from Amalie Benjamin of the Boston Globe,

There is a strange quirk in the United States. Although stick manufacturers sell more lefthanded sticks to the rest of the world (specifically Canada and Europe), they sell more righthanded sticks in the US, according to an industry representative. The split is somewhere from 60-65 percent lefthanded around the world, and 60-65 percent righthanded in the US.

Apprised of the fact, Milan Lucic started listing names: Phil Kessel, David Backes, Joe Pavelski.

All star forwards from the US. All right shots.

“We’re the country that is backward with it,” said Ken Martel, the technical director of the American Development Model for USA Hockey.

USA Hockey is so concerned the organization is studying the issue to make sure the US isn’t losing top talent to something as fundamental as grabbing the wrong end of the stick.

“What we have extrapolated looking at this [is] a lot of our growth has been in nontraditional hockey areas, a lot of first-generation hockey people,” Martel said. “So when they take their kid to the pro shop to buy a hockey stick and the guy says, ‘What is he – right or lefthanded?’ They go, ‘He’s righthanded. He’s right hand dominant, he writes with his right hand.’

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