Low vs. Mid Kick...Marketing BS?

[ktang 34]

It is my opinion and not fact by any means, but I digress...

I prefer the feeling of a stick that is soft between my hands as opposed to soft below my bottom hand when stickhandling/passing. I feel like my release is more dependent on my ability to get my hands through the puck quickly, generate force quickly (fast twitch muscle work, etc), and form/puck position on my blade as opposed to what I'm holding. While I've preferred mid-kick sticks, I've also used low-kick sticks and find the above factors, the quality of the shaft (weight, does it avoid twisting when I shoot, etc), and how "hot" the face of the blade is play more of a role in release time than the location of the kickpoint.

My examples below are representative of a small sample size and again, not scientific but....

Hull: Used a noodle flex standard shaft/blade most of his career, has arguably one of the best releases in history

Stamkos: Mid-kick Total One, one of the fastest releases in the game today.

Kessel: Has used low-kick eliptical Easton sticks for most of his career.

Bossy: Used a wood stick and probably got the puck off his blade quicker than most NHL players today.

Conclusion: Release quickness is dependent on the indian, not the arrow.

I thought Hull used Z-Bubbles, and even painted them to look like Mission M-1s when Mission sponsored him. Those were low kick point.

[ktang 34]

How does the flipped OPS work - taper at the top, and a standard blade for a high kick point?

[Cove 39]

People trying to say that all the tech is nonsense, or not true and citing Hull flipping his sticks is ridiculous. As has been pointed out, flex points and our ability to utilize them well has a lot to do with your shooting technique, your skating, and other factors like that. What worked best for Hull was a flex point up high and for it to be really whippy. I may be making connections that aren't here but the MX3 now has a higher kick point then in previous years which seems similar to what Hull would have used / preferred.