If you are looking to protect your hands when you play hockey, you need the best hockey gloves that you can get.
Your hands are essential in the sport of ice hockey. They control the stick, which controls the puck. But you cannot leave your hands exposed and you also need to be able to keep a grip on your stick.
How can you know what the right hockey gloves are for you? You will need to consider your own hands, how you would like a fit, and the amount of padding that you prefer. Here’s how you can decide.
How To Choose The Best Hockey Gloves For You
There are several factors that you must take into consideration when you are shopping for the best hockey gloves, including the material, thumb locks, padding, and how the gloves fit on your hands. Not every player will need the same type of gloves, so you need to choose the right type for your needs.
Nylon vs. Synthetic Leather Shells
The two most common types of glove materials are nylon and synthetic leather. Natural leather is not used any longer and synthetic leather is more pliable and water repellent.
Nylon gloves are normally breathable and lightweight, making it easier to hold the stick. They are not as durable as you will get with synthetic leather gloves, however. Synthetic gloves are less likely to tear. Ideally, you should aim for gloves that have a combination of the two materials.
Thumb Locks
Most of the gloves that you will find are going to have a thumb lock system. This means that the gloves are made with a plastic insert that only bends one direction, making sure that your thumb cannot bend unnaturally the opposite direction.
If you collide during a game, your thumb could be hyperextended backward without a thumb lock, putting your thumb at a greater risk of injury. If you injure your thumb, you cannot hold the stick well, making thumb locks essential.
Padding
All best hockey gloves come with some form of padding, with most having three or four horizontal pads that can flex on top of the hand. There are also two pieces of padding on each finger, flexing with both protection and flexibility.
Some padding comes in different shapes, allowing for different types of flexibility and movement. The shape of padding goes down to a personal preference, as one type is not better than another.
Type Of Fit (Anatomical, Tapered, Classic)
There are three primary types of fits when it comes to hockey gloves: tapered fit, traditional fit, and anatomical fit. The decision for fit is all personal preference.
Anatomical gloves have the snuggest and most form-fitting feel without any wiggle room. Tapered fits are similar, but do have added room in the wrist and hand so it is not quite as snug. The classic fit is looser than the other two and is the choice of players who like to have some room inside of their gloves.
8 Best Hockey Gloves For 2019 Season
Brand | Skill Level | Weight | Rating | Check Now |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1. Warrior Covert QR Editor's Choice | Intermediate/Advanced | 258 grams | 100% | |
2. Bauer Vapor 1X Lite High Performance | Advanced | 289 grams | 99% | |
3. Warrior Alpha QX Budget Friendly | Beginner/ | 295 grams | 97% | |
4. Bauer Nexus 2N | Intermediate/ | 323 grams | 96% | |
5. CCM Super Tacks | Intermediate | 312 grams | 94% | |
6. STX Surgeon 500 | Intermediate | 280 grams | 95% | |
7. Bauer Supreme 1S | Intermediate/ | 308 grams | 97% | |
8. Bauer Nexus N2900 | Beginner | 319 grams | 93% |
1. Warrior Covert QR Edge Hockey Gloves
Best Hockey Gloves Overall (Editor's Choice)
The Editor’s choice for the best hockey gloves are the Warrior Covert QR Edge Hockey Gloves. These are a lightweight and flexible pair of hockey gloves.
Some of the features of the Covert QR Edge are that they are made with an Exo Protect system that has medium-density foam in both the cuff and the side of the fingers and thumb. They also have an added bonus of bacteria and odour reduction, keeping your gloves from developing an unpleasant smell as they are used. They have synthetic leather accents and are otherwise a nylon construction, giving you the best of both worlds.
These gloves also have SmartPalm+ with Gatorskin which means that there is a soft and secure overlay for a great stick feel. Grip is essential and these gloves will not disappoint.
Ultimately these have just about everything that you could ask for from a good pair of hockey gloves, including solid protection, flexible design, and elite-level performance.
2. Bauer Vapor 1X Lite Pro Hockey Gloves
High Performance
For a more high performance type of hockey glove, you should look at the Bauer Vapor 1X Lite gloves. These are a professional level of hockey gloves made by an industry leader.
When it comes to fit, you will not be disappointed with these hockey gloves. They have a tapered fit, like all Vapor gloves, with a 4-segment configuration on the back of your hand for mobility. The fingers also a have a 3-piece construction to give you superior mobility while not losing anything in protection.
The material of these gloves is a pro nylon mesh with cable mesh in different areas around the gloves. The liner is made up of an XRD foam, which gives you lightweight and reliable padding. The cuffroll is molded as well to protect the wrist and forearm from any kind of injury.
3. Warrior Alpha QX Hockey Gloves
Budget Friendly
Another hit from the Warrior brand, the Warrior Alpha QX are a budget-friendly hockey glove that will still give you high performance. They are considered a premium pair of hockey gloves, rather than elite, but should still protect you well during a game.
This is an anatomical-style hockey glove that gives you the broken-in feeling right away, due to its stretch mesh, especially within the finger gussets. It has a layer for high-density foam in the glove’s upper cuffroll as well as medium-density foam in the lower cuff, giving you the best protection possible.
The Alpha QX has a DynaMesh material that will give you some durability, but really it gives you the breathability that you really need in a pair of hockey gloves. The liner is made from the Warrior’s WarTech FNC technology with polygiene. Polygiene is an odour-reducer that is put in the foam itself as well the liner.
4 .Bauer Nexus 2N Hockey Gloves
For Larger Hands
Another great design from Bauer, the Nexus 2N hockey gloves are a traditional fit. These will give you extra room within the gloves themselves, which is ideal for players who have larger hands who feel too squeezed-in with more anatomical designs.
