Death of High School Hockey Player Renews Neck Protectors Debate


Expressions of grief after the death of Teddy Balkind, a Connecticut high school hockey player, have pervaded the ice hockey world, from moments of pre-game silence in New England to tributes in broadcasts of “Hockey Night in Canada” to hockey sticks affectionately placed on porches. From Manitoba to Minnesota and Maine.

Balkind, 16, and St. Luke’s School died last Thursday when a player’s skate blade cut his neck in a collision on the ice during a game in Greenwich, Conn. Such fatal accidents are rare, but mainly among hockey parents, they are horrified and evoke a strong “for the grace of God” feeling. USA Hockey’s chief of medical and safety, Dr. Few people know how Michael Stuart felt.

Stuart helped write the organization’s policy on neck protection. He also watched his son suffer a similar injury 24 years ago as a defensive lineman at Colorado College. Mike Stuart survived after closing what his father called “almost word of mouth” with 22 stitches.

“It could have been the same outcome for our son,” the doctor said of Balkind’s injury. “I wish this young man would take the wound on our son. It brings back so many vivid memories and it’s so close to my heart and so precious.”

The death of 10th grader Balkind has refocused scrutiny on the use of neck protection in amateur hockey in the United States.

USA Hockey, the sport’s national governing body, recommends that players wear lanyards that cover their necks as much as possible, but does not require it, making the United States somewhat unusual on the international hockey scene. He has done important research on the subject.

Hockey governing bodies in Canada and Sweden mandate neck protectors for amateurs, as do many European leagues and the International Ice Hockey Federation.

In the United States, whether players must wear neck protection is left to individual hockey associations and oversight boards. The result is a set of policies.

Balkind’s school, St. Luke’s and the team’s in-game rival, Brunswick School of Greenwich, play under New England Prep School Athletic Council rules that do not require players to wear neck braces.

In contrast, the Connecticut Interschool Athletic Conference, setting the rules requires all players to wear “commercially manufactured throat protectors designed specifically for ice hockey” for high school hockey in the state, but not prep schools.

“Every hockey player in the United States should wear one because USA Hockey recommends it,” Stuart said, adding that an assignment is a regular agenda item at the organization’s annual conference and will definitely happen again when the conference begins. Thursday.

“It’s good for an authority to come forward,” Stuart said. Whether it can prevent that from happening, whether it will have any impact, I guess remains to be seen.”

Neck guards may be the most disliked hockey equipment among players. They’re typically made of Kevlar or nylon, foam, and Velcro, and players, especially kids, complain that they’re hot and bulky.

It is unclear whether Balkind was wearing a neck guard when he was injured. st. Luke’s athletic director Michael West and school spokesperson Nancy Troeger declined to comment, saying they are focused on giving their communities privacy to mourn.

It’s also unclear whether neck protection will prevent injury.

Still, more than 63,000 people signed up online petition It was started by a friend of Balkind’s to make neck protectors a mandatory piece of equipment.

“It feels like there’s no reason why neck protectors shouldn’t be needed in the United States, and it feels like we had to lose a young hockey player to bring awareness to the issue,” said petitioner Sam Brande of Wayland, Mass. Attending summer camp for years with Balkind.

Brande, 16, a serious hockey player, said he started wearing a neck brace after Balkind died last week. “An injury like this seemed impossible to me,” Brande said.

Skating injuries are one of the scariest injuries in sports. But they’re relatively rare, and neck skate lacerations are even rarer.

A USA Hockey survey In 2008, it was found that only 1.8 percent of players reported being the victim or witness of a skate neck slash during play. Thirty-three players who reported being cut in the neck received non-life-threatening injuries. One in four cuts, 27 percent, wore neck protection.

Overall, 45 percent of the 26,342 respondents reported regularly wearing a neck protector, according to what USA Hockey described as the most comprehensive survey ever conducted.

However, the organization later concluded that the survey did not provide enough information to require neck protectors.

“To date, there is little data to describe the prevalence, severity, or whether a neck tear protector (neck protector) reduces the risk or severity of such an event,” says USA Hockey’s “neck tear protector” policy.

He also says: “USA Hockey recommends that all players wear a neck tear protector, choosing a design that covers as much of the neck area as possible. More research and improved standards testing will better determine the effectiveness of neck tear protectors.”

Since then, USA Hockey has documented 13 or annual cases of neck lacerations caused by skates during play, according to data provided by the organization.

The US Hockey Foundation, the organization’s philanthropic arm, also funded a handful of studies published in the Journal of Clinical Sports Medicine on various aspects of neck braces. effectiveness in preventing blackouts and their effect on player’s range of motion.

Almost all tested lanyards prevented cuts in low-force simulations, but all failed in high-force simulations.

“If USA Hockey is an outlier, we’ve done more research and put more time and effort into making neck tears less of a problem than anyone else in the world,” Stuart said. “There isn’t a lot of research on that.”

Prior to Balkind’s injury, the two most prominent cases involved NHL players, both of whom survived.

Buffalo Sabers goalie Clint Malarchuk In 1989 St. Louis Blues’ Steve Tuttle was cut when the opposing player hit the goal area and the blade of the skate cut through Malarchuk’s carotid artery, nicking his carotid artery.

Florida Panthers forward Richard Zednik in 2008 similar injury when teammate Olli Jokinen lost his balance during a battle for a loose puck on the boards and his skate got caught in Zednik’s neck.

In 1975, another New England school player, 18-year-old defender James Dragone Jr.died of blood loss after an opposing player cut his skate’s neck during a game in Boston. about 3,000 people joined his funeral.

In 2017, 16-year-old Cassidy Gordon played at a girls’ match in Guelph, Ontario. survived serious injury after another player’s skate hits his neck. He was wearing a neck guard.

“It may have value in preventing a neck tear or the severity of a neck tear,” Stuart said. “While this is unproven, he certainly has enough logistical common sense that USA Hockey recommends this to all players, and if mandating it would save even potentially catastrophic injury or death, I think USA Hockey would be the first to do it.”



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