Brain injuries in the NHL

            Head injuries in sports have become more and more of a popular topic due to the continuation of events. High impact sports, such as hockey, are ones where these head injuries are continually reported on. It’s only human nature to be curious as to why injuries like this still happen. The NHL is a sport where you completely vulnerable at times and often there are fights, which imply direct contact to the head. So who is to blame for these injuries? I would make the argument that we can partly blame the media for these injuries to hockey players.

            The game of hockey has been, and always will be a rough, high intensity sport. With athletes throwing themselves into each other, skating as fast as they can, obviously injuries are inevitable. The NHL, along with youth hockey, has really tried to focus on reducing the risk of injury in the sport, especially head injuries. There are a lot of people who feel there isn’t enough being done to reduce the risk, and people just want to see a blood bath. There was article that talked about former players who attached the league saying, “The sport’s officials should have done more to address head injuries but instead celebrated a culture of speed and violence.” (Belson). Of course players love the intensity of the game, but where do we draw the line? The game of hockey has changed dramatically over the past few decades escaping the “Goon” style hockey where it’s all about fighting. For example, the Boston Bruins were referred to in the past as “The Big Bad Bruins”. This was a nickname referring to the rough, physical style the Bruins used to play which involved a lot fighting. Even a movie that came out recently, called “Goon”. This is a movie about a guy who was seen beating up a fan at an NHL game and got asked to come try out. He tried out not knowing how to skate, but was kept on the team and made his way to the NHL just because he could throw some knuckles around. Right there is one example of media portraying a style of hockey that continuously injures players. A study was recently done that scanned news articles from cities with NHL teams such as the Chicago Tribune, New York Times, Vancouver Sun and the Toronto Star. One theme that was found in all papers was, “Both American and Canadian papers left the impression that violence and TBIs are just part of the game of hockey, a risk that can’t be avoided.” (Kaplan). Being a hockey player myself, if I read this (and was completely moronic), I would say “okay fuck it, guess mess my head up anyway”.  Go type in “Best of Hockey” on YouTube. Instead of seeing videos of skill and pure talent, you see some of best hits on hockey history, or some of the best fights in the history of the NHL. What does it mean the play hockey these days? Does it mean to have the best hands and be the fastest skater? Or does it mean to be the meanest, toughest son of a bitch on the ice? These are the questions the media has me asking myself. The media is always thriving to get views or the most reads as possible; therefore they seek attention. What do you think will get more attention, a nifty goal, or somebody getting their head taken off from a big hit? Media encourages rough and violent play by constantly showing what’s popular as opposed to what’s right. Sure, do the fans love to see big hits and hard-fought fights, yes. The media refuses to keep in mind that they are encouraging this type of play, and the worst part is it’s at the players’ expense. Not only are these players sidelined during certain games of their seasons due to injury, some spend the rest of their lives dealing with symptoms. An article talking about players who are suing the NHL because of head injuries said, “The players say they sustained repeated hits to the head during their careers and now have depression, headaches and memory loss.” (belson). Media has potential to have a strong positive affect on such injuries, and continues to fall short.

            Hockey is a dangerous game that can lead to multiple different injuries, and players sign up knowing this risk. So you can see why it’s so important that media start playing a better role, and helping decrease head injuries instead of promoting them for their own good. I rest by my case that media is partially responsible for the brain/head injuries for NHL players.

            Works Cited

Belson, Ken, and Jeff Z. Klein. "Ten Former N.H.L. Players Sue League Over Head Injuries." The New York Times. The New York Times, 25 Nov. 2013. Web. 15 Oct. 2015.

Kaplan, Karen. "Is the Media to Blame for the Brain Injuries of Hockey Players?" Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, 17 Apr. 2013. Web. 15 Oct. 2015.