By Hockey Guru
Okay, brain injuries are serious and every year it seems the medical community learns more about the long-term implications of concussions. Along with the treatment of concussions, the diagnosis for concussion has come a long way. The NHL and NHLPA both need to monitor this situation and determine what more can be done to curtail this issue.
But is it an epidemic? Is it inevitable with the speed, size and nature of the sport? Certainly players freely decide whether or not to sign a contract and take on risks of playing this or any sport professionally.
I hope to keep a running tally of concussions from the 2010-11 regular season and playoffs. If any are not included, please leave a comment below.
| Player | NHL Team | STP Team | Date | Description | Penalties Assessed | Games Missed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Raitis Ivanans | Calgary Flames | Free Agent | 8-Oct | Knocked out cold in a fight with Steve MacIntyre of the Edmonton Oilers. The Kings and Ivanans both insist that no concussion resulted | 5-minute fighting majors to both MacIntyre and Ivanans | Missed 5 games so far, resuming skating |
| Cam Janssen | St. Louis Blues | Frozen Bastards | 9-Oct | Hit by teammate, Brad Winchester, who was trying to hit Philadelphia's Oskars Bartulis | None | Missed 4 games so far and remains on IR |
| Ondrej Pavelec | Atlanta Thrashers | Top Shelf | 9-Oct | Concussed himself after collapsing to the ice | None | Missed 5 games so far, beginning to practice |
| John Tavares | New York Islanders | Stanford North Stars | 9-Oct | A collision with Adam Burish of the Dallas Stars | None | Missed 3 games before returning |
| Jamie Benn | Dallas Stars | Stanford North Stars | 9-Oct | Hit by James Wisniewski of the New York Islanders | None | Missed 3 games before returning |
| Jason Pominville | Buffalo Sabres | Perrysburg Polar Bears | 11-Oct | Hit by Niklas Hjalmarsson of Chicago Blackhawks | 5-minute major for boarding, a game misconduct penalty, and a 2-game suspension | Missed 4 games so far; resuming skating |
| Johan Franzen | Detroit Red Wings | STL Older Guns | 14-Oct | Hit by Mark Fistric of the Dallas Stars | None | Missed 1 game and returned |
| Matthew Lombardi | Nashville Predators | Stittsville TwoPhors | 14-Oct | Unspecified | None | Missed 3 games so far, remains on IR |
| Keith Ballard | Vancouver Canucks | Montreal Nerdpucks | 15-Oct | 1st Period Injury vs Los Angeles | None | Missed 3 games so far |
Who is this mysterious Doctor Fantasy that I keep hearing about? Sounds dreamy.
ReplyDeleteThis will be interesting to follow. I am not sure what they (NHL, NHLPA, et al.) really need to do about this. Is it that the number of head/brain injuries are the same as in years/decades past and are just being taken that much more seriously these days? Or, due to the bigger and faster bodies colliding, more actual concussions are being sustained? I also wonder if the difference in cultures of the players contributes to a lack of respect or a lack of understanding about the seriousness of potentially concussion inflicting hits. And are concussions as common in the European and Russian leagues as they are in the NHL? I may do some research on this myself, but what, if anything can be done to protect today's player? Different helmets would be my first idea, but even that comes with many side effects.
ReplyDeleteOn a side note, I've still got to figure out how to post my own story here. I want to revise my Top Ten Hockey Wives feature from last summer and publish it here w/pics. It may not draw the traffice that the Drew Barrymore stories attracted, but should be worth a slight increase. STP, how much (if any) do you have to pay to keep the site up and running?
ReplyDeleteI was just thinking of publishing that Top Ten Hockey Wives story, so I'm glad you brought it up. I'll shoot you an email about it.
ReplyDelete