By Jim Plummer
Colorado Hockey Institute Founder
Article Last Updated: August 3, 2007


It is always best to practice on-ice and off-ice with the same equipment, especially something as personal and critical as your stick. However, the off-ice environment has very different surface properties as compared to the surface of the ice. Driveways, garage floors, in-line concrete rinks, and sport courts can take their toll very quickly on the blade of a stick.

If you have an old stick that is the same as your new stick, you should use that. If you don’t have an old stick or you simply just want to practice with your game stick off-ice, there are steps you can take to help protect the blade from potentially damaging surfaces.

First let’s talk about a few things that change in the off-ice environment.

Stick Length: Your off-ice practice stick should be cut about 1-2 inches shorter than your on-ice stick length. This is assuming that you practice in shoes. The shorter stick compensates for your height change that occurs when you do not have your skates on, (you may not need to change the stick length if you practice with in-line skates on).

If you are practicing with your game stick, then you are obviously not going to cut the stick, so you will need to slide your top hand down that shaft one or two inches , (choking up). Cutting the stick or choking up will help keep your arm in good position and help keep the blade flat on the surface.

Friction: Ice is a very low friction surface and almost anything else, except for Teflon, has much higher friction. This means that your ability to smoothly stickhandle or move with a ball, or puck is severely hampered.  There are a few things you can do to reduce the friction between the stick and the surface.

Many people have tried creating sheets of material to mimic ice. This can be very helpful, but an alternate approach is to make the stick blade smoother instead. My first rule for your off-ice practice stick is to remove the tape. It definitely creates additional friction with the surface you are practicing on, which is what we don’t want. I don’t even like the feel of the tape against a ball (tennis ball, golf ball, street hockey ball). Those provide enough friction on them anyway, so, you can go with a bare stick blade, (no tape).

 

Protecting the Blade: Even if it is an old stick, or a dedicated practice stick, I always want it to last as long as possible. I have a simple method to protect the bottom of the blade and the toe from rough surfaces, and this also reduces friction between the blade and the practice surface. You can even do this to your game stick and keep your game tape on your blade.

Pick up a roll of clear shin pad tape. Run a piece of tape from the top of the blade at the toe along the bottom of the blade past the heel of the blade and up the shaft an inch or two.
Carefully press the tape onto the blade making sure to keep it as smooth as possible on the bottom of the blade, and on the forehand and backhand side of the blade. Press firmly to be sure you make good contact. It will get a bit bumping on the toe, but that is not as much of a concern as the bottom of the blade.
Repeat this with 3 to 5 more strips of tape, at which time you will have 4 to 6 strips of protection, and a smoother surface. Wrap one piece of tape around the toe from top to bottom (vertically) on the stick blade and at the bottom of the shaft. This will help keep the ends of the tape strips from coming off. You are now ready to practice.

This will help with the wear, but it won’t prevent wear completely. It all depends on the practice surface. The rougher it is, the quicker you will wear through the protection layers. I have had six strips last for more than an hour of constant stickhandling practice. Check your stick often until you know how long it lasts in your environment. When you hear tape flapping or scrapping on the ground, then you know it is time to re-tape your stick. The worn tape is easily removed. If you need it to last longer, you can always add one or two more strips of tape. Anything over that it will start to be a bit too bulky.

If your stick gets wet, remove the tape when you are finished. You don’t want water to sit underneath the tape ruining your blade either.

Enjoy your extra practice time with your favorite stick!