As I write this there are 28 NHL players listed on TSN’s website as being injured with ‘concussion’ or ‘concussion like symptoms’. Another 3 have ‘head’ listed under injury description. This includes Shea Weber of the Nashville Predators, one of the best defensemen in the league, and John Michael Liles of Toronto, both injured just before Christmas. There are also four players from the Islanders documented as having concussion injuries and being out indefinitely, all injured within a 7-day period. Among the players missing time with head injuries this season has been the best player in the game, Sidney Crosby (who’s missed most of 2011), the NHL’s leading point getter, Claude Giroux, one of its leading goal scorers, Milan Michalek and Jeff Skinner, one of the league’s brightest young stars.
This not a situation the league can ignore or deal with in a Band-Aid manner any longer. It should be obvious to anyone who’s been paying attention that concussions are a bigger problem than ever. Someone will always insist that it’s just a matter of greater awareness about concussions, their symptoms and effects, both short and long term than in previous years. While we have learned most of what we know only recently, there is no way a greater recognition of the issue can account for the constant parade of players suffering from head injuries.
Anyone who has watched the game for a long time will realize there are more concussions happening in the NHL than ever before. As someone who’s watched the sport since the early 1970s, I can attest to that fact. The sight of a player being knocked completely unconscious or staggering around the ice after a huge hit was not something that was often, if ever, seen 30 or 40 years ago. Let’s not forget that the majority of the players were not wearing helmets at the time either.
Assuming there are more players missing games because of concussions, and I think that’s pretty certain, what might explain this increase over the years? There are probably a lot of factors, some more important than others. The size, strength and fitness of the average player could account for some of the increase in these injuries. So too, as many people have suggested, might a deficiency of mutual respect on the part of some players and their lack of empathy for their opponents. The biggest cause for the drastic change, both directly and indirectly, has to be the equipment they wear and the materials they are constructed from.
Over the years hockey equipment has changed dramatically. From the mostly fabric covered pads to the molded and heavily padded Kevlar and graphite gear of today, the changes have been enormous. Those changes have allowed players to play aggressively while being better protected from injury. But that’s only as long as you’re not on the receiving end of the check. Because the equipment is so much harder than back in the day, you’re being hit with an essentially solid object, often times against the boards. On top of that the players are hitting opponents at a higher speed; firstly because they skate better than ever and secondly since they don’t let up like they used to, owing to a feeling of invulnerability the more effective padding provides. Players know it’s not going to hurt when they check someone, never mind the likelihood of injury. Equipment has essentially become a weapon at the disposal of the player who’s playing defense.
Tweaking rules here and there is not going to solve the problem. If the NHL is of the feeling there’s always another player somewhere to take the place of one whose career has been ended by concussions, then they won’t ever address the issue critically. If they actually care about the image they project and especially about the people that play the game, then they’ll have to start making drastic changes to the way the players are outfitted and the way they play the game.
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