What You Need to Know About Verbero Hockey Gloves

Verbero Sports was founded in 2009, initially entering the inline market having designed the Aero Puck in 2010, and in the last two years, shifting its development to ice hockey with the aim of producing high-end products in the glove, stick and pants market.

The company asked if I could review a pair of its preliminary ice hockey gloves, and with some hesitation, I agreed. Honestly, I’m a glove snob. There, I said it. It’s hard not to have some preconceived ideas about a small-market glove company trying to make its way amongst the juggernauts like Bauer, Warrior and CCM/Reebok. Having played for many years, I’ve seen many companies come and go in the gear market, and I always cringe when I see a random name on a pair of gloves (i.e. TRUE, MF2 by Fernland, TOUR).

That being said … I can't say enough good things about these gloves!

I'll try to make this a quick review and break down some of my initial feedback in detail.

First Impression:

First thing you notice picking up the glove is that it’s very light. Which begs the question, is it light because it’s cheap or because Verbero developed the glove with weight in mind and used good materials? I definitely walk away thinking the latter. Nothing about the gloves screams cheap when holding or wearing them.

In terms of aesthetics, I really like the anatomic look of the gloves, as well as the shape and foam cuts. It reminds me a lot of the Bauer and Warrior anatomic offerings — so right away, it’s in my good graces.

Protection:

According to Verbero’s website, it used tri-foam with plastic inserts; today’s industry standard. I haven't used them during a full-contact game yet, just a few practices. However, so far I haven’t noticed anything that would suggest they aren’t protective or on par with other gloves on the market.

Fit:

Not too tight not too loose, somewhere in the middle, probably around the Bauer APX ballpark. I ordered a pair of 13-inch gloves, fingers run a bit short but the spandex gussets have enough give to make that a moot point.

Palm:

This is probably the highlight of the glove: It reminds me a lot of the palms John Tavares uses. Verbero calls the palm a non-textured black digital. It’s a single layer, thin, non-tacky palm that is very soft out of the box and feels broken in, right away. Definitely not a run-of-the-mill cheap nash or clarino palm we’re seeing on a lot of big-market gloves, today.

Gussets:

Black stretch gussets all around. More give in their spandex than Warriors or other brands on the market, which is nice for guys like me who size down to 13 inches so our fingers aren't jamming into a tough-leather material. The gussets are dual layered, which hopefully translates into more durability, since the material seems thin to begin with. It has great breathability when playing.

Also, thumb is anchored to glove with the same elastic/spandex so you have a little more range of motion than with a normal leather/synthetic attachment.

Design/Look:

All the fingers are triple break, which I like. This seems to be a popular design these days.

The cuff is flexible, broken into two pieces. The undercuff has an inseam along it, which allows it to break away when flexing your arms toward your body.

The branding to me is a downside to this glove. The thin pencil-like font doesn't really "fit" the glove well. The design would look much sharper if it used a thick gauge font like Bauer or CCM, which really fills the cuff space more appropriately (basically, less negative space).

Practicality:

What also surprised me about these gloves was how they weren't waterlogged or weighed down after two back-to-back practices. This is not the case with my other gloves that feel floppy and soaked after a game or practice. The breathability of the gussets is a great strength.

Overall:

Great glove design from a small company that clearly cares about making high-quality products. Don’t hesitate to order a pair online.

Additionally, on its website, Verbero offers a “wrist-guard” option, which is a mobile Reebok 11k-type cuff. It’s amazing, and I was able to see a pair with this option last week.