Hockey stick with variable stiffness blade

A hockey stick apparatus, comprising:

• a hollow shaft structure having a proximal end and a distal end;
• a blade structure coupled to the proximal end of the hollow shaft structure, wherein the blade comprises a first foam core and a second foam core, the blade structure further comprising:
• a top edge spaced apart from a bottom edge by a blade height;
• a heel spaced apart from a toe by a blade length;
• a front face spaced apart from a back face by a blade thickness,
• wherein the blade thickness varies along the blade height;
• a slot defining an aperture extending through the blade thickness between the front face and the back face, the slot extending along a portion of the blade length and having a top edge, a bottom edge, a toe end and a heel end, wherein the bottom edge of the slot is positioned closer to the top edge of the blade structure than the bottom edge of the blade structure, wherein the top edge, the bottom edge, the toe end and the heel end of the slot comprise a fiber-reinforcement material, wherein the fiber-reinforcement material completely encapsulates a perimeter of the slot;
• a stiffened top portion of the blade structure comprising the first foam core and extending between the top edge of the blade structure and the top edge of the slot along a portion of the blade length;
• and
• a flexible bottom portion of the blade structure comprising the second foam core and extending between the bottom edge of the blade structure and the bottom edge of the slot along a portion of the blade length,
• wherein the stiffened top portion has a first blade thickness and the flexible bottom portion has a second blade thickness, less than the first blade thickness,
• wherein the stiffened top portion having a first stiffness and the flexible bottom portion having a second stiffness, wherein the second stiffness is less than the first stiffness.