Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) wrote a letter to NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman seeking clarification regarding the league’s dismissive attitude towards the link between hockey and the long-term effects and disorders caused by head injuries––specifically chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). CTE “is a progressive degenerative disease of the brain found in athletes (and others) with a history of repetitive brain trauma, including symptomatic concussions as well as asymptomatic subconcussive hits to the head.”
Blumenthal discussed the NFL’s acknowledgement of the link between playing football and suffering from long-term complications, including CTE. Although the NFL admitted the connection between playing a contact sport that frequently causes concussions, or involves a player suffering from sub-concussive hits, and brain damage, the NHL has disregarded the data which clearly shows a correlation.
Bettman has distanced hockey from football by saying “I think it’s fairly clear that playing hockey isn’t the same as football.” Blumenthal noted Bettman’s statement, but stressed that there are risks associated with playing hockey––as evidenced by the deaths of six former NHL players who were found to have CTE posthumously (Reg Fleming, Rick Martin, Bob Probert, Derek Boogaard, and Steve Montador).
Concluding the letter, Blumenthal included a number of questions about brain injuries and hockey; Blumenthal feels the NHL is obligated to be productive about ensuring the safety of hockey at all levels, “as the premier professional hockey league in the world.”
Commissioner Bettman responded to Senator Blumenthal in a twenty-four page letter denying the link between hockey and CTE. In his response, Bettman wrote “The science regarding C.T.E., including on the asserted ‘link’ to concussions that you reference, remains nascent, particularly with respect to what causes C.T.E. and whether it can be diagnosed by specific clinical symptoms.” Bettman further asserted “the relationship between concussions and the asserted clinical symptoms of C.T.E. remains unknown.”
Bettman declined to acknowledge the link between hockey and CTE throughout this letter and deflected much of the blame to the media by accusing the media of creating a culture of fear surrounding the long-term effects of brain injuries from playing hockey. Bettman even shifted the blame to the plaintiffs of the class action lawsuit against the NHL—based on the NHL not informing players of the long-term effects of head injuries that could result from playing hockey—for condemning the league so publicly. Although Bettman certainly could not state anything that would harm the NHL’s case in that lawsuit, his focus was relieving the NHL of any obligations Blumenthal believes the league should have.
Disappointed @NHL continues to deny link between concussions & #CTE. I will continue to press for real answers: https://t.co/NRvyqSgRvK
— Richard Blumenthal (@SenBlumenthal) July 28, 2016
Get The Latest NHL Tech News In Your Inbox!
In accusing the media of speculation and “fear mongering” rather than having scientific evidence, Bettman referred to Todd Ewen’s death. Ewen died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound on September 19, 2015. The assumption was that Ewen would show signs of CTE when his brain was examined post-mortem, but it did not.
Bettman attributed the belief that Ewen would be diagnosed with CTE to the media: “This, sadly, is precisely the type of tragedy that can result when plaintiffs’ lawyers and their media consultants jump ahead of the medical community and assert, without reliable scientific support, that there is a causal link between concussions and C.T.E. Certainly, a more measured approach consistent with the medical community consensus would be a safer, more prudent course.”
After Ewen’s suicide, but prior to the examination of his brain, the media speculated whether or not he had CTE––even going as far as speculating whether or not his NHL career contributed to his death. He was the seventh former enforcer to have died after displaying symptoms that have been linked to CTE in a five-year span. Although the actual causes for their deaths differed, all suffered many blows to the head during their NHL careers.
The donation of Ewen’s brain to neurosurgeon Charles Tator and the Canadian Sports Concussion Project was announced publicly (on September 27, 2015) as well, fueling the speculation that Ewen could have been suffering from the neurodegenerative disorder. The announcement that Ewen did not have CTE was made public in February 2016.
Derek Boogaard died in 2011 of a drug overdose. Later in 2011, it was announced that Boogaard’s brain showed evidence of CTE. Boogaard was only 28 and already exhibited traces of CTE. His death was in such close proximity to two other former NHLers––Wade Belak and Rick Rypien—so the media coverage was amplified. Additionally, the New York Times ran a three-part story on Boogaard, which later turned into a book retracing his life and death; if Boogaard’s death did not receive enough media attention when it occurred, it certainly did once it reemerged in 2014 when “Boy On Ice: The Life and Death of Derek Boogaard” was published.
Each instance of an NHL player dying who was suspected of suffering from CTE has been in the media. The fact of the matter is that NHL players are public figures. The NHL expects players to speak to the media after games to give insights into the game and their play. Is the NHL to expect these public figures to suddenly not speak to the media and not update their postgame lives? With social media, former players can inform fans of their thoughts and plans without ever speaking to the media. And if a former player does speak to a media outlet, especially about concussions, that will be re-published all over social media.
We can’t be silent about mental health issues in hockey anymore. Watch my @PlayersTribune video: http://t.co/FvN5vTJBlI
— Daniel Carcillo (@CarBombBoom13) April 22, 2015
Rather than looking at the media attention as fear mongering, the league should view this as health awareness. Brain banks want athletes to know their facilities are available to examine their brains for research that could benefit future athletes. Players publicly announcing their intentions of donating their brains could inspire other players to do the same, as well as further make players aware of these resources. And players discussing these issues should be in the media because it makes current and future players more aware of the risks of concussions and normalizes the awareness so players do not feel pressure to hide these injuries in such a tough sport.
