Hockey stick with plastic wear strip

Abstract

The hockey stick has a plastic wear strip along the bottom edge of the blade of the stick. Preferably the wear strip is of polyurethane having a flexural modulus in the range of 300 to 550 MPa at room temperature and 1200 to 1400 MPa at −30 degrees Celsius. In a goaltender's stick having a foam core, the wear strip is inserted in a mold and integrally formed with the core of the stick. The wear strip preferably is manufactured via a RIM process, then the core of the stick is molded with the wear strip and stick shaft in position, and then conventional finishing steps are applied, with fiberglass overlays for example.

1 . A hockey stick, having a blade with a toe end and a heel end, wherein a plastic wear strip is positioned along a bottom edge of the blade. 
     
     
         2 . A hockey stick as in  claim 1 , where the plastic wear strip is of a somewhat flexible and somewhat resilient polyurethane. 
     
     
         3 . A hockey stick as in  claim 2 , where the polyurethane has a flexural modulus in the range of 300 to 550 MPa at room temperature and 1200 to 1400 MPa at −30 degrees Celsius. 
     
     
         4 . A hockey stick as in  claim 1 , wherein the wear strip is embedded in bottom of the blade. 
     
     
         5 . A hockey stick as in  claim 4 , where the plastic wear strip is of a somewhat flexible and somewhat resilient polyurethane. 
     
     
         6 . A hockey stick as in  claim 4 , where the polyurethane has a flexural modulus in the range of 300 to 550 MPa at room temperature and 1200 to 1400 MPa at −30 degrees Celsius. 
     
     
         7 . A hockey stick as in  claim 1 , configured as a goaltender's stick and having a polyurethane foam core comprising said blade, wherein the wear strip is molded integrally with said foam core so as to be captured by said foam core. 
     
     
         8 . A hockey stick as in  claim 7 , wherein said wear strip has a projecting central web portion, and wherein said web portion is captured by said foam core to hold said wear strip in position. 
     
     
         9 . A hockey stick as in  claim 8 , where the plastic wear strip is of a somewhat flexible and somewhat resilient polyurethane. 
     
     
         10 . A hockey stick as in  claim 9 , where the polyurethane has a flexural modulus in the range of 300 to 550 MPa at room temperature and 1200 to 1400 MPa at −30 degrees Celsius.