This is a collection of all translated updates, exclusive photos and more from our close friends at Airxess in Switzerland.
Nov 25th
Our favorite aspect of the Mask of the Week feature is finding unique goalies and their masks from all over the world. We’ve had winners from as far as Turkey and Russia to right here in Colorado and throughout North America as well.
This week’s winner is no different, as we honor the new mask currently being worn in Switzerland by former Edmonton Oilers and New York Rangers goalie Jussi Markkanen.
Painted by Alec Voggel from Airxess, this mask was designed in part to celebrate the company’s 15-year anniversary. Similar to Jonas Hiller’s new Tornado Proton mask, Markkanen’s mask has a simple design at first glance, but upon closer inspection, the mask comes to life. Many shades of blue reflect different subtle designs as it’s moved.
Be sure to view the Airxess slide-show to catch more photos of this brilliant mask! The Tornado Proton is one of the newest pro-quality masks to hit the market, but since they are made in Switzerland, they are pretty hard to find.
In fact, Hiller is the only professional goalie in North America to wear one, making it the first-ever Swiss-made mask used in the NHL!
As you can see by the great stenciling and pin striping on the mask’s back-plate, a lot of pride and time is put into every mask painted by Airxess. If you are not familiar with The Goalie Guild, we suggest clicking the Airxess Updates button on the top right of the page to learn more about this amazing Swiss mask company!
Nov 1st
No words are necessary, other than to thank my good friend Alec Voggel from Airxess for his kindness and generosity. He’s a million times busier than I’ll ever be at any point in my life, so the fact he took the time to package and ship a rare Hexagon Grill from Bern, Switzerland all the way to Littleton, Colorado just blows me away.
Alec, I know you will read this, so I thank you from the bottom of my heart for this opportunity. I’m beyond honored to be wearing a Hexagon Grill, so please thank the Streit family for allowing one of these to be worn by The Goalie Guild! Keep up the great work with all of your projects and congratulations again on Airxess’ 15-year anniversary. I am excited to follow and promote what you have in store for the next 15 years and beyond!
To all my trusty Guild members and followers, if you have not been to the Airxess website before, do it now. His Tornado Proton mask is exquisite and something to truly behold. Ever since I first came across their website back in March, I always considered his artistic style as one of my personal favorites and a great symbiotic match to the style you’ve come to enjoy here at The Goalie Guild.
Simply put, Airxess is sick…and I can’t wait to see what they come up with next. First it was the brilliant airbrush artwork on thousands of masks, then it was the custom molded Tornado Proton mask, then it was the Streit Edition and the latest version, the Hiller Edition. And of course there’s the ’Voltaire’ cowling, a name I totally made up for the type of cowling Hiller wears on his skates back in May.
So there you have it, my passion for goaltending just reached an all-time high. Something about this grill leads me to believe the parallel between Medieval Knights and goaltenders are even stronger than ever before…maybe that’s why I like it so much. Goalies are the evolution of historic warriors that battled with steel swords and axes. We fight for the preservation of certain ideals and as ice hockey players, we are the last line of defense for an army of men with one mission in mind – calling Lord Stanley’s Cup our own.
It is moments like these that reinforce my love of the position and breathe even more life into my lungs. There will be a lot of good things coming for this website as the weeks roll on, and right now I only have all of you to thank for that.
Rick Gethin: Justin,
Excellent article.
Whether the emerging media realizes it or not, politics...
Dan Ellis is Distracted by Twitter: [...] School of Block [...]
: Evan,
We are working on that. It is not easy to be 100% accurate just by tracking
game photos....
Evan35: you guys need to start adding chest protectors to your padstracker notesSeptember Scouting Journal: [...] September 5, 2010 - Get to Know Prospect Robin Billingham [...]
Stevencshields: Really good take on the situation. I have spoken to Wayne Thomas over the summer and this was a...The Media and Hockey: Shooting the Messenger — Or Missing the Message? (Part 1 of 2) | devilsplayofftickets.com: [...] of those responses, a few merit special consideration. Justin’s well- articulated ...The Media and Hockey: Shooting the Messenger — Or Missing the Message? (Part 1 of 2) | The Hockey Writers: [...] of those responses, a few merit special consideration. Justin’s well- articulated ...