Do hockey players sniff smelling salts? This City News Toronto segment claims that many ice hockey players have been sniffing smelling salts (based on ammonia carbonate) for a supposed performance boost. (They go on to quote an expert explaining there is no evidence for the boost.) > Now, you may have seen many Leaf players using smelling salts to try and give themselves a bit of a boost on the bench. It is something even the younger players are now embracing. Is this a widespread practice as claimed? Is it some some type of a joke or hoax? ![Screenshot of man sniffing](

Yes, according the _Sports Illustrated_ article Whiff 'n poof: NHLers still swear by smelling salts

Article says smelling salts are used before every game.

> The ballet starts before each NHL game, once the last anthem notes trail off and the house lights turn on. Watch next time. The choreography is easy to learn.
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> On the bench, trainers and equipment managers pass out packets no bigger than Tootsie Rolls, tossing others to players out of reach. The players then squeeze the packet, which is sheathed in cotton for protection, and crack the glass vial inside. In case they need help, two arrows on the label point to a dot in the middle. “CRUSH ONCE, USE AND DISCARD,” it says, then below that, “CRUSH HERE.”