Several years ago, around the time when composite sticks were starting to replace wooden sticks for the recreational player, one of the guys I played with in the local Hi Tech league bought one of these.  In the dressing room before the game, I believe he mentioned to a few people he had bought one.  No big deal.  It was fairly expensive but not an outrageous price for the time.

Very early in the game, this same dude breaks his new stick.  He skates calmly to the bench and because it was near the end of his shift, he comes off and his replacement jumps on and joins the play.  He reaches back for his replacement stick, an old wooden one, and sits down.  Someone on the bench noticed this and says “Hey, did you just break your new composite stick on your very first shift?”

“It wasn’t new,” he deadpanned, “that was my second shift and I had used it the shift before as well.”