NHL Suspensions: Right or Wrong?
After the 2010-2011 National Hockey League (NHL) regular season, the safety debate, which has haunted the league for many years, was once again lighted by various groups, including independent organisations and players.
There were a number of concussions which resulted in seasons and careers coming to an end, which had the NHL community divided over the solution to such problems being faced at the moment.
A prime example of this could be the Pittsburgh Penguins superstar player, Sidney Crosby, who went out in January 2011, after two back-to-back hits to the head caused him to end his season due to a severe concussion, which he still has not managed to recover
from as of yet.
In order to implement stricter conditions and stop illegal head shots during matchups, the NHL decider to award more suspensions and fines when players were found guilty after some sort of hit to sensitive parts like the head.
Over the new preseason and regular season, the NHL has handed down 13 suspensions and two fines through its disciplinarian, former player, Brendan Shanahan, who is now the league’s senior vice president for player safety and hockey operations.
After the season ended, one of the NHL’s major sponsor’s, Air Canada, decided to withhold its funding for the sport due to the safety concerns, but after various steps were implemented, the sponsor wanted to see more but termed it going in the right direction.
"While more has to be done, it is a step in the right direction to get our national game to where it needs to be and to permit Air Canada to continue supporting NHL hockey", the statement issued by Air Canada read in part.
Montreal Canadiens forward, Max Pacioretty, also suffered a major injury including a fractured vertebrae and severe concussion after taking a hit from Boston Bruins, Zdeno Chara, which ignited the safety debate fire to new levels.
Fans even went to the extent of registering a criminal case against Chara, which was later on written off, but was certainly an eye opener for the NHL.
This decision of the NHL to award hefty suspensions might not seem as fair by some players who believe the game is meant to be physical in, but in an attempt to keep the game at a safe level and keep players playing in the future instead of ending careers,
these steps were deemed necessary and crucial for the sports survival.
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