Dryden book aims to curb head hits

Death of Montador shows hockey must protect players better, hall of famer writes

Ken Dryden never met Steve Montador. But after hearing of the death of the NHL veteran defenceman at just 35, he wanted to know how and why. Game Change is the result. Subtitled The Life and Death of Steve Montador and the Future of Hockey, the book documents what Dryden learned. Given the outcome, it’s a sad, sad story.

But Montador, a larger-than-life character beloved by teammates, is worth getting to know. And in intertwining his story with the history of hockey, Dryden brings the reader to a place where he can ask what can be done to prevent the type of brain trauma that Montador suffered.

“This is about diminished careers and diminished lives,” he writes.

A member of both the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame and Hockey Hall of Fame, not to mention a successful author and former NHL executive, MP and federal cabinet minister, Dryden began to see the issue of brain injuries in sports as falling into the category of “The big things we get wrong” and “How could we be so stupid?”

Montador, his body showing signs of a cocktail of drugs, was found dead on Feb. 15, 2015. A subsequent brain study showed chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).

Dryden said to understand Montador he not only needed the participation of family and friends but their “enthusiastic participation.”

“And that’s what happened,” he said in an interview. “And I think in large measure because they felt so deeply about Steve and felt that Steve mattered . . . His story needs to be told.”

While Dryden describes his subject’s descent, he notes even Montador was unsure how many concussions he suffered during his 571NHL games from 2001to 2012.

For the rugged Montador, a concussion might have been couched in a broken cheekbone or a facial cut.

Dryden makes no secret of the fact that he believes NHL commissioner Gary Bettman could make immediate strides to help reduce brain injuries. He sent Bettman a copy of the book but has not heard back.

Dryden says hockey needs to eliminate the concept of finishing checks, arguing that it has led to more frequent and damaging collisions given the game’s ever-increasing speed. The other change is even simpler, rewrite the league rule book to say: “No hits to the head.”

Instead, the league is currently focusing on sorting out faceoffs and eliminating slashing.

For those who defend fighting as still having a place in hockey, Dryden says the brain doesn’t distinguish what causes the trauma.

“This is about fists to the head,” said Dryden, his voice rising. “Focus there . . . You justify why it is OK to hit somebody in the head.”