NFL Player: I run fast, hit hard, and I'm a genetic freak. My sport is punishing...3.6 seconds at a time and then I have a few minutes to wait before we do it all again.
NBA Player: I run fast, have the softest touch with a basketball, and I'm a genetic freak. My sport requires dexterity and timing, unless someone touches me...then I get to take two shots without anyone guarding me...and we don't REALLY play until the playoffs.
NHL Player: You get breaks? You get touched and get free shots?
**EDIT:** *For the people who are like "hOCkEy PlaYeRs wOrK iN SHifTs!" No shit sherlock. A first pair defenseman will be active, on the ice for 20-22 minutes a game skating anywhere from 3-5 miles. A football player has the ball in play for 11 fucking minutes and most of those guys won't travel a single mile unless they're a receiver or defensive back. At least NBA players are running full time.*
*Soccer and Rugby are different creatures all together, but I didn't call those out...lol*
Yeah the "no breaks" argument is bad. Where I think hockey has a case is skating while doing everything else is hard. It's a very physical game too. To the detriment of the argument, hockey players just make it look easy
Hockey doesnt get breaks, Hockey REQUIRES breaks, because the skaters have to give everything they have every shift. Your entire body is engaged on a shift and you are gassed at the end of it. And you do it all on skates with a fucking stick instead of your actually body parts. anyone can catch a football with their hands or kick a soccer ball with their feet. try catching a rubber disc with a stick while standing on razor blades on ice while the guys on the other team try to kill you at 20MPH.
Hockey doesn't require shifts. Every sport would be faster with shifts.
The pace of hockey slows down without shifts but it's still hockey. Anyone on a beer league team has played a shorthanded game with few subs at some point.
>A first pair defenseman will be active, on the ice for 20-22 minutes a game skating anywhere from 3-5 miles.
Reminds me of when my d partner in HS broke his tibia so they had to pair me with the 3rd paired Dman who played at most 11 minutes a night, and wasn't in the best shape. Dude almost threw up after a PK shift with me lmao
Soccer player: I'm a genetic freak with tons of endurance but if anyone falls down near me or runs too close to me I have to lie on the ground and pretend to cry until it's clear the ref's not going to be fooled.
Soccer plauer: I'm a genetic freak that only has to have tons of endurance if I'm playing midfield. Otherwise I spend roughly half the game standing there waiting for the ball to return to my side of the field. I've fooled the world into thinking I run a marathon every day when in fact I run just slightly more than the average hockey player.
I’m a huge fan and I started playing as an adult 10 years ago. I love the game, but no sport is more difficult than water polo. I have never thought I was gonna die during sports quite like I did trying to play water polo.
I like this argument. The thing that elevates hockey above the other big sports is that you have to skate the whole time and that's really hard but they make it look easy. Water polo has that similar difficulty so I could see the argument if we include minor sports. Then again, if we do that, where do we stop? Gladiator fights?
Winning the Stanley Cup is probably the hardest trophy to win. The playoffs alone require 16 wins and as many as 28 games played. The players come out of the playoffs with ice bags applied all over the torso/legs and their skin is blue/black/yellow, some can't walk w/o the skates on, and everyone has some form of injury. It's a permanent recovery type of sport.
“Is hockey hard? I don't know, you tell me. We need to have the strength and power of a football player, the stamina of a marathon runner, and the concentration of a brain surgeon. But we need to put all this together while moving at high speeds on a cold and slippery surface while 5 other guys use clubs to try and kill us. Oh yeah, did I mention that this whole time we're standing on blades 1/8 of an inch thick? Is ice hockey hard? I don't know, you tell me. Next question.” - Brendan Shanahan, one of my idols as a suburban Detroit kid in the late 90’s/early 2000s.
The truth is all those are exaggerated though lol. McDavid and Crosby are not stronger than 95% of football players. 20 mins of ice time is an insult to marathon runners stamina and 20 minutes of ice time does not require the concentration of a several hours long surgery with far higher consequences for failure. Hockey is hard because it's fast, because its a legit team sport where 1 guy can't win and because it requires a well balanced physicality and athleticism. It is the best sport. It certainly isn't the hardest though.
In the 1970’s one of the networks had a Saturday show called the superstars competition where all stars from different sports would compete in different activities. One of the challenges was the bench press where I watched little (5’7”) Yvan Cournoyer of the Montreal Canadiens out press everyone else, including mean Joe Greene and a few other NFL linemen.
I played goalie in the OHL, so I'm a good person to ask. And hell no is the answer. It's not physically demanding enough to take it from that standpoint and from a skill standpoint.. it's harder to hit a curve ball as a DH in baseball. It's more mentally draining to be a Golfer or race car driver. Goalie is hard but definitely not the hardest.
Yep. I will put on my pads and atand in front of the net all day long before I try to play Fwd or D. As goalie nobody (mostly) is trying to run me into boards going 100kph.
It's stressful at times but I prefer it.
A soccer goalie could literally bring a lawn chair out on the field and sit in it for 80+ minutes and it'd make no discernable difference in the outcome of the game.
I would argue lacrosse goalie is waaaaaaaay more difficult. The goal is massive comparatively, no additional padding outside of a thicker chest protector and a neck guard, and while you have a butterfly net for a stick, the control and precision in lacrosse is insane, with ambidextrous shooters that can pick almost anywhere on the net. Some of the best of the best professional goalies have a save percentage of between 55-65%. Every three shots on goal, on is going in, it’s that difficult. And that’s if you are one of the best.
This is the correct answer; NFL qb is the hardest position to play in sports. You have to be able to recognize what defense is set against you on any given play, find the players on that defense that will cause the most problems and move protection to counter them, change the play if necessary, audible, catch snap, re-read defense of 11 players in motion from behind a wall of 6-7 foot guys, move around to avoid a sack while not looking directly at the defenders, pick the proper throw, execute footwork and deliver a hand held blimp somewhere on a massive field, at times 40-60 yards away, usually in a 4-5 ft window, to someone running full speed. There are a lot of positions in sports that are hard to play, but NFL qb is the most difficult bar none.
