NHL Says Headshots Stay

The NHL and its board of GMs believe stricter enforcement of boarding and charging penalties are necessary for making the game safer. The GMs statement includes harsher supplemental discipline for repeat offenders.

A rise in concussions this season put the issue at the top of the GMs’ agenda. In particular two high-profile cases are responsible for the increased interest in safety rules. In January, Pittsburgh Penguin star, Sidney Crosby, was sidelined because of a concussion.  Last week the Canadiens’ Max Pacioretty endured a severe concussion and a cracked vertebra. He was driven into a glass partition by Boston Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara. In response to the NHL's refusal to suspend Chara Air Canada threatened to remove its sponsorship.

Commissioner Gary Bettman called the Chara/Pacioretty incident a horrible hockey play accident. However, the league decided a ban on all headshots would be too radical a response. The board believes that the referees and the players should interpret the newly defined standards for boarding and charging. This should create a safer game environment, especially along the boards.