The Physics of Olympic Hockey
Work, Energy, and Power. By Ryan and Cory
Work
Work can be scientifically thought of as the total progression of force over a given distance. In the context of hockey, the work is derived from the distance the hockey puck travels while still maintain contact with the stick, and then multiplied by the force applied by the hockey player. This can be simplified to W=FD. Another main place where work can be found is where the stick is in contact with the ice before making contact with the puck. The work is done to the stick by the player and is calculated by finding the foce applied to the stick multiplied by the distance it is in contact with the ice surface before striking the puck.
Energy
Hockey is full of Energy, whether it be potential energy (stored energy) or kinetic energy (motion energy). The potential energy in a slap shot is first when the player is at the top of their back swing and another key place is where the stick makes contact with the ice before reaching the puck because the stick bends filling it with a lot of potential energy which is trasfered into kinetic energy when it snaps back to being straight. That lends into the other kind of energy which is kinetic energy. This is the energy an object has when it is in motion. For example, the stick has kinetic energy has the player swings it to hit the puck, and the puck has kinetic energy after it has been hit by the stick. The formula for potential energy is mgh. The formula for kinetic energy is (1/2)mv^2.
Power
Power can be though of as the amout of work divide by the time the work is done it. For exapmle, the example used for work that had to do with the stick making contact with the ice, you can take the work you calculated and the divide it by the time the stick was in contact with the ice. So inceasing the amount of force or decreasing the amount of time it takes will both increase how much power there is.