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An ice hockey stick is a piece of equipment used in ice hockey to move the puck. Ice hockey sticks are approximately 150-200 cm long, composed of a long, slender shaft and a flat extension at one end called the blade. The blade is the part of the stick used to contact the puck, and is typically 25 to 40 cm long. Stick dimensions can vary widely, as they are usually built to suit a particular player's size. The blade is positioned at roughly a 135° angle from the axis of the shaft, giving the stick a partly 'L-shaped' appearance. The shaft of the stick is fairly rigid, but it has some flexibility to benefit some shots.

The blade is often curved in the direction toward which the skater moves forward, to aid in retaining or lifting the puck off the playing surface.

The goaltender has a slightly modified stick. The lower part of the stick is wider, the angle is smaller, and the blade is slightly curved towards the direction of the play.

Contents 1 History 2 Features 2.1 Flexibility 2.2 Blade 2.3 Illegal curve 2.4 Tape 3 References 4 External links

Hockey sticks were originally made from the hornbeam tree (Carpinus caroliniana) in Nova Scotia by the Mi'kmaqs sometimes referred to as the Dartmouth Indians.^[1] But as the supply of hornbeam trees diminished, other hardwoods such as yellow birch and ash were used. Ash was the traditional wood of the Irish Hurley sticks. The world's purportedly oldest surviving hockey stick was carved between 1852 and 1856 and was sold on December 22, 2006 for $2.2 million (CAD).^[2]

In recent years, sticks made of more expensive Aluminum, fiberglass, carbon fiber and other composite materials have become common. In addition to weighing less, composite sticks can be manufactured with more consistent flexibility properties than their wooden counterparts. These sticks can be one-piece, or they can have replaceable wood or composite blades. Composite sticks, despite their greater expense, are now commonplace at nearly all competitive levels of the sport, including youth hockey.

The lie of a stick refers to the angle between the shaft and the blade. A lie value of 5 corresponds to a 135° angle, and each additional lie value corresponds to a 2° smaller angle.^[3] With the bottom of the blade flat on the ice, a higher lie value causes the shaft to stand up straighter. Typical values range from 5 to 7; most sticks now are near 5.5. Goalie sticks typically have a lie between 11 and 15.^[4]

Whip, bend, stiffness, and flex are all terms used to describe how a stick bows when taking a shot. The flex is printed on the side of the stick, typically ranging from 50 and 110. This number corresponds to the force that it takes to deflect or bend the shaft one inch. For example, a 100 flex requires 100 pounds force (444 N) to bend the shaft 1 inch. A 90 flex requires 90 pounds force (400 N) to bend the shaft 1 inch, and so on.

Aggressive and defensive players lean towards using stiff shafts for stick-checking and controlled slap shots. For a decent slap shot the blade of the stick makes contact with the ice a few inches before the puck. The shaft bends (gets preloaded), loading it full of potential energy, then as you pull the stick through that bend it snaps back into position as it makes contact with the puck. All this force is transferred into the puck.
Finesse style players generally prefer flexible and light weight shafts for wrist shots, snap shots, stick handling, and shot accuracy. A flexible shaft provides more whip which translates into more velocity on shots. Smaller players tend to use more flexible shafts to increase power on slap and wrist shots.

At inception of the sport, the blade of the hockey stick was not curved. Stan Mikita was the first NHL player to use a curved blade.^[5] A great deal of attention is placed on the contours of a stick's curve. A curve is characterized by the blade curves, the shape of the toe, and how the face is angled. A Toe Curve is used by Sergei Fedorov, and is considered good for puck handling and accurate wrist shots. A Heel Curve, such as that used by Brian Leetch and Eric Lindros is designed to maximize the blade's sweet spot, improving speed and accuracy on slap shots, and is often preferred by hard-shooting defensemen for this reason.^[5]

The toe shape is usually either round or square. Square toes make it easier to pull a puck off the boards, while round toes offer a small advantage in puck handling.

The face angle, or openness, of a blade has a large impact on a puck's trajectory when it is shot. If a blade is very open, it will be easier to shoot the puck high, while a closed face is more likely to produce a shot close to the ice.

The curve of the blade is subject to strict rules in all levels of hockey. If the curve exceeds 1/2 an inch, the player is generally given a minor penalty.^[6] This can be tested by lying the stick flat, and attempting to slip a vertical dime under the blade without touching. More accurate measurements can be made using a device which some referees are equipped with called a stick gauge. For the 2005-06 season, the NHL has changed the curve limit to 3/4 of an inch.

There is some controversy as to whether the NHL curve limit rule has any impact on game fairness; the argument being that the curve has no inherent advantage, and so the rules simply penalize players who prefer more curve. If the curve were inherently helpful, one would expect to find very few high-scoring players using slight curves; however, such players are in fact numerous. For example, NHL player Jarome Iginla uses a very slight curve and was awarded the Maurice Richard Trophy as the league's leading goal scorer of the 2003-2004 NHL season. Some other players regarded for their scoring abilities and who use slight curves are Chris Drury, Mike Modano, Marian Hossa, Marian Gaborik, Martin Havlat and Martin St. Louis. One event anecdotally supporting this theory occurred when NHL player Ilya Kovalchuk had been accused of breaking NHL curve limit rules by the Edmonton Oilers during a game. Kovalchuk was assessed a 2 minute minor penalty and was given a stick with a legal curve. Immediately after leaving the penalty box, Kovalchuk received a pass from a teammate and scored what would result in the game winning goal. After scoring Kovalchuk skated past the Oiler bench and pointed at his legal stick in mockery.

The blade of the stick is nearly always wrapped partially in friction tape, a cotton tape that has been impregnated with adhesive so that it is sticky on one side. This is generally done to improve puck handling and to avoid water damage to the stick. The tape is generally replaced once its adhesion is impaired, or it begins to feel heavy. Preferred amounts of puck adhesion vary among players: some players will use a regular cloth tape instead of friction tape, while Wayne Gretzky used friction tape but then applied baby powder to lower its adhesion.^[5]

There is also variation in colour, white or black being predominant. Some hockey players use black tape because they believe it camouflages the puck making it harder for the goalie to see. Luc Robitaille used black tape in the first and third periods but white tape in the second.^[5]

• How to curve your own stick
• "Learning Curve: NHL Players Adapting to New Stick Rule" at NHL.com