Why so many substitutions in Hockey?

Question

rarely watch Hockey but watched game 5 to see Crosby.

Game was awesome, but It seems like Crosby or Melkin can't play for more than 2 minutes in a row. It's so frustrating. They don't even stay in for a whole power play.

is it fatigue, strategy or are they in bad condition?

Can some hockey fan explain? i want to watch but its driving me crazy that the best players only play half the time - even in the 1st period.

Answer 1

shifts in hockey only last about 45 sec's. some of the best players will spend a little more or less that 20 minutes on the ice during the game. if you see a guy on the bench after 45 sec's to a minute on the ice you will see how tired and out of breathe they are. they exert so much energy during that one shift.

Answer 2

It is called LINE CHANGES. All teams do it, It is a standard.

Answer 3

Very few hockey players play more than 45 seconds in a row.

Answer 4

hockey isnt like other sports where players will/ can play an entire game. Hockey you are skating at full tilt, playing with full contact, shooting, grinding, back checking... so its very tiring, to play anything more than 1 minute. If you look carefully, sometimes if a player has a really long shift, they grab an oxygen mask to catch their breath

Answer 5

No hockey player is supposed to play that long.  Hockey is a physically demanding sport and if you played that long at a time you would get tired long before the game ended.

Answer 6

ok so you want players to play 2 mins in a row with about 15 pounds of equipment and going all out the whole 100-200% they have. nhl shifts last from 20-45 seconds depend on how much of that time is in either zone ( the place were the nets are). in high school hockey my shifts are around 30-50 seconds because we let it all out on the ice and rest the other 2 shifts if we have enough players. so depending on the action is what depends on the time they get and shooting and skating takes alot of energy.

Answer 7

no player plays more that 1 min usually. if u just try to play youth hockey its hard to be out long. hockey is a hard sport to play, and fatigue does set in quickly

if u really want to feel it go put on some ice skates and sprint full spead around the rink for a minute

Answer 8

They are in great condition.  The thing is hockey is an exhausting sport.  So, after 45 seconds or so, the coach will usually call for a line change.  Some players will play only a few minutes but some will play 20 or more.

Answer 9

Hockey is the most tiring sport in all of professional sports

Forwards are SUPPOSED to be on the ice from 30-45 seconds...

Where as defenseman are about 45-60 seconds

This is because playing forward is more tiring than defenseman...

So then they take a 2 minute break on the bench then go back on

Usually after a minute you can't keep up with the other team... No matter how good of shape you are in (hockey players are usually near the top when it comes to endurance)

The equipment is pretty heavy compared to all other sports... Cuz non like football which is just shoulder pads, a helmet and some thigh pads...

You also got skates which are much heavier than shoes... shin pads... a big thing that goes around your waste... elbow pads... a jock... etc

They also do a ton of skating... In their short little shift they may go close to full speed 3 or 4 full lengths of the ice

and then hockey is also the 2nd most physical sport (besides football)... and hitting takes away a lot of your energy

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So bottom line... The reason for most of the line changes is that hockey is just that tiring of a sport... and no human could keep at a high level of play for a longer time than they do now

So they do lots of line changes so that the fatigue doesn't wear down on you throughout the course of the game, the series and overall the playoffs...

A 4th line player at 100% is usually better than a 1st line player at 50%

If you know of Evgeni Malkin... You notice that he takes longer shifts and he often looks very slow and like he doesn't put much effort in it... Where as Crosby takes shorter shifts and is all over the ice when he is out there

Answer 10

Fatigue. The game is unbelievably intense. Try putting on some skates and sprinting back and forth across an ice rink a few times. Mix in some quick stops and starts. It's hard work! The reality is that a team's backups, when rested, are better than a worn out line of starters.

Answer 11

Hockey is an extremely strenuous sport and you can't maintain quality play after only a minute or so of full out play even if your in extremely good condition. A hockey player can lose as much as 8 to 10 lbs during a game. A good player will play up to 30 min. in a game.

Answer 12

They make the frequent changes because they are normally moving at 3/4 to full speed for the entire time they are on the ice.  In most other sports, the players have more recovery time during the play.  

Using soccer and lacrosse as examples, when the play moves to one end of the field, the players at the other end of the field have some time to catch their breath.  (That is not a knock on either sport, it's just different.)  Indoor lacrosse, where the playing surface is smaller and all of the players are involved at both ends of the field use relatively short shifts as well.

When a team is on a power play in hockey, the offensive units usually take a longer shift.  This is because they spend more time in more stationary positions and do not exert the same amount of energy as they do in even strength situations.

Answer 13

Hockey is anaerobic.  Bursts of energy used for short (30-45 seconds ideally) periods of time. Aerobics, them chicks are going continuously yahh?

Answer 14

watch zetterberg and datsyuk they are way more talented than crosby and malkin, defenses try to take them out of thegame but cant unlike crosby and malkin, and they can play defense on the pk or powerplay and have crazy vision and stickhandling.

Answer 15

Go skate back and forth as hard as you can then throw in a couple body hits then you'll be able to say, "How do they last so long!!!".