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Old-timers might grumble ? we can hear Don Cherry gearing up for a rant now ? but the decision to ban bodychecking in Island house leagues is good for players and the game.
The Vancouver Island Amateur Hockey Association league representatives have voted to extend the ban, which had just applied to players under 13.
Now, except for players on rep teams, the top level, checking will be banned all through minor hockey until players graduate at 18.
A ban was inevitable. Researchers have increasingly turned their attention to injuries ? particularly concussions ? in sport. And the evidence is overwhelming that bodychecking in minor hockey substantially increases the number of concussions and the threat of permanent damage to young brains.
University of Alberta professor Martin Mrazik tracked two peewee hockey teams ? 11- and 12-year-olds ? through the 2009-10 season. Ten per cent of the players suffered concussions serious enough that they missed games or practices. A University of Calgary study tracked more than 2,000 peewee players in Alberta, where checking was allowed, and in Quebec, where it was banned.
There were 241 injuries among 1,108 Alberta players, and 78 concussions. In Quebec, with the checking ban, there were only 91 injuries and 23 concussions.
It would be negligent ? both morally and legally ? to allow checking to continue given those statistics.
Concussions, especially, are not just another sports injury. A concussion is a brain injury and the effects, particularly of multiple concussions, can be devastating and lifelong, including memory loss, depression and increased risk of Alzheimer?s.
Not everyone agrees. The vote to ban checking passed 10 to seven.
....
Important emphasis: this ban is only for the Vancouver Island Amateur Hockey Association league.
Can't say I'm surprised except by the timing. Didn't expect it to change as quickly as it seems to be progressing. I do believe it is a trend and that trend will lead right up to the NHL eventually - beyond pressures already there now. I'm not saying the NHL will become a hitless league - just that there will be increasing pressure to minimize concussions more than they have. The medical evidence is piling up. Ten to twenty years from now, a guy like Lombardi may have a real problem trying to find a doctor who would clear him to resume his career.
Medically, we know now that concussions are effectively a cumulative brain injury - the more you get in quantity or severity, the worse off you are long term. People are living longer so the brain injury is more likely to show up as the player ages into their later years.
One silver lining might be that if they significantly reduce concussions in the peewee and minor leagues, the players arriving at the NHL level may have a longer concussion wick for their pro careers. In that respect, it may be a positive thing. Whether they can quickly learn to take a hit later in their careers remains to be seen but the positive probably outweighs the negative. That may also apply to other susceptible areas like knees, backs and shoulders.
Having said that, sports like boxing and football have a much more serious problem in the face of that growing medical evidence that is much more substantial and higher risk for multiple concussions in those sports. As long as there is big money, people will continue to play those sports though. I don't know what the answer is for them but I suspect the NHL will probably hunker down behind that rationale for their own survival.
Old-timers might grumble ? we can hear Don Cherry gearing up for a rant now ? but the decision to ban bodychecking in Island house leagues is good for players and the game.
The Vancouver Island Amateur Hockey Association league representatives have voted to extend the ban, which had just applied to players under 13.
Now, except for players on rep teams, the top level, checking will be banned all through minor hockey until players graduate at 18.
A ban was inevitable. Researchers have increasingly turned their attention to injuries ? particularly concussions ? in sport. And the evidence is overwhelming that bodychecking in minor hockey substantially increases the number of concussions and the threat of permanent damage to young brains.
University of Alberta professor Martin Mrazik tracked two peewee hockey teams ? 11- and 12-year-olds ? through the 2009-10 season. Ten per cent of the players suffered concussions serious enough that they missed games or practices. A University of Calgary study tracked more than 2,000 peewee players in Alberta, where checking was allowed, and in Quebec, where it was banned.
There were 241 injuries among 1,108 Alberta players, and 78 concussions. In Quebec, with the checking ban, there were only 91 injuries and 23 concussions.
It would be negligent ? both morally and legally ? to allow checking to continue given those statistics.
Concussions, especially, are not just another sports injury. A concussion is a brain injury and the effects, particularly of multiple concussions, can be devastating and lifelong, including memory loss, depression and increased risk of Alzheimer?s.
Not everyone agrees. The vote to ban checking passed 10 to seven.
....
Important emphasis: this ban is only for the Vancouver Island Amateur Hockey Association league.
Can't say I'm surprised except by the timing. Didn't expect it to change as quickly as it seems to be progressing. I do believe it is a trend and that trend will lead right up to the NHL eventually - beyond pressures already there now. I'm not saying the NHL will become a hitless league - just that there will be increasing pressure to minimize concussions more than they have. The medical evidence is piling up. Ten to twenty years from now, a guy like Lombardi may have a real problem trying to find a doctor who would clear him to resume his career.
Medically, we know now that concussions are effectively a cumulative brain injury - the more you get in quantity or severity, the worse off you are long term. People are living longer so the brain injury is more likely to show up as the player ages into their later years.
One silver lining might be that if they significantly reduce concussions in the peewee and minor leagues, the players arriving at the NHL level may have a longer concussion wick for their pro careers. In that respect, it may be a positive thing. Whether they can quickly learn to take a hit later in their careers remains to be seen but the positive probably outweighs the negative. That may also apply to other susceptible areas like knees, backs and shoulders.
Having said that, sports like boxing and football have a much more serious problem in the face of that growing medical evidence that is much more substantial and higher risk for multiple concussions in those sports. As long as there is big money, people will continue to play those sports though. I don't know what the answer is for them but I suspect the NHL will probably hunker down behind that rationale for their own survival.
