Slapshot

– Origin, History, and Usage:
– Bernard Boom Boom Geoffrion credited with inventing the slapshot for the Montreal Canadiens.
– Eddie Martin from the Coloured Hockey Leagues Halifax Eurekas also credited with inventing the slapshot in the late 1800s.
– Dick Irvin, a star player in the WCHL and PCHA, known for his hard and accurate slap shot.
– Modern professional play has seen a decline in slapshot usage, except for the one-timer shot, due to improved defensive strategies and equipment.
– Composite ice hockey sticks have enabled accurate wrist shots from farther out, making them a preferred choice over slapshots for offensive plays.

– Speed Records:
– Puck can reach speeds of 100 miles per hour or more when struck with a slapshot.
– KHL record for fastest shot held by Alexander Riazantsev at 114.127 mph.
– NHL record for fastest shot held by Zdeno Chara at 108.8 mph.
– AHL record for fastest slapshot held by Martin Frk at 109.2 mph.
– NHL/AHL and KHL slapshot speed records are not directly comparable due to differing official regulations.

– See Also:
– Shot (ice hockey)
– Backhand slapshot
– Wrist shot

– External Links:
– How to Take a Slapshot

– References:
– Rush, Curtis (November 24, 2017). The Death of the Slap Shot in the NHL.
– Bernie Geoffrion dead at 75. CBC News. March 11, 2006.
– Fosty, George; Fosty, Darril (2008). Black Ice: The Lost History of the Colored Hockey League of the Maritimes, 1895-1925.
– Dick Irvin Was a Dedicated Player: Practiced Profusely, Loved Hockey. The Montreal Gazette. May 17, 1957.
– Shinzawa, Fluto (November 17, 2022). The death of NHL slap shots: Why players are abandoning hockeys signature offensive weapon.

Slapshot (Wikipedia)

"Slap shot" redirects here. For the 1977 film starring Paul Newman, see Slap Shot. For other uses, see Slapshot (disambiguation).

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A slapshot (also spelled as slap shot) is a powerful shot in ice hockey. Its advantage is as a high-speed shot that can be taken from a long distance; the disadvantage is the long time to set it up as well as its low accuracy.

It has four stages which are executed in one fluid motion to launch the puck toward the net:

1. The player winds up his hockey stick to shoulder height or higher.
2. The player violently "slaps" the ice slightly behind the puck and uses his weight to bend the stick, storing energy in it like a spring. This bending of the stick gives the slapshot its speed. Just like a bow and arrow, the stick's tendency to return to being straight is transferred to the puck, giving it much more speed than just hitting it alone could.
3. When the face of the stick blade strikes the puck, the player rolls his wrists and shifts his weight so that the energy stored in the stick is released through the puck.
4. Finally, the player follows through, ending up with the stick pointed towards the desired target.

The slapshot is a hard and fast shot, and difficult to make accurate. It also takes longer to execute; a player usually cannot take a slapshot while under any significant pressure from an opposing player because the opponent could easily interfere during the windup. Offensive players wary of a defence player intervening may elect to take a shot that is speedier to set up, such as a wrist shot. The slapshot is most commonly used by a defenceman at the point, especially during a power play, although a forward will sometimes find an opportunity to use it. Slapshots are iconic to hockey's image due to their capability to score as a surprise turning point, the loose equivalent of a home run in baseball or a Hail Mary in American football.