Psychiatrist appeals to NHL to end fighting in hockey

Dr. Peter Jaffe is a leading figure in London, but is he right about fighting in hockey?
Here's a link to The London Free Press article about Dr. Jaffe writing NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman about hockey fights and below is the text of the letter. Parents of kids in minor hockey must read points 2 and 3.

An Open Letter to Gary Bettman and the NHL Board of Governors

We are enthusiastic, lifelong hockey fans who want to lend support to Mario Lemieux and many commentators' views that the recent incidents of fighting in hockey cannot be tolerated. In particular, we endorse Mario Lemieux's words after a recent Penguin-Islander brawl: "It was painful to watch the game I love turn into a sideshow . . . . The NHL (needs) to send a clear and strong message that those kinds of actions are unacceptable and embarrassing to the sport." We agree with these sentiments.

As fans, we note the level of self-control that players at the junior and NHL level can demonstrate during international competitions such as the World Junior Championship and the Olympics. Even the NHL players reduce fighting by almost 50% during the Stanley Cup playoff without affecting attendance or TV viewers. Scandinavian countries have banned hockey fights and other leagues such as college hockey have managed to eliminate this part of the game.

We know that the NHL wants to put the best possible product on the ice and you are always looking for ways to improve the game. We would ask you to consider a number of points in your upcoming discussions:

1. There is increasing research and public awareness about the short- and long-term harm from concussions. We have gone from celebrating Sidney Crosby's gold medal goal last year to worrying about his future as a result of several blindside hits to his head. Other stars like Marc Savard are facing uncertain futures from repeated hits to the head. What is frequently missed is that there is no difference in a hit to the head by an elbow or shoulder than a punch to the head in a fight. Recent fights have sidelined a number of NHL players with concussions and other injuries. Fights are not always consensual acts between players of the same size and experience.

Hockey is an intense and physical game that requires protection of players and prevention of injuries wherever possible.

2. What message do we send junior hockey leagues and younger players when we don't send stronger messages against hockey violence? NHL players are role models and set the standards for youth playing hockey. Junior hockey players who aspire to be drafted by the NHL have to fight and risk injury in order to prove their worth and full potential. These young men are teenagers and face unnecessary risks of concussion to pursue their dreams. Junior hockey team owners have stated that their teens have to fight since they are suppliers to the NHL. Hockey should be about athletic speed, skill and determination rather than becoming a goon for a team. In a recent Bruins-Stars game, there were three fights in the first six seconds of play.

It is hard to argue that fighting is essential to the game and is part of the flow of the sport under those conditions.

3. Many parents and educators are worried about the impact of media violence on our children's development. The fights and hits to the head have become a form of entertainment such as videos which glorify these incidents and sports shows that highlight the fights of the week as part of a hockey entertainment package. The media promotes the most negative aspects of the game and signals to our youth that this unsportsmanlike conduct is to be admired.

We understand that there is tremendous resistance to change. We recognize that some fans and commentators support the violence and see it as inevitable in a high-speed contact sport like hockey. The Olympics prove the opposite. Fighting and violence sells but we would argue that the fans would not turn away. In fact in some of the U.S. markets, you might find more families interested in the game without the fighting.

We know that fighting has always been part of hockey but rules change in hockey on a regular basis from penalty calls to the size of the goal crease.

Goalies wore no masks in the NHL just 30 years ago and junior players didn't have to wear mouth guards or helmets with visors. Eliminating all intentional hits to the head including fighting should be part of that same shift and would send a strong message that violence is no longer acceptable to our hockey heroes and our national pastime.

Peter Jaffe PhD, professor, faculty of education, University of Western Ontario

Graham Pollett MD, medical officer of health, the Middlesex-London Health Unit