Four separate studies looking at different levels of competition across different time periods share common findings.
Defensemen log more minutes, but their shifts are characterized by significantly less high intensity work and sprinting compared to forwards.
The natural question that arises here is “should defensemen spend more time doing longer aerobic work?”
Short answer – no.
Just because defensemen accumulate less sprinting throughout a game does not make their speed less important.
This information does, however, mean that the energy system contributions to their work will differ from forwards.
To your success,
Kevin Neeld
SpeedTrainingforHockey.com
HockeyTransformation.com
OptimizingAdaptation.com
P.S. For in-season and off-season hockey conditioning programs, click here >> Ultimate Hockey Transformation
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