Pete Smith has been known as the head category manager for Warrior Goalie for almost 14 years. Warrior has been dominant in countries like Germany, Finland, Slovakia, and many other European countries despite a lack of NHL brand exposure. Goalies in Europe have taken much liking to the style and fit of the pads. Developed in North America, many Canadian and American goalies that went overseas likely played a part in endorsing the Warrior brand internationally.
Fun Fact: Tim Thomas wore Smith goalie pads in the NHL
Smith goalie gear was Pete’s prior work before being acquired by Warrior and hired at the same time to lead their product development. Pete took his own custom design setups that he worked on himself under Smith with him, utilizing a larger team to create some amazing leg pads. Since Pete’s involvement, Warrior Goalie has been the number 1 manufacturer for youth goalie pads.
Smith Hockey Co. was in business for 9 years from 2002 to 2011 and was in the business of custom pads, gloves and blockers. The brand was built through word-of-mouth marketing, custom craftsmanship, and was massively helped by Pete’s interest in developing butterfly friendly equipment early in the era. The gear helped reshape the modern goalie pad structur, reflecting the shift from the old-school standup to the age of butterfly goaltending.
Pad rotation was something that Smith emphasized and wanted to revolutionize. The pads were designed to rotate freely around the leg in order to optimize the sealing of the ice during a butterfly. The pads, which took a model design reminiscent of the new Vaughn Velocity design concepts, were a new evolution in flat-faced leg pads.
We love our set of Smith pads, and would encourage anyone with the opportunity to pick them up affordably do so!
