Carbohydrates and protein after a game help refill players’ glycogen storage. Rice and potatoes have been go-to, easily digestible carb options. The offered protein – whether it be chicken, salmon, steak, or other options – works against muscle damage, too.
“We always think about protein as building muscle, but because during a game, they’re stopping, they’re checking – all of those things are putting these little micro-tears in their muscles,” Nicoletti said. “We want to make sure that we turn on the pathways to healing those micro-tears. Because over time, they accumulate, and that can increase risk of injury. We really want to make sure their muscles are being repaired.”
Hydration is another key factor; electrolytes are used pre- and post-game in water. While it is obvious that athletes sweat during games, hockey is played in a cold, dry rink. Accordingly, it can be misleading how profuse the perspiration really is.
“Even a 2% drop in body weight from dehydration will impact their skating speed and their decision-making ability – their ability to just think clearly, make split-second decisions,” Nicoletti said.
On top of all that, they’ve got to stay healthy, too, which can be challenging when surrounded by 20-plus members of your team plus staff on a daily basis. On a home-and-away back-to-back, for example, players are exerting themselves for a 60-minute matchup, and then all get on a plane and bus together. Nicoletti has honed in on boosting immunity and limiting inflammation through diet.
“We can’t have them getting sick,” she said. “Keeping inflammation low and immunity high – that would be things like Omega 3s from salmon, which they have every pregame meal, from avocado, which is always provided pretty much every meal…The berries provide antioxidants that help reduce inflammation and boost their vitamin C for immunity.”
When the B’s are going through the food line before and after the game, they may not realize that each and every ingredient on the table was put there with a purpose. Nicoletti tries to make it as easy as possible for the players not to have to think about what to eat. Anything they choose, she said, has a targeted benefit.
“How tight the schedule is, too – they have to shower, do media, get on the bus. So it’s a balance,” Nicoletti said. “I’d like to put nutrition in a bubble for them and make everything perfect, but we have to make it perfect enough for them to make it realistic.”
That food triggers the immediate recovery process. Neeld also recommends cold tubs to decrease soreness and maximize energy for the next day. Most critical, though, – and seemingly, the most simple – is a good night’s sleep.
“We know sleep is by far the most impactful recovery strategy that we have, so making sure that players are able to get to sleep as quickly as possible and that, when they’re getting to sleep, that they’re staying asleep has been a really important strategy,” Neeld said.
Neeld discusses each individual’s sleep environment – is it quiet enough, cool enough, dark enough? Even if all those elements are perfected, it can be hard to come down from the adrenaline of skating in an NHL arena in front of nearly 18,000 roaring fans. Supplements have been helpful to work around that. Magnesium L-threonate is one that calms the mind and allows guys to more easily fall asleep.
