Load Management Among Professional Hockey Goalies: A Retrospective Cohort Study

BACKGROUND: Load management is a sports science concept describing the execution of well-established training principles to measure athletic workloads and enhance performance. The term 'load management' has become common in sports media to refer to a much wider range of scenarios, including the idea that by limiting regular season workload for athletes, their health and playoff performance will improve. Varying links between load and performance have been demonstrated in baseball and soccer. The purpose of this study was to objectively assess the impact of regular season workload on postseason performance among National Hockey League (NHL) goalies. HYPOTHESIS: NHL goalies with lighter regular season workloads will perform better in postseason appearances. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective cohort. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level 3. METHODS: NHL goalies with a minimum of 20 regular season games played and 3 playoff game appearances in the same season since 2013-2014 were eligible for inclusion. All regular season and postseason workload and performance metrics were collected from publicly available statistical databases. Workload outcomes included games started, minutes played, and shots faced. Performance outcomes included goals against average, save percentage, goals saved above average, and quality start percentage. Multivariable linear regression was used to determine whether regular season workload predicted postseason performance, when controlling for age and injury status. RESULTS: A total of 51 goalies contributed 111 goalie-seasons to the analysis. The results of the primary model indicated that regular season workload explained only 6.8% of the variance in postseason performance, and that this relationship was not significant (R² = 0.068; F(5,92) = 1.335; P = 0.26). CONCLUSION: Based on data from 6 full seasons, there is no evidence to support a specific regular season game limit among NHL goalies with the aim of improved performance. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Individualized workload plans may be more appropriate than a single league-wide standard.