Since the very beginning of Bladeville existence, we have tried to provide a wide choice of inline skating gear, but frankly speaking, there was always a hockey skates shaped hole in our warehouse.
During few recent years, we have attempted to fill it with Reign skates by Powerslide. This brand is an attempt to enter a very demanding and competitive inline skating segment.
Reign have managed to deliver good skates at fair prices, especially for amateur play, but they have something in stock for professionals, too. There’s no fooling anyone, though – the brand is still a small blip on the radar compared to hockey industry’s behemoths and it most likely won’t change anytime soon. Inline hockey fans choose different skates, most of the time.
Expanding our stock - new hockey skates arrived!
This season you’ll be able to find skates made by Bauer in our shop – in fact, both brands under this umbrella, Bauer and Mission.
Once upon a time these two were the biggest players in hockey (both ice and inline) industry in North America, but back in 2008 Bauer bought Mission-Itech, making them part of their own company. The Mission ice hockey skates are no more (of course, some of its tech was transferred to Bauer skates), however, inline ones are still being made. Why Bauer keeps two brands offering the very similar products? Especially seeing that both are equal in terms of value and it cannot be said that one is clearly lesser than the other.
Answer is simple: mainline Bauer models are almost 100% faithful translation of ice skates to skates on wheels, achieved by swapping the blade with a frame and doing mostly some minor tweaks to the boots. If someone uses any Bauer Vapor skate for hockey on ice and want to have the same skating feel on wheels, it’s easy to find inline version.
Mission models are more tweaked to off-ice play, thanks to more breathable materials, vent holes and technologies to make the boot keeping your foot cooler. Even their name reflects that: “Inhaler”. Plus, they come with a more flashy design, which is a nice change compared to mostly black with red accents looks of Bauer brand.
Truth is – there is no bigger player in hockey industry than Bauer. Both brands made by the company are absolute top of the line skates for amateurs and professionals alike. Furthermore, the tech used in their best offerings is still ahead of what non-hockey skates offer – even the most advanced ones. For example, fresstyle skates have only recently started to close the gap. No surprise seeing that Bauer makes ice skates since 1927!
To sum it up, if you want to play hockey on skates and want the very best equipment, go for Bauer or Mission. You’ll find them in our shop, of course: