“increased torsional strength along the playing surface…blade perfect for both shooting and passing” - Unihoc.com
If you are scrolling through any online floorball store and have to ask yourself “why would Unihoc make the same blade twice?”, chances are you have found the Evolite and Unilite blades. While photos fail to show the differences, the size and weight are immediately noticeable when you get your hands on Evolite. Some people might disapprove of re-using old designs. I certainly disagree with that. Putting a bit more meat on the bones of the Unilite structure makes the in-game feeling drastically different and makes Evolite feel like an unique product regardless of the physical similarities.
Looking at Evolite’s structure, the heel is built identically to Unilite. The core difference is two additional ribs added in an intersecting pattern to increase the torsional strength. The size growth and additional material increase Evolite’s weight to roughly 70 grams, which is in my opinion right on the edge of being too heavy for the lightest Unihoc shafts. For the mid-to-lighter weight shafts though, this is not a problem. A blade of this size must have some weight to it or else it will become way too flimsy. If we contrast this with other shooting blades (Gate, Avox, Air/Two, Epic), Evolite still falls into the lighter half of this category. Shapewise the key difference between this blade and Unilite is the tip, which is noticeably less rounded in Evolite. The available blade materials are the standard Unihoc choices of PP, PP Titan, and PE. After a positive experience with Unilite, I chose PP Titan for this review too.
Evolite might not be the most agile blade in game, but then again, that is not what it’s built for. While reviewing Oxdog’s Razor I used the example of shooting with heavier blades being like swinging a hammer. The same thing applies for Evolite too. If you have that extra half a second to wind up your shot in game, this thing will hit hard. Accuracy-wise Evolite falls a bit short of Unilite, which is a result of fine adjustments being slightly more difficult with a larger blade. With enough training, though, you can still achieve great consistency in both shooting and passing. The touch attributes of Evolite are also solid and the large surface area makes receiving passes comfortable. The main downside of this blade is the requirement for a bit of extra room in the rink as dribbling in smaller spaces gets difficult with a blade this large.
If you are a defender that often stays closer to half court and likes to distribute the ball with long passes, Evolite should be on your radar. I would generally not recommend this to most wingers or offence-oriented centers. However, if your playstyle is more that of a target player, even as a winger you can succeed with Evolite. Think about this situation. The opponent’s defender has forgotten you just for a second and now is your time to strike. Your teammate has to send you a bounding lead pass around the enemy defenders to reach you. This is exactly where Evolite shines. The size and soft touch allow you to kill the bounce on first touch and set up the shot. Once more, Evolite’s consistency allows you to get your shot off confidently, and just like in hundreds of training sessions before, you beat the keeper. If you have the positioning and game sense to create yourself the room, Evolite can be a solid choice for wingers too.
Do I still prefer Unilite over this? Definitely, but this should not deter you from giving Evolite a go. The consistent touch and shooting makes it an intriguing choice even if I would consider Unilite objectively better. In this situation we are not comparing good to bad, but rather comparing great to amazing. Sadly, I personally need a bit more from a blade than just shooting due to my role in-game. Evolite is a great, fun blade and especially as a Razor enjoyer, I appreciate the design a lot. Evolite might be a bit of a beefy boi, but when it comes to shooting blades, I do like them big.