Concussions in the NHL

You are in the NHL.

Have you had a concussion: Yes / No (circle one)

How many guys do you think have had one?

I say 84 per cent.

That is a shot in the dark. Concussions are a hot debate.

I don't have to remind you that.

In tonights Boston Bruis at Ottawa Senators, both respective teams big names are both out with a concussion. Bruins Mark Savard, may never play again and has likely already retired. Now Ottawa's top-scorer Milan Michalek, is the second player to suffer a concusion while running into their own teammate. The other was leading scorer Claude Giroux. He is out indefinitely.

Sidney Crosby, came back for eight games but sadly is back on the sidelines, listed as day to day, with post-concussion symptoms. It is reported that he has skated but he is suffering headaches.

If you play in the NHL how do you protect yourself from a head injury?

The ice surface needs to be bigger. Guys are getting injured running into their own players. Big Zedeno Chara is out with a leg injury after running into his own player, hell, if he was of regular height and not 6'9'' he probably would of suffered a head injury on the play.

The players are too fast, they are getting bigger and the equiptment technology has become specialized players are like little missiles, launching themselves around on the ice.

But here is the thing, there is a need for more respect, repspect for each other.

The first thing I would do is make the rink bigger. Now I would either make it wider or longer and wider. Either would make a difference.

I doubt the owners or fans would want to see the rinks get longer. It may take away from offensive end play but with the removal of the red line and two line pass it likely wouldn't change the game.

Just as long as they don't go back to that clutch and grab. This isn't lacrosse. They game is exciting and fast, but it seems like its becoming so fast the players are accidentally running into one another more often.

How do you protect them?

A helmet just protects against skull fractures.

Fighting is only a little part of it and I don't think you can ever get rid of that and I don't wanrt to open that door.

There is that new study out there that is inspired by a woodpecker.

Players would wear a neck collars that hold's pressure on the jugular forcing more pressure and blood in the head. Th neck collar applies precise pressure on the neck, it re-creates the action of lying down, you get 30 per cent more blood inside your head. This pressure works to cushion the brain and keep it more stable when a players get hit in the head. It is the contact of the brain smashing into the skull that creates the traumatic brain injuries that force players see concussion symptoms.

Think of the collar working like an air bag in a car. When you slam into a wall at 80km/hr and your air bag goes off it lessens the impact, just like having the collar on puts more blood in the brain cushioning it from a more sever impact.

Does that feel good?

We'll have to see Dr. David Smith is trying to gain some design on this idea and possibly release a product that when combined with a helmet and mouthguard would dramatically prevent traumatic brain injuries.

I gotta go get some guitar strings before the store closes. I have a solo gig at Pappas Billiards Dec. 16th, 2011 @10:00vPM in Petereborough, On.