NHL Urged to Address Head Shots Issue | IXGAMES

The NHL’s 30 general managers had the opening day of their annual meeting filled with information on concussions and various types of checks. The GMs have been called to deliberate on the issue as more ugly head shots are making the news. Many fans and players have voiced their concern on the issue and are expecting the GMs to come up with a recommendation after their meetings wrap up this week. Most recent incident The issue on head shots was brought to the spotlight again when Boston Bruins forward Marc Savard took a hard blindsided check to the head from Pittsburgh’s Matt Cooke, which resulted in Savard being carried from the ice on a stretcher. Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli says hits such as this should be removed from the game. As he watched the incident first-hand, he admits to having flashbacks to the injury that felled Patrice Bergeron. Two years ago, Bergeron was checked heavily into the boards, suffered a broken nose on the play and a Grade 3 concussion. As a result of which, he missed a full season in order to recuperate from post-concussion syndrome. Chiarelli spoke to Savard after the game. Though Savard was groggy, Chiarelli was assured that the injury was not as severe as that of Bergeron’s. Nevertheless, he says that Savard, who is complaining of a headache, will meet with a concussion specialist. Previous discussions on the issue The head shot issue was discussed by the managers during previous meetings, even as recent as a year ago when former NHL Players’ Association executives Glenn Healy and Paul Kelly raised it. Carolina Hurricanes GM Jim Rutherford says that though he hopes that something will be done to fix the problem. He hopes that the public will understand that the issue as not “really as cut and dry as a lot of people think.” A solution has to be sought that will reduce the head hits without diminishing the physical nature of the sport. Current deliberations The GMs will discuss a variety of topics, including head shots, and are expected to come up with recommendations after the meetings end. Any rule change that will come up in the recommendations will be subject to the approval of the board of governors and the competition committee. On the issue of head shots, the GMs reviewed a comprehensive video that covered the evolution of the head blows in the sport and recent examples that show hits that injure players and those that don’t. They also heard input from Calgary-based concussion expert Winne Meeuwisse. League disciplinarian Colin Campbell says that despite the information these will bring, they still face a difficult task ahead as there is a fine line between what’s legal and what’s not.