These gloves include a 4-roll design that has protection, comfort, and style. They are meant to hold up during a fast-paced game, even with the loose-fitting design. The cuff is also a wide and loose fit, but it is adjustable to make it fit better for your own wrist, giving you the right amount of protection.
The thumb lock on these gloves is made up of three pieces, allowing you the movement that you would want from your thumb in gloves while still making sure that your thumb is not going to hyperextend during gameplay. Speaking of features, there is a soft finger touch with the Nexus 2N with AX-Suede gussets.
5. CCM Super Tacks Hockey Gloves
The CCM Super Tacks Hockey Gloves provide pro-level protection while still offering all of the comfort that you need from your gloves. They are lightweight, slick, and ready to take a spin out on the ice with you.
The Super Tacks line uses a palm extension that goes further down the base of your palm, preventing scrunching around the wrists as well as rolling that could mean less stick feel. The cuff is flared and made up of three-pieces, providing players with better mobility. Since it is anatomical, it will be good to wear right out of the package, without any break-in time.
The microfiber of the Super Tacks gloves has a polygiene additive to reduce bacteria growth within the gloves and keeps odour down, so no matter how much you sweat in the gloves, your hands will not develop an unpleasant smell.
6. STX Surgeon 500 Hockey Gloves
Looking at the name, you should already have a good idea of what the STX Surgeon 500 gloves are all about. These gloves are made to be a part of your hand rather than a stiff piece of equipment, giving you superior grip and stick feel.
The M2 knuckles on the Surgeon 500s increases your range of motion while reducing the amount of tension within your hands. There is open stitching in the knuckle break, giving you freedom of movement throughout your fingers. The liner is made of a Dri-Lex material, keeping the sweat from pooling within your hands.
The Cable-Flex Thumbs of these gloves will give you the best control and protection possible, making sure that your thumbs will not hyperextend while at the same time giving you the freedom of movement that you really need.
7. Bauer Supreme 1S Hockey Gloves
The Bauer Supreme 1S hockey gloves are an anatomical type of glove that will give you amazing feel on your stick. While they might feel snug, they will give you better control than before.
The gloves themselves are made with a double density type of foam for the best protection possible, but they also have an odor resistance technology on the inside to ensure that you will not develop an odd odor with them. The improved airflow of the palm is due to the ventilated patches on both the thumb and the palm, keeping your hands as cool as possible.
Protection-wise, the fingers are made with three-piece technology, giving you both the freedom of movement while still giving you the protection that you should expect from Bauer. The palm is an Ax Sueded Quattro Pro palm, one of the best palms on the market. It maintains a nice feel while still being durable.
8. Bauer Nexus N2900 Hockey Gloves
The final pair of gloves that we will review is the Bauer Nexus N2900 hockey gloves. Just as Bauer is dedicated to making a quality product, these gloves should not disappoint.
The N2900 are a traditional 4-roll style of glove that has been the preference of players for years, with a looser feel on both the backhand and the wrist for mobility. There is a full-volume fit, made from a pro nylon mesh shell, dual density foam, and poly inserts for extra protection. The Thermo-Max liner has sanitized technology to keep odour and bacteria down.
The thumb lock is a FLEX-LOCK technology, which means that you will be able to flex your thumb and maintain a good grip on your hockey stick, but it will still be protected against hyperextension or other injuries. The Quattro Grip palm has AX Suede with poly knit gussets as well, giving you the best grip possible while still maintaining some flexibility.
How To Fit Hockey Gloves
It might be surprising, but hockey gloves are actually one of the hardest pieces of hockey equipment to measure correctly.
When you are measuring your hand to figure out the right size, you need to measure from the crease of your elbow up to the base of your middle finger, measuring on the palm side. This is the most accurate way to measure without trying them on, but it doesn’t take into account your finger length, if you have longer or shorter fingers.
Hockey Gloves Palms
You might not have considered the importance of the palms of your hockey gloves, but they are something you need to think about. Generally, hockey glove palms are made with one or two layers of material. It should feel like a synthetic leather or suede.
While nash is the most common type of palm material, not all nash material palms are the same level of quality, so buying the cheapest pair will not do you any favours. Some gloves will also have reinforced palms for better durability and grip. If you can try on the hockey gloves, you should be able to get a better idea of the type of palm you prefer.
Long Cuff vs Short Cuff
Hockey gloves typically have two types of cuffs to choose from, long-cuffed and short-cuffed. The Long-cuffed gloves have a full coverage from the hand up to the forearm, without any space between your gloves and your elbow pads. Meanwhile, short-cuffed gloves have wrist exposure.
Overall, long-cuffed gloves are safer than short-cuffed gloves as the wrist exposure with short cuffs puts you at risk of wrist injury. The problem is that long-cuffed gloves are not as easy to find anymore since the trend has moved toward short-cuffed gloves. Instead, wearing slash guards or wrist guards has become the defence against wrist injury.
Final Words
When it comes to finding the best hockey gloves for you, it really comes down to what you would prefer and hope to get from your hockey gloves. Whether you would like the snug anatomical feel, slightly looser tapered feel, or the looser traditional feel, only you can determine what the right type of hockey glove is for you.
Our choice for the best hockey glove is the Warrior Covert QR Edge Hockey Gloves. These gloves offer the best protection possible while still giving you the flexibly and breathability that you would hope to get from an elite level of gloves. These might be too snug for players with wider hands, however, so it is something to keep in mind.
Ideally, you should try on a pair of hockey gloves before you commit to them. That is the best way to know that you have the best fit possible as well as the most comfortable gloves that you can get.
Hey there, my name is Shawn and I’m a semi-professional hockey player. I’m also the founder and chief editor here at Hockey Pursuits. I love playing hockey and helping players improve their game and that’s why I decided to start this blog.