Delaying bodychecking does not delay the fun

Early ban protects young, vulnerable hockey players,

The recent and unfortunate spinal cord injury sustained by a Winnipeg junior hockey player reminds us that serious injuries, often with lifelong consequences, do occur in amateur sport.

As a rational, caring society we must do what we can to avoid preventable injuries in hockey and all sports, enabling children and youth to play safely.

There is compelling evidence that children are at a three-fold increase in risk for head, neck, back and other injuries when body checking. Praxis Spinal

Cord Institute, which leads collaboration in spinal cord injury research, innovation and care, commissioned a survey of Canadian parents in 2012, which revealed parents’ strong support for the delayed introduction of body checking until the end of the under-18 age division. While it has been banned from recreational hockey, body checking is introduced in U15 hockey. Meanwhile, the American Pediatric Society recommends that body checking not be introduced until age 16. A 2017 study showed that a ban on bodychecking in the U13 division (formerly peewee) was effective in reducing concussions by 64 per cent, and overall hockey-related injuries by half. The author, Dr. Carolyn Emery, chair of the Sport Injury Prevention Research Centre in Calgary, recently published additional data that predicts 6,000 fewer injuries per season should the body checking ban be extended to the U15 level. Over the last five years, there have been more than a dozen hockey-related spinal cord injuries in Canada.

Proponents of introducing body checking at younger ages argue that early introduction is critical to prepare players for later play. Emery’s research has shown there is no “protective” effect of early introduction. Players who learned to bodycheck in U13 did not experience fewer or less severe injuries in their U15 years. Moreover, declining registration in boys’ hockey coincides with the onset of body checking. Meanwhile, the chances of a player sustaining a suspected concussion in a bodychecking league are about one in five per year, while the chances of playing at least one game in the NHL are less than one in 3,000. Giving consent to a minor to play in a bodychecking league is a questionable matter when the risks are elevated.

The earlier body checking is introduced, the more cumulative injuries a youth will sustain. The developing brain is vulnerable, and size differences between players during adolescence can be significant, increasing the risk of injuries from collisions.

Praxis Spinal Cord Institute is committed to ensuring research evidence gets used to improve health outcomes for Canadians living with spinal cord injuries. It is equally crucial to preventing spinal cord injuries.

Our board of directors includes individuals who sustained spinal-cord injuries from sports, and have established successful careers in business, medicine, scientific research and engineering.

One of these board members, Dean Bergeron, a former Paralympic gold medallist and a member of the Quebec Sports Hall of Fame, knows first-hand the consequences of contact in junior hockey, having sustained a spinal-cord injury during a Quebec junior hockey training session in 1987. He vividly recalls his first game where body checking was permitted and feeling afraid and well aware of the danger even though he was bigger and stronger than most of the players in his league.

Amateur hockey players are paying too high a price for our failure to act on what research shows to be true: body checking is a major cause of hockey-related injuries among our youth, one that can be eliminated without compromising the spirit and integrity of this fantastic game.

At the very minimum, leagues should be required to report injuries, in a summary format, so that players and parents can make informed decisions about what they consider to be a tolerable risk.

Preserve the health of our children and youth and hockey fun will follow.

Bill Barrable is the CEO of Praxis Spinal Cord Institute and a former U18 hockey coach.

Amateur hockey players are paying too high a price.