The RinkFor the not so ready for prime-time players, coaches, referees, and the people that have to live with them. Discuss experiences in local leagues, coaching tips, equipment, and training.
In doing research for a new curve, I notice there are several threads on curves here and there, and the basics are usually covered upon request. However, I figured it would be nice for users to be able to search for a curve and get a one-stop-shop on the experiences of other user with said curve.
There are pros and cons to every curve and those change more based on the style and game-play of the user. The idea is just to post the curves you've used, a short pro/con and why the curve you use now is your go to.
Curves used:
Bauer PM9; mid-heel, closed. (Zetterberg, Savard, etc.): Consistent on forehand and backhand, easy to keep shots low. Lie was too low. No other cons really stood out.
Bauer P88; Mid, closed. (Heatley, not sure what else): More zip on the wristshots. Slapshot stayed low from far out. Backhand play also easier. Lie was also too low. Harder to get quick shots up.
Easton Sakic; Mid to mid-toe, open. (Backstrom, Draper, etc.): Quick shots top corner. Slapshots had more precision when looking top corner. Easier to attempt toe drags and such. Harder to keep low slap shots accurate. Backhand almost non-existent. Saucer passes fluttered.
Bauer P91a; heel, open wedge (Kovalev, Drury, etc): More ability to control slapshot height, quick shots easy to get up high. Similar backhand consistency to the PM9. Harder to keep wristshots low, harder to pick high corners with slapshots.
Warrior Lidstrom; heel, open with square toe (Getzlaf, not sure what else): Seems to be a hybrid between the Sakic and Drury clones. Forgiving on slapshots. Backhand plays closer to a flatter blade. Easy to get shots up high top corner. Great on saucer passing. Personally, I just like the look of the toe, but it helps in board play. Harder to keep shots lower than a more closed blade, but easier than the open wedge types. Dangles will also be more difficult with the square toe because you cannot rotate the toe.
My favorite curve so far has been the Lidstrom. It gives me the best of every world between my favorite curves of the P92 (sakic) and the P91a (Drury). I do a lot of stickhandling/shooting using the heel which gives me quicker shots with more accuracy. This curve plays more like a mid-heel with more depth the Drury but less curve than the Sakic with a more open toe. I also like to take slapshots when I can either on D or off the rush so it helps with that as well.
Curve preference and performance is based on the user. However, most curves are designed with a strong suit in mind. Just because one person really likes a particular curve doesn't mean it's the one for you. That's why, if you can afford to, you should try different patterns to find a good one.
These are all my opinion based on my game and shooting style. I'm primarily a shooter, I'm shorter and play lower to the ice, and my shooting style is a snap shot where I cup the puck and really flex the stick to get power.
I've used a lot of other curves but here are the main ones IMO. I haven't used a Lidstrom/P02.
Forsberg/PM9
Pros: best curve for passing on forehand and backhand, very consistent and easy to play with, great backhanded shots
Cons: lack of curve hurts puck protection and reduces velocity of wristers, lack of loft reduces velocity on snap shots greatly
Iginla/P88
Pros: good overall curve for shooting and stickhandling
Cons: not quite enough curve for wristers and not open enough for snappers, shooting and passing on the backhand can be a little tricky
Sakic/P92
Pros: bigger curve and open face make for incredibly quick snap and wrist shots, great puck protection, longer blade for more reach
Cons: very unpredictable for beginners in terms of shooting and passing, backhanded passing and shooting is very tricky, not recommended for beginners
Drury/P91A
Pros: very open face is excellent for snap and slap shots if the technique is there, mostly flat blade allows for great passing and backhanders, longer blade for reach
Cons: huge open heel requires very good technique, not a curve for beginners, must be conscious of open face at all times, pucks tend to go high frequently
First off, I'd just like to say this is a great thread idea. Since blades are quite affected by your playing styles/abilities, maybe to better help others decide on a blade we should say our playing styles and some pros/cons about our game (only those that might be affected by blade choice).
I'm more a powerforward/grinder type when I play up and a shut down D when I play back. Big body guy so I prefer to skate around a guy and use my size to keep him off the puck rather than dangle or accelerate by someone.
Pros to my game would be shot power, passing, tipping.
Cons would be stickhandling/deking and shot accuracy.
