Little Hope Remains for Savvy

Marc Savard addressed the media this past weekend and gave an update on his current status with his post-concussion symptoms. Savard who has not played since January 9, 2011 is still dealing with short-term memory loss and sever to mild headaches. Savard then commented “It's tough to see a bright future, to be honest with you.” Watching this interview it was apparent that Savard would still love to return to the ice one day, but the possibility of that happening is becoming less likely because of his history with concussions.

After Savard’s announcement, the NHL suffered another devastating blow losing the Philadelphia Flyers forward Daniel Briere and the Winnipeg Jets Evander Kane to concussions. The constant increase in player safety continues to be a major issue for the leagues GM’s and National Hockey League Player Association (NHLPA) who will meet in March to discussion the future of this epidemic.

Penguins Star D-man Finally Cleared to Practice

Pittsburgh Penguins Kris Letang returned to the ice this Tuesday (January 17, 2012) in hopes of returning to the line-up sometime this week after suffering a devastating hit to the head by Montreal Canadians forward Max Pacioretty on November 26, 2011. "It’s been a rough time, honestly sitting at home," Letang said. Letang is one of a number of star players recently sidelined by a concussion, but my question is was this play avoidable? The speed of the new NHL gives players with the puck no time to react when an opponent is coming at full speed; and all Pacioretty was trying to do was eliminate a quality scoring chance.

Marked Man

¥Keep an eye on Rene Bourque tonight; this is his first meeting against the Washington Capitals since his 5 game suspension for elbowing Nicklas Bäckström in the head!

Impact of Concussions

The purpose of this blog is to keep the avid hockey fan up-to-date on all recent NHL concussion issues: ranging from player safety, how to avoid and take a hit properly, diagnosing the symptons and being smart coach and finally to keep followers up-to-date on recent findings and protocls established by the professionals team doctors.
Since the beginning of the 2011-2012 NHL season the hot topic around the league is concussions and hits directed at the head. Brendan Shanahan the new NHL Disciplinarian (Department of Player Safety) has had his work cut out for him so far this season handing out 30 suspensions for a combined 104 games. Some people have disagreed with some of Shanahan’s rulings and length of suspensions but it’s easy to judge someone when you’re not the one making the decisions. I believe Shanahan has developed a smart approach to his new system by justifying the suspensions by reviewing the video and explaining his process throughout the video. All these videos can be found on NHL.com (http://video.nhl.com/videocenter/console?catid=60&intcmpid=nhl-hp-vidchn-safety). Currently there are 60 NHL players suffering from a concussion or concussion like symptoms. The age old method of shaking it off and taking one for the team is now being eliminated because of the awareness surround concussions.

Here in lies the significance of Sidney Crosby, who is the most valuable player to the Pittsburgh Penguins franchise as well as the NHL. Once Crosby suffered a second concussion within a week last season, Crosby and his team of doctors realized his health and future were more important than the game of hockey. As a result, Crosby has raised awareness around concussions and the detrimental impact they can have on a player. Marc Savard is the perfect example of an excellent hockey player who returned to action before his symptoms completely cleared. He is now suffering from post-concussion syndrome and was ultimately forced to retire at the age of 34.

Nobody knows exactly what the impact of concussions will be on sports in the future. However, I believe the combination of strength, speed, skill and the size of today’s athletes, as well as the lack of respect for opponents are the major issues related to concussions in professional sports. All these factors stem down to the minor and grassroots levels because of the mentality of today’s professional athletes. As a result, severe suspensions and fines at the professional level need to be enforced in order to lower the risk of head injuries for today’s athletes. Also, increased awareness of the proper amount of recovery time, continuing advancements in technology and conditioning programs focused on strengthening the neck will create an environment where the current concussion epidemic may become a thing of the past.