Time is now to eliminate head shots in hockey
Hockey Betting Lines
03/10/2010 -
Toronto, Canada (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A concussion is serious, and the NHL may
finally be waking up to the fact. Anyone who has had a serious knock will tell
you that the effects can be scary. While the league has spent years dancing
around the subject of hits to the head, it is an issue that has become more
pressing than ever.
It makes you wonder if the suits in the front office have been suffering from
the same confusion and blurry vision as the players who seem to be dropping
like flies around the league.
Hockey's alleged top brains will be concluding a three-day summit Wednesday,
where the topic of shoulder hits to the head is being discussed. As it stands,
the shoulder blow is still a legal part of the game, meaning that no penalty
can be assessed for the goon-like offense.
"The managers in their heart of hearts feel something's wrong here, but it's
not against the rules. That's what we're trying to attack," said Colin
Campbell, the NHL's principle disciplinarian.
Last Sunday, Boston Bruins all-star Marc Savard became the latest victim of an
unsuspecting shoulder to the head by the Pittsburgh Penguins' Matt Cooke.
Seeing him motionless on the ice was a troubling scene, but a scene that has
been repeating itself like a bad Hollywood script.
Savard will likely be forced by team doctors to miss multiple weeks of action,
as the medical community has made it clear they won't treat these injuries like
a joke.
Young Florida Panthers sniper David Booth missed three-quarters of this season
with medically diagnosed post-concussion syndrome, and was only allowed to play
after rigorous baseline testing.
Boston Bruins center Patrice Bergeron can attest first-hand to the after-
effects of a brain injury. A grade-three concussion almost stripped the young
star of his career in October of 2007 as he ended up missing the better part of
the season.
"I couldn't do anything. The light was bothering me, the noise was bothering
me. Everything was," Bergeron said in reference to the concussion. "It was
giving me headaches, making me dizzy."
"I was pretty much trying to go through the day, trying to sleep and rest and
feel better."
Luckily Bergeron was able to get back on track after a long and difficult
recovery. He was even fortunate enough to win Olympic gold with Team Canada in
Vancouver.
But, not all players are so lucky.
It's no surprise that around the sport these hits are called "career-enders",
just ask Eric Lindros.
Termed the "Next One" in the 90's, Lindros was supposed to be the second coming
of Wayne Gretzky. A true superstar during his short NHL career, he would miss
significant time due to concussions and eventually retire thanks to the elbow
of bruiser Scott Stevens.
What did the powers that be tell us then? They said it was part of the game.
They said it takes toughness to be a hockey player, like Eddie Shore and Bobby
Clarke.
Sorry gentlemen, but the game is light years ahead of where it was back then.
It's faster, more violent, and the players are stronger.
Players must be forced to respect the head and the only way to do that is to
asses a penalty for the infraction. There should be, at minimum, a five-minute
major and an ejection from the game for the dangerous blow. The same punishment
has been effective in reducing hits from behind, and hits to the head are no
less an epidemic.
It is embarrassing that the Canadian Hockey League (CHL), Canada's premier
junior hockey organization, has already figured out a way to deter these dirty
hits while the NHL has stood pat.
In doling out a season-long suspension in January to high-profile player
Patrice Cormier for his blindside hit of a fellow player, the CHL sent a strong
message that these types of plays would not be tolerated. Captain of the
Canadian world junior team and Quebec Major Junior Hockey League standout,
Cormier was not allowed to escape the rule of law due to his star status. The
same hard-nosed approach must be taken in the NHL.
"Clearly the blind side of an unsuspecting player is what we're talking about,"
said Dallas Stars GM Joe Nieuