Don’t miss the full story, whose reporting from Kelvin Chan at The Associated Press is the basis of this AI-assisted article.

Canada’s last major wooden hockey stick factory, Roustan Hockey in Brantford, Ontario, is navigating trade challenges from U.S. tariffs and border disruptions while maintaining production of 400,000 traditional wooden sticks annually in a market increasingly dominated by composite alternatives.

Some key facts:

• Roustan Hockey operates Canada’s last major commercial wooden hockey stick factory with 15 workers located 60 miles southwest of Toronto in Brantford, Ontario.

• The factory’s origins date back to 1847 as an agricultural workshop, predating both the Canadian confederation and the creation of the National Hockey League.

• The company produces approximately 400,000 wooden hockey sticks annually under the Christian, Northland and Sherwood brands, with about 100,000 exported to the United States.

• U.S. shipments have faced delays due to manual border inspections and unexpected tariffs, including a 200% tariff on goalie pads that the company is working to resolve.

• The elimination of the $800 customs exemption for international shipments in late August has created new uncertainty for cross-border trade affecting even small orders.

• Canada’s economy contracted 1.6% in the second quarter with exports slumping 7.5%, while the country lost 37,800 manufacturing jobs in the year leading to August.

• Wooden sticks now represent only about 10% of the global hockey stick market of 5 million units per year, with composite sticks dominating both amateur and professional play.

• Owner Graeme Roustan acquired the operation in 2019 and moved it from Hespeler to Brantford, hometown of hockey legend Wayne Gretzky.

READ MORE: Canada’s last hockey stick factory survives in face of tariff threats and globalization

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