Elite Hockey HQ

Tool Navigation

Keep exploring adjacent equipment tools after you match your blade pattern.

TOOLS / 04 OF 12 · STICK LAB

CURVE
FINDER.

Heel, mid or toe? Open or flat? Stop picking blades off the wall by name. Seven inputs and we'll point you to a pattern archetype that actually matches the shots you take — and the ones you'd take if your stick weren't fighting you.

6
PATTERN ARCHETYPES
Mapped to play style
4
AXIS SCORING
Type · depth · face · toe
~30s
TO RECOMMEND
Live recompute
TOE CURVES REWARD QUICK HANDS · PUNISH SLOPPY ONESOPEN FACE ≠ MORE LIFT IF YOUR RELEASE IS LATEHEEL CURVES PROTECT YOUR BACKHANDDEEP POCKETS GRAB PUCKS · AND PASSESMOST PROS LIVE WITHIN TWO PATTERNS THEIR WHOLE CAREERA SQUARE TOE WINS ON THE WALLIF YOU CAN'T CONTROL IT FLAT, A BIGGER CURVE WON'T SAVE YOU
TOE CURVES REWARD QUICK HANDS · PUNISH SLOPPY ONESOPEN FACE ≠ MORE LIFT IF YOUR RELEASE IS LATEHEEL CURVES PROTECT YOUR BACKHANDDEEP POCKETS GRAB PUCKS · AND PASSESMOST PROS LIVE WITHIN TWO PATTERNS THEIR WHOLE CAREERA SQUARE TOE WINS ON THE WALLIF YOU CAN'T CONTROL IT FLAT, A BIGGER CURVE WON'T SAVE YOU
01The athleteHand + stance
Shooting sideMIRRORS THE PATTERN
Skating stanceDRIVES THE LIE
02How you playRole + shot type
Position / role
Primary shotWHICH FIRES MOST
Where do you shoot from?HEAT MAP
03Hands + needsWhat the blade gets asked
Stickhandling style
Backhand useHONEST
Lift / loftSHOTS + SAUCE
04LevelCalibrates aggressiveness
Player level
LIVE RECOMMENDATION
ID EHQ-CRV-0000
◆ RECOMMENDED PATTERN
TOE DAGGER
TOE · DEEP · OPEN
Toe pattern · ~1/2" depth · 5° loft
◇ HAND
LHSHOT
LEFT-HAND SHOT · RIGHT TOP HAND ON SHAFT
CURVE
TOE
DEPTH
DEEP
FACE
OPEN
TOE
ROUND
LIE
5.5

Pocket loaded at the toe — toe drags grab, in-tight wristers fly upstairs. Lives and dies on stickhandling skill; backhanders feel weird.

MATCH CONFIDENCE
79%
◆ BLADE VISUAL
LIVE
TOP-DOWN · BLADE PROFILE
TOE DAGGER · LEFT
HEEL ZONEMID ZONETOE ZONEDEPTH · 16 mmHEELTOETYPETOEDEPTHDEEPFACEOPENTOEROUNDLIE5.5LOFT
● ALSO CONSIDER
NEXT 3 MATCHES
B
TOE LOFT
TOE · DEEP · VERY OPEN · ROUND
Δ 2.2
C
MID-OPEN
MID · MID · OPEN · SQUARE
Δ 2.4
D
MID-FLAT
MID · MID · NEUTRAL · SQUARE
Δ 2.6
● REFERENCE

WHY TOE DAGGER.

Every input nudged your blade disposition. Here is the running tally — and where you landed on the pattern map.
◇ DISPOSITION BUILD · WHY TOE DAGGER
← HEEL · FLAT · CLOSED · SQUARE   |   TOE · DEEP · OPEN · ROUND →
POSITION / ROLE
0
PRIMARY SHOT
+5
WHERE YOU SHOOT
0
STICKHANDLING
0
BACKHAND USE
0
LIFT / LOFT NEED
0
SKILL LEVEL
0
NET DISPOSITION
+5
◆ PATTERN MAP · WHERE YOU LAND
2D PROJECTION
HEELTOEFLATDEEPHEEL CANNONHEEL WORKHORSEMID-FLATMID-OPENTOE DAGGERTOE LOFTYOU
BEST FIT
ALTERNATES
YOUR SCORE
● FAMILIES

CURVE TYPES, VISUALIZED.

Where the apex sits along the blade decides what the stick wants to do. Pick a family before you pick a pattern.
HEEL CURVE
STABLE
BEST ATHard accurate shots, point shots, backhand passes
COSTLess natural lift; toe drags less aggressive
WHOD-men, two-way forwards
MID CURVE
BALANCED
BEST ATEvery shot type without favoring any
COSTNo standout skill — by design
WHOTwo-way players, new players, centers
TOE CURVE
AGGRESSIVE
BEST ATQuick wristers, toe drags, sniper shots upstairs
COSTBackhands feel awkward; pass receiving harder
WHOForwards, snipers, dynamic stickhandlers
● PRIMER

CURVES, EXPLAINED.

Four traits define every pattern. Once you know them, the pattern wall stops being decorative.
01TYPE
Where the curve peaks decides what the blade wants.
Heel curves cradle the puck near the shaft — predictable, slap-shot friendly. Toe curves load near the tip — quick releases, toe drags, harder backhand. Mid sits between them.
02DEPTH
Depth is grip — and friction.
Deeper pockets cup the puck for stickhandling and pull harder on a snap shot. They also grab incoming passes — sometimes too much. 1/4" is shallow; 1/2" is aggressive.
03FACE / LOFT
An open face lifts pucks for free.
A few degrees of loft turn flat shots into bar-down rippers and short passes into sauce. The cost is keeping shots down on the rush — open faces want to elevate everything.
04TOE SHAPE
Square toes pass; round toes dangle.
Square gives you a flat surface for the backhand pass and a wider footprint along the wall. Round shrinks the toe to a point — better for toe drags, slightly fewer tools elsewhere.
● FAQ

QUESTIONS FROM
THE PATTERN WALL.

What players ask before swapping the blade they have had since pee-wee.

Those codes are manufacturer-specific shorthand for the four traits we score directly — type, depth, face, and toe shape. We use generic archetypes so a recommendation translates across brands. Every archetype card lists its closest cousin (e.g. "Mid pattern · ~3/8" depth · 5° loft") so you can map it to whatever wall you're standing in front of.
△ NOTE

Pattern codes are manufacturer-specific — even within a single brand, a code can shift year over year. Archetypes here describe the four traits that actually matter (type, depth, face, toe). Bring the archetype to the wall and read trait values, not stickers.