Football and hockey are two sports, which are similar in objective, but very different in their rules and guidelines. In each of these major sports there are rules and guidelines that the players must follow. The topics that will be covered are the weight differences between the players in football and hockey, the use of Creatine Monohydrate, and last the equipment restrictions. This first paragraph will discuss the weight difference between the players in the NFL (football) and the NHL (hockey).
Although there is no written rule as to how much a player can weigh in either of the sports, there is the unwritten rule that the players and coaches follow. The average hockey player weighs about 185 pounds. The average weight of a full NHL hockey team consisting of 24 players is about 4,500 lbs. Coaches in the NHL do not want their players too weigh more than 200 though because as Mike Milbury the coach of the New York Islanders put it ” when a player is as big as a football player (approx. 250 lbs. ). It is harder for a player to move quickly and elude an upcoming check”.
In the NFL, it is the opposite of the NHL. The coaches don’t want their players too weigh less than 200 pounds. The Punter/Kicker is the only position that it doesn’t really matter what the weight of player is. On average the weight of a NFL player is 250 lbs. The average team consisting of 48 players weighs about 12,000 lbs. This paragraph talks about a very controversial substance that is used by millions of people around the world. This “wonder drug”, which is not really a drug, but a natural occurring substance in the human body is called Creatine Monohydrate.
This substance was used in the NFL until 2 years ago when the governing board of the NFL ruled that Creatine is a steroid type substance that gives the athlete using it a substantial edge in quickness, strength, and endurance over the players who choose not to use it. If a player is caught using the substance he will be suspended for the same amount of time, as he would be if he were using the “real” anabolic steroids. Yet the NHL’s board of governors has not even voted upon this same substance.
It is a proven fact that the NHL players using Creatine have gained on average 15 – 20 pounds of muscle in as little as 2. 5 months. The players have also been injured less when using the substance. This last paragraph will talk about the equipment restrictions between the NHL and the NFL. Hockey has a lot of restrictions that the players must follow. Each piece of equipment worn has a size restriction on it. Goalies are watched more carefully than the players are because last year in the NHL the goals a game average went from 7. 5 to 5.
The NHL did an investigation and found out that some goalie equipment was almost twice as big as it was when they last did an investigation in the early 90’s. If a player is caught breaking the rules on equipment size, he will receive a 2-minute penalty. If the player is a repeat offender he can receive (fourth infraction) a 1 game suspension. The NFL does not have any equipment restrictions as of right now. The reason for this is because the offensive/ defensive line players (310+ lbs. ) keep getting bigger, making the equipment rule a waste of time.
There are some teams that are taking advantage of this though. Since there is no advantage to players in the NFL wearing bigger equipment, there is an advantage in adding substances to the equipment and the player. Players are using pine tar on their hands so that it makes it almost impossible for a player to drop the ball if the throw is half-decent. The players are also using a silicone-based substance on their game jersey so that it is hard for the opposing team to grab them and pull them down.
Although the objective to both these pastimes are similar players must follow different rules in their sport. It may seem unfair for one pro league to let their players use something that is banned in another pro sport. The board of governors have to take all this into consideration and decide what is best for their sports and obviously they won’t be able to make all the right decisions. With so many new products that will help to enhance players performance that eventually they will all be banned from pro sports.