Hips and Hockey in High Performance with John Snyder and Matt Kelly

The High Performance Hockey Podcast

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

The hockey player’s hip, specifically adductors and abductors.

Biomechanics of the hockey stride.

Return to play from acute injury to back on ice.

Resources + Links:

Learn more at https://johnsnyderdpt.com/

Check out Anthony’s Masterclass -

The High Performance Hockey Masterclass

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Check out Anthony’s Books

Physical Preparations for Ice Hockey: Biological Principles and Practical Solutions

The Gain, Go, and Grow Manual: Programming for High Performance Hockey Players

Show Notes:

Are you ready to get an in-depth look into the advanced athlete’s hip? In this episode, we have double the expertise as we are joined by physical therapists, John Snyder and Matt Kelly! John is a certified orthopedic specialist and strength and conditioning specialist who specializes in the treatment of athletes in hip pain. Matt has his Masters in Physiotherapy from Dalhousie University, his Bachelors of Science and Kinesiology from University of Prince Edward Island, and his second Masters at McGill University under Dr. David Pearsall.

Today, we’ll be discussing the hockey player’s hip to dive into adductors and abductor musculature and how we treat them. We’ll take a biomechanical standpoint to look further into the hockey stride, the role of the hips, and considerations for the therapy level. Then, we go over the question of return to play: What buckets need to be checked? What would they recommend to get athletes back on the ice? As we go, we’ll talk about the benefits of early off season, the rising occurrences of FAI, pelvic position and pelvic rotation, and even more. Join in for an informed conversation all about hips, hockey, and high performance!

00:00 Introducing two special guests physical therapists, John Synder and Matt Kelly!

02:15 What was Matt’s ice hockey research from his second masters program?

04:30 What has been Matt’s background in hockey?

05:35 What are your thoughts about the analogy of hips being the engine for hockey players?

08:20 From a biomechanical standpoint, what is the role of the hips during the stride?

10:40 How do we treat the adductor musculature?

12:40 What is the merit of the adduction to abduction ratio?

17:05 What measurements does John use to add value?

20:20 The Copenhagen side squeeze test.

21:20 What tests work best for minimal budgets?

23:05 Where and why do you start getting an athlete back to the ice?

27:25 Is there merit to an early off season for the hips?

30:10 Why do you think we see more of FAI recently?

34:00 Are pelvic alignment modalities trying to fix the same thing?

40:25 Do you take biomechanical considerations into therapy?

45:10 What buckets need to be checked for return to play?

51:55 What are your thoughts on ice work during the summer for professional athletes?

55:30 What is unique about hockey players?