There are three categories of goalie sticks; Wood, Foam Core, and Composite. They are all relatively the same price so your choice of material comes down to preference. Generally wood sticks are the cheapest, foam cores in the middle and composites are the most expensive. For around $100-$150 you can get a decent stick with any material.
Wood Sticks
Unlike player sticks wood sticks are still quite relevant. They are generally heavier than the rest but have many advantages over the other 2. If you have ever played baseball you know how much an aluminum bat can sting, where as you rarely feel it with a wood bat. The same principle applies to goal sticks. They generally don’t vibrate on shots and offer a fair amount of consistency when it comes to rebounds. You can customize the paddle with a notch (As seen bellow) or a customized paddle shape like done by Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist seen here. Wood sticks are typically cheaper, but can break fairly easily. They may reinforce the stick with small amounts of carbon fiber or ABS depending on the stick.
Foam Core Sticks
Foam core sticks are the happy medium between wood and composite. They consist of a thin wood packed with foams. The cost is in between wood and composite, and will last longer than both wood and composite. They control rebounds fairly well, even on hard shots. They may dent on hard shot instead of splintering with wood or catastrophic failure like a composite. These are the most popular sticks due to being in between the extremes. Like wood, they are generally reinforced with carbon fiber strips. Foam cores are popular because of the low weight, durability and feel. Many pros use foam core sticks.
Composite Sticks
Last but not least we have composites. These are the polar opposites of wood sticks. Like player sticks, the composites goalie sticks are light, very light. They can be at least half the weight of a wood stick. However, they don’t control rebounds as well. It may cause large rebounds because of the stiffness of the stick. The advantage is that they are light so you can be much faster with your stick. They are much more durable than player composites. They will be the most expensive out of all sticks, some even getting up to $250+ .
Go with whichever stick fits you the best and is best for your budget. You can learn how to pick out a stick here.
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