It is evident to anyone who watches the game that the heart of the NHL’s player conduct apparatus is ridiculous. Crimes are punished strictly on the basis of outcome rather than intent, creating spacious grays that players often find themselves lost within.
For a game stepping into an uncharted world, where the public and its pool of gladiators are aware of the immediate and lingering risks of traumatic and sub-traumatic brain injuries, the NHL is lagging behind in properly evaluating the dangers of its sport, running the risk of compromising its future.
As a counterpoint, consider the NFL, long derided by purists for diluting the game by draining out its very heart and soul: extreme violence and aggression. The introduction and strict application of on-field penalties hasn’t unbloodied the game, but has signalled a concrete shift away from the game’s roots.
Chief amongst the league’s concerns — precipitated by an expensive lawsuit filed by former players — is the mitigation of violent blows to the head in an attempt to protect the run-away missiles who staff its fantasy leagues. And while fans complain and the game changes, the NFL’s efforts are commendable, which makes the NHL’s lackadaisical action all the more conspicuous.
Like football, hockey is the product of a society that embraces gleeful barbarism.
Like football, hockey is the product of a society that embraces gleeful barbarism and lionizes the woefully misguided lot who are willing to sacrifice their health and well-being to play the game. Canadians still harp on about ‘old school hockey players’ and ‘good ol’ Canadian boys’ who are evaluated by purely subjective metrics such as ‘grit’ and ‘toughness.’ This cultish preoccupation, which equates ‘character’ to punching another man in the face, has created an uber-masculine environment that ignores safety and common sense.
When Alex Burrows delivered a violent and extremely late hit to Alexei Emelin, the biggest talking point was the surprise within Vancouver’s organization that he was suspended at all, let alone a preposterously few three games.
Indeed, the commentators noted that Emelin bore a measure of the blame for not “keeping his head up,” an absurd reasoning within hockey that each individual is entrusted with their own safety. The burden of responsibility rests on the defenseless player behind the play, not the other guy charging across the ice to finish his check come-Hell-or-high-water.
There needs to be a zero tolerance approach to NHL discipline. In football, merely brushing your hand against the quarterback’s helmet merits a flag. It may seem absurd, but it heavily discourages any contact — intentional or inadvertent — with the head of another player.
In the NHL, an illegal headshot with no ill consequences bears nothing beyond a two-minute penalty, whereas an identical action that happens to cause injury is slapped with a suspension. How is this not double jeopardy?
The greatest sin of the fluid discipline apparatus is that it creates an atmosphere of uncertainty on the ice. Instead of players erring on the side of caution — avoiding unnecessary contact — they continue to seek it out, by an antiquated mindset that labels them ‘tough’ for dishing out punishment, or ‘soft’ when refraining from it. It is the same caveman attitude that allows fighting to flourish, despite knowledge of its all-too-tragic side effects.
Reform the system; a high-stick should either be two minutes or four (not either/or). And a headshot should be a major, triggering an automatic suspension of a pre-determined length. Abstaining from fighting or heavy checking hasn’t reduced the quality of international or Olympic hockey — it’s about time the NHL decided to protect its assets and ban these from North American play.
