timmy_t wrote:Hey Minty, what do they mean when they talk about the curve??
The curve of the stick blade. If you look closely at a players stick you will notice it isn't perfectly straight, but has a curve. There is a limit on how much of a curve you can have, previously 1/2" but now upped to 3/4".
Back in the 50's and 60's and even in the early 70's there were still a lot of players who used sticks without a curve at all. In todays game I doubt there even a handful of players who don't have somewhat of a curve in their stick.
In conjunction with this, one of the reasons players in earlier eras liked straight sticks is because the backhand shot was a lot more popular and you generally have more control over that type of shot with a straight stick. You still see backhand shots today, but not nearly as much as in earlier eras. It is often said that Bobby Hull made the curved stick popular with his booming slapshots that exceeded 100mph more often than not.
