Collector puts 450 hockey sticks on display in Forssa rink

A collection of 450 hockey sticks has gone on display at the Forssa ice hockey rink, drawn from the 1,300-stick collection of Tammela collector Jan Alitalo, Yle reports.

The illuminated glass cabinets include sticks used by NHL stars Wayne Gretzky, Al MacInnis and Teemu Selänne, alongside wooden sticks belonging to local players and enthusiasts. Most of the collection was made in the Forssa region.

Alitalo began collecting in 1988, when he was 10 years old and received a stick belonging to Kari Lindqvist, an FPS player who died in a traffic accident. Most of the sticks in the collection have been donated.

The collection is notable for its focus on local hockey. The display includes sticks belonging to players who never reached senior representative level, but whom local hockey followers know.

It also features equipment used by better-known players, including Antti Laaksonen, who went from Tammela to the NHL, Russian Olympic and world champion Sergei Makarov, four-time Stanley Cup winner Mike Bossy and NHL goaltender Kari Takko.

Gretzky’s collection item is a wooden Titan stick made by Finnish company Karhu-Titan, which he used with the Edmonton Oilers in the 1980s.

The collection also documents the history of the region’s hockey equipment industry. Sticks and equipment were once produced in the Forssa area under the Kohо, Cooper and Nike/Bauer names. At its peak in the 1970s, as many as 1.5 million hockey sticks were exported.

Most of Alitalo’s collection consists of wooden sticks, with the oldest dating from the 1950s. He says modern composite sticks are better for playing, but do not interest him as much as a collector.

Among the unusual items are the shoulder pads of Kari “Ammi” Aro. They were originally made for rugby and modified by Koho for use in ice hockey.

The exhibition was created through extensive volunteer work, with large glass cabinets built specifically for the rink. Only part of Alitalo’s collection could be displayed, and he says he still has notable sticks in storage.

The display is intended to attract curious visitors to the rink and evoke memories. The lower sections of the cabinets still have room for helmets, jerseys and gloves.

Salla Järnefelt, director of the Finnish Hockey Hall of Fame in Tampere, said private collectors could cooperate with museums, which regularly borrow objects for exhibitions. Alitalo hopes to find sticks belonging to Tony Arima, a club legend of HIFK and Jokerit, and Matti Hagman, known as Finland’s first NHL player.