Junior stick selection

[Innocent Bystander 5]

Just looking to get some thoughts on this.... kids are all about having the proper "sty" out there on the ice and sticks are as much as fashion statement as an actual tool of the trade. After suffering through too many stylish sticks that didn't seem to help my daughter's game, I bought a Warrior Widow on clearance. 40 flex, Kopitar curve and it made a big difference. She plays spring hockey for an AAA female team and was fortunate to be coached by Yves Sarault this past spring. I asked him for an explanation and his take was that stick flex is the #1 priority for kids. She is average height, but slight in build. No way she can even move a 50 flex stick cut to her size. To me, the explanation made perfect sense.

Has anyone else had this same experience? It's so hard to pinpoint improvements with kids as they are growing and improving all the time, so sometimes it CAN be the equipment, but sometimes you think it's the new equipment and it's just natural progression.

What are the hockey parents on here looking for in terms of new sticks for their higher level players?

[AIREAYE 248]

After fitting hundreds of kids playing all kinds of hockey, my take on this depends on a multitude of factors, such as playing level, quality of technique, size etc. Since you specified higher level players, my take on them would absolutely be finding the right flex and height. It's assumed that higher level players have the basic shooting technique nailed down and could take advantage of a higher end stick with proper dimensions for him/her.

Flex and height go hand in hand (no explanation needed there) and players/parents/coaches need to realize that you cannot simply want or prescribe a larger size range (JR to INT, INT to SR) without considering how flex and height play a part. For those transitioning from JR to INT for example, you should try to find a whippier INT, and most mid-higher end models these days come in a whippier INT flex rating (55-60).

The biggest misconception I'm seeing (and manufacturers have since recently recognized this as well) among parents and ESPECIALLY coaches and even paid shooting instructors (!) is the misconception about blade lie and how they fail to realize the correlation to stick height. If little Johnny or Amy keeps losing passes under the toe, coaches/parents seem to always gravitate towards the lie issue. They need a lower lie! Too many of them realize that in actuality, the lie numbers among brands is inconsistent (won't elaborate here, plenty elsewhere on this board) and shouldn't be relied upon. I always tell them to bring their old stick to the store and eyeball the differences instead of relying on what the label says.

Relating this to stick height, too many people don't consider shortening the stick (even half an inch will likely make a difference) to have their blade sit closer to them (and thus, more blade on the ice) even though the offenders always seem to have their stick at or above the nose on skates.

I volunteer-coach my younger brother's house league team and it pains me to see 13 and 14 yr olds use SR regular 85 flex sticks with about 4 or 5" inches cut down on them. And that's only in sticks!

No one stick will make someone a better shooter. It's mostly having proper technique and have the RIGHT stick in terms of sizing.

[ID Rollerpop 4]

This is one reason I have recently begun gravitating to Sherwood sticks for juniors. The have a 40 flex available that is very smoth and claim what they call a flex free zone stating that cutting up to 4" of it not supposed to increase from the advertized flex. I would also agree with Aireaye as the hardest points are getting the length right and making the transition from Junior to Intermediate and Intermediate to Senior. The old TPS whip flex sticks were a lifesaver but anymore it is usually easier for me to put a 6" plug into an Intermediate stick than try to find a soft enough Senior stick for that 5'10" beanpole. Also like Aireaye stated what are often percieved as lie problems are often better addressed with removing a couple inches from the stick often increaseing the players ability to keep their torso upright and control the puck.

[Innocent Bystander 5]

I agree with all of the points you make. That brings up a new topic though. Proper cutting of a stick needs to take into account the lie of the blade. Most people still use the "cut at the chin for a forward, nose for a defenseman" technique and those cuts are almost ALWAYS too long. I put the kid on skates, stick in top hand with arm almost straight down to their side. Then I mark the cut to where the blade is flat on the ice... I usually add a half inch for margin of error. This makes for a stick (when held straight up and down) that comes to about the shoulder blade or adam's apple.

I was at a AAA tournament and Allen Andrews (Andrews Hockey Schools in PEI) was there. He pulled my daughter aside after watching her game and asked who cut her stick. She just had a blank stare, so I spoke up and said that I did. He then measured it in her hands and said it was actually perfect. He then stated that he saw too many sticks that were too long and it was nice to see a stick cut properly. He is known for a shorter stick preference, but he also is known for working with many many NHL prospects (including Sid the Kid). He seems to know his stuff so I have stuck with that method since.

This is one reason I have recently begun gravitating to Sherwood sticks for juniors. The have a 40 flex available that is very smoth and claim what they call a flex free zone stating that cutting up to 4" of it not supposed to increase from the advertized flex. I would also agree with Aireaye as the hardest points are getting the length right and making the transition from Junior to Intermediate and Intermediate to Senior. The old TPS whip flex sticks were a lifesaver but anymore it is usually easier for me to put a 6" plug into an Intermediate stick than try to find a soft enough Senior stick for that 5'10" beanpole. Also like Aireaye stated what are often percieved as lie problems are often better addressed with removing a couple inches from the stick often increaseing the players ability to keep their torso upright and control the puck.

Warrior has 40 flex sticks, and you can get some older (a few years back) CCM sticks that are 40 flex. My daughter has a 40 flex Widow (about 2" cut off) with a Crazy Light as a back up (again, about 2" cut off). The CL was a whopping $70 from Hockey Monkey on blowout. Great deal.

[Chadd 916]

I think lie is the most critical aspect of a stick, flex is a very close second, especially when it comes to kids. I have been saying for a very long time that buying decisions should be made on being able to flex the stick on a normal wrist shot and not if you can make it flex by putting all of your weight into it.

[Innocent Bystander 5]

I think lie is the most critical aspect of a stick, flex is a very close second, especially when it comes to kids. I have been saying for a very long time that buying decisions should be made on being able to flex the stick on a normal wrist shot and not if you can make it flex by putting all of your weight into it.

With reasonably priced slow motion video these days, it would be interested to see a young player take shots with various sticks of different flex.