Concussion lessons need to start early

[CdnSailor]

By Cleve Dheensaw, timescolonist.com December 6, 2011

You don’t have to point to the most famous example, Sidney Crosby, to realize how concussions are affecting hockey.

There are plenty closer to home. Vancouver Canucks second round draft pick Taylor Ellington, finally back this season in Kalamazoo, missed most of last ECHL season with the Victoria Salmon Kings due to a concussion and Victoria Royals defenceman Tyler Stahl has missed most of this Western Hockey League season to date for the same reason.

Concussions ended Victoria player Geoff Courtnall’s 17-season NHL career, and have adversely affected his life in the 11 years since, and he is now speaking out about it. The subject is especially timely with many potential future WHL-BCHL juniors and NCAA collegiate prospects arriving in town this week from B.C., Alberta and Washington state for the 39th annual Rick Lapointe Memorial Bantam Triple-A Tournament hosted by the Racquet Club Minor Hockey Association at the Ian Stewart Complex.

“They are calling penalties a lot closer now but young players are highly vulnerable to concussions because of the different levels of abilities and sizes in youth hockey where some players are almost men and others haven’t even reached puberty yet,” said Courtnall, during a news conference Tuesday at the Ian Stewart Complex.

“That can cause life-long brain injuries. If I can help get the message out, that’s good. If you do get a concussion, get off the ice immediately and stay off until you have at least 10 days that are symptom free. It is very important for kids today to have awareness of concussion and what it is. When I played, guys who were KO’d in fights would come come back to play in the second and third periods. There’s a lot more awareness of it now. It’s very dangerous to play with a concussion. The Pittsburgh Penguins organization deserves a lot of credit for taking as long as it did with Sidney Crosby. They got the message across to everyone that nobody should come back until they are 100 per cent.”

That’s a lesson Courtnall, who said he suffered up to six concussions, learned the hard way. He admitted to never feeling completely right after retiring from hockey and has suffered variously from vertigo, dizziness and “like car sickness all day.”

“But I can function day-to-day. A lot of guys I know who used to play are tired all day and need to sleep in the afternoons. It’s a great game that I love, but if you have to live like that when it’s over, it’s not a lot of fun.”

An aspect Courtnall wants addressed is equipment.

“We had soft pads when I broke into hockey but now pads are like weapons,” he said.

“It’s like getting hit with a two-by-four.”

According to the March edition of the Canadian Medical Association Journal, a total of 559 concussions were reported by NHL teams from 1997 to 2004 for an average of about 80 per season. That’s just one league and doesn’t take into account minor-pro, junior or youth hockey.

“In children, the brain is still developing so there are especially serious implications for those receiving concussions under the age of 18,” notes Dr. Susan Simpson, a registered psychologist and director with the private Valentus Clinics, where Courtnall said he has found relief since July utilizing brainwave optimization technology.

Mike Gamble, president of Racquet Club Minor Hockey Association, said parents, coaches and managers are made aware of the concussion topic during pre-season safety meetings.

“Concussions are obviously a big subject and in the news, with Sidney Crosby, and we talk about and educate our coaches about it,” said Gamble.

Courtnall will address parents, coaches and the general public about the issue Friday from 6:30 to

8 p.m. at Puckmasters, located at 2657 Wilfert Road in Colwood. Information: 250-590-2774.


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[mjw22]

There are lots of factors in the rise of number and severity of concussions. Equipment has to be top 3. Players of all ages are dressed in body armor when before a lot of players jr and up didn't even wear shoulder pads . Hitting in the last decade (Scott Stevens style) has become a way to eliminate the player rather than separate him from the puck to gain possession . Players themselves are bigger faster better conditioned than before but the heads haven't changed. The culture needs to change starting with respecting your opponents safety you don't have to like him but you don't need to injure him either. Kids need to be taught from the start how to hit and what the purpose of hitting in the game is. Suspensions are reactive from the NHL down we need to be proactive and change the culture. Now before you all start screaming I want to take hitting out of the game I don't . I remember a time the dub was considered the toughest JR league in hockey and you didn't see the types of reckless hits that have taken place the last 10 years. We had a problem with checking from behind and nothing was done until players were paralyzed . We changed that by changing the culture of what was acceptable and the respect factor.