How to tape a hockey stick (goalie stick included)

Tape does three jobs: it grips the puck so it doesn't skid off the blade, it protects the blade, and at the top it gives your hand something to hold. Here's how to do a player stick and a goalie stick, and how often to redo it.

What you need

• A roll of cloth hockey tape (black or white, 1" wide)
• Scissors, or a sharp edge to tear
• Stick wax (optional, but it helps tape grip the puck and keeps snow off)

Taping the blade: heel to toe

1. Start at the heel. Hold the end of the tape on the blade right where it curves up into the shaft. Leave a little blade bare at the heel if you like: that's personal.
2. Wrap toward the toe. Go around the blade, overlapping each wrap by about half the tape's width. Keep it tight and flat, with no bubbles.
3. Keep going past the end. Run the tape off the toe, then cut it. Press down any loose edge, and trim the tape along the toe's curve so nothing hangs off.
4. Wax it. Rub stick wax over the tape on both sides. It makes the tape last longer and grip the puck better.

Heel to toe or toe to heel? Either works. Heel to toe leaves the tape's edges facing the toe, which a lot of players say feels smoother when they cradle the puck. Try both and keep what you like.

Taping the knob

1. Start a couple of inches down from the top of the shaft and wrap upward, overlapping half each time.
2. For a bigger knob, wrap several times around the very top first, then spiral down.
3. Finish with a few wraps over the end so the cap is covered. The knob should fill your top hand without being so thick it's hard to let go.

Want more grip? Twist a long strip of tape into a rope, spiral it down the shaft, then tape over it. You get ridges to hold.

Taping a goalie stick

A goalie stick is taped the same way at the blade, with two differences.

• The blade: heel to toe, half overlap, like a player stick. Goalies handle the puck too (passes, rims, stopping it behind the net), so the same grip helps.
• The paddle: many goalies tape the bottom of the paddle for grip where the blocker hand slides down, or wrap the whole paddle. A strip on the front of the paddle can also take the sting off stops on the ice. Some don't tape it at all.
• The knob: goalies usually build a bigger knob than players, so the stick is easy to grab off the ice and doesn't slip out of the blocker.

How often to re-tape

• Blade: when the tape is torn or soaked through, or once a week if you're on the ice a lot.
• Knob: when it's flattened or slippery.
• Old tape holds water and gets heavy, so don't just tape over it: peel it off first.

Use the stick well, too

Taping it is the easy part. Rookie Series 05: Stick & Paddle covers how a goalie uses the stick on low shots and in the paddle-down, and 07: Shooting & Puckhandling covers playing the puck like a third defenceman. See the Rookie Series