Hockey leagues of all levels in Canada are pledging to do more to improve players' safety in the wake of recent violent headshots. But one observer believes the sport could use a little help from the legal system.
Peter Donnelly, director of the Centre of Sport Policy Studies at the University of Toronto, counters that severe punishments like the one Cormier received don't do enough to deter players. "If there are any blatant attacks where clearly one person has gone after a person that was not expecting it, as in the incident with Cormier, I think that's a criminal act," Donnelly said. "Unprovoked attacks really have to be dealt with by criminal justice."
Donnelly said prosecutors have been wary of laying criminal charges following vicious attacks because sports organizations have never encouraged them to do so.
"The law needs to take more responsibility here and so do hockey leagues themselves," he said.
The severe sanction handed out this week by the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League to Rouyn-Noranda Huskies forward Patrice Cormier for elbowing Quebec Remparts defenseman Mikael Tam was hailed as an exemplary punishment by the hockey community, one that would send a clear message to the players that such acts of violence have no place in the sport.
The elbow hit on Jan. 17th sent Tam into convulsions before he was taken off the ice on a stretcher. He suffered a brain injury and had a few broken teeth. Tam, who doesn't remember the hit, is now recoving at home but there is no timeline on his return to hockey.
David Branch, commissioner of the Ontario Hockey League and president of the Canadian Hockey League, has said he is not in favor of a greater involvement of the legal system in the sport. Branch prefers to deal with the issue within the sport's boundaries.
Hockey Canada is working on a summit, to be held next summer, where the problems of headshots and vicious attacks could be addressed.
"We have been talking for months about a summit with hockey partners and one of the topics could very well be players' safety, we have been discussing a series of topics including players' safety for months," said Hockey Canada communications manager Andre Brin.
Hockey Canada president Bob Nicholson, who previously expressed alarm about the growing incidence of concussions at every level of hockey, said: "If the player isn't safe, he's not going to play. The player is the focus; and safety is the major component of that with all level of players." "It's all about the player - player safety, player skills, player movement - but it will all be focused around the player."
Donnelly said that hockey doesn't need another summit, but rather a real change at all levels of the sport, including behind the bench.
"The coaching association has no regulatory guidelines where they can suspend or ban coaches. So there is no real enforcement and perhaps it's the sports itself that needs to step in and say if there is any clear evidence that a coach has been encouraging illegal behaviour in the sport, then that coach is punished as well," he said.
The Huskies announced Tuesday they are appealing Cormier's season-long suspension, calling it excessive.
The Quebec provincial police are still investigating the incident.
The IIHF, under president Rene Fasel, has stressed that there will be a no-tolerance policy in place for hits to the head. Nicholson said he has already had two lengthy discussions with Fasel on the issue. "Personally, I thought there could have been some further suspensions at the world juniors," said Nicholson. "I know they will emphasize in the coaches meetings at the Olympics that they're going to call penalties on hits to the head."
The larger issue is what will happen with the NHL and its - to date - secondary role in leading the discussion? Most of the major penalties assessed for head shots this year came at the junior level thus far, while the leadership on the issue has come at the major junior level, not from the NHL.
Now, my questions for you, regarding the Comier suspension, are:
3. Does the time fit the crime?
Keywords: As hockey leagues of all levels in Canada are pledging to do more to improve players' safety in the wake of recent violent heads, one observer believes the sport could use a little help from the legal system.
