of a 50 minute practice to get it figured out? To me the answers are pretty obvious. Additionally, being a goalie parent is already expensive, no doubt. But many parents are already signing their kids up for extra development already – even when the parents have great knowledge of the position.

Therefore, maybe the time is right to invest in some high quality synthetic ice that allows your goalie kid to properly slide with their pads on. Hence, you may take charge of your kids hockey goalie development – right in the comfort of your own home – on your schedule – by investing in high quality synthetic ice for goalies.

SmartRink Synthetic Ice Reviews

it’s pretty easy to show and recommend someone the synthetic ice when the product is so good and works so well”
~ M. Evans, Kingston, Ontario

I bought the ice from SmartRink and it is the best!!! …my son went from one of the lowest rated players in hockey to making the PeeweeA1 team this year!”
~ Coach O Pighin, British Columbia

Synthetic Ice Panels for Goalies

Our best synthetic ice panels for hockey are SINTER Pressed. Most North American brands we come across are extruded material. We sell extruded material also, but because we sell both extruded and sinter pressed material we feel very comfortable comparing them. We also feel we can be more helpful in assisting you to make an informed decision about buying synthetic ice panels for hockey practise.

If you feel you would like additional information or maybe looking for a product and price comparison then please hit the Product / Price Request button below and a SmartRink representative will assist you as soon as possible.

PRODUCT / PRICE REQUEST

Profast8000-SG Synthetic Ice for Goalies

The Best synthetic ice for hockey goalies! Others try but they can’t come close to this glide and FOREVER Warranty!

This is our professional series product – but for the DIY home hockey market. If you want the best synthetic ice panel material for goalies on the market produced today, then this is it!

This German engineered and produced panel is made with SmartGlide Technology which means the spray on glide enhancer is 100% optional, and not required! EVER!

VHMWPe providing excellent balance between longevity and market leading, exceptional performance.
Multiple slip additives provide superior glide – for life!
Infused permanent glide enhancer
LIFETIME warranty
Extreme durability – no messy powdery residue
UV stabilized
can be used anywhere there is a solid flat, level surface

Synthetic Ice Goalie Crease

TA synthetic ice goalie crease is the best way to train at home. Goalies love this product.
We only offer Synthetic goalie creases in the ProFast material. Shown here is the home version using the ProFast-8000-SG panel in a 4m x 3m format. Goal creases can be any size or configuration.
SmartRink has also completed full training facilities specifically for goaltender training.

Synthetic Ice for Goalies
Frequently Asked Questions

The quick answer is that nothing skates like real ice. That said there are some products where the experience is excellent but most fall well short of their marketing claims. Strong skaters will find better products easier to skate on. Weaker skaters will notice the increased resistance. This will be more apparent with lower quality products. The best products skate the best and there is nothing that can’t be duplicated on synthetic ice as with real ice – using a high quality panel. A very good product is one where the skater does not have to change their body mechanics to perform the same task as on real ice. They should be able to pivot, turn, skate backwards and stop just the same as real ice. Poor products force the skater to develop bad habits with posture, knee bend and stride length – all things you want to avoid.
Goalies can expect more resistance on synthetic ice compared to real ice. Because pads are a wide large surface that have to move across the synthetic material. Hence, goalies that work a lot on synthetic ice tend to develop very strong lateral pushes. They find our infused glide SmartRink product to be a very effective training tool.
A key difference with our product is that you will not see much evidence of a dusty white power during training. The difference is the quality of the raw material we use combined with the pressing process we utilize – which when combined makes our material very unique.
The synthetic ice will get scored slightly around the crease area of course. According to one professional goalie now turned trainer he trained over 600 goalies over the course of one summer and was amazed at the lack of any sign of the product showing wear.
This is the most common question. Price is the one thing that people do understand and can compare. The problem is that unless you know the material you are comparing it is almost meaningless. We’ve seen price per square foot as low as $8 and as high as $28. We’ve written about understanding the importance of molecular weight in the past and how that relates to panel thickness and pricing relationships. If you want a true comparison send us a request and we’ll do our best to answer your questions directly with fact based information. The best raw material costs the most money and that directly translates into a higher cost panel – plain and simple. In the case of synthetic ice – paying less money is almost never a good thing.
Panel size can be important. Some companies promote the advantages of very small panels, while others promote very larg panels, such as 8 ft x 4 ft. These companies promote fewer joints as an advantage, but if the application is correct and it’s a good quality panel, the skater will never feel the joint anyway. We feel that for home synthetic ice rinks a 1m x 1m size is perfect. Smaller synthetic ice panels are cheaper to ship, can sit on a standard pallet size and easier for the average person to install. For thickness, high quality panels with a good molecular weight need not be thicker than 8mm (5/16 of an inch) to last 15+ years. Often we see cheap less expensive material sold in thick panel configurations as a way to cover up that it will wear down rapidly.
Actually it’s quite easy – but it does have to be maintained – just like any flooring product does. But typically that means vacuuming and washing the surface. As a result, usally plain hot water and some elbow grease will work fine. Anything from a wet mop to a stiff brush will work depending on how dirty the surface it. Larger surfaces typically use a commercial floor scrubber. Also most products suggest using a glide solution to enhance the skating experience. But that needs to be applied regularly. Each manufacturer will be able to provide instructions on that.
Yes! Check out this article by Dave Stathos, a professional goalie trainer who has trained over 600 goalies on SmartRink synthetic ice rinks.

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Photos of Synthetic Ice for Goalies

Be inspired by some of these photos of synthetic ice rinks for goalies. So let your imagination be your guide as your consider what your synthetic rink design might be. From the most simplistic synthetic goalie crease to practise angles, to a more professional looking backyard set-up – here are some great synthetic ice images and examples to get you thinking about your own synthetic ice rink at home!