Whether it’s mandatory visors, new collective-bargaining agreements or a noticeable lack of repercussions for suspension-worthy plays throughout the NHL’s 82-game season, there’s always some sort of controversial conflict plaguing players and executives alike. Most recently, the issue of choice for league commissioner Gary Bettman and the rest of his counterparts has been the apparent lack of effectiveness of concussion protocols.
Greg Wyshynski, editor of the Puck Daddy blog on Yahoo! Sports, wrote a 2014 article titled, “This is Why NHL Concussion Protocols Fail.” According to Wyshynski, the specific protocols put into place by league officials are inevitably falling upon deaf ears.
He acknowledges that the NHL is “facing multiple lawsuits at the moment, citing its lack of attention to and prevention of concussions through the decades.”
Hockey is slowly but surely becoming more and more tailored to explicitly protecting the players on the ice at all times and at all costs. As a result, a magnifying glass has been placed on any concussion-related incidents occurring within the past couple of seasons.
“The players’ role in the concussion protocol’s challenges and failures is something that, frankly, can’t be ignored,” said Wyshynski.
He refers to an event that took place on April 28 during the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs. In game six of the Eastern Conference quarterfinal series between the Columbus Blue Jackets and the Pittsburgh Penguins, Columbus defenseman James Wisniewski was violently hit from behind and sent headfirst into the boards by Pittsburgh forward Tanner Glass. Glass was immediately assessed a boarding penalty on the play, and Wisniewski required assistance from medical trainers to stand up before he was eventually accompanied to the dressing room for further evaluation.
On plays such as this one, it’s quite easy to tell whether or not a concussion has taken place. The immediate symptoms of being slow to get up, wobbly legs and uncontrollable clutching at one’s head were all present following the hit. Simply put, it didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that Wisniewski was indeed suffering concussion-related effects. However, despite his noticeable injury, he somehow managed to return to the game and finish the final two periods.
In a post-game interview, Wisniewski explained the situation in detail:
“My head didn’t feel great in Game six. I said my back hurt, so I didn’t have to do the 20-minute (concussion) protocol and go through that whole concussion process. I didn’t feel like going in and talking to the doctors for 20 minutes. A lot of guys were playing through things. Guys with fractured feet (rookie Ryan Murray), separated shoulders (R.J. Umberger)…(Nick) Foligno came back in 2 ½ weeks from a (knee) sprain, which is usually four to six weeks. That’s playoff hockey. It’s survival of the fittest.”
These few quotes sum up Wyshynski’s argument in a heartbeat.
“When the NHL is being sued by ex-players claiming that the league continues to fail to ‘institute policies and protocols that could have and will protect its players from suffering or exacerbating head trauma sustained during practice or in games,’ it’s important to remember that the success of those policies is a two-way street,” he said. “What good is it if the NHL provides doctors and the players flat-out lie to them?”
While there is undoubtedly some level of blame to be placed upon the shoulders of the medical staff, an even larger amount of responsibility has to fall on the individuals who are directly involved.
John Olen, a junior at the University of Illinois and captain of the Illini hockey team, knows the feeling of wanting to play through serious injuries.
“It’s tough for some players to sit out, especially if their team is in the playoffs,” he said. “I understand the pressure players feel to want to help their team no matter what, but I don’t think it’s a good idea to go through with.”
Head coach of Olen’s Illini, Nick Fabbrini, understands that same mindset as a former player.
“I know my players have lied about an injury or the severity of it in the hopes of continuing to play,” he said. “We had one player this year who ignored all his symptoms and ended up missing more time because of it. I did the same thing a few times during my career, but never with a concussion.”
He also mentioned another important aspect to take into consideration that may motivate players to falsify their physical conditions.
“At the pro level, there’s a fear of being too injured to continue to play or to earn contract incentives,” said Fabbrini. “Admitting to an injury can affect their earning potential now or even in the future.”
To further prove that point, there have been a number of recent examples of superhuman heroics that certain players throughout the league have demonstrated. It’s worth mentioning the “legend” of Boston Bruins forward Gregory Campbell during game three of the 2013 Eastern Conference finals when he stayed on the ice to kill off the entirety of his team’s two-minute penalty after breaking his leg on a shot-block earlier in that same exact shift.
Additionally, Dallas Stars forward Rich Peverley, who collapsed on the bench due to a severe cardiac incident, asked to be put back into the game just minutes after he was taken off in a stretcher.
“I will never lack respect for the will to win or the idea that everyone sacrifices their health in the most important games of the season; nor will I fail to acknowledge that, essentially, a player is responsible for his own health and the risks he faces while making millions of dollars following his life’s passion,” said Wyshynski.
As of March 16, 2011, the NHL’s current concussion protocols officially went into effect. The exact procedures are as follows:
“Players suspected of having a concussion will be removed from the game and sent to a quiet place free from distraction so they can be examined by the on-site team physician. The physician will use the Sports Concussion Assessment Tool test to evaluate the player.”
Unfortunately, players’ decision-making and influence hasn’t been taken away. Just one month after Wisniewski’s incident, another similar event took place involving Montreal Canadiens forward Dale Weise.
Weise was blindsided with an intentional and direct hit to the head by New York Rangers defenseman John Moore. Immediately following contact, Weise fell to the ice. After multiple attempts to return to his feet, the Jell-O-legged 25-year-old needed to be supported by teammate P.K. Subban to prevent himself from tumbling back down again. With a dazed and confused look on his face, Weise headed to the dressing room for concussion protocols. A mere 10 minutes later, the clearly concussed skater returned to the contest. Ironically, he ultimately missed Montreal’s next game with, you guessed it, a concussion.
When asked about the incident, “Bill Daly, the deputy commissioner [of the NHL], said the league determined that the Canadiens followed proper procedure in examining Weise and determined that he could return to the game” (Klein).
The question is: Why was he allowed to return? The only plausible explanation is that Weise, like Wisniewski, lied about his injury in an attempt to continue playing in a meaningful playoff game.
A professional NHL player who requested to remain anonymous provided a first-person account of his own mindset when it comes to situations such as these.
“It’s something that people on the outside looking in just can’t fully understand,” he said. “It’s not that we want to injure ourselves further. It’s much more than that. It comes down to being there for the rest of the guys on your team, not abandoning them.”
“Every player in the league has the same eventual goal – to win a Stanley Cup. I haven’t won one yet, and I’ll continue to do everything in my power to contribute towards that, even if it means toughing it out through a couple injuries along the way. There’s nothing like the NHL playoffs, they’re not something you want to miss out on. You never know when your team’s year could be this one.”
Wyshynski’s point exactly. The league’s protocols are flawed. They require the truthful cooperation of players involved to successfully provide the type of long-term protection they were originally designed for.
“In Wisniewski’s case, this is a player that suffered a significant brain injury in 2013 outright lying to medical professionals about another one because he didn’t feel like ‘talking to doctors for 20 minutes.’ Which of course is code for ‘wanted to be on the ice’ and knowing that the doctors could have prevented it,” said Wyshynski. “We don’t want to see players rush back from concussions. Not from what we know about them in (2015). It’s not about the next game; it’s about the damage that could be done years after they retire.”
