How To Do Just About Everything
By eHow Sports & Fitness Editor
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Choosing a hockey stick is second in importance only to your skates. A good stick will provide great "feel" while handling the puck.
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Comments
DavidG said
on 12/11/2006 Chosing a stick is a personal decision. There is no Right or Wrong. but you should experiment with many styles and lengths and curves. Each player develops their own skill set and choosing a stick can inhance or limit a players "options" with the puck.
I appreciate the comments that people have shared about sticks so far but skating is the most important aspect that players should be focused on. The trouble with sticks today is there are too many choices- Just because you can use a Forsberg blade with your Sakic shaft doesn't mean squat!
Buy a straight bladed wooden stick and practice with that- It will help you more than one of these space aged sticks with a curve from the future!
Anonymous said
on 8/8/2006 I've been coaching hockey for 6+ years at the collegiate club level. I've noticed the following about sticks:
1. Way too many players are right-handed. Too many people are not being taught the very basic idea that the top hand provides all of the control and touch, so it should be your dominant hand. I have a whole team full of righties who can all shoot hard, but can't hit the net, catch a pass, or handle the puck. It's easier to learn to play hockey shooting left than right.
2. Too many of those righties are using one-piece sticks. Newsflash: one piece sticks don't make you better if you're not already a good player (i.e. playing at least at the AA travel level). One piece sticks are for people who have good soft hands. If you don't have good hands, the stiffness of the blade makes it much harder for you to handle the puck and so it makes you worse, not better.
3. Stick length: too many kids use sticks that are way too long. When you handle the puck, your top hand should be about hip level. If' it's higher than that, the stick is too long. This isn't as big a problem, but keep in mind that unless you're 6'4" like Mario Lemieux, your stick shouldn't be as long as Mario's. I still get plenty of kids who are 5'9" and using sticks that are almost taller than they are.
Anonymous said
on 2/21/2006 As a general rule, if you're playing defense you should have a longer stick. Not only will it allow you more range when you're stick checking, but a longer stick allows more leverage for harder slap shots from the blue line.
On the contrary, shorter sticks allow for more stick handling control and more accurate wrist shots.
And while it really comes down to preference, I prefer a square toe to a round toe (the shape of the tip of the blade); usually the square toe has a bit more area on the blade, making it easier to tip and/or knock shots down.
Anonymous said
on 1/26/2006 Even though the curves are called "left-handed" and "right-handed", they are named backwards. You control the puck with your top hand, therefore if you're right-handed, you should shoot left (with the right hand at the top of the stick). The bottom hand only provides power for your shot.
Anonymous said
on 1/4/2006 Don't be afraid of a more expensive stick. A two piece or once piece composite (graphite) stick is a great investment if you are pretty sure about your flex level, and (for on piece) your preferred blade pattern. It may seem a little pricey, but considering that wooden sticks break more easily, can become warped, and can have their flex wear out, a composite stick is the way to go. If breaking it scares you, just remember to ask around about stick brands, and individual sticks. There are also now more affordable ($80-90) alternatives to get a quality composite stick, so if you are worried about breakage, they don't set you back $200.