. . . . .
Looking at the class action lawsuit against the NHL, it does appear that the plaintiffs have attempted to drive awareness for other former players of a potential fate they could face. Bettman states that the plaintiffs have used tactics that litigate the case through the media. Yet this strategy not only could make other former players join the lawsuit, but potentially inspire current players to either change their style of play, retire due to fear of concussions, or to put more pressure on the NHL to change the game and help players deal with the long-term implications of head injuries.
The class action lawsuit also resulted in the unsealing of emails between NHL officials, many of which dealt with concussions. An email from Brendan Shanahan, who at the time was Vice President of the Player Safety and Hockey Operations, to Commissioner Bettman read: “Regardless of what the specific reasons are that drove Wade to this, I think it simply goes back to concussions and brain injuries. This specific role is also becoming more specialized and more pressurized…Some former enforcers have reached out to me and offered their support to us. They’re all scared.” Shanahan was referring to Wade Belak, a former NHL enforcer who committed suicide and displayed symptoms of CTE. There was considerable media attention on this particular email since it shows league awareness of the belief among former players, including Shanahan, that his death was linked to the head injuries sustained while playing in the NHL.
Commissioner Bettman took the opportunity in this letter to mention the progress the NHL has made on concussion management. Interestingly enough, Bettman says the media needs to follow science rather than fear, yet the NHL itself does not fully follow the science. The NHL, NHLPA, and Canadian Medical Association Journal conducted a study between 1997 and 2004 on concussions. As noted by Bettman, a neuropsychological test was mandated by the NHL after this study. Unfortunately, it took seven years after the study was conducted to actually implement changes. And ultimately, the study concluded that additional research was necessary—fourteen years after the start of the study.
The unsealing of the emails also revealed that the study did not have great leadership. In 2007, Julie Grand, counsel to the NHL, emailed Bettman about that study saying that “the ‘study’ has been dragging a bit for years. There has not been great leadership on it.” Had this been more of a priority for the NHL, the study could have been much more organized and effective.
Later in the email, Grand notes the importance of accuracy to avoid issues that the NFL has faced. According to Grand, the NHL should “avoid some of the public critiques the NFL has been the target of.” Based on all available evidence, it appears that the NHL did not follow that thought since the NFL has acknowledged the link between brain damage and playing a contact sport like football, while the NHL continues to deny the link and instead focuses its efforts on differentiating hockey from football.
Bettman also cites the NHL’s concussion protocol as evidence of its leadership in concussion management. The NHL was the first professional league to implement baseline testing. But Bettman omits the fundamental flaws in the concussion protocol, because not all symptoms are recognized immediately in the initial test. For example, Gabriel Landeskog did not show concussion symptoms after a hit by Brad Stuart in 2013, and he returned to play. After the game, his symptoms appeared and the concussion was severe enough for him to miss the next eleven games. Players have also bypassed the protocol because they would rather play than miss twenty minutes of the game for testing. It is clear that there is room for improvement based on science for the NHL’s concussion policies.
. . . . .
It is highly likely that players suffered from CTE prior to its emergence in the media. Then again, the media has never been stronger and more prevalent than it is today. The NHL tries to appear as transparent as possible, promoting teams’ use of the media to connect fans to the sport, yet they shun the media when the focus is on anything negative about the league, rather than being proactive about addressing the issue or changing the narrative.
Bettman chose to publicly respond to Blumenthal, but the letter was framed to be published as a way to combat the plaintiffs in the class action lawsuit who are taking to the media to address their issues.
The media puts a microscope on everything the NHL does. Unfortunately for Commissioner Bettman, his dismissal of the link between CTE and hockey has undoubtedly been heard. If Bettman was so concerned about misinformation in the media, he would be open to further exploring the link between hockey and CTE. Obviously the commissioner is in a tricky situation in dealing with the lawsuit, because any missteps could cost the NHL, but at a certain point the NHL should be trying to help their biggest assets: the players.
Commissioner Bettman and the NHL could easily direct the narrative of CTE in hockey, like the NFL is attempting to do for football. Much of the NFL’s progress appears to be more about the optics than the actual research though, and unfortunately for the NFL that has been recognized. But by at least acknowledging the link, the NFL has been relieved of some pressure. Then again, the NFL did wait until the concussion class action lawsuit against them was settled to acknowledge the link between long-term effects of head injuries and football. However, the NHL’s dealing with the concussions differs from the NFL. The NFL was embroiled in much more controversy than the NHL ever was.
Instead of challenging the research that has already been conducted, the NHL should invest in the research and use their resources to help their own players. The NHL could be transparent with the media to ensure that there is absolutely no misinformation and replace speculation with scientific facts. Until the NHL does that, the media will likely continue to speculate and focus on their dismissive and regressive position. If the NHL contributed to the science and actually tried to progress it rather than involving themselves to diminish and undermine the research already done, there would not be fear but rather a feeling of hope towards finding a way to help and potentially save players from the same fate as Derek Boogard, Bob Probert, and the number of other athletes who unknowingly suffered from CTE.