Concussions and Reggie Fleming

by James Mirtle on Dec 18, 2009 1:00 AM CST Comment 25 comments

If you haven't yet seen it, there's a lot of great coverage today of a new concussion study related to a deceased hockey player, Reggie Fleming, and the head trauma he suffered during his career.

From Friday's Globe and Mail:

Researchers at the Boston University School of Medicine have determined the former NHL player, who endured multiple concussions during his career, suffered from degenerative brain disease at the time of his death. This marks the first time a hockey player has been diagnosed with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) and adds to the growing concern about the long-term effect of concussions in hockey and the price exacted by the game’s physical nature.

It's scary stuff, along the same lines as what we've seen in football and boxing already.

Fleming's story initially came to light through a series of YouTube videos put together by his son, touching tributes that made the rounds in the hockey blogosphere near the time of his death in July.

Yes, he played in an era without helmets and was a fighter and all of the other caveats people are bringing up, but the concussion picture in the current NHL is not all that rosy. The question we have to ask is: Will current players end up in a similar predicament to Fleming, suffering early memory loss and other health issues in their 50s and 60s?

And, if so, what should be done about it?

0 recs | Comment 25 comments | Add comment | Share

Story-email Email Printer Print

Comments

well for starters, Colin Campbell should have suspended David Koci. Suspend based on the blatantly illegal hit, not based on whether the player being hit is seriously hurt or not.

www.wiseadvertising.com

Because now I can justify browsing and commenting during the work day with the argument that I am promoting my business.

by Sombrero Guy on Dec 18, 2009 8:30 AM CST reply actions 0 recs

Don't forget Ruutu.

Oh my bad, Kaleta’s head isn’t important because Kaleta isn’t important. Carry on!

All your tshirt needs.

by twoeightnine on Dec 18, 2009 9:08 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Ban head shots

I cannot believe the number of hits in today’s NHL that are deliberately aimed at the head of the opponent, rather than the chest or shoulder. If the players won’t stop doing it, then rules need to be put in place and enforced.

I've been looking at the sky

by Back In Black on Dec 18, 2009 8:57 AM CST reply actions 0 recs

I don't understand

why players want to do that. Every time there is a serious injury or someone takes a huge hit, the opponent is always saying how you never like to see anyone get hurt, yet there are still shots aimed at the head. And wouldn’t it be in all players’ best interests to have an “unwritten rule” against head shots so that they can all be able to properly function after retirement?

twitter.com/BlackhawksDL

by Original Six on Dec 18, 2009 9:47 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs

The league allows fighting. That’s nothing but a bunch of shots aimed at another player’s head. Given the reluctance to get rid of it, and the willingness of players to do it, why does it surprise anyone that they are also willing to aim checks at each other’s heads?

by J. Michael Neal on Dec 18, 2009 11:00 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Because I thought fights were spontaneous outbursts of uncontrolled anger. Or else “enforcement of the code”.

;)

Because a bodycheck aimed at the head is apparently much more likely to cause a concussion, for one thing. Hockey fights rarely result in anyone being carried off the ice. Nevertheless, they easily could; if you want to ban them too, I’m all for it.

I've been looking at the sky

by Back In Black on Dec 18, 2009 12:44 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

A fist can only go so fast and only has so much weight behind it. Hockey players flinging their entire bodies at top speed at someone’s head is going to do an order of magnitude more damage. It’s simple physics.

SNN Sports - A theoretical Oilers blog (i.e. theoretically, I write stuff there). Link now 100% less broken.

by Doogie2K on Dec 18, 2009 2:26 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Yeah, it’s not like there’s a history of brain damage in other sports that involve repeated blows to the head or anything.

by dzuunmod on Dec 18, 2009 4:18 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

How many hockey players land 50-80 punches a round?

How many hockey players land 5-8 punches?

All your tshirt needs.

by twoeightnine on Dec 18, 2009 7:17 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

How many hockey players limit themselves to 3 or 4 fights a year?

by dzuunmod on Dec 19, 2009 11:38 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs

And also, in a hockey fight, there are no body shots, every punch is to the head.

by dzuunmod on Dec 19, 2009 11:40 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Plus...

…now guys are starting to use MMA tactics and “miss” punches with their fists to land elbows (and, oftentimes, elbow pads) to a guy’s head.

You are validating my inherent mistrust of strangers.

by zyllyx on Dec 19, 2009 1:28 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

In football, it’s the same story: 300-lb linebackers launching themselves at a guy at full running speed. Heavier, not as fast, similar outcome (at least until recent rule changes). In boxing, it’s more a case of frequency than single impacts. That being said, the glove is much heavier than a bare fist.

Given the choice between a tackle to the head, a bodycheck to the head, 50 punches to the head in the course of a boxing match, and maybe five punches to the head in the most decisive hockey fight of the year, which would you consider the most probable to result in lasting brain damage? Again, physics.

Now, you can argue that an enforcer is much more prone to brain damage than the average player, because they can engage in 20-25 fights per year, as opposed to the average player who will have three or fewer, and I wouldn’t dispute that, but I would still argue that Mike Richards did more damage to David Booth’s head in that one incident than the rest of the NHL’s collective slabs of beef have done to Zach Stortini’s head in the last year.

SNN Sports - A theoretical Oilers blog (i.e. theoretically, I write stuff there). Link now 100% less broken.

by Doogie2K on Dec 19, 2009 2:41 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

The biggest problems in the NFL aren’t seen among the linebackers or the guys that hit them. It’s the linemen, like Mike Webster. The research seems to indicate that, for the specific sorts of degenerative brain diseases, it’s frequency that’s the biggest problem.

