NHL GMs discuss head shots at winter meetings | Print |  E-mail
Written by Alex Brien   
Monday, 08 March 2010 14:21

Sunday's blindside check on the Bruin's Marc Savard was only the latest ugly on-ice incident this year.

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Boston Bruins forward Marc Savard is wheeled off on a stretcher after a vicious hit by Pittsburgh Penguins forward Matt Cooke. Courtesy Getty Images

In the case of a touchy topic that refuses to go away, the NHL general managers will meet in Boca Raton, Florida this week, and the subject of headshots has once again boiled to the surface.

The issue has been magnified in light of two controversial hits this past weekend.

On Saturday night Ottawa Senators forward Chris Neil hit John Mitchell of the Toronto Maple Leafs, causing Mitchell to leave the game and not return.

Also, last night’s match-up between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Boston Bruins saw Penguins forward Matt Cooke deliver a hard elbow to the head of Bruins star Marc Savard, concussing him instantly.

Toronto Star hockey writer Damien Cox said in his column on Monday that it’s time to end headshots.

“There’s a growing consensus among hockey people that the time is ripe for some restrictions on head hits,” Cox said.

“The concussion count has just become too high.”

Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby weighed in on the issue in a post-game press conference, saying “at some point there’s got to be a clear indication from the league because we’ve seen this so many times now.”

While the NHL’s general managers will take a look at other topics such as research on concussions and possible changes to playoff qualification, headshots may dominate the discussions.

Some scientists have argued that concussions be renamed 'mild traumatic brain injuries', so as to better underline their seriousness.

According to John Mackinnon of the Edmonton Journal, any firm progress on the issue will be seen as a victory.

“If it is, in fact, true that the NHL will not only merely suspend Cooke, but draft a rule outlawing such hits, then the NHL is moving in the right direction,” Mackinnon said.

“It’s time to legislate the cheap shots out of a great game.”

But coming to that sort of decision may be difficult.

“I absolutely hate it when clean hits lead to fits,” said CBC Sports hockey columnist Elliotte Friedman in his column Monday.

“One of the NHL’s talking points is that we’re only talking about five or six hits a year out of 60,000,” Friedman said.

“If you believe the problem is that small, you don’t drop the atomic bomb.”