Why the Right Hockey Stick Is the Most Overlooked Advantage in the Game:
In hockey, we obsess over skating, shooting, and systems — but often overlook the most important piece of equipment we use on every shift: the hockey stick.
According to Hall of Famer and elite NHL skills coach Adam Oates, this oversight is far more common than people realize.
After decades studying shooting mechanics, puck control, and player habits, Oates believes the majority of players are using the wrong stick.
“Compared to the rest of the league, Oates’s clients are in the minority. He thinks a majority of NHL players are using the wrong stick — a lot. Seventy-five percent.”
If that number applies at the NHL level, imagine how many youth and amateur players are playing with sticks that don’t actually help their game.
The wrong hockey stick can slow release time, limit puck control, and quietly create bad habits over time.
Oates views hockey as a tool sport, similar to golf or baseball.
“In hockey we play a sport that has a tool, just like golf or baseball.”
Growing up with wooden sticks allowed players to tinker with curves, blades, and feel daily.
“When I played with Brett Hull, we talked sticks constantly — he learned it from his father, Bobby Hull — and ever since then I’ve been a tinkerer.”
Strong forehands and backhands don’t come by accident — they often come from having the right stick.
“When you look at the best players, especially guys with strong forehands and backhands, that comes from having the right tool.”
The hockey stick doesn’t just affect performance — it shapes habits.
“We start there, then filter through how the stick helps them, hurts them, and how it creates habits in their game.”
In a fast, contact-heavy sport, eliminating blind spots matters.
“I’m trying to eliminate every blind spot.”
For youth and developing players, choosing the right hockey stick is about more than today’s performance — it’s about long-term development.
At All Hockey Sticks, our goal is simple: elite performance without the bad price tag, and sticks that actually fit how players play.
