What Stick Grip Are You?

Stick grips or shoulder shapes on your paddle are highly personal. Firstly, you have always had the standard square shoulder grip, that has been an industry standard for decades. Now, Bauer is leading the charge by offering three (a fourth is coming in '26) variations for you to choose from, available as a custom option on either of their pro model sticks, Vapor or Supreme. CCM also has 2 variations available to custom order: rounded or double steep shoulders available on their XF Pro goal stick. 

The trigger grip has been around for decades in various guises (players of created their own trigger with wood working tools) dating back to Dan Bouchard when he played for the Atlanta Flames. He had a Louisville double trigger grip for his index and middle fingers that he swore by, saying it offered more control and allowed him to cease the death grip he always had on his stick. Todays' trigger grip uses the same premise, allowing the player to put his middle finger in the trigger (index fingers don't fit ideally due to the finger protection built into the modern blockers) and allows the top of the paddle to be placed a little more in the palm of the players hand, again for more control.

The steep or double steep option allows the stick to fit into the palm of the players' hand even better, offering an increased grip strength and more position options. Sergei Bobrovsky (24" paddle length) has made this option popular and this has led to many of his NHL counterparts to try it as well. See an In-Goal Magazine quote from Semyon Varlamov:

“I like it the way it holds and the position of the blocker, that was the reason I changed,” Varlamov told InGoal. “I tried Ilya’s (Sorokin) stick one day and I feel really comfortable. His stick a little bit shorter and I feel more comfortable going to butterfly position. I feel like my blocker is always in the right place. I used to have a longer stick and my blocker position would be a little higher so when you go in the butterfly you’d give up that tip or shot just over the pad and this just feels more comfortable.” 

For a more in-depth look at how Bobrovsky has influenced other goalies, see this In-Goal Magazine story of how Spencer Knight switched over to a Bobrovsky shape handle HERE.

The round shape was made popular by Carey Price on his CCM sticks and is still available on Bauer and CCM sticks via custom order only. For many goaltenders this is an excellent option, as it does improve the comfort of the grip on the stick. It also reduces the chance of the stick shoulder jamming into the area between the players' thumb and index finger on one side. 

Options are there now for goalies to try. Much like the options you have to build your perfect set of pads that fit your playing style, the stick is no longer overlooked. Bauer and CCM are leading the option parade and we have a couple of these in-stock in the store. Our line of CCM XF Pro with the double steep shoulders and our new Bauer Flylite trigger grip sticks are popular and growing more so every day.