I realize that the people who like hockey fights are going to be defensive about this, but they cause brain damage.

by J. Michael Neal on Dec 19, 2009 11:32 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

I’m not disputing they cause brain damage. But what sort of hits are linemen taking repeatedly? Full-body blows, no?

SNN Sports - A theoretical Oilers blog (i.e. theoretically, I write stuff there). Link now 100% less broken.

by Doogie2K on Dec 20, 2009 1:16 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Yes, but how many times does someone deliver six or seven body checks to someone’s head in about 30 seconds?

by J. Michael Neal on Dec 18, 2009 4:39 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Plus you can’t really put your whole body into a punch in hockey because you’re on skates.

The West Coast is the Best Coast.

by RudyKelly on Dec 19, 2009 12:35 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

To play an exciting sport there will be some risk involved. I agree that deliberate head hits should be banned and the players suspended for it, but let’s not cry fire every time someone gets hit in the head because many times its because the player with the puck was crouching very low. If we completely ban all head hits then a new strategy might develop: skate hunched over with your head very low when you have the puck so you can’t be hit from the front.

by ThrashersRecaps on Dec 18, 2009 10:00 AM CST reply actions 0 recs

If skating hunched over like Quasimodo is quicker and more comfortable, then players will do it – if they can move more rapidly and fluidly when upright, then they will naturally skate that way.

Besides, if everyone is skating the same way, then all the elbows will be lower than heads anyway.

"While there's life, there's hope." --Cicero

by Baroque on Dec 18, 2009 12:26 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

I found the youtube clips of Fleming alongside the story to be quite touching – a fine example of old/new media combining to form more than the sum of its parts. They enhanced the written word.

by Gerald on Dec 18, 2009 1:44 PM CST reply actions 0 recs

The NHL could start by consistently enforcing the rules it’s already got. When it’s done with that, shoulder to the head should be an automatic penalty. Four minutes for roughing if there’s no serious injury, five and a game otherwise. Shoulders have much less give than elbows and fists, especially with the hard plastic pads on them, and carry the player’s entire weight behind them most of the time. It’s absurd to me that there isn’t a stronger penalty for this sort of thing, especially when re-opening the place where a guy cut himself shaving that morning is worth four minutes.

And don’t give me that “keep your head up” bullshit. Fuck blaming the victim.

SNN Sports - A theoretical Oilers blog (i.e. theoretically, I write stuff there). Link now 100% less broken.

by Doogie2K on Dec 18, 2009 2:29 PM CST reply actions 0 recs

Thought this article was on topic...

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/jeff_pearlman/12/18/pear/index.html?cnn=yes

I see a lot of parallels between what’s happening with former NFL players and what can happen with former NHLers. These guys get chewed up and spit out by their sports and it seems that all the fans and those running the sport can do is “play through it.”

What’s even sadder is that all the fans ever remember are the handful of years – usually no more than 10 or so – of these guys’ lives when they played the sport. They leave what comes after to the players to suffer through.

You are validating my inherent mistrust of strangers.

by zyllyx on Dec 18, 2009 6:58 PM CST reply actions 0 recs

That’s the argument I make when someone grumbles about how much money an athlete makes, and claims they would do it for free. I wouldn’t go through the travel, the punishment, the single-minded dedication to keeping fit, the practices, the pain, and the multiple surgeries while still young for any amount of money. I don’t care how many millions I would be paid, I would not work in a profession where I could easily have multiple shoulder, knee, and elbow surgeries by the time I was 30 – and on that same birthday, hear the increasing chatter about getting older and maybe thinking about retirement because I’m not as fast as I used to be, and this new kid looks awfully good.

Their careers are dreadfully short, and the negative consequences can last a lifetime.

And the NFL is beyond evil for depriving the veterans of their fair disabilities while pulling in so many billions of dollars in revenues every year. The young players who have any brains should pay attention, because that is what will happen to some of them one day – and possibly a lot sooner than they think.

It’s why I hate hits to the head, too. I do not get a thrill out of seeing someone hurt and wondering if the concussion I see is going to be the first blow that leads to premature dementia a few years down the road.

"While there's life, there's hope." --Cicero

by Baroque on Dec 18, 2009 7:29 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Yep. What’s worse is that I suffered a severe concussion as a kid (which is something I’ve mentioned around here before) and still suffer post-concussion symptoms. I’m scared to death of what I can look forward to as I get older. I can’t even imagine guys playing while still concussed.

You are validating my inherent mistrust of strangers.

by zyllyx on Dec 18, 2009 7:59 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

I wonder if the attitude won’t change as some of the men who make the rules have sons in the league. I’d like to see them start with the assumption that anyone who gets a concussion will be out for a minimum of a calendar year, think of the impact on each team’s bottom line, record, and how much payroll the owners have on the sidelines, and make any decisions regarding head shots with that in mind.

Florida has certainly been hurt by the absence of David Booth, and he’s a young kid with several years left on his contract. What fans should be looking forward to is seeing how much he improves as he moves along in his career, not worrying about when he’s going to be able to play – or if he ever will again.

The two things that might really kill hockey for me are the spotty officiating (to me it’s a copout to say that bad officiating doesn’t matter because it’s bad for everyone; either you are a major league sport with the resources to invent in technology, training, or whatever you need to do in order to make the officiating as competent and fair as possible, or you are a minor league sport that whines it isn’t fair to expect better because you aren’t capable of anything better) and the long-term consequences of injuries. When young men start a hockey career, they know injuries are a part of it, they know they will likely have aches and pains when they get older, but they don’t sign on for memory difficulties, depression due to brain trauma, or dementia in their 50s.

"While there's life, there's hope." --Cicero

by Baroque on Dec 19, 2009 4:18 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs