CA2303969A1 - Wear-resistant hockey stick blade, and method of manufacture thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention is a hockey stick blade (32) having a rigid straight reinforcing insert (36) along the lower elbowed running edge thereof to reinforce the blade and reduce the wear rate of same. The hockey blade (32) has a conventional elongated substantially flat shape and comprises a plastic material web with the metallic insert (36) being embedded along its lower edge portion with the insert lower edge being exposed. The more solid and wearresistant material of the insert (36) will contribute in significantly reducing the progressive wear of the hockey blade during use of the hockey stick. The insert is permanently attached to the blade (32) by curing the melted plastic around the thermally resistant metallic insert. The reinforcing insert is preferably made of an aluminium and silicium alloy.

Description

TITLE: wBl~R-R$SIBTl~IaT HOCEBY STICK BLADE, ~1D
METHOD OF MA~B'ACTDRB TH8RE08 Field of the invention This invention relates to hockey sticks used by hockey players for striking a ground standing puck toward the net of the other party, and in particular to a ground abrasion wear resistant device for hockey stick blades.
Back~ound of the invention In the case of all-wood hockey stick blades, the fissures very often start at the lower running edge of the blade to afterwards expand to the core of the blade where splitting occurs. The fissures are caused by the friction of the hockey blade on the ice and on other hockey blades, and also to the downward load weight thrust applied by the hockey player on the blade when accomplishing a high velocity shot on the elastomeric puck (more commonly called a slap shot) that results in an important edgewise impact of the blade on the ice. It can be seen that having a lower running edge made of a rigid metallic alloy substantially helps prevent this undesirable fissuring from happening.
This fissuring of the blade happens most importantly on the lower edge of the blade near the hockey stick inner heel. This is due to the fact that the elbowed heel links the blade to the shaft of the stick, and this critical linking point is the one that is most often directly touching the ground.
In United States patent No 5,496,027 issued 5 March 1996 in the name of Christian Brothers inc., there is disclosed a reinforced blade for use as a replacement blade in a hockey stick. A braided tubular sleeve and resin material are placed on the blade, including on the connection end at the top of the replacement blade. The braided tubular sleeve and resin are moulded in place by a moulding device. The connection end is then inserted into the hollow lower end of a handle. The resulting hockey stick is more resistant to breakage at the point of connection. However, such a hockey blade provides little help in increasing the durability thereof over high-s abrasion play surfaces such as asphalt or cement surfaces.
In their latest 1997 Catalogue of products, the same company Christian Brothers inc. now offers a new product called " XTRA BLADE " . The XTRA BLADE is said to be available as a complete wood stick or a replacement blade, and would include an epoxy " wear strip " on the bottom of the blade. The epoxy appears to fill a full length slot in the bottom of the wood blade and is applied in a liquid (melted) state. Once cooled, the epoxy and wood would bond together as one, to allegedly increase the overall strength and life of the blade.
There are a number of problems with such a hockey blade construction. The first one is that the plastic wear strip is an add-on feature to the grooved lower edge of the hockey blade, meaning that although it is claimed that they bond together " as one " , some relative play could nevertheless appear at the interface therebetween, since the plastic material appears to be simply engaged into the groove and would not anchoringly surround any specific structure; accordingly, the plastic wear strip could be made to undesirably move relative to the blade proper, or even could arguably even accidentally detach and fall off therefrom.
Moreover, although epoxy is more abrasion resistant than wood, and would accordingly increase the durability of the blade over an ice rink, its thickness could still decrease dramatically in a short while due to abuse relating to alternate rougher ground play surfaces such as asphalt or cement.
Also, such an epoxy add-on on the wooden blade means that the wear strip could not be applied to blades made from a plastic material, due to their common melting points that would melt the blade groove channel at the lower edge of the blade at the same time as when the liquid wear strip is applied, thus deforming the groove and therefore rendering the latter inoperative for its purpose of retaining the wear strip to the blade lower edge.
~l~i i,, ets of it,he invention The main object of the invention is to control the wear of hockey stick blades, particularly over very rough high-abrasion ground play surfaces.
Another important goal of this invention is to substantially extend the useful lifetime of a hockey stick blade over high abrasion ground surfaces, while maintaining the mechanical longitudinally flexing required properties of the blade at optimum levels through the lifetime thereof.
A further ob j ect of the invention is that this wear resistant hockey blade could be used in various applications including as an integral part of a hockey stick or as a replacement blade, and for forward players as well as for goal tenders sticks.
Another important object of the invention is to submnit a manufacturing process of a hockey stick with wear-resistant blade, of low cost and of lower number of required steps.
A general object of the invention is to provide a low-cost hockey stick blade that will be long-lasting yet will boast high-performance mechanical features that will remain substantially constant throughout the useful lifetime of the hockey stick.
An object of the invention is to provide a wear resistant hockey blade, whose mechanical properties can be initially adjusted to adapt to hockey players of different strengths.
$y~a y of the invention In accordance with the objects of the invention, there is disclosed a process of manufacture of a blade for use as an integral component of a hockey stick, the process comprising the following steps: a) providing a mould with at least one compartment having the shape of the hockey blade, the compartment having a flooring; b) introducing over the mould flooring an elongated rigid metallic insert, the insert being thin; c) supporting with transverse core pins the sheet insert in upright edgewise position; d) injecting melted plastic into the mould to form a plastic blade; and e) leaving the plastic blade to set.
Preferably, there is added the step of piercing a number of flow-through bores through the metallic insert at step (d), wherein melted plastic flows therethrough during injection moulding of step (d); and also preferably the step (f) of grinding the lower edge of the blade, after release from the mould, to make the lower edge of the reinforcing insert smooth and flush therewith and exposed.
The invention also concerns the product per se, namely, a reinforced blade for use as an integral component of a hockey stick, the hockey stick of the type having a main tubular shaft, the blade being a generally rectangular elongated sheet blade having an elbowed neck for integrally and axially mounting to said main shaft, said sheet blade having a lower edge defining a straight section and an inner coextensive elbowed section both adapted to frictionally engage ground surfaces; wherein said sheet blade is made from a thermoplastic material and includes an integral inner reinforcing elongated sheet insert made from a material with high ground abrasion resistance but with good longitudinal flexibility, said inner sheet insert being embedded inside said sheet blade and having an exposed lower edge extending through said blade lower edge elbowed section and through at least a coextensive inner portion of said blade straight lower edge and being flush therewith, said reinforcing sheet insert imparting enhanced structural integrity of said sheet blade while enabling longitudinal flexibility, said sheet insert lower edge forming a wear-resistant running edge.

Preferably, the material of said sheet insert is selected from the group comprising composite aluminum alloys, aramid materials, stainless steel, and three registered trademarks: DURALUMIN, KEVLAR, and DURALCAN

5 (from Alcan) .
It is envisioned that ear means be added, for providing further anchoring force for said sheet insert into said sheet blade over and above the frictional mounting therebetween. Said ear means could then be thermoplastic material studs integral to said sheet blade and extending through bores made into said sheet insert, wherein said sheet insert is firmly anchored into the thickness of said sheet blade.
Alternately, said reinforcing sheet insert could further include a number of bores, the thermoplastic material of said sheet blade extending through said sheet insert bores, wherein said sheet insert is firmly anchored into the thickness of said sheet blade.
Said sheet insert lower edge should preferably have a generally convex shape.

Figure 1 is an isometric view of a hockey stick, with the hockey stick blade being partly broken at its inner elbowed heel section to show the inner section of the reinforcing running edge metallic insert in accordance with the teachings of the invention;
Figures 2 and 3 are side elevations of two hockey sticks, at a smaller scale than in figure 1, suggesting in phantom lines the relative lengths of two embodiments of reinforcing metallic inserts embedded into the blade thereof ;
Figure 4 is a front elevational view of a hockey stick according to conventional make, suggesting in phantom lines the swinging motion thereof as a ground standing puck (also shown in dotted lines) is being struck by the wooden blade thereof during the " slap shot " strike motion;

Figure 5 is a free end view at an enlarged scale of the prior art hockey stick blade of figure 4, suggesting how the wooden blade thereof becomes quickly damaged after repeated impacts with the hard rubber puck;
Figure 6 is a view similar to that of figure 4, but with a hockey stick having the reinforcing metallic insert embedded in its blade according to the invention;
Figure 7 is a view similar to that of figure 5, but with the hockey stick blade of figure 6 shown after the repeated impacts with the hard rubber puck, suggesting that the blade has remained substantially undamaged;
Figure 8 is an enlarged scale side elevational view of the hockey stick blade according to the embodiment of figure 2, suggesting in phantom lines the full length metallic reinforcing insert embedded along the lower edge portion thereof;
figure 9 is a plan view of the first embodiment of full length elongated metallic insert shown in dotted lines in figure 8, and clearly also showing the two opposite convex end edges and the number of bores through which is adapted to flow melted plastic during the manufacturing process thereof;
Figure 10 and 11 are edge views of the hockey stick blade of figure 8, suggesting the relative lengthwise flexibility of the blade including its full length metallic insert under forcible manual bias from the hand of a person;
Figures 12 and 13 are edge views similar to figures 10 and 11, except that they apply f or the first embodiment of shorter lengthwise metallic insert;
Figure 14 is a view similar to figure 9, but for the second embodiment of shorter lengthwise metallic insert suggested in figures 12 and 13, and clearly showing the smaller core pin apertures, the larger melted plastic flow-through bores, the straight corner end edge and the opposite convex end edge thereof;
Figure 15 is an isometric view at an enlarged scale of the hockey stick blade with the full length rigid insert embodiment shown in dotted lines;
Figure 16 is a sectional view of the hockey stick blade taken along the line 16-16 of figure 15 that extends through the flow-through bores of the blade;
Figure 17 is an elevational view of a mould assembly for moulding the hockey stick blade by plastic injection moulding, the mould assembly being in open condition;
figures 18 and 19 are cross-sectional views of two different embodiments of mould assembly in closed condition, respectively having two and four blade-forming compartments;
Figure 20 is an enlarged view of a broken section of the mould assembly of figures i8 or 19, showing a single compartment before plastic injection moulding, and suggesting that the full length elongated metallic insert is supported in upright condition. at the flooring thereof by transverse (horizontal) core pins shown in cross section; and Figure 21 is an enlarged sectional view of the rigid insert taken along line 21-21 of figure 20, and showing in full lines the transverse supporting core pins on opposite lateral sides thereof, together with the mould assembly elements in cross-section.
DETp~T_T_,ED DESCRIPTIOIiLOF THE pREFER_RED EMBODIMENT
The hockey sticks 31, 31', shown in figures 1-3 each consists of a straight elongated shaft 30 and a blade 32 having an integral elbowed neck or heel 34 fixedly axially mounted to the shaft 30. The length of the shaft 30 is in relation to the height of the hockey player. In operative position, the blade 32 stands edgewisely upright, so that its bottom edge 32a including that of heel 34 form a running edge that transversely slides over the ground ice and even strikes thereover during swinging motions to strike a ground standing puck P to impart forward velocity thereto. As the blade running edge 32a impacts upon the ground ice during its swinging motion, and immediately after ground impact, it strikes the hard rubber puck, considerable loads are applied thereto which tend to compromise the structural integrity of the blade 32, in particular at the heel or elbow tenon and mortise joint section between the blade 32 and the shaft 30.
The plastic material of the blade provides the lengthwise flexibility for providing predictable " slap shots " against ground-standing hard rubber pucks, whereas the fibreglass layers provides protection of the wood against impact damage. The. blade heel 34 is conventionally axially secured to the shaft 30 by complementary tenon and mortise joints at their registering ends, and the reinforcing fibreglass sheets are made to extend over this joint to permanently anchor the blade to the shaft in the selected angular orientation.
Alternate hockey sticks include those with a replaceable blade having a socket for axially receiving the shaft inner end in relasable fashion.
Now, according to the invention, there is provided an elongated generally rectangular insert sheet plate of metallic alloy 36 within the lower edge portion of the sheet blade 32 including a coextensive heel section.
The plane of the metal sheet plate 36 is parallel to that of the generally rectangular sheet blade 32, so that the lower running edge 36a of the metal plate project through the centre of the lower running edge 32a of the blade 32 and become flush therewith and exposed. In the first embodiment of blade 32 in figure 2, the metallic insert plate 36 extends along the full length of the blade lower edge 32a, including the adjacent coextensive section of heel 34, whereas in the second embodiment of blade 32' in figure 3, the metal insert plate 36' including the heel 34 extends from only a fraction of the way toward the free front end tip 32b of the blade, e.g. half way.
Figures 4-7 suggest how the structural integrity of the blade 32 can be more predictably monitored in the long run than with prior art hockey stick blades. On the other hand, figures 10-13 suggest that this increased resistance in the blade does not affect the lengthwise flexibility of the blade 32 required for predictable and optimum performance " slap shots " by hockey players.