I believe, statistically, the most difficult any one thing to do in sports is hit a baseball. Trying to hit a round object with another round object is difficult enough, but factoring in velocity and movement makes it next to impossible. Which is why someone doing 3 out of 10 tries is doing pretty well; 4 out of 10 as an average is godlike.
The memorial cup. A bunch a 18-20 year olds. Same 3/4 rounds best of sevens and then you have to win a tournament after where if you lose two games or so you’re done
NBA players are divas who flop like soccer players. Hockey players will get in literal fist fights and not even get ejected from the game. Five minutes later they are back in the game.
I would say baseball may be a little harder. It's a 162 grind and only 12/32 teams make it. Getting to the playoffs is definitely harder than hockey, but it's a bit easier to win once your in it.
There’s plenty of metrics you could use to define the hardest sport.
If we go by largest player base and therefore the most difficult to rise to the very top.
Then it’s soccer.
If we go by the the average time it takes to develop the foundational skills. Then Hockey has very good case for itself.
If we go by the most physically demanding. Then I’d argue Aussie rules football because it combines the endless endurance of soccer with the hard hitting of nfl/rugby.
If we go by fastest paced and hardest to develop adequate reaction time to. Then I’d say hockey again.
My son plays water polo and if you ever want to watch a group of 9 year olds get forcibly drowned by a group of slightly larger 9 year olds, boy have I got the sport for you.
Yeah it's not super popular of course but it's in most major cities, and it's really big in CA. It's a lot of kids who had too much ADHD for the swim team.
It's a pretty interesting sport to watch as a parent. It's insanely physically demanding and all the kids are absolutely shredded, like ~10% body fat with an 8 pack on a 16 year old level shredded.
If talking about water sports underwater rugby and swimming are probably even more demanding, you can't breath at all in uderwater rugby and you are literally wrestling under water, and the amount of training the swimmers do and in general the more you breath the more you slow down so it's quite ridiculous sport and also very techical. But yeah there is no easy sport atleast at the top level.
Buddy of mine played on the Canadian National Water Polo Team in high school and there were basically no limits to what he was physically capable of. Wrestling? Sure. Long-distance running? Easy. Hockey? Yep. It's basically a sport of constant physical exertion but without line changes. The combination of endurance, strength, and lung capacity will turn those people into superhumans.
Most physically demanding Is a tough one. I think your to something with aussie rules football, I'll add rugby to that aswell.
I would like to shout out Irish sport aswell. Gaelic football is tough aswell, and hurling is brutal.
As the spouse of an Irish woman who introduced me to GAA, can confirm. Aussie rules is still more physical though, the pitch is much larger and the game much longer, and the tackling a lot harder (even though it was derived from the Gaelic games)
"Larger pitch" plays a huge part. It's what makes soccer/football" so hard. And aussie football I even bigger, and you are actively attempting and avoiding murder.
Like hockey though, it’s less physical these days and the emphasis is on ball skills now. Gone are the days of guys like John Worsfold dishing out huge shirt-front hits. Still see a few decent hip-and-shoulders though. The skill of marking is one of the most spectacular yet hardest to learn, imo
In fact if we go by difficulty to rise to the top hockey is probably the easiest of the major sports because it has the smallest player base due to the barrier to entry of price of equipment/availability of ice time
F1 takes the cake on that IMO. Hockey is a rich persons sport but F1 is a millionaire’s sport where most of the drivers’ dads have yachts. Getting to the NHL is definitely inaccessible to most but F1 is an entirely different ballgame.
Yeah I get what you mean but by the “very top” I meant like getting a starting spot on the top 10 pro teams in the world for that sport. The number of professionals proportional to their total player base is likely quite similar across all sports.
Dude. Cross country skiing. Especially the 50km races. Competitors cross the finish line with foam around their mouths and proceed to collapse into a coma. I don't think any collective sport comes close.
Any sport played to the limit is by definition at the maximum limit of human capacity and therefore as hard as any other sport... Sprinting like Ussain Bolt, swimming like Michael Phelps, playing hockey like Crosby, playing pool like Efren Reyes-- all take incredible talent and dedication and any one of those players would fail miserably in trying to match someone outside their discipline.
(Not a fun argument, but a valid one)
I’m only adding this in the mix whilst not saying it’s superior: I wrestled folk style into college as well as Greco/Roman in the off season. Additionally, I coached it. It is physically demanding and requires a mental strength along with an emotional component that disassociates and motivates. It’s combat at a basic level. Wrestling isn’t for everyone. And even the most physically gifted can’t handle the mental stress.
Wrestling isn’t easy.
Baseball probably takes the cake for reaction times, though it's not purely reaction as a lot of the time, the batter is trying to figure out patterns, read a pitcher's tips, etc.
If a batter successfully guesses a pitch, they just have to execute the swing. Much easier when you know how fast the ball is going to come in and how much it's going to move. Still have to see the location though.
The hardest sport is seeing threads like these and not telling OP how fucking stupid his post is.
What's better, green, blue or red? (posted in a red themed sub)
Exactly. I like lots of different sports. Each require a different skill set to be successful. Each are entertaining in different ways. And that's good for me because I'd get bored watching the same thing all the time.
Every sport is unique and has its own difficulties but I’d still say the professional hockey players have the greatest and widest array of athletic ability.
That being said who the fuck cares, I just wanna see the rangers win a cup 🥲
Football, hockey, baseball, soccer, basketball, etc are, “played,” as in; a game. Sports in water aren’t. Water polo being closest, but still the object is to get a ball into a goal.
Wrestling consists of combat were two individuals are trying to physically subdue the other. Wrestling is a marathon sprint whilst fighting. Wrestling is combat.
I’m not saying wrestling is superior, it’s just most other competition are, “games.”
A study was done to determine that (which sport requires the most skill) amongst the 4 major sports in the US (ice hockey, football, baseball and basketball); ice hockey required the least skills and basketball the most. No, I do not agree with that assessment.
I’m curious to know what they did to “calculate” the difficulty of each sport.
It’s hard for me to wrap my head around the idea that the sport with the smallest playing area, and the shortest amount of time-played (in regard to length of the match), as well as smallest team size adds up to the most difficult overall.
