An Overview: Where Did the Idea of Zero Tolerance Come From?
After watching two games where players were being hit and checked in the head and recognizing the current rules, standards and referees couldn’t prevent it from reoccurring… to the point where players after being in the penalty box for head contact were coming out to do it again… only to eventually have 2 children go down with a concussion and a trip to the ER… a group of parents looked and each other and said “Why are we tolerating these illegal hits to the head.”
We began to ask questions. We felt hockey was a physical sport but it shouldn’t be a reckless sport. We saw a failure in the current safety standards to protect players from repeated head hits and concussions. The hits we saw weren’t caused by a single one time infraction, the first contact can’t always be prevented, but repeated infractions from 1 or 2 players in a game can be prevented. Zero Tolerance would immediatley the end the game for any player making neck, head or back contact. The player is welcome to return to play the next game. No repeat offenders, for head contact in a single game, means the two boys in the above example would not have been hurt.
The idea we developed was Zero Tolerance and the question we posed was: Why should there be Zero Tolerance for Head, Neck and Back contact?
Even in asking that question, it does sound a little bit funny. Why wouldn’t we want this for our youth ice hockey players, our children? We all do. A better question to ask is: Why do we accept the current rules and safety standards as “Best Practices” for protecting our children from injury during a game?
All youth ice hockey leagues are based on rules and standards. USA Hockey is one organization that provides the rules and standards. Clubs adopt USA Hockey standards and look for leagues that adopt these standards. We, in turn, follow the steps needed to enroll our children into a youth ice hockey club. We don’t typically questions anything. So, you have USA Hockey, leagues and clubs setting safety standards for the players, our children. I have no doubt they are concerned for our children’s safety. Go to their sites, they absolutely care about our children. But do they follow “Best Practices”?
Part of the answer to the above question is... Do you, as a parent, have the option for any alternative type of ice hockey league other than the one in your area? No. We don’t have significant alternatives. We don’t have options when it comes to our children’s safety. In fact, we have little voice. They can play in what league is available or find another sport.
Did you know there are all kinds of youth ice hockey leagues throughout the world?
Nicklas Backstrom of the Washington Capitals came out of a youth league that didn’t incorporate body checking well into the later teen years of players. Their belief was skating and skills came first. A Providence in Canada doesn’t have checking. Some leagues suspend players for hits to the back. Female youth ice hockey doesn’t have checking. Did you know adults in the US don’t have body checking in their leagues because it is considered dangerous? The adults want to play but not get hurt. So, they created non-checking or alternative leagues. There are alternatives that include rule modifications for harmful hits, no checking to later introduction of checking and other variations. Did you know these exist? Where are they in the US for youth ice hockey players?
There is great weight and size variation in children between the ages of 10-13 which is typically the Peewee and Bantam levels of ice hockey. This variation continues between the ages of 13-15 and begins to balance out between the ages of 16-18. Many non-US leagues introduce checking later when the size and weight gap of children and teens close. Why isn’t this data used to help manage how checking is used in US youth ice hockey? Should the smaller boys that don’t hit their growth spurts until 14 or 15 be at the continual mercy of larger boys?
Another part of the answer is found in training and education practices. Skating and stick skills are taught endlessly. Ask yourself how much training time was given to your child to teach them how to appropriately check and prevent themselves from being checked? Little. Did you know there are stick checks, shoulder checks and hip checks? Did you know a check is described as a method to move a player off the puck, not crush them into the boards? Most of this "training" for checking occurs in game. Our children become fodder to hits. They are essentially practice targets. The smaller boys are at a disadvantage. They have litte protection. As parents, we need to be their protection.
Little training is done by clubs to teach their players how receive a check. Little training is done to teach the players how to check safely and respectfully. A 120 pound player, checking an 80 pound player has a responsibility. Coaches aren’t significantly trained or educated on how to teach and promote respectful play or when to sit a player that is having troubles managing their physical game. The focus of a hockey game is often on winning, not playing with respect and skill.
A third part of the answer is that the current rules are old and weak. They are from another time when we new less about concussions and head injuries. This is not the NHL, it is youth ice hockey and rules that are better adapted for children and teens are needed. The current rules are interpreted by referees. These are not NHL referees, less room for discretion and interpretation are needed in youth ice hockey rules. There may be a rule in the book to protect against head hits but if the rules are enforced inconsistently, it is a poor teaching method to deter unwanted behavior.
The current rules lack the strength to really shape the behavior of children and teens. Two minutes or five minutes for plowing into someone incorrectly, is of little consequence. Now a better rule is a mandatory rule that states you can’t play anymore that game. Simple and immediate or zero tolerance. We don’t need to accept the current rules. Improve them based on what we know and have learned about teaching children. They aren’t adult NHL players.
And the final part of the answer is the “Good Ole Hockey” culture. A hit to the head should no longer be considered a rite of passage. We are much more informed about the impact of repeated concussions and trauma to the head. We are all part of the GOH culture. We have to change the game to better support what we now know as a culture. That is, create better safety standards to reduce head and neck hits and hits to the back that typically cause head impacts and concussions. Reduce the hits that cause the most harm with stronger penalties.
The answer to improving the safety standards of youth ice hockey and implementing best practice methods for safety lie in the hands of the parents. We don’t need leagues and clubs that fail to implement the highest standards of safety. They need us and our children. We must be a voice to say what we want for our players, our children.
The original 2nd question was: Why do we accept the current rules and safety standards as “Best Practices” for protecting our children from injury during a game?
The answer is because we don’t challenge what exists. If we don’t challenge then we are accepting what exists either actively or passively. All four parts (presented above) must be challenged in order to improve safety standards. A loud parental voice is needed.
-What are the alternatives to the current clubs and what can current clubs change to make youth ice hockey safer for our children and reduce head contact?
-How can checking be better taught to the players? And how can coaches be better educated on maintaining the safety of the game and better teach safety and respect from the bench?
-How can the rules be modified to best impact youth ice hockey players and better penalize unwanted behavior? How can the rules be changed to best help the referees deliver consistent calls that better manage the safety level of the game?
-How do we change the “Good Ole Hockey” culture that checking injuries are a rite of passage? We know there are huge weight and height difference in children and teens. We know more about the impact of marginal blows to the head and the permanent damage caused by repeated concussions. How do we take what we know now and change the old hockey culture?
And to answer the 1st question: Why should there be Zero Tolerance for Head, Neck and Back contact?
This type of contact is what is responsible for most of the concussions and head injuries in youth ice hockey. Hockey is a physical sport. Hockey is not a reckless sport. If you reduce hits to the head, neck and back that cause head impact… you reduce the opportunity for a head injury and a concussion. We can’t prevent injuries in youth ice hockey. We can reduce injuries. Much more can be done.
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