What is Fatigue Index?

A measure of how tired a player appears based on their workload and rest patterns over recent games.

What this tells us

When a player has logged heavy ice time across consecutive games with minimal rest, their Fatigue Index rises. PuckLab tracks workload trends—shifts per game, minutes played, days between games—to flag when a player might be running on fumes. A higher index suggests the player could be more vulnerable to mistakes, injuries, or dips in performance, which is why coaches and fantasy players watch it closely.

Limitations

Fatigue Index is an inference, not a direct measurement. It can't see inside a player's body or account for individual recovery capacity, sleep quality, or off-ice conditioning. Some players thrive under heavy workload; others wilt. It also doesn't capture mental fatigue or the ripple effects of travel. Use it as one signal among many—a red flag to watch, not a diagnosis.

How PuckLab calculates this

PuckLab's Fatigue Index incorporates rolling averages of ice time, shift count, and rest days between games, weighted by recency. Full methodology will live on /methodology page.

Example

A star defenseman averaging 26 minutes per night over six straight games with back-to-backs will show an elevated Fatigue Index. A fourth-line winger on a lighter workload, even in the same stretch, will show lower fatigue, all else equal.