Hockey goaltenders are interesting people.
Not only do they voluntarily stand in the way of frozen rubber, but they also get to showcase unique mask art on a nightly basis.
Victoria Royals goaltender Griffen Outhouse is no different. He’s built a name for himself stopping pucks, but also takes care in designing his face protection.
For 2017/18, he’s just revealed his newest goalie mask design.
An Outhouse On Outhouse
Tucked neatly in the left corner of the mask is a purpose-built wooden building.
“We had one last year,” said Outhouse. “So I expanded on it, figured it would be good for a laugh.”
He figured correctly.
Overall, the mask takes a decidedly wintery theme.
Snow-covered trees decorate the scene and Griffen decided to “chuck [on] a scary looking snow man” as an accent above the outhouse.
A larger, meaner vision encompasses the entire right side – complete with hockey gloves and the Royals’ alternate jersey.
The mask was painted by Travis Michael, who you can follow on Instagram.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BYcBI2XgvHZ/?taken-by=tmkustoms
Personal Expression
The back plate of goalie masks are generally where things get a little more personal. Designs on NHL masks range from children’s initials, to family portraits, national flags, and religious symbols.
For Griffen, his back plate has an emotional touch.
In the bottom left is a tribute to a friend that tragically passed away. Depicting an airborne mountain biker, the design shows the friend performing a trick with his hands out. He forms the letter “T” beside the number ten, representing the friend’s nickname: T-10.
In the center is an image of a cross with the quote “Self sufficient in Christ’s efficiency,” a note of his Christian upbringing.
“I always like to have something like that on my mask, something that is in my heart,” he said.
On the right of the plate is a silhouette of retired slugger David Ortiz, who smashed numerous home runs for the Boston Red Sox – and whom Outhouse follows closely.
“It’s kind of funny how it worked out with the cross above and he’s kind of pointing up to it,” Outhouse mused.