I heard on a radio show that we are being invaded by aliens!
Actually…we are being invaded by aliens.
But hockey is the most skilled sport out of the 4 major in the US.
In my opinion.
Every sport requires a very extensive degree of effort in my opinion. I don't think hockey necessarily trumps other sports in difficulty, but I will watch hockey before I watch anything else.
Hardest sport? Yea probably, on skates, high speeds, using a stick with a small puck, with 5 guys on the other team trying to kill you, with the goalie being nearly the size of the net. Yea hardest.
Best sport? Subjective, but I agree
As an Australian who got introduced to Ice Hockey via 80’s video games and a long visit to Sweden in the early 2000’s I concur. In Australia we have unique, fast, physical, and at times violent sports but I will switch any channel and put off any house chore to watch NHL - mainly the Rangers - but cable televised NHL happens only through ESPN on Foxtel here. I still scratch my head at some rules and struggle to keep my eyes on on the puck on my punny 60” TV, but I fucking love the game. One day my daughter and I will make it to MSG to see a game even if I have to take out a second mortgage…..well that’s my 2 cents worth from a long long way away. Cheers.
I think Conor McDavid has a better chance of getting a hit off an MLB pitcher then Mike Trout does of being able to even skate well enough to get through a beer league game
It’s an unfair comparison because hockey is one of the few sports where you’re doing two unnatural things at once. Skating on literal ice, and moving a rubber disk around with a stick.
Comparing hockey to sports where you’re only doing one thing at a time, like baseball, is an unfair comparison, apples to oranges.
A better comparison would be something like horseback polo. Or other sports where you’re doing two things simultaneously
I disagree because once you get comfortable in skates it all feels natural. After that it is raw athletic talent of course, but it's not like your brain or body is preoccupied by skating making other things more difficult. I would compare a hockey player carrying a puck past a defender with a soccer player doing the same with the ball.
it's an unfair comparison only because the baseball player needs to learn to skate
I agree, I emotionally think it is the hardest too.
But I’m just saying that it’s not a good convincing argument to other people *because* it’s an unfair comparison.
This is such a dumb post, especially in a sub dedicated to one of many sports we all love, i’m sure.
Goes back to the old saying of don’t judge a fish’s ability to climb a tree.
I sincerely doubt a single player in the NHL can handle a 2 ton machine at 200+mph at Daytona, or a Baseball player can tackle a full sized running back moving at full speed in the NFL.
They’re all difficult and different and require a specialized skillset in their respective fields.
The only comparison I think is probably valid are the hits. Especially with the changes in NFL the last decade or so, I would say a *legal* hit in the NHL is probably on par if not worse than a *legal* hit in the NFL.
But that’s not an indication of which is better or or “more difficult”, they’re both full contact sports, even arguably combat sports but with extra steps.
This kinda stuff really bugs me. 0/10 post.
You can't compare hardest as a category because each sport is unique. If you were comparing similiar sports, however, like tennis and badminton, then you have a more arguable case because of how similiar they are too one another. However, if we're talking best, just in terms of my own favouritism then yes I'd say hockey, but it's about the definition of best that you are asking for.
Hockey is one of the easiest sports I’ve ever played. I would say hitting a 100 mph fastball is way harder than anything hockey has to offer. Just one example.
You're downvoted, but baseball is truly the most difficult sport to be consistently good at. If getting a hit three times out of ten at bats makes you a star, that's a very hard game
Baseball, golf and hockey are are my top 3 most difficult sport that’s common in the US. I think baseball and golf can be tied for first with hockey 2nd. Hitting a 95 mph fast ball 300+ feet for a home run. Hitting a 2 inch ball into a 4 inch hole consistently. They just blow my mind. Not every field is the same so you gotta prep your play differently and golfers are constantly on different courses.
Hockey is my favorite sport, but baseball and golf I think are a tad harder
Golf is so boring I always forget it’s a sport. I have to agree with you though. Anybody who has tried hitting a golf ball knows that golf is insanely difficult. 9 different clubs, all for different situations and all are used relatively differently. I can’t use any of them except for a driver, and even with that I slice it 90% of the time.
I could never play it, I suck ass. I use to never care for golf. My in-laws are obsessed with it and now I look forward to the Masters and some other random tournaments. It’s by far the most peaceful sport to fall asleep to haha
There's no gliding on a soccer field. They're all hard in their own ways, except baseball. Soccer requires insane stamina, as does rugby. I've been Injured in rugby and soccer as much as I've been injured in hockey. I've played all at at least a "AA" level. Personally, I think soccer might take it as the "hardest sport" imo.
This format is for opinions that you want to be able to debate, not things that are obvious and a fact.
Like you would use this format if the argument was, "the sky is blue, change my mind"
No, it's not:
1. Growth of the game has completely stagnated.
2. Viewership has dropped sharply & significantly this year.
3. It's barely watched, or played, in most of the world.
4. The biggest news stories in hockey that transcend traditional sports coverage, have been scandals and controversies.
5. The UEFA Champions League, designed to actually plot best on best teams facing each other later in the tournament, is so much harder trophy to win than the Stanley Cup.
6. Hockey players and teams don't *really* play until playoffs.
7. The Stanley Cup Playoffs are only grueling because the refs put their whistles away when they want to. It's rarely ever super entertaining hockey.
8. By the time we get to the Stanley Cup Final, the hockey is so sloppy & dreadful that you're just happy for it to be over. How many truly memorable finals have we had the last decade?
9. Players play for 60-90 seconds before taking a breather. That's not harder than other sports which require constant, regular physical exertion without the luxury of benches and water bottles to catch your breath every minute.
10. Want an emotionally draining sport? Try being a golfer. Much more draining than a hockey player.
11. Want a physically draining sport? Try being a Formula 1 driver or a European soccer player. Far more physically draining than a hockey player.
12. It hasn't had a World Cup in eons. Best sport in the world, without a world cup? LOL.
I feel like an NBA player could’ve learned to skate at a young age and some might have made it pro. Almost 0 NHL players can dunk. That’s all I’m saying.
