Joey Daccord felt like a statue.
The Seattle Kraken goalie watched his teammates suffocate the Carolina Hurricanes for 40 minutes in a game last season, outshooting them 14-2 in the second period after giving up only five shots on goal in the first. "I was like, 'I feel like I've been standing still for 2½ hours already. I need to see some pucks,'" he recalled. Daccord wasn't seeing many shots in reality. So he opted for virtual reality instead.
Before the third period, Daccord strapped on a Meta Quest headset and fired up NHL Sense Arena, a VR hockey program that he has used for several years to keep his mind and skills sharp away from the ice.