Al Iafrate's Stick Flex
- Thread starter Jarick
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RichNash61
Registered User
robmneilson
Registered User
The Tikkanen
Pest
He has to be mic'ed for that kind of interview. I like what he had to say about flex. In game time speed your shots are usually under pressure where you won't be able to use perfect technique, footwork or use your hands properly, comes in handy to have a little extra flex.
Meh, it's relative. I'm a forward who's about 185 but I have been told that I "flex the s***" out of my 105 flex on slappers and one-timers. I really don't care about loading my wrister much in a game because I only focus on getting it off quickly. As long as I can get some flex on my snapper and not a lot while giving or receiving a pass, it works for me.
Agreed! I'm 6', 185 lbs, have been playing hockey since I was 8, and I use a 77 flex. Not sure if this is true, but I've heard that guys like Ovechkin and Kovalchuk use 77ish flex sticks too, and I think Phil Kessel actually uses and intermediate stick. It certainly looks quite whippy here:
However, it definitely comes down to personal preference, the guys I know who like stiffer sticks feel their shots are more accurate and predictable with a stiff stick than with a whippy one.
However, it definitely comes down to personal preference, the guys I know who like stiffer sticks feel their shots are more accurate and predictable with a stiff stick than with a whippy one.
As when you get as many sticks as you need using a whippier stick which your going to break more often is fine. I like the trade off of a slightly weaker shot for having sticks last. They're too expensive and I can still score.
That's a VERY good point. Sticks tend to break in regarding stiffness after a bit, so a 100 becomes a 90, an 85 becomes a 77 etc. I know he uses about an 80 flex, but anyone notice how many sticks Ovechkin goes through? I've seen him pop through 3 or 4 a game (not all breaking because of opponent slashes either). Hell, go for it if you can foot the bill!
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cptjeff
Reprehensible User
Ovechkin just might put a bit more power into his shots than the rest of usI'm 6', 185 lbs, use whippy sticks, shoot fairly hard, and very rarely snap sticks.
And he does use a 75 flex stick. Adds up to quite a few broken sticks, but it has an effect. Cam Ward specifically mentioned the whippy stick as a big part of what made Ovechkin so hard to stop in an interview a few days ago.
This is false. Whippier sticks don't break more often unless you're eating ice with your shot, and at that point its not your flex you should be worrying about.
budster
Schoolyard Puck
It's true if the stick is SO STIFF a player can't bend it at all. That's probably how this rumor started.
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stick flex analogy video
Jarick
Doing Nothing
The only way a stiffer stick will last longer is if you're barely flexing it at all. Whippy sticks can eventually crack over time, but if you're taking a ton of ice and really leaning into a stiffer stick just to get it to move, you'll probably end up snapping it anyway, and you're leaving a lot of power on the table.
TBLfan
Registered User
Pierre Gotye
Registered User
I use a 65 flex(Intermediate stick), and I am 6'7 215. I wish I had a stiffer twig to see the difference sometimes.
Pierre Gotye
Registered User
If this is a joke I don't get it. If true, you're 6'7" and you use and INTERMEDIATE stick? Why? The plug on the end of that thing must be absolutely massive.
Fair enough, heard that somewhere, but as I said I was not sure if it was true.
Even if you don't break the whippier stick, it will "whip out" faster. Though I think better sticks these days tend to whip out much slower than in the past, it's still a legit issue. I also simply don't like sticks bowing on passes unless it's a slap pass. The feeling is just odd to me.