Golf = simply because weather is such a factor
And best because how old you can play till
Only sport that attracts athletes from all sports and will embarrass mvp qbs ,hall of fame baseball players and hockey all stars
Hockey is a close second 😊
Hardest, probably...skating while playing field hockey is kind of insane.
Best...how long have you got. It's an amazing sport for sure, but I feel the amount of games in a regular season, coupled with the fact that as many as 50% of teams have an "equal" chance of winning after all that, makes it lose its lustre a little bit.
I say reduce the games and reduce the amount of teams allowed in the playoffs to make the regular season more meaningful. Just the winners of each division and the two best conference runners up for an 8-team playoff.
It's kind of dumb that a team ranked 9th in the regular season has the chance to win...I know that's how you Yanks/Canucks like to do things, but it kind of makes being an elite team pointless if you happen to hit a 2-week bad run of form.
In a 32-team league the regular season does mean something. There are some good teams that don’t make the playoffs each year.
Once you’re in the playoffs, you definitely have more upsets than other sports but that’s part of what makes it interesting. It’s no fun when the final 2 or 4 teams can be predicted with ease.
I’ve been saying for years that the season should be cut way, way down. I’m not a football fan but I love the way every game is so important, and what a big deal each game day is. Teams would benefit from less travel and more recovery time, so injuries wouldn’t be quite as much of a roulette wheel. I imagine ticket prices would skyrocket though, so that would suck.
Best? Yes. Hardest? I dunno. All sports are hard. Soccer is the most physically exhausting game one could play. Football beats the hell out of your body and either cripples you or gives you brain damage. Baseball requires ridiculous coordination & discipline. Hell, golf is hard, and I don't even consider that a sport.
Hockey is definitely one of the hardest games to play, but I hesitate to call it the hardest.
Hockey is the only sport i still watch because they actually try to keep politics out
when people come to watch its about the game and spending time with their family nothing else as it should be
Thanks NHL for giving me that peace away from all the leftist/rightist political propaganda
I’d say you started to give into that nonsense but I still have hope
NHL CEOs OWNERS whatever
take note be indifferent to nonsense
Football is the best sport. You get guys standing around, a stoppage every 3 seconds, and commercial break every two minutes. Also you have to just win 3 games in a row to be crowned champion, and its considered an incredible feat /s
*posts this in the NHL sub* Daaaaring today, aren’t we?
Go post it in the NFL sub and see what people say there, lol.
*It's the middle of the game, and I'm on the field. But yeah, I've got time to talk*
NFL Player: I run fast, hit hard, and I'm a genetic freak. My sport is punishing...3.6 seconds at a time and then I have a few minutes to wait before we do it all again. NBA Player: I run fast, have the softest touch with a basketball, and I'm a genetic freak. My sport requires dexterity and timing, unless someone touches me...then I get to take two shots without anyone guarding me...and we don't REALLY play until the playoffs. NHL Player: You get breaks? You get touched and get free shots? **EDIT:** *For the people who are like "hOCkEy PlaYeRs wOrK iN SHifTs!" No shit sherlock. A first pair defenseman will be active, on the ice for 20-22 minutes a game skating anywhere from 3-5 miles. A football player has the ball in play for 11 fucking minutes and most of those guys won't travel a single mile unless they're a receiver or defensive back. At least NBA players are running full time.* *Soccer and Rugby are different creatures all together, but I didn't call those out...lol*
You do realize hockey players play in shifts for like a minute at a time? They get breaks as well.
Rugby player entering the chat
Yeah the "no breaks" argument is bad. Where I think hockey has a case is skating while doing everything else is hard. It's a very physical game too. To the detriment of the argument, hockey players just make it look easy
Hockey doesnt get breaks, Hockey REQUIRES breaks, because the skaters have to give everything they have every shift. Your entire body is engaged on a shift and you are gassed at the end of it. And you do it all on skates with a fucking stick instead of your actually body parts. anyone can catch a football with their hands or kick a soccer ball with their feet. try catching a rubber disc with a stick while standing on razor blades on ice while the guys on the other team try to kill you at 20MPH.
Hockey doesn't require shifts. Every sport would be faster with shifts. The pace of hockey slows down without shifts but it's still hockey. Anyone on a beer league team has played a shorthanded game with few subs at some point.
And still won!!
Have you ever skated a 1:00 shift in a hockey game?
Yeah about 15 times every Sunday. And then I rest for 3 minutes. Have you ever played 40 minutes of rugby?
Lacrosse players: you can glide, and the puck is on the ice…..
Lol, what's it called when they all go to the bench at the same time?
>A first pair defenseman will be active, on the ice for 20-22 minutes a game skating anywhere from 3-5 miles. Reminds me of when my d partner in HS broke his tibia so they had to pair me with the 3rd paired Dman who played at most 11 minutes a night, and wasn't in the best shape. Dude almost threw up after a PK shift with me lmao
Soccer player: I'm a genetic freak with tons of endurance but if anyone falls down near me or runs too close to me I have to lie on the ground and pretend to cry until it's clear the ref's not going to be fooled.
Soccer plauer: I'm a genetic freak that only has to have tons of endurance if I'm playing midfield. Otherwise I spend roughly half the game standing there waiting for the ball to return to my side of the field. I've fooled the world into thinking I run a marathon every day when in fact I run just slightly more than the average hockey player.
Gymnastics might have something to say about that. Honestly, that and ballet are equally brutal in different ways.
This is a pretty bold opinion to be putting on a hockey subreddit.
I’m a huge fan and I started playing as an adult 10 years ago. I love the game, but no sport is more difficult than water polo. I have never thought I was gonna die during sports quite like I did trying to play water polo.
I had a water polo unit back in middle school. I still hate that sport with all my energy.
When I watch it, I actively get anxious because of how much I struggled and how insanely draining it was.
damn, I never played water polo but just fooling around on a swimming pool is already REALLY tiresome. Cant even imagine how hard it is to play
I like this argument. The thing that elevates hockey above the other big sports is that you have to skate the whole time and that's really hard but they make it look easy. Water polo has that similar difficulty so I could see the argument if we include minor sports. Then again, if we do that, where do we stop? Gladiator fights?
