Buying your hockey player’s first ice hockey stick comes with a lot of options. Wood or composite? Flex? Length? While all of these are important aspects of finding a hockey stick, here is the number one tip to make buying a hockey stick easy: how to tell if your kid needs a right or left handed stick.
Why Right VS Left Is Important For Hockey Sticks
I am not a hockey equipment expert. I have never held a hockey stick beyond helping my kids schlep their gear into the rink. So when I tell you I was absolutely clueless when it came time to buy their first hockey sticks, I am not exaggerating.
Just for clarification, when I say right hand stick I mean that the stick points out the right hand side of the body when held with both hands and a left hand stick would point to the left.
It may seem pretty simple: my kid is right handed so they will need a right handed/facing stick. Ha! That’s where you’re wrong!
You see, from what I understand about the mechanics of using a hockey stick most of the power and control comes from the hand at the top of the stick. This hand is almost always going to be your dominant hand. That means that if you are right hand dominant, you need a left hand stick. Why? Because your right hand needs to be at the top of the stick when held with both hands.
Confusing, right? I know. It makes zero sense, but in the end it does make sense.
How To Tell If They Need To Switch
Ok, if you are like me and were totally clueless to this hockey gear fact and bought your kid a right hand stick because they are right handed. Do you need to have them switch? It depends.
Both of my kids are right handed and started playing hockey with right hand sticks for their entire first year. It wasn’t until they took their first private lessons that the coach mentioned that my daughter would probably benefit from switching to a left hand stick since she would transfer her stick to her right hand to pump her arms during skating. The stick should remain in her left(remember right hand sticks will have the left hand holding the top of the stick). She decided she would switch and has since said that stickhandling feels much more natural now.
What If My Player is Used To Their Stick?
Not all players need to change if they are using the techinically ‘wrong’ sided stick.
My son is also right handed with a right hand stick and never had the issue of switching his from his left to right hands while skating. He could have also switched, but ultimately decided at the time to stay with his right hand stick.
Can a right hand dominant player successfully use a right hand stick? Absolutely. My son is right handed and still uses a right hand stick. He adapted and made it work.
If you read through this and realized your kid is using the wrong hand stick, don’t panic and toss them in the car to go buy a new stick right away. Just watch your kid the next time they are on the ice and just see if they are switching their stick from hand to hand. More likely than not, they have already adapted to the stick they are using and it’s not a big deal.
Make Packing Your Player’s Gear a Breeze
Thanks for stopping by today, I really appreciate it! If you are new to youth hockey and are looking for a helpful gear resource, go ahead and sign up below to get a free printable gear checklist for your player to make packing up easier. There’s even a bag tag version that you can laminate and attach with a keychain to their bag so it is always close at hand.