The Club | The depleting defense, the smell of the equipment and… choosing the penalty shot or the two minutes?

Every week, journalists from the Sports team answer your questions.

Submit your questions

The defense is exhausted

In football, when a team has possession of the ball for a long period of time, commentators (both Quebec and American) often say that the defense is starting to get tired. Why is the defense more tired than the other team’s offense, even though both spend the same amount of time on the field?

Alain Auger

Response from Nicholas Richard

First, because it is the attack which dictates the pace of the match. Thus, an offensive coordinator or a quarterback can decide to play with the dial to slow down the pace if he sees that the other players on his offensive unit need to catch their breath. On the contrary, defensive players are at the mercy of the rhythm imposed by the opposing attack. And the more tired a defensive unit is, the more the quarterback will push the pace. Then, what is often the most tiring is that defensive players must constantly act according to the offensive scheme of the opposing team. Coming out of the huddle, the offensive players know exactly what to do and where to position themselves. While in defense, this is where the tactical work begins. You have to assign coverages, move around the field and often adjust within seconds. Which, after a long ownership, can be tiring.

The university level in hockey

Could Canadian university hockey players then play in the National League or the American League?

Bernard Lupien

Response from Guillaume Lefrançois

Hello, Mr. Lupien. They are indeed eligible, but since the caliber is lower than in the NCAA, fewer of them reach the NHL. Joel Ward and Mathieu Darche are the two best-known Canadian university hockey products of recent years, and we currently find Derek Ryan, a former University of Alberta, with the Oilers. For the Rocket, Philippe Maillet (University of New Brunswick) also represents Canadian university hockey.

The smell of equipment

Does NHL players’ equipment give off the same kind of smell as most non-professional hockey players’ equipment? Is there a process for disposing of everything used by equipment managers or do we change rooms regularly to avoid odors?

Marco Bouchard

Response from Mathias Brunet

I consulted Pierre Gervais, equipment manager of the Canadiens for a few decades until 2022! The answer is no, as you can probably guess. Players regularly change gloves and skates, the two most “smelly” items. They are therefore still almost new when they leave their owner. For the rest, shoulder pads, elbow pads, pants or leg pads, the NHL locker rooms are equipped with state-of-the-art ventilation and drying systems, and in addition, equipment managers use spray deodorizers like ordinary mortals. .

Monsters on defense in football

If we look at old football games (up to the early 1970s-1980s), we notice that the linemen are physically similar to their teammates playing more athletic positions. Do we know how linemen got to over 300 pounds for the most part?

Thomas Darche

Response from Richard Labbé

It’s probably the Fridge’s fault. William Perry, real name, is a defensive lineman weighing over 300 pounds who was the first “big” lineman; in any case, in the NFL, no one had weighed as much as him (335 pounds). The Bears began using Perry on offense during the 1985 season, at fullback and running back, which gave them a huge advantage in short-gain situations. Since everyone copied everyone else, other teams started hiring heavier players, like the Washington Redskins and then the Dallas Cowboys of the early 1990s, who had huge offensive linemen .

The penalty shot or the two minutes?

In hockey, when a penalty shot is awarded by the referee, it seems to me that the team victim of the infraction should have the choice between the penalty shot and numerical superiority. What do you think ?

Richard Nolin

Response from Simon-Olivier Lorange

Teams would benefit from choosing the penalty shot. Over the last five seasons, the efficiency rate across the NHL, in this regard, has oscillated between 23.5% (2021-2022) and 38.1% (2023-2024, as of April 9). In total over these five years, shooters scored 59 goals in 199 attempts, which equates to 29.6% success. On the other hand, the effectiveness of power plays, league-wide, has fluctuated from 19 to 21% on average for several years. The rare teams that flirt with 30% at five against four could perhaps hesitate. The others would more likely opt for the penalty shot.