I am currently watching the Habs and Bruins play, and might i say it is getting quite chippy! However this is beside the point, as I have blog posts to do. So i figured i would post about what is on my mind, and currently that is hockey. In this blog i will examine briefly the physics behind shooting a hockey puck and even more so examine each type of shot individually including the wrist shot and slap shot, as well as the effect of the stick type on velocity in the end.

A wrist shot as you may know is not normally as fast as a slap shot and is normally used closer to go. However this is completely irrelevant. Although this technique is used to achieve the element of surprise rather than purely over powering the goalie as a slap shot may be, it can still achieve incredibly fast speeds. The physics of the slap shot include the wind-up, the contact and the shot. The wind-up phase includes the player rotating his torso away from the puck and pulling his stick up and back away from the puck. The contact phase is when the blade of the stick hits the ice, then the puck, bending the shaft of the stick to accumulate potential energy. The deeper the bend in the stick, the more potential energy that is built up and the harder the puck will fly. The shot stage is when the puck leaves the blade and the stick straightens out, helping propel the puck forward. After the puck leaves the blade of the stick there is no force other than gravity acting on it.

While the slap shot may be less accurate at times, man can it be intimidating! If you doubt me I invite you to view the video below of Chara sniping at a world record velocity. While the phases of the slap shot are the same, the wind up in particular features the most difference in that the player rotates their torso to achieve maximum torque as the player un-winds and moves into the contact phase.