NHL Not Doing Enough to Deal With Concussion Problem
Canada’s Governor-General, David Johnston, convened a high-profile forum on concussions Tuesday in Ottawa. Maybe you heard about it.
One of the keynote speakers was Eric Lindros, whose Hall of Fame career was ended by a series of concussions. The message, though important and well-intentioned, was destined to fall on deaf ears — at least, the ears that could do the most good in hockey-crazy Canada.
A few hours after the last word was uttered at the conference, like an unintended exclamation point, Vancouver defenceman Philip Larsen lay eerily motionless beside the Canucks’ net — unconscious, probably, even before his head struck the ice — after a violent hit by New Jersey Devils forward Taylor Hall.
Not a flagrantly dirty hit, by the way. Not under the rules of the game as dictated by the general managers, and policed by the referees and administered by the ever-forgiving Department of Player Safety.