Figures 9 and 14 show in detail the two different embodiments of metallic strip inserts.
The first embodiment of full length insert 36, shown in dotted lines in the hockey blade of figure 2 and in full lines in figure 9, forms a generally rectangular, thin, flat, elongated sheet plate, having a first convex bottom edge 36a and a straight " top " edge 36b merging at its two opposite ends with the convex bottom edge 36a. The insert plate 36 includes a number of large transverse bores 38, for a purpose later set forth. The insert plate 36 is sized to substantially match the contour of the blade lower edge 32a, wherein the convex bottom edge 36a of the insert plate can exactly become in register and flush with the bottom edge 32a of the blade proper, including the adjacent coextensive heel portion, so as to become downwardly exposed as a separate intermediate layer inside the blade.
Accordingly, ground ice contact of the blade 32 during slap shots with the hockey stick will be made by the bottom convex edge 36a of the metallic intermediate insert, concurrently with the bottom edge 32a of the blade proper, including that of the adjacent coextensive heel portion 34.
Alternately, it would still be considered within the scope of the present invention that the hockey stick be sold with the metallic insert bottom edge 36a being unexposed i.e. with some blade plastic lip overlapping same; but that after the wearing action of a few abrasive slap shots, the metallic insert running edge 36a would become exposed progressively during use by a player.
However, the joint applicants prefer the concept in the first embodiment of providing the blade 32 with the metallic insert running edge 36a being already exposed without wear required, already at the retail store level.
The rigid insert plate 36 must be made from a material having high abrasion resistance and that imparts added structural integrity to the blade 32, while providing 5 optimum lengthwise flexibility in accordance with mechanically satisfactory loading and unloading features to provide powerful yet direction-predictable properties thereto while constantly maintaining these properties within a narrow range of fluctuation in a long-lasting 10 fashion.. Preferred materials would include but not be limited to: Composite aluminum alloys, DURALUMIN (a registered trademark), aramid materials, KEVLAR ( a registered trademark), stainless steel, DURALCAN (a registered trademark of Alcan Aluminum ltd), and the like.
The DURALCAN material is especially preferred.
Indeed, it is an aluminum-matrix composite based on aluminum-silicon alloys, containing silicon carbide and~or aluminum oxide particulates. Abrasion and wear resistance is very high, while the ratio of elastic modulus remains very good. The melting range of a DURALCAN-based insert 36 would therefore be at least 525°C, i.e. much higher than the AHS or other plastic material constituting the hockey blade main material.
An important consideration in the selection of the insert material is that its melting point should be substantially different from that of the plastic material of blade proper, so that as it becomes embedded into the melted plastic during moulding operation, the insert retains its shape but bonds integrally to the plastic volume.
During experiments conducted by the point applicants, a pair of hockey sticks were fixedly attached to the rear of a pick-up truck, their blade upright against the ground, with one hockey stick blade being of conventional ABS plastic material while the other being reinforced at its blade by a metallic insert according to the present invention. The metallic insert in this blade was made of DURALCAN and had a thickness of about 1.27 millimetres. The truck was powered and driven at 20 km\hour f or one hour ( ie . over 2 0 kilometres ) , bef ore the hockey sticks were released therefrom. Measures taken of the abrasive effect edgewisely on the bottom edge of two upright hockey stick blades revealed that the wear-borne relative thickness loss of the blades was 0.25 mm in the case of the present reinforced hockey blade, while that of the conventional unreinforced hockey blade was 5.75 mm, i.e. 23 times that of the reinforced blade.
Obviously, the thickness of the metallic insert 36 could vary from the above-noted thickness. For optimal performance, it is estimated that the range of metallic insert thickness for DURALCAN would be between 0.6 to 1.3 mm, but a hockey blade with a DURALCAN insert smaller than the lower value or larger and the higher value would still be operative and a good although not optimum hockey stick.
The second embodiment of shorter yet still elongated metallic insert 36' is illustrated in phantom lines in figure 3 and in full lines in figure 14. Insert 36' extends for only a fraction of the full length of the lower edge portion of the blade 32' . Insert sheet plate 36' includes a top straight edge 36'b, a bottom straight edge section 36'a, a front end square corner edge 36'c generally orthogonal to edges 36'a and 36'b, and a rear convex end edge 36'd coextensive to the bottom straight edge 38'a. Small flow through bores 38' are further provided. As in the first insert 36, sheet insert 36' is thin, flat, generally rectangular in shape, and still quite elongated. Core pin notches 40 are also shown on the sheet insert 36', for a purpose that will be described hereinbelow.
In both embodiments of reinforcing sheet inserts 36, 36', it is an important feature of the invention that the inner end heel section (i.e. opposite the side of the free end tip 32b of the blade) of the lower running edge 36a (36a') be convexly upwardly shaped and exposed, to conformingly follow the contour of the elbowed neck 34 of the blade 32 flush therewith. Indeed, a substantial level of wear occurs specifically at the heel junction between the substantially straight bottom edge portion of the blade 32 and the upwardly inclined heel section, 34. Therefore, any reference in the specification and claims as to the " lower running edge of the blade 32 and reinforcing inner insert 36 " is to be understood as being applied to at least an inner fraction of the length of the lower edge portion of the blade and to at least a small coextensive lower edge portion of the elbowed heel or neck 34 of the blade 32.
