Experimental characterization of ice hockey sticks and pucks

Rosanna Leah Anderson

The characteristics of hockey pucks are integral to the dynamic behavior of hockey sticks. Manufacturers use quasi-static to qualify pucks and drop tower testing at freezing and room temperatures has been previously performed. No data exists in the literature characterizing pucks at game speeds, which often reach 70 - 100 miles per hour in elite - level play. A high speed impact test was developed to simultaneously measure the puck hardness and coefficient of restitution. Puck brand, temperature, and speed were all shown to have significant effects on the impact properties of hockey pucks. The ice hockey stick has been an evolving piece of equipment over the last 20 years, with the introduction of aluminum and composite materials. Finer control over the manufacturing processes have also led to advances in stick features, including tapered shafts, finely tuned flex, and variable shaft geometry. It has been unclear what effect, if any, these modifications have on the performance of hockey sticks in the field of play. The current study examined laboratory measures of ice hockey stick feel and performance. Seventeen sticks were considered to compare wood (6 sticks) and composite (11 sticks) sticks, including different shaft tapers for each group. Modal analysis was performed to quantify vibration characteristics that play a role in perceived player feel. The first two bending modes were compared for all sticks. While differences were noted in the natural frequencies for the first two bending modes of different sticks, these differences were small. Tapered composite sticks showed lower first bending mode node locations than wood sticks. A high speed laboratory performance test was developed and used to compare the 17 sticks. Pucks were fired from a high speed air cannon at a stationary pivoted stick. The frame of reference was then changed to a moving stick and a stationary puck to derive a performance value for puck speed resulting from a slap shot. A field study was also conducted to correlate laboratory performance results to on-ice performance. The test was found to be repeatable within 3% of the peak performance (3 sticks). The composite group had an average peak performance that was 18% higher than the wood group. No effect was found on lab performance from the shaft taper. Field study data provided useful information for the derivation of the stick performance metric.

Experimental characterization of ice hockey sticks and pucks

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