A few years ago while refereeing an 8u game, I noticed after a play along the boards, these black “things” on the ice. They looked like plastic, maybe a shaft plug, but no they were rough edge pieces.
I then noticed one young man backing away from every play, and as I looked him over, I saw what appeared to be the toe of a sock sticking out of his left skate! For those old enough to know the reference, think Goofy in a Mickey Cartoon!
I skated over and pulled the boy to the side and looked down and sure enough, he had completely blown the front toe cap off his skate. I couldn't believe it! I had never seen anything like it before.
We skated over to the bench and as he bumped into the boards, you guessed it - he blew the other one out! 2 skates, 2 blowouts, and a lot of blown minds!
Afterwards, I spoke with the boy's parents and they stated they just bought the skates that week from a second-hand shop.
Then lesson here - always check your equipment!
