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Heftier price for cheap shots on the ice
All it took was a shoulder to the head during a one-on-one drill at practice to derail Chris Somerville’s hockey aspirations. “It happened so quickly and I didn’t think anything of it at the time,” he says.
That hit has taken Somerville out of the game since October 2008. Before then, Somerville predicts he has had at least two minor concussions, from being on the receiving end of headshots that went untreated. The slightest spike to his heart rate – even if he's only running to catch a bus – can set off his concussion symptoms, giving him crippling headaches that can last all day. Before his concussion, while playing in his final season in the Canadian Junior A Hockey League for the Nepean Raiders, Somerville had grand plans for his hockey career. Instead, he's on Carleton University’s men’s hockey team and has yet to be able to lace up and play. “Not being able to play for so long is the hardest part,” he says. “Coming into the rink and seeing the guys practicing sucks and [so does] not feeling like part of the team.” Help from the top It's stories like Somerville's that Glenn Thibeault, the NDP MP for Sudbury and critic for sport, wants to see end. Last week, he called for a royal commission into sports violence to quell its escalation at the amateur level. He says it's time to develop a set of binding recommendations to rid sports of gratuitous violence – before more athletes get hurt, or even killed. Thibeault’s primary motivation for a royal commission came after seeing a Quebec Minor Hockey League incident last month. Rouyn-Noranda Huskies’ Patrice Cormier delivered a vicious elbow to Quebec Remparts’ Mikael Tam, leaving Tam – who suffered brain trauma and severely damaged teeth – convulsing on the ice. This is the most recent example in a string of extreme violence in the Canadian Hockey League this season. Jerrod Grossman from the Centre for Sport and Law says the federal government needs to host hearings similar to what the United States’ congress did in addressing steroid use in baseball. “The culture of hockey is one that is a violent game,” he says. “It’s as if there’s a waiver where if you play . . . there’s a mutual understanding that I can get punched in the face at anytime. The question is: 'Where is it too far?'” If I take my stick and violently slash someone with it, according to the Criminal Code, that is assault The idea that hockey players are above the law once they lace on a pair of skates is highly detrimental and contributes to the growing issue of unsanctioned violence in amateur hockey, says Thibeault. “If I take my stick and violently slash someone with it, according to the Criminal Code, that is assault,” he says. “The Criminal Code is in place to involve the federal government in all aspects of society. Things like these need to be better enforced than they are now.” While the Cormier incident is under investigation by Quebec police, hockey violence has very rarely made its way into courtrooms, says Grossman. Thibeault says that while Hockey Canada, the federal governing body for ice hockey, and the National Hockey League do a decent job of dealing with violence when necessary, the biggest change needs to happen at the minor level. “There needs to be more understanding that if there is a violent act, the police and the Criminal Code are automatically involved,” he says. “If we change that at the minor levels, it will creep into the junior level and then the professional leagues.” Rumblings of change on the way Just before Thibeault’s call for a royal commission, the Greater Toronto Hockey League introduced a sweeping set of rule changes for harsher punishments for acts such as checking from behind and checking to the head. These are two of the primary causes of concussions among hockey players.
“Where the game was heading before these rule changes was unsustainable,” says Scott Oakman, executive director of the GTHL. “Change at the minor level is crucial now in order to ensure it’s safe and enjoyable for everyone.” Because the GTHL is the world’s largest minor hockey league, Oakman says the rule changes that will take effect next season may have a ripple effect to other minor hockey leagues across Canada. While Hockey Canada declined to comment, Oakman says one of the primary things the organization should focus on is providing a stronger funding structure or grant system to minor hockey leagues to implement similar rule changes. “In a lot of instances, we have the right answers, but implementing and paying for them are the challenges,” says Oakman. It is the lack of funding from Hockey Canada for education programs and rule implementation measures to quell violence that is causing parents to pull their children out of team sports such as football and hockey, or not enrolling them altogether, says Thibeault. Though Somerville's injury has held him back for over a year, he says he's eager to get back on the ice. From the sidelines, he has noticed the changing consciousness towards violence in the game, and he's hopeful change will have occurred when he finally laces up. |
More than a headache
Concussions, caused by impacts to the head, are the most common brain injury to occur in sports. They are characterized by immediate impairment of neural functions (such as temporary loss of consciousness, balance or vision). Often, they are difficult to identify because symptoms such as memory loss or dizziness could stem from another injury, expected symptoms may never appear, or symptoms can leave quickly or linger. As such, how quickly someone will recover and can return to a sport varies for different people. Source: Cerebral Concussion: Causes, Effects, and Risks in Sports Assault on the ice
Canada’s Criminal Code defines assault as intentionally applying force to another person, directly or indirectly, without that person’s consent. Commit assault and you could face up to five years in prison. If a weapon, or the threat of a weapon, is involved, potential imprisonment goes up to ten years behind bars. While many incidents on the ice have not involved the police, there are a few notable cheap shots that led to some hefty penalties: Wayne Maki versus Ted Green (1969 – 1970)
Marty McSorley versus Donald Brashear (2000)
Todd Bertuzzi versus Steve Moore (2004)
Examining the wounds . . . again
The proposed royal commission to study violence in sports will not be the first time this issue has been under the microscope – two Canadian reports focused on hockey already exist. One is the Investigation and Inquiry into Violence in Amateur Hockey done by the Ontario government in 1974. The other is Eliminating Violence in Hockey by British Columbia’s government in 2000. |
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Did Somerville actually suggest that his own teammate sidelined him with a cheap shot? It seems more likely that his injury was just part of the game, since shoulder to head shots, though devastating, are not illegal. You can’t eliminate injuries like that without taking out checking all together. It’s like complaining about soccer players who break their legs from being slide tackled - it just happens sometimes. I feel for Somerville but I don’t think his circumstances relates to the overlying issue of violence in hockey and certainly shouldn’t be compared to the Cormier hit on Tam.
Hockey is violent at times (like with Cormier), but it seems like every time someone gets injured, even if it is within the game, there is an article written about ending violence in hockey. Though I do agree that education in minor hockey leagues, like the GTHL, can contribute to changing the culture and attitude in hockey, and perhaps even prevent future Cormier-Tam type incidents.
Also, the Nepean Raiders pay the the “Central Junior Hockey League,” which is a part of the huge, country-wide league known as the “Canadian Junior Hockey League.”