Well, as most people who follow sports know, the debate over head injuries and concussions and the steps necessary to avoid them has escalated in the past couple years, with the rising number of diagnosed concussions. The topic was discussed at the NHL GM meetings with the latest incident of Matt Cooke on Marc Savard in Pittsburgh the other night, highlighting it.
NHL GMs have now agreed that headshots should be penalized. Here's a link to the TSN coverage of the story NHL GM's recommend that head shots be penalized and here is a quote of the statement the GMs made:
"A lateral, back pressure or blindside hit to an opponent where the head is targeted and or the principal point of contact is not permitted. A violation of the above will result in a minor or major penalty and shall be reviewed for possible supplemental discipline."
This is a subject, that as a hockey fan, is of great interest to me, but I am also of two minds on the matter. We've seen careers of players like Keith Primeau, Eric and Brett Lindros and others cut short by these types of injuries. The effects of them are largely unknown, but its beleived that the effects of these concussions are cumulative and in some cases more geometric than linear (the injury/recovery period from an additional concussion may be 3-10 times as severe as the initial one(s)). Some of my mixed feelings are echoed in this statement:
"We felt there is a degree of responsibility - moreso to the player receiving the hit - when a guy's coming straight at you. But it's that blindside hit that we find is so disturbing and it's tough to protect yourself in our game, with the speed," - NHL senior vice president of hockey operations Colin Campbell.
My concern is with the amount (or lack) of accountability placed on the puck carrier to do one of the first and most fundamental things that should be taught in minor hockey: keep your head up and protect yourself. When I think back to Eric Lindros' major incident, it was him dancing through the high slot with his head down and getting leveled by Scot Stevens with a textbook open ice hit. I saw Matt Cooke's hit on Savard the other night and from my perspective Cooke may have been a touch late (and the NHL didn't see anything violating the rules as they existed at that point), but again, Savard has his head down. Its the same with a lot of the "controversial" hits in the last couple years : guys have their heads down, admiring their shot or pass instead of being aware of whats going on around them.
I hate seeing the injuries. I hate thinking about some of the issues these guys may be facing later on in life from the effects of multiple head traumas but I am concerned that the NHL and the minor leagues are attacking a symptom rather than a cause here. I love the physical aspect of hockey: its a big part of the appeal to me as a fan and when I played.
NHL GMs have now agreed that headshots should be penalized. Here's a link to the TSN coverage of the story NHL GM's recommend that head shots be penalized and here is a quote of the statement the GMs made:
"A lateral, back pressure or blindside hit to an opponent where the head is targeted and or the principal point of contact is not permitted. A violation of the above will result in a minor or major penalty and shall be reviewed for possible supplemental discipline."
This is a subject, that as a hockey fan, is of great interest to me, but I am also of two minds on the matter. We've seen careers of players like Keith Primeau, Eric and Brett Lindros and others cut short by these types of injuries. The effects of them are largely unknown, but its beleived that the effects of these concussions are cumulative and in some cases more geometric than linear (the injury/recovery period from an additional concussion may be 3-10 times as severe as the initial one(s)). Some of my mixed feelings are echoed in this statement:
"We felt there is a degree of responsibility - moreso to the player receiving the hit - when a guy's coming straight at you. But it's that blindside hit that we find is so disturbing and it's tough to protect yourself in our game, with the speed," - NHL senior vice president of hockey operations Colin Campbell.
My concern is with the amount (or lack) of accountability placed on the puck carrier to do one of the first and most fundamental things that should be taught in minor hockey: keep your head up and protect yourself. When I think back to Eric Lindros' major incident, it was him dancing through the high slot with his head down and getting leveled by Scot Stevens with a textbook open ice hit. I saw Matt Cooke's hit on Savard the other night and from my perspective Cooke may have been a touch late (and the NHL didn't see anything violating the rules as they existed at that point), but again, Savard has his head down. Its the same with a lot of the "controversial" hits in the last couple years : guys have their heads down, admiring their shot or pass instead of being aware of whats going on around them.
I hate seeing the injuries. I hate thinking about some of the issues these guys may be facing later on in life from the effects of multiple head traumas but I am concerned that the NHL and the minor leagues are attacking a symptom rather than a cause here. I love the physical aspect of hockey: its a big part of the appeal to me as a fan and when I played.
