Four Democratic members of the U.S. House Committee on Energy & Commerce have asked NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman for "answers about how the NHL documents diagnosed concussions in games and practices,” according to Rick Westhead of TSN.ca. The politicians in a letter dated Oct. 6 also asked Bettman the “average length of time a player diagnosed with a concussion is benched before returning to play, and how concussed players are monitored over time.” The representatives in the letter asked the NHL to "respond by Oct. 24.” Westhead noted for months, the NHL has been in a “back-and-forth debate” with U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.). Blumenthal has said that Bettman and the NHL have their “heads in the sand regarding the connection between concussions and long-term brain damage.” The politicians “asked the NHL to provide them with details of the league’s concussion protocol” for the ‘16-17 season and answer several questions. Among those are who is “responsible for implementing and enforcing the concussion protocol during practices and games," and how the NHL documents "diagnosed concussions -- both in game and in practices.” Also, how a player diagnosed with a concussion is "monitored over time” (TSN.ca, 10/11). In N.Y., John Branch noted the “same congressional committee has long taken aim at the NFL.” In May, it accused the league of “steering money for concussion research away from critics, something the league denied” (N.Y. TIMES, 10/11).
DEEPENING THE BENCH: The AP reported the NHL this season is “adding a staff of spotters to better help identify players who may have sustained a concussion and have them removed from games for evaluation.” The spotters are “certified athletic trainers who have hockey experience and educated in identifying signs of potential concussions.” They will have the "authority to contact teams directly to have players removed during a game.” The NHL also will have concussion spotters “attending each game.” Previously, there had been "team-affiliated concussion spotters in each arena and they could recommend to medical staffs but not require players be removed from a game." The policy “first went into effect" during the World Cup of Hockey last month (AP, 10/11). In L.A., Helene Elliott notes the NHL will “fine teams that do not remove a player who has been identified as in need of evaluation for a possible concussion, and the fine will grow with each subsequent offense.” In addition, players designated for a mandatory evaluation “won’t be permitted to return unless they are cleared by the medical staff of their respective clubs” (L.A. TIMES, 10/12).
GET WELL SOON: Penguins C Sidney Crosby last week suffered a concussion and is out indefinitely, and in Toronto, Damien Cox wrote under the header, “Crosby Concussion Clouds NHL Opening.” Cox noted the timing of Crosby’s concussion “just stinks for the NHL.” Winning last year’s Stanley Cup “re-established him, without a doubt, as the best player on the planet, as did the World Cup.” He is in his “absolute prime, able to drive attention to the league, not by force of personality but by sheer drive and ability.” Cox: “Let’s hope, for hockey’s sake, The Kid isn’t back to where he was five years ago, and that this will be a brief interruption in his playing schedule” (TORONTO STAR, 10/11).