Depending on the need of the user, the reinforcing insert strip 36, which extends from the neck 34 frontwardly at least for a fraction of the total length of the blade 36, may be extended forwardly up to and including the full length of the blade, i.e. up to the free end tip 32b of the blade 32.
We will now turn our attention to the manufacturing process involved in the manufacture of the present reinforced hockey blade.
Before tenon and mortise assembly of the blade 32 with the shaft 30, the blade 32 is separate. Combining the reinforcing metallic insert 36 into the blade proper 32 is performed accordingly with the teachings of the present method of manufacture, having reference to figures 17 to 21 of the drawings. Basically, the blade 32 is formed in a mould 50 by injection moulding, with the metal insert 36 being already inside the mould 50 before melted plastic injection, so that the liquid plastic sets around the metal strip 36 and therethrough i.e. through bores 38 and the insert 36 becomes embedded therein.
More particularly, the mould 50 consists of a stationary element 52 and a second element 54 movable relative to the stationary element 52 (either toward or way therefrom). Each mould main element 52, 54, conventionally carries its inner plate 58, 60. The mould 50 further includes one or more hollow compartments 56 (e.g. two in figure 18, or four in figure 19), each compartment 56 having the shape of a hockey blade. The flat flooring 56a of each compartment 56 is conformingly adapted to edgewisely support in upright position the rectangular thin insert sheet plate 36, or 36', with a plurality of core pins 42 being provided integral to the mould lateral walls to transversely engage at notches 40 (fig 14) and support the lateral walls of the rigid insert plate 36 so as to prevent accidental lateral tilt of the latter from its upright condition. The centre to centre gap between each successive pairs of core pins 42, 42, should not exceed 3 cm, so as to allow a sufficient level of support during the liquid plastic filling operation inside the mould.
Each of the pair of registering core pins 42, 42, has a shoulder, 42a, to enable the mould operator to position the insert plate 36 on the stationary element 52 of the mould 50. Upon closure of the mobile element 54 of the mould 50 against the stationary element 52, seal off occurs with the core pins 42 from the mobile mould element 54. Liquid (melted) plastic is then fed to the mould compartments 56 via flow through channels 57 made in the walls of the mould 50.
Curing of the plastic (e. g., ABS moulding) thus occurs not only around the edgewisely upright sheet insert 36, but also through the insert (by flowing through the bores 38), thus in effect firmly and permanently anchoring the insert 36 in position to the blade proper 32.
Therefore, once the blade plastic has set, the narrow cavity formed by the insert 36 through the lower edge 32a of the blade 32 will not allow accidental gravity-borne sliding release of the insert 36 from the blade 32, since the insert 36 is hooked or suspended to the blade 32 by the tubular ear studs formed by the liquid plastic that had flowed through the flow-through bores 38 during the injection moulding and that has now become solid.
The ejection of the moulded blade component is performed with the help of standard-issue ejectors, actuated by the usual ejection member. Then, a final step can be performed in the grinding of the lower edge of the blade, to make the lower edge of the reinforcing insert flush therewith and exposed.
Therefore, the present process for manufacturing a hockey blade does not require the manufacture of a blade with an elongated groove or notch along its lower edge portion, for afterwards receiving the metallic insert as a second step. Rather, the present manufacturing process does not generate a groove in a blade, but simply includes the metallic insert during the manufacturing process of the blade to be integrated therewith as a combined single manufacturing step.
The manufacture of the hockey blade of the invention consists in injection moulding of the light alloy steel or aluminum insert plate 36 into a conventional plastic mould 50. The plastic could be any suitable type of thermoplastic material, e.g. ABS.
The main purpose of this reinforced blade 32 is to provide a good hockey stick for use over high-abrasion ground surfaces, in particular asphalt or cement, but not excluding ground ice or other similar surfaces such as tennis courts with hard rubber surfaces, hard wood surfaces in interior gymnasiums, or the like ground play surfaces.
The present reinforced blade can be used in a variety of applications, including as an integral component of a hockey stick (for players or goalies) , as well as a separate replacement blade for replacing worn out blades than can be released from the socket end of the shaft of reusable hockey sticks.
Moreover, additional features could be added to the blade without limiting the scope of protection for this invention. For example, it would be envisioned to provide a recess or even an aperture into the intermediate central portion of the hockey blade main plastic body 32, at a distance from the metallic insert 36, so as to accommodate a wooden panel (not illustrated). This wooden panel would be fixedly connected to the plastic blade main body 32, coplanar therewith and within the recess or aperture, e.g.
with the usual add-on fiberglass sheathings strips 5 surrounding the blade a number of times . Such an add-on grainy wooden panel would enhance the good looks of the hockey stick.

Claims (10)

THE EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION, IN WHICH AN EXCLUSIVE PROPERTY OR
PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED, ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:

1. A process of manufacture of a blade for use as an integral component of a hockey stick, the process comprising the following steps:
a) providing a mould with at least one compartment having the shape of the hockey blade, the compartment having a flooring;
b) introducing over the mould flooring an elongated rigid metallic insert, the insert being thin;
c) supporting with transverse core pins the sheet insert in upright edgewise position;
d) injecting melted plastic into the mould to form a plastic blade; and e) leaving the plastic blade to set.

2. A manufacturing process as in claim 1, further including the step of piercing a number of flow-through bores through the metallic insert at step (d), wherein melted plastic flows therethrough during injection moulding of step (d).

3. A manufacturing process as in claim 2, further including the step (f) of grinding the lower edge of the blade, after release from the mould, to make the lower edge of the reinforcing insert smooth and flush therewith and exposed.

4. A reinforced blade for use as an integral component of a hockey stick, the hockey stick of the type having a main tubular shaft, the blade being a generally rectangular elongated sheet blade having an elbowed neck for integrally and axially mounting to said main shaft, said sheet blade having a lower edge defining a straight section and an inner coextensive elbowed section both adapted to frictionally engage ground surfaces;

wherein said sheet blade is made from a thermoplastic material and includes an integral inner reinforcing elongated sheet insert made from a material with high ground abrasion resistance but with good longitudinal flexibility, said inner sheet insert being embedded inside said sheet blade and having an exposed lower edge extending through said blade lower edge elbowed section and through at least a coextensive inner portion of said blade straight lower edge and being flush therewith, said reinforcing sheet insert imparting enhanced structural integrity of said sheet blade while enabling longitudinal flexibility, said sheet insert lower edge forming a wear-resistant running edge.

5. A reinforced hockey blade as in claim 4, wherein the material of said sheet insert is selected from the group comprising composite aluminum alloys, DURALUMIN
(a registered trademark), aramid materials, KEVLAR (a registered trademark), stainless steel, and DURALCAN (a registered trademark).

6. A reinforced hockey blade as in claim 4, further including ear means, for providing further anchoring force for said sheet insert into said sheet blade over and above the frictional mounting therebetween.

7. A reinforced hockey blade as in claim 5, with said reinforcing sheet insert further includes a number of bores, the thermoplastic material of said sheet blade extending through said sheet insert bores, wherein said sheet insert is firmly anchored into the thickness of said sheet blade.

8. A reinforced hockey blade as in claim 6, wherein said ear means are thermoplastic material studs integral to said sheet blade and extending through bores made into said sheet insert, wherein said sheet insert is firmly anchored into the thickness of said sheet blade.

9. A reinforced hockey blade as in claim 4, wherein said sheet insert lower edge has a generally convex shape.

10. A reinforced hockey blade as in claim 5, wherein said sheet insert material is DURALCAN and the range of thickness thereof is from approximately 0.6 to 1.3 mm.