Secondly, I'm pretty surprised at the cons that have been said about the Sakic curve. For me, it lets me do everything I want to, at least at a reasonable level. I feel that it's good at most everything but not great in any one area. It's basically my swiss army knife of hockey blades.
Then again, the first hockey stick I ever had was an Easton wood stick with a Sakic blade, so maybe learning with the Sakic let me bypass the difficulty on the backhand that others find with it.
Lettme think of some other blades I've used:
Sher-Wood Stastny curve (seen sites compare it to a Sakic or Crosby curve, way off base IMO. Closest I've seen would be the Bauer Staal, maybe the Easton Drury): Pros- BEASTLY for tipping pucks in front of the net, good passes (especially saucer passes), pretty good slap shot too (if you're using your slapper to score rather than shoot for rebounds).
Cons- Next to impossible to keep shots low, backhand needs to be right on the heel or it's going to be hard to get off the ground at all. Need some time to get used to it to have shooting accuracy on par with what your normal accuracy (more so than other blades I've used).
Warrior Jovanoski (Easton Lidstrom/Getzlaf): Pros: Great slapper, pretty good wrister as well. Big fan of the square toe, makes board play way easier and IMO gave my wrist shot a bit better accuracy and slapper a bit more power (maybe that's just me though) .
Cons: Hard to keep shots low. Dekes and stickhandling affected negatively by square toe.
I've used more blades than this but this is just what's in my head cause it's what I've used recently. I'll come back and update later after I have had a good look around my garage to remind myself what other blades I've used.
TKACHUK (original pattern from the TPS Response - all yellow, circa 2000/01)
~ my two complaints are
• that they stopped making this pattern
• the height of the blade needs to be "taller"
It seems like most TPS sticks pre-buyout have 'short' blades or a smaller throat area, especially when compared to Bauer's 'expanded throat' offerings in their new Vapor and Supreme series. My R6 Armor is in the same situation as your Response
I'm a normal sized guy, play usually as center, and I'm playmaker more than a shooter. Normally I use 67 flex stick.
Before I've used a P92/Naslund blade with Bauer sticks and Sakic with Eastons, but now when I bought new Bauer Supreme One80 stick, I decided to go with a new blade, P14/Toews. Here's my pros and cons of it.
Toews/P14
Pros: Excellent stickhandling, and toe-drags, backhanded shots are way easier, quick snapshots.
Cons: Passing is difficult and more inaccurate than with P92, impossible to use a half-drag wristshot, as the puck will go to the 9th floor.
As Jimmy Carter said before, the P92 is more all-rounded blade, and easier to play with, but I believe that P14 might be better in long run when I learn to master it.
I've always favored the two piece sticks because I can experiment with different blade patterns. This blade pattern comparison chart shows the pros and cons for different attributes/shapes. The only problem is it doesn't show what the effect will be when you put em together.
That's why I like the OP's idea of identifying the performance of specific blades. It gives the whole picture. The problem with naming specifics is they change names when a new player gets more popular. One last point: The lie in a pattern is often overlooked in these discussions but makes a big difference. It's dependent on a player's style/stance while other things can be more universal.
Love the Lidstrom/Getzlaf. Reebok's Datsyuk is pretty similar. I'm not a dangler anyways, but I do find toe drags easier with a square toe, also for digging along the boards. Great pattern for shooting (wristers through slapshots) and passing (esp saucers).
Easton Sakic: The curve is huge, great to get a harder wrist shot, but difficult to get a quick release off. Not good for snap or slap shots.
TPS Frolov: Great for quick release, honestly my favourite blade I've ever used. Once you get used to it, it is great for any shot, especially snap shots and quick release wrist shots.
TPS Afinogenov: Similar to Sakic curve, pretty large curve, hard to get a quick release or good slap shot with it.
Bauer Naslund (Name has changed, not sure which one it is): Another personal favourite of mine, good curve for a forward, great for wrist/snap shots, average for slap shots.
All in all my favourite curve EVER is the Frolov, it's kind of an odd looking curve, I REALLY despised it for a while, but once I got used to it I loved it. Really good for all kinds of shots.
Easton Sakic: The curve is huge, great to get a harder wrist shot, but difficult to get a quick release off. Not good for snap or slap shots.