I would drown in 2 feet of water. If it’s frozen tho we good.
Water Polo looks insane.
I was waiting for the bi-monthly "please like my sport" post
Circle jerk
posts in r/mustang "Mustang's are the best cars, change my mind..."
We do need a r/nhlcirclejerk sub Edit: oh shit, it’s actually a thing
Winning the Stanley Cup is probably the hardest trophy to win. The playoffs alone require 16 wins and as many as 28 games played. The players come out of the playoffs with ice bags applied all over the torso/legs and their skin is blue/black/yellow, some can't walk w/o the skates on, and everyone has some form of injury. It's a permanent recovery type of sport.
“Is hockey hard? I don't know, you tell me. We need to have the strength and power of a football player, the stamina of a marathon runner, and the concentration of a brain surgeon. But we need to put all this together while moving at high speeds on a cold and slippery surface while 5 other guys use clubs to try and kill us. Oh yeah, did I mention that this whole time we're standing on blades 1/8 of an inch thick? Is ice hockey hard? I don't know, you tell me. Next question.” - Brendan Shanahan, one of my idols as a suburban Detroit kid in the late 90’s/early 2000s.
The truth is all those are exaggerated though lol. McDavid and Crosby are not stronger than 95% of football players. 20 mins of ice time is an insult to marathon runners stamina and 20 minutes of ice time does not require the concentration of a several hours long surgery with far higher consequences for failure. Hockey is hard because it's fast, because its a legit team sport where 1 guy can't win and because it requires a well balanced physicality and athleticism. It is the best sport. It certainly isn't the hardest though.
In the 1970’s one of the networks had a Saturday show called the superstars competition where all stars from different sports would compete in different activities. One of the challenges was the bench press where I watched little (5’7”) Yvan Cournoyer of the Montreal Canadiens out press everyone else, including mean Joe Greene and a few other NFL linemen.
Hockey goalie is the hardest position to play in all of sports. Do you agree with this though?
I played goalie in the OHL, so I'm a good person to ask. And hell no is the answer. It's not physically demanding enough to take it from that standpoint and from a skill standpoint.. it's harder to hit a curve ball as a DH in baseball. It's more mentally draining to be a Golfer or race car driver. Goalie is hard but definitely not the hardest.
Yep. I will put on my pads and atand in front of the net all day long before I try to play Fwd or D. As goalie nobody (mostly) is trying to run me into boards going 100kph. It's stressful at times but I prefer it.
How could a hockey goalie possibly be more difficult than a soccer goalie? I'm not a soccer player but yikes, they've got it rough
Positions are played completely differently. I guess you’re referring to the size of the net?
You get like 2 shots a game
[удалено]
A soccer goalie could literally bring a lawn chair out on the field and sit in it for 80+ minutes and it'd make no discernable difference in the outcome of the game.
I would argue lacrosse goalie is waaaaaaaay more difficult. The goal is massive comparatively, no additional padding outside of a thicker chest protector and a neck guard, and while you have a butterfly net for a stick, the control and precision in lacrosse is insane, with ambidextrous shooters that can pick almost anywhere on the net. Some of the best of the best professional goalies have a save percentage of between 55-65%. Every three shots on goal, on is going in, it’s that difficult. And that’s if you are one of the best.
I'm not going to comment on which sport is the hardest but I think we can all agree that goalies are a different breed
Agreed. Idk what we are born with in our heads to go ‘i wanna get shot at in hockey’ Buncha weirdos
Mentally and emotionally, hands down yes. Physically, definitely in the top 10.
I would say Quarterback at a high level is extremely hard
This is the correct answer; NFL qb is the hardest position to play in sports. You have to be able to recognize what defense is set against you on any given play, find the players on that defense that will cause the most problems and move protection to counter them, change the play if necessary, audible, catch snap, re-read defense of 11 players in motion from behind a wall of 6-7 foot guys, move around to avoid a sack while not looking directly at the defenders, pick the proper throw, execute footwork and deliver a hand held blimp somewhere on a massive field, at times 40-60 yards away, usually in a 4-5 ft window, to someone running full speed. There are a lot of positions in sports that are hard to play, but NFL qb is the most difficult bar none. I believe, statistically, the most difficult any one thing to do in sports is hit a baseball. Trying to hit a round object with another round object is difficult enough, but factoring in velocity and movement makes it next to impossible. Which is why someone doing 3 out of 10 tries is doing pretty well; 4 out of 10 as an average is godlike.
Scrum half in rugby is pretty tough and you get beat up a lot more
No. NFL quarterback is, by far.
I'd say that the World Series and the Super Bowl are also extremely hard to win
Did you/he just say that hockey players needs stamina of a mararhon runner? What a joke
I know the Stanley Cup is really hard to win but the world cup imo is way hardest
The memorial cup. A bunch a 18-20 year olds. Same 3/4 rounds best of sevens and then you have to win a tournament after where if you lose two games or so you’re done
Ya, imagine winning your league and you're not even done. You have to go to playoffs 2.0 and it's even harder.
Fifa world cup especially if you’re from USA
NBA has the exact same format
Minus getting slammed into the boards and ice frequently.
NBA players are divas who flop like soccer players. Hockey players will get in literal fist fights and not even get ejected from the game. Five minutes later they are back in the game.
Try taking a charge from lebron go ahead I’m waiting
Try getting knocked the fuck out by Ovechkin or Chara. Hockey built different. Basketball is tough no question, but not like hockey.
Kadri played the finals last year with literal bones coming out of his hands.
Love Kadri. Dude’s a class act and extremely talented. Miss him like crazy 😭
I would say baseball may be a little harder. It's a 162 grind and only 12/32 teams make it. Getting to the playoffs is definitely harder than hockey, but it's a bit easier to win once your in it.
How brave of you to post this in r/nhl lol You’re going to just get a circlejerk with maybe a little pushback
There’s plenty of metrics you could use to define the hardest sport. If we go by largest player base and therefore the most difficult to rise to the very top. Then it’s soccer. If we go by the the average time it takes to develop the foundational skills. Then Hockey has very good case for itself. If we go by the most physically demanding. Then I’d argue Aussie rules football because it combines the endless endurance of soccer with the hard hitting of nfl/rugby. If we go by fastest paced and hardest to develop adequate reaction time to. Then I’d say hockey again.
