{"id":318917,"date":"2025-11-30T16:43:10","date_gmt":"2025-11-30T16:43:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/318917\/"},"modified":"2025-11-30T16:43:10","modified_gmt":"2025-11-30T16:43:10","slug":"why-the-blackhawks-are-amazed-by-spencer-knights-off-ice-habits-it-just-makes-you-have-so-much-respect","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/318917\/","title":{"rendered":"Why the Blackhawks are amazed by Spencer Knight’s off-ice habits: ‘It just makes you have so much respect’"},"content":{"rendered":"

When the Blackhawks<\/a> flew from Calgary to Detroit to reach the final stop of their grueling six-city road trip earlier in November, U.S. customs officials identified something suspicious within the team\u2019s luggage.<\/p>\n

It was Spencer Knight\u2019s red-light therapy mat.<\/p>\n

Knight tried to explain that the sleeping bag-like item with thousands of tiny infrared bulbs is designed to repair tissue and support whole-body health, but the bewildered official never quite figured it out. Connor Bedard still laughs about the scene weeks later.<\/p>\n

\u201cStuff like that is funny, but it\u2019s awesome to see [his routine],\u201d Bedard said. \u201cWhen guys are playing so well, you appreciate that. But when you see, behind the scenes, why they\u2019re playing so well \u2014 their approach every day \u2014 it just makes you have so much respect.\u201d<\/p>\n

In less than a year on the Hawks, Knight has not only cemented<\/a> himself as a franchise goalie \u2014 his .920 save percentage and plus-11.5 GSAA both rank among the top three in the NHL \u2014 but also amazed his teammates with his precise off-ice routines and habits.<\/p>\n

The ways in which the 24-year-old Connecticut native carries himself and manages his health and stamina have already made him something of a legend.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe tells me a bunch of different stuff, and I don\u2019t fully understand it,\u201d Frank Nazar said. \u201cBut it\u2019s a lot [about] taking care of his body.\u201d<\/p>\n

A \u2018very adult person\u2019<\/p>\n

Getting sleep in the NHL isn\u2019t easy. Teams fly immediately after every road game, which often equates to middle-of-the-night flights landing at 1 or 2 a.m. at their destination. That, in turn, equates to some wacky sleep schedules for everyone.<\/p>\n

For everyone but Knight, that is.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m shocked by it, to be honest,\u201d Landon Slaggert said. \u201cIt takes me a long time to wind down after a game with caffeine, adrenaline, all of that. … He\u2019s eye-mask on, right to bed, trying to maximize his recovery in any way that he can.\u201d<\/p>\n

Said Louis Crevier: \u201cIt\u2019s crazy, but I\u2019ve got to respect that. You\u2019ll ask him why, and he\u2019s like, \u2018What else am I supposed to do?\u2019 Instead of maybe going on social media or watching a movie, he\u2019ll just sleep.\u201d<\/p>\n

Knight\u2019s ability to instantly turn off his brain and slow his heart rate after games might stem from the fact he never gets too worked up during games.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a very adult person,\u201d Alex Vlasic said. “[He\u2019s] very well-spoken and very calm. Even in the game, he\u2019s just [staring blankly] the whole time. I\u2019ve talked to him about it; I think he just likes to stay very level-headed. He doesn\u2019t want to get too high or too low.\u201d<\/p>\n

Knight isn\u2019t exactly superstitious, but he does follow a set routine on game days that his teammates have learned not to mess with. An unflappable, hyper-focused air surrounds him all afternoon leading up to puck drop.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou let him do his own thing,\u201d Nazar said. \u201cBut it\u2019s fun talking to him on a day off on the road, or even after a game [when] you see him in the shower and he\u2019s laughing. He\u2019s a funny guy. He makes jokes, and he enjoys that stuff. It\u2019s good to see both sides of him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Said Matt Grzelcyk: \u201cHe\u2019s very mature for his age. You can tell just talking to him. Especially the way he\u2019s playing this year, you don\u2019t want to let anything screw him up. But he\u2019s very in-the-moment. He\u2019s not like, \u2018It\u2019s game day, you can\u2019t talk to me.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Said Knight: \u201cThere\u2019s some days I won\u2019t do anything specific. It just reminds me that I\u2019m in control of my routine.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Spencer<\/p>\n

Knight typically \u2014 but not always \u2014 follows a specific routine on game days.<\/p>\n

Quirks from Florida<\/p>\n

Knight\u2019s years of watching Sergei Bobrovsky tend the net for the Panthers influenced him tremendously. The future Hall of Famer became a role model whose advice Knight still cites frequently.<\/p>\n

But Knight has also picked up quirks from countless other goalies around the league (and beyond).<\/p>\n

\u201cThe way he sees the games, he\u2019s always trying to grasp some knowledge,\u201d Wyatt Kaiser said. \u201cHe\u2019s like, \u2018I like this part of this guy\u2019s goalie game, and I\u2019m going to put that into my game.\u2019 He\u2019s always trying to learn the process, which I like. I look up to it.\u201d<\/p>\n

One habit that remains from Knight\u2019s Panthers tenure: eating meals during intermissions when he\u2019s not the starting goalie. <\/p>\n

It provides a prime opportunity to maximize his caloric intake during times when he\u2019s not burning many calories. Plus, Knight explains that he simply gets so hungry if he waits until after the game (around 10 p.m.) to eat at the same time as everybody in the lineup.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have a well-balanced diet between protein, vegetables and carbs,\u201d Knight said. \u201cI don\u2019t track anything; I just pay attention to how I feel and what I think I need. I also do appreciate once a week…having a day where I just have pancakes or pasta and eat what I want to. I\u2019ve been better at that, knowing when to be dialed in versus when to step away.\u201d<\/p>\n

Slaggert disagreed somewhat: \u201cHis pregame plates are the most dialed thing you can think of.\u201d<\/p>\n

The red-light mat also came with Knight from Florida. He and Ryan Donato are both owners of mats from SoleilWell, which retail for $2,800.<\/p>\n

Thirty minutes of laying in it per day supposedly boosts blood flow (to heal wounds and injuries faster) and balances circadian rhythm (for better sleep).<\/p>\n

\u201cJust having a 1% better recovery for me is ideal,\u201d Donato said. \u201cEven if it\u2019s a placebo, if you can bring it on the road with you, why not try it? See if it makes a difference. It gives me the feeling I\u2019m going the extra mile in my recovery.\u201d<\/p>\n

That extra mile, unsurprisingly, is music to Knight\u2019s ears.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery year I try new things \u2014 one or two new things \u2014 to see if I like them,\u201d Knight said. \u201cI consider that almost re-investing in myself. I\u2019ve been trying this for the past couple years, and I like it.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt almost gives a little energy. It\u2019s something I\u2019ve been trying out, and I like the way I feel \u2014 not instantly after, but three to four hours after I do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

His relentless pursuit of strategies to maximize his health and performance must be restrained to an extent, though. The things his teammates find impressive and funny could become overwhelming otherwise.<\/p>\n

And this season, at the grizzled age of 24, he seemingly has nailed down the perfect recipe. That balance is paying dividends on the ice.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe one thing I\u2019ve realized: It\u2019s not always [about] trying to be healthier and trying to always add, add, add,\u201d Knight said. \u201cSometimes you have to subtract. That\u2019s important, too.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When the Blackhawks flew from Calgary to Detroit to reach the final stop of their grueling six-city road…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":318918,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[556],"tags":[64,63,575,85],"class_list":{"0":"post-318917","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nhl","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-nhl","11":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/318917","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=318917"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/318917\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/318918"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=318917"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=318917"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=318917"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}