How to Break in a Hockey Goalie Trapper Fast

Hockey goalies depend on their thick, bulky equipment to stop pucks. A key piece of this equipment is the trapper, often called the catching glove, which is used to grab pucks out of the air and cover them on the ice. Breaking in a goalie trapper is as important to a goalie as a baseball player breaking in his glove. These gloves perform best when they're well broken in. Breaking in a glove quickly can be a challenge because the thick leather takes time to soften.

Things You'll Need

  • Pucks
  • Wet towel
  • Skate laces
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Instructions

    • 1

      Instruct a teammate to shoot pucks at your glove side repeatedly, either on the ice or just in the driveway. This will allow you to continuously catch pucks over and over. For this step, it's ideal to work with a shooter who's already got good accuracy but who may be wishing to improve it. Work on grabbing the puck out of the air by pinching the trapper shut. It will be stiff at first, and for a long period of time, but eventually it will begin to break in.

    • 2

      Rub the pocket of the trapper with a towel soaked in water. The moisture in the towel will soften the leather slowly, but the towel can be left in the trapper for several hours at a time. Do not over-saturate the leather, but rather just allow the wet towel to transfer water to the surface of the leather. Allow the glove to dry before proceeding to the next step.

    • 3

      Place several pucks in the pocket of the trapper, then tie two or three long skate laces around the glove to close around the pucks.

    • 4

      Place the trapper under the mattress of your bed during the day to allow the weight of the mattress to help break in the glove. You may also try placing the glove under a sofa cushion, then sit on the sofa.

    • 5

      Check the trapper every three days to see your progress by untying the skate laces and removing the pucks. If the glove requires further breaking in, place the pucks back inside it and retie the laces.

    • 6

      Use the glove repeatedly in practice until it is broken in enough to be used in a game. Using a new trapper in a game may result in you struggling to catch the puck, so it's best to break the glove in at practice.