TPS Frolov: Great for quick release, honestly my favourite blade I've ever used. Once you get used to it, it is great for any shot, especially snap shots and quick release wrist shots.
TPS Afinogenov: Similar to Sakic curve, pretty large curve, hard to get a quick release or good slap shot with it.
Bauer Naslund (Name has changed, not sure which one it is): Another personal favourite of mine, good curve for a forward, great for wrist/snap shots, average for slap shots.
All in all my favourite curve EVER is the Frolov, it's kind of an odd looking curve, I REALLY despised it for a while, but once I got used to it I loved it. Really good for all kinds of shots.
Funny that you find the Sakic poor for snap shots and the Naslund great for snap shots, since the Naslund is/was a Sakic clone, basically the same curve with a slightly higher lie (the Naslund was the old name for the P92, which is now called the Backstrom). Shows why even with one person comparing curves can be so hard, because your technique/skill changes with time, and it's also difficult as a user to know whether your shot is mostly being affected by simply the curve shape, or also the stick flex, materials/construction, etc.
And IIRC, the TPS Frolov was at least similar to an Easton Drury/Bauer P91A, in case you're looking for a new stick anytime soon.
Funny that you find the Sakic poor for snap shots and the Naslund great for snap shots, since the Naslund is/was a Sakic clone, basically the same curve with a slightly higher lie (the Naslund was the old name for the P92, which is now called the Backstrom). Shows why even with one person comparing curves can be so hard, because your technique/skill changes with time, and it's also difficult as a user to know whether your shot is mostly being affected by simply the curve shape, or also the stick flex, materials/construction, etc.
And IIRC, the TPS Frolov was at least similar to an Easton Drury/Bauer P91A, in case you're looking for a new stick anytime soon.
Interesting. I used both curves lately too. It seems the Sakic is a huge curve to me while the Naslund had less of a curve making it easier to get a quicker release.
Also, thanks for the bottom part. I usually use two-piece sticks and I found a composite Frolov blade for like 10 bucks brand new, so I bought it. It's cracking a little after a season or two of using it so it's good to know what a similar curve is.
There was a point where the Naslund (P92) was a huge toe hook, almost like a ladle. They're not like that now as the Backstrom, for whatever reason.
Also you said you use two-piece sticks, if the blades were wood then you will see a huge variation in the curve. I've seen the same curves side to side that were completely different.
There was a point where the Naslund (P92) was a huge toe hook, almost like a ladle. They're not like that now as the Backstrom, for whatever reason.
Also you said you use two-piece sticks, if the blades were wood then you will see a huge variation in the curve. I've seen the same curves side to side that were completely different.
The Sakic was wooden the Naslund wasn't, so that is possible.
I have used a curve similar to a PM9 all my life...been playing for 14 years off/on.
PM9 - Stick is good for any shot. Probably the most standard, basic stick. Above average at saucers. Average at backhands.
Then I picked up a Easton S19 - Heatley (P9)
P9 - To start, I love how the toe is formed. The first thing I noticed was my passing improved, the overall responsiveness of the stick is incredible. I think it is great for slapshots and snapshots. Average at wrist shot and backhand. Love the way I can feel the puck.
Previous stick was a Bauer Total One. I just love this curve (P9) and what it did to my game.
Love the Stastny and Sakic blade patterns... I have a wooden Coffey stick but it's a bit extreme; backhands and stick handling is a challenge although the curve makes for some dirty toedrags...
My history:
Sakic - Got me lifting the puck as a beginner, but as others noted passes fluttered.
Iginla - Huge upgrade to "all around" play.
PM9 - At first hated it, now love it. Lie seems low, but rocker seems to make it ok. I think it's the rocker/lie that are so different from the Iginla.
After using the PM9, going back to the iginla is like stabbing myself in the eye (also, diff stick/height but w/e). Anyone tried the P14?
Thanks for this. I just got an Easton S15 Getzlaf curve from the hockey monkey mystery sticks deal.
Make sure to shoot from the heel, and to really make the stick do the work - get your power from flexing the stick, not from your wrists. With the right technique you should love this curve for both snap and slap shots, but with the wrong technique (shooting more from the mid/toe area like you might do with some mid and toe curves) it'll be flutter balls all day.