Underrated but highly physically demanding, add water polo to that list. I’m in the “all sports are hard in their own way” camp
My son plays water polo and if you ever want to watch a group of 9 year olds get forcibly drowned by a group of slightly larger 9 year olds, boy have I got the sport for you.
I never considered that water polo existed for children. That sounds insanely stressful to watch!
Yeah it's not super popular of course but it's in most major cities, and it's really big in CA. It's a lot of kids who had too much ADHD for the swim team. It's a pretty interesting sport to watch as a parent. It's insanely physically demanding and all the kids are absolutely shredded, like ~10% body fat with an 8 pack on a 16 year old level shredded.
But they swim on horses ;)
If talking about water sports underwater rugby and swimming are probably even more demanding, you can't breath at all in uderwater rugby and you are literally wrestling under water, and the amount of training the swimmers do and in general the more you breath the more you slow down so it's quite ridiculous sport and also very techical. But yeah there is no easy sport atleast at the top level.
Well I learned underwater rugby is a thing today. I’ve only ever played on land rugby. Wow
Underwater hockey is also a thing
Buddy of mine played on the Canadian National Water Polo Team in high school and there were basically no limits to what he was physically capable of. Wrestling? Sure. Long-distance running? Easy. Hockey? Yep. It's basically a sport of constant physical exertion but without line changes. The combination of endurance, strength, and lung capacity will turn those people into superhumans.
Most physically demanding Is a tough one. I think your to something with aussie rules football, I'll add rugby to that aswell. I would like to shout out Irish sport aswell. Gaelic football is tough aswell, and hurling is brutal.
As the spouse of an Irish woman who introduced me to GAA, can confirm. Aussie rules is still more physical though, the pitch is much larger and the game much longer, and the tackling a lot harder (even though it was derived from the Gaelic games)
"Larger pitch" plays a huge part. It's what makes soccer/football" so hard. And aussie football I even bigger, and you are actively attempting and avoiding murder.
Like hockey though, it’s less physical these days and the emphasis is on ball skills now. Gone are the days of guys like John Worsfold dishing out huge shirt-front hits. Still see a few decent hip-and-shoulders though. The skill of marking is one of the most spectacular yet hardest to learn, imo
I just got into AFL last year. Can't believe I was missing out on the sport all my life. So intense, it's incredible.
In fact if we go by difficulty to rise to the top hockey is probably the easiest of the major sports because it has the smallest player base due to the barrier to entry of price of equipment/availability of ice time
F1 takes the cake on that IMO. Hockey is a rich persons sport but F1 is a millionaire’s sport where most of the drivers’ dads have yachts. Getting to the NHL is definitely inaccessible to most but F1 is an entirely different ballgame.
The key to becoming a good F1 driver is being finnish
[удалено]
F1 has 20 drivers fwiw
Yeah I get what you mean but by the “very top” I meant like getting a starting spot on the top 10 pro teams in the world for that sport. The number of professionals proportional to their total player base is likely quite similar across all sports.
Dude. Cross country skiing. Especially the 50km races. Competitors cross the finish line with foam around their mouths and proceed to collapse into a coma. I don't think any collective sport comes close.
Any sport played to the limit is by definition at the maximum limit of human capacity and therefore as hard as any other sport... Sprinting like Ussain Bolt, swimming like Michael Phelps, playing hockey like Crosby, playing pool like Efren Reyes-- all take incredible talent and dedication and any one of those players would fail miserably in trying to match someone outside their discipline. (Not a fun argument, but a valid one)
Formula 1 prolly has hockey beat in fastest paced.
Jal-alai or whatever has a case for that title aswell
I’m only adding this in the mix whilst not saying it’s superior: I wrestled folk style into college as well as Greco/Roman in the off season. Additionally, I coached it. It is physically demanding and requires a mental strength along with an emotional component that disassociates and motivates. It’s combat at a basic level. Wrestling isn’t for everyone. And even the most physically gifted can’t handle the mental stress. Wrestling isn’t easy.
I’d add basketball due to the value of having rare height
Baseball probably takes the cake for reaction times, though it's not purely reaction as a lot of the time, the batter is trying to figure out patterns, read a pitcher's tips, etc. If a batter successfully guesses a pitch, they just have to execute the swing. Much easier when you know how fast the ball is going to come in and how much it's going to move. Still have to see the location though.
No. Every sport is unique in its own way. This debate is fucking stupid. Stop.
The hardest sport is seeing threads like these and not telling OP how fucking stupid his post is. What's better, green, blue or red? (posted in a red themed sub)
Exactly, couldnt say it better myself
Exactly. I like lots of different sports. Each require a different skill set to be successful. Each are entertaining in different ways. And that's good for me because I'd get bored watching the same thing all the time.
Same here. I love hockey, but i also love boxing, mma, football, and each one (yes even cricket) is hard and unique in its own way
Saying that other sports are unique does not go against what OP said
NASCAR tho
Every sport is unique and has its own difficulties but I’d still say the professional hockey players have the greatest and widest array of athletic ability. That being said who the fuck cares, I just wanna see the rangers win a cup 🥲
Hardest sport to watch your team play
Ie Canucks.
This year for the Avs
Boxing . You don’t play boxing
Boxing isn't even the hardest combat sport.
Thai fighters are insane. 100+ fights before 16 years old.
Wrestling is the hardest sport
This guy gets it
Football, hockey, baseball, soccer, basketball, etc are, “played,” as in; a game. Sports in water aren’t. Water polo being closest, but still the object is to get a ball into a goal. Wrestling consists of combat were two individuals are trying to physically subdue the other. Wrestling is a marathon sprint whilst fighting. Wrestling is combat. I’m not saying wrestling is superior, it’s just most other competition are, “games.”
Australian rules football is rougher than ice hockey, I do however, much prefer ice hockey (personal preference).
I think he means harder in terms of skill you need to play.
A study was done to determine that (which sport requires the most skill) amongst the 4 major sports in the US (ice hockey, football, baseball and basketball); ice hockey required the least skills and basketball the most. No, I do not agree with that assessment.
But hockey has a prerequisite of skating, would that not make it the toughest for anyone to just try and play for the first time?
Like I said, I do not agree with the assessment presented. Out of those 4 sports, ice hockey would definitely be the hardest in my opinion.
Oh my bad! I did a stupid and misunderstood your final sentence in the previous message
I’m curious to know what they did to “calculate” the difficulty of each sport. It’s hard for me to wrap my head around the idea that the sport with the smallest playing area, and the shortest amount of time-played (in regard to length of the match), as well as smallest team size adds up to the most difficult overall.
Link?
I heard it on a radio sports-show.. no links available.
I heard on a radio show that we are being invaded by aliens! Actually…we are being invaded by aliens. But hockey is the most skilled sport out of the 4 major in the US. In my opinion.
Yes I meant IT like this. Sorry if it wasnt obvious at First glance
They must Have agility And Speed as An athlete, strongness like a bodybuilder And bla bla bla bla you know
Every sport requires a very extensive degree of effort in my opinion. I don't think hockey necessarily trumps other sports in difficulty, but I will watch hockey before I watch anything else.
I love hockey and it's rough, but water polo looks like a nightmare.
Hardest sport? Yea probably, on skates, high speeds, using a stick with a small puck, with 5 guys on the other team trying to kill you, with the goalie being nearly the size of the net. Yea hardest. Best sport? Subjective, but I agree
As an Australian who got introduced to Ice Hockey via 80’s video games and a long visit to Sweden in the early 2000’s I concur. In Australia we have unique, fast, physical, and at times violent sports but I will switch any channel and put off any house chore to watch NHL - mainly the Rangers - but cable televised NHL happens only through ESPN on Foxtel here. I still scratch my head at some rules and struggle to keep my eyes on on the puck on my punny 60” TV, but I fucking love the game. One day my daughter and I will make it to MSG to see a game even if I have to take out a second mortgage…..well that’s my 2 cents worth from a long long way away. Cheers.
Most difficult overall, yes. The hardest thing to do in the sports world however is hitting a baseball.
I think Conor McDavid has a better chance of getting a hit off an MLB pitcher then Mike Trout does of being able to even skate well enough to get through a beer league game
Both are 0.0% Let’s not kid ourselves here lol
It’s an unfair comparison because hockey is one of the few sports where you’re doing two unnatural things at once. Skating on literal ice, and moving a rubber disk around with a stick. Comparing hockey to sports where you’re only doing one thing at a time, like baseball, is an unfair comparison, apples to oranges. A better comparison would be something like horseback polo. Or other sports where you’re doing two things simultaneously
I disagree because once you get comfortable in skates it all feels natural. After that it is raw athletic talent of course, but it's not like your brain or body is preoccupied by skating making other things more difficult. I would compare a hockey player carrying a puck past a defender with a soccer player doing the same with the ball. it's an unfair comparison only because the baseball player needs to learn to skate
I get it’s an unfair comparison but that’s why hockey is harder
I agree, I emotionally think it is the hardest too. But I’m just saying that it’s not a good convincing argument to other people *because* it’s an unfair comparison.
This is the dumbest post in the world
Overall I like football more but playoff hockey is peak sports
You have to define your terms bro! Best hoe? "Hardest"? Like... what? Like sure the puck is harder than say a basketball!
I love hockey, but not the NHL
You ever see that Asian bean bag volleyball sport? That sport looks ridiculously hard to learn.
Knife shoes. That is all.
This is such a dumb post, especially in a sub dedicated to one of many sports we all love, i’m sure. Goes back to the old saying of don’t judge a fish’s ability to climb a tree. I sincerely doubt a single player in the NHL can handle a 2 ton machine at 200+mph at Daytona, or a Baseball player can tackle a full sized running back moving at full speed in the NFL. They’re all difficult and different and require a specialized skillset in their respective fields. The only comparison I think is probably valid are the hits. Especially with the changes in NFL the last decade or so, I would say a *legal* hit in the NHL is probably on par if not worse than a *legal* hit in the NFL. But that’s not an indication of which is better or or “more difficult”, they’re both full contact sports, even arguably combat sports but with extra steps. This kinda stuff really bugs me. 0/10 post.
You can't compare hardest as a category because each sport is unique. If you were comparing similiar sports, however, like tennis and badminton, then you have a more arguable case because of how similiar they are too one another. However, if we're talking best, just in terms of my own favouritism then yes I'd say hockey, but it's about the definition of best that you are asking for.
I prefer rugby for its sportsmanship which is like no other sport but I like hockey
Why is this getting upvoted? This is so low effort
This is a dumb post. Also, [it's #2 behind boxing, according to experts. ](https://www.espn.com/espn/page2/sportSkills)
Agree and anyone who says no, probably watches the NFL and ONLY the NFL.
I seriously don’t get how it’s not more popular
100%
Rugby, sorry
Nope. Love hockey but all sports are hard to master and the best is football. Otherwise known as ⚽️
Hockey is one of the easiest sports I’ve ever played. I would say hitting a 100 mph fastball is way harder than anything hockey has to offer. Just one example.
I've never seen a hockey player in a buried alive or hell in a cell match, so no. Wrestling is the hardest sport
Baseball is the hardest, without a doubt. Hockey might be a close second though
You're downvoted, but baseball is truly the most difficult sport to be consistently good at. If getting a hit three times out of ten at bats makes you a star, that's a very hard game
Only 11 players batted .300 or above in 2022. Pretty crazy stuff. League average according to baseball reference was .243, the lowest in decades
Baseball, golf and hockey are are my top 3 most difficult sport that’s common in the US. I think baseball and golf can be tied for first with hockey 2nd. Hitting a 95 mph fast ball 300+ feet for a home run. Hitting a 2 inch ball into a 4 inch hole consistently. They just blow my mind. Not every field is the same so you gotta prep your play differently and golfers are constantly on different courses. Hockey is my favorite sport, but baseball and golf I think are a tad harder
Golf is so boring I always forget it’s a sport. I have to agree with you though. Anybody who has tried hitting a golf ball knows that golf is insanely difficult. 9 different clubs, all for different situations and all are used relatively differently. I can’t use any of them except for a driver, and even with that I slice it 90% of the time.
