26 July 2007Teppo Numminen signed with Buffalo Sabres
6 June 2007Backstrom wins William M. Jennings Trophy
14 November 2006Numminen sets NHL record
23 June 2006Miikka Kiprusoff wins Vezina Trophy
19 April 2006Kiprusoff wins William M. Jennings Trophy
2 April 2006Toni Lindroos is Nitro Challenge grand prize winner!
8 March 2006Montreal Nitro wins first place in Japan!
2 March 2006Team Finland wins silver in 2006 Olympics!
16 February 2006Hockey Stick News from Turin
27 January 2006Who is the best goalie in the NHL this season?
24 January 2006The Buffalo News: Numminen sticks it to teammates
6 January 2006An in depth article of Martin Biron
The Buffalo News: Numminen sticks it to teammates
"My playing days are running down, so I'm happy I have this."
No one could blame Anne Marie Biron for being jealous. Her husband has a new squeeze. Martin Biron isn't concerned with keeping this burgeoning affair a secret. The Buffalo Sabres goalie openly professes his adoration to anyone who asks, admitting he was bored and needed something to occupy his time.
And Biron isn't ashamed to thank teammate Teppo Numminen for introducing him to a new love interest.
Numminen, however, doesn't fancy himself a matchmaker.
He's a stick maker.
The veteran Sabres defenseman owns Montreal Sports, a hockey equipment company that specializes in goalie sticks.
"There's lots of pride to it," Numminen said. "It has a long history, and it's kind of funny. We're just a small company in Finland, going up against other companies like Nike and Reebok and these multibillion-dollar companies."
Vigilant hockey observers will notice the bold, blocky Montreal logo on sticks held by several goalies, including Vezina Trophy candidate Miikka Kiprusoff of the Calgary Flames.
Numminen gently nudged Biron toward Montreal sticks early this season, while the goalie was trying to fend off the monotony of backing up Ryan Miller night in, night out.
Wasn't long before Biron fell head over heels. Biron, who previously alternated between CCM and KOHO, sampled a wood Montreal stick and wasn't sure.
But the first game he tried Montreal's composite model he began his franchise-record streak of winning 13 straight starts. He used the same stick until it broke with seconds remaining in what turned out to be the 13th game.
"Teppo was saying he wanted me to break more because he wanted his company to make more," said Biron, who raves about the stick's rare combination of durability, lightness and shock absorption.
Numminen's father founded the company in Finland in 1960, the year the Montreal Canadiens won a fifth straight Stanley Cup. Kalevi Numminen, a renowned Finnish player and coach, thought the name Montreal, synonymous with hockey excellence, would have instant recognition.
A few years later, Kalevi Numminen, who was behind the opposing bench when Team USA won its "Miracle on Ice" gold medal in 1980, sold the company to concentrate on coaching.
Eight years ago, the previous owners approached Teppo Numminen and his younger brother, Teemu, about reacquiring Montreal Sports. Teppo owns 80 percent of the company. Teemu runs the day-to-day operations. Kalevi sits on the board of directors.
"The plan from the start was that it would be something to do after I'm done playing," said Teppo Numminen, 37. "You love the game. You want to be around the game. I thought that would be a good fit, to be involved in hockey and be your own boss. My playing days are running down, so I'm happy I have this."
The Montreal Sports factory, located in the tiny town of Padasjoki, employs about 50 workers and produces roughly 300,000 sticks a year. It has turned out twice as many goalie sticks since Kiprusoff's emergence in 2003-04.
Numminen said overall stick production has decreased about 25 percent now that wood isn't the primary material, but added revenues are up because the newer sticks last longer and cost more. Biron estimated the stick he uses would service a recreational player a full year.
"That's what they base their reputation in, durability," Biron said.
The company this month relaunched its Web site, www.montrealhockey.com, to coincide with a new line of sticks that use "nanotechnology" to create an even lighter and more durable stick. Numminen said research by Finland's government and universities, given to Montreal Sports, led to the new sticks.
Biron can barely contain himself when he talks about the new sticks, which are 100 percent composite and foam injected in the shaft and paddle. He has a batch being shipped.
"I so loved it," Biron said. "It's so light. The balance is really good. It's absolutely the lightest stick I've ever held in my hand. It has really good shock absorption. Just a great stick."
Numminen noted that specializing in goalie sticks has been a boon for Montreal Sports because the large paddles make for effective in-game advertising.
"Every time there's a close-up or a goal, there's going to be a replay or a picture in the paper and the goalie's going to be there," Numminen said. "It's been a smart tactic to emphasize the goalie stick at the start. It's been really, really good for publicity.
"The goalie stick has been our best product, and it's a good example of how to do it. First, you have to have a good product, better than everybody else. Then you get players.
"With us, we can't pay the money the big companies pay. So we have to have a good product the players want to use. Then it's about customer service. That's how we're going to survive."
e-mail: tgraham@buffnews.com