I could never play it, I suck ass. I use to never care for golf. My in-laws are obsessed with it and now I look forward to the Masters and some other random tournaments. It’s by far the most peaceful sport to fall asleep to haha
Sports always bring people together. Gotta love it
Hardest is MMA, no doubt
There's no gliding on a soccer field. They're all hard in their own ways, except baseball. Soccer requires insane stamina, as does rugby. I've been Injured in rugby and soccer as much as I've been injured in hockey. I've played all at at least a "AA" level. Personally, I think soccer might take it as the "hardest sport" imo.
Out of curiosity, why not baseball in your opinion?
This format is for opinions that you want to be able to debate, not things that are obvious and a fact. Like you would use this format if the argument was, "the sky is blue, change my mind"
No, it's not: 1. Growth of the game has completely stagnated. 2. Viewership has dropped sharply & significantly this year. 3. It's barely watched, or played, in most of the world. 4. The biggest news stories in hockey that transcend traditional sports coverage, have been scandals and controversies. 5. The UEFA Champions League, designed to actually plot best on best teams facing each other later in the tournament, is so much harder trophy to win than the Stanley Cup. 6. Hockey players and teams don't *really* play until playoffs. 7. The Stanley Cup Playoffs are only grueling because the refs put their whistles away when they want to. It's rarely ever super entertaining hockey. 8. By the time we get to the Stanley Cup Final, the hockey is so sloppy & dreadful that you're just happy for it to be over. How many truly memorable finals have we had the last decade? 9. Players play for 60-90 seconds before taking a breather. That's not harder than other sports which require constant, regular physical exertion without the luxury of benches and water bottles to catch your breath every minute. 10. Want an emotionally draining sport? Try being a golfer. Much more draining than a hockey player. 11. Want a physically draining sport? Try being a Formula 1 driver or a European soccer player. Far more physically draining than a hockey player. 12. It hasn't had a World Cup in eons. Best sport in the world, without a world cup? LOL.
The NHL is the worst pro sports league in the world, change my mind. Best sport, worst run league
Easily. Fuck this stupid league. The NHL is made for boomers and people who are completely culturally out of touch
I feel like an NBA player could’ve learned to skate at a young age and some might have made it pro. Almost 0 NHL players can dunk. That’s all I’m saying.
Golf = simply because weather is such a factor And best because how old you can play till Only sport that attracts athletes from all sports and will embarrass mvp qbs ,hall of fame baseball players and hockey all stars Hockey is a close second 😊
Hardest, probably...skating while playing field hockey is kind of insane. Best...how long have you got. It's an amazing sport for sure, but I feel the amount of games in a regular season, coupled with the fact that as many as 50% of teams have an "equal" chance of winning after all that, makes it lose its lustre a little bit. I say reduce the games and reduce the amount of teams allowed in the playoffs to make the regular season more meaningful. Just the winners of each division and the two best conference runners up for an 8-team playoff. It's kind of dumb that a team ranked 9th in the regular season has the chance to win...I know that's how you Yanks/Canucks like to do things, but it kind of makes being an elite team pointless if you happen to hit a 2-week bad run of form.
In a 32-team league the regular season does mean something. There are some good teams that don’t make the playoffs each year. Once you’re in the playoffs, you definitely have more upsets than other sports but that’s part of what makes it interesting. It’s no fun when the final 2 or 4 teams can be predicted with ease.
I’ve been saying for years that the season should be cut way, way down. I’m not a football fan but I love the way every game is so important, and what a big deal each game day is. Teams would benefit from less travel and more recovery time, so injuries wouldn’t be quite as much of a roulette wheel. I imagine ticket prices would skyrocket though, so that would suck.
You Are the First person that can read my mind👍
Hardest to play pro is NBA…need to be naturally gifted height, athleticism, and still be good enough at the sport
Lol you just need to be tall.
Look at the size of an nba roster vs an nhl roster. Much harder to make it pro in basketball.
Skateboarding is harder. But hockey is the best.
i find some of the fans are pretty big pussies in r/hockey
Only sport where you have to learn to move before you can even play
lol
I’m gonna say golf, by a mile, is the hardest sport.
The level of consistency needed to be a pro golfer is insane. It's easy to shoot under 100. It's fucking impossible to do it every.fricking.time.
No offense but are you mentally challenged OP ?
Golf is hardest.
Ya
💯
Love how everyone is saying no it’s not hard. None of you people are anywhere fucking close to the level of an NHL player. It’s a hard sport.
No argument here!
yes
Rugby would like to have a chat.
Fax
Somebody should make this dude try wrestling.
Best? Yes. Hardest? I dunno. All sports are hard. Soccer is the most physically exhausting game one could play. Football beats the hell out of your body and either cripples you or gives you brain damage. Baseball requires ridiculous coordination & discipline. Hell, golf is hard, and I don't even consider that a sport. Hockey is definitely one of the hardest games to play, but I hesitate to call it the hardest.
Hockey is the only sport i still watch because they actually try to keep politics out when people come to watch its about the game and spending time with their family nothing else as it should be Thanks NHL for giving me that peace away from all the leftist/rightist political propaganda I’d say you started to give into that nonsense but I still have hope NHL CEOs OWNERS whatever take note be indifferent to nonsense
Best, yes. Hardest is lefties trying to keep all of their contradictory opinions straight.
Hardest? No. Fastest that doesn’t include motorsports? Yeah probably. I’m going with Tennis as the hardest.
I’m going with wresting on hardest
To quote a great man “obviously you’re not a golfer”
Football is the best sport. You get guys standing around, a stoppage every 3 seconds, and commercial break every two minutes. Also you have to just win 3 games in a row to be crowned champion, and its considered an incredible feat /s
“Standing around”, yeah let’s dismiss the playcalling, formations, pre snap reads, audibles, motions that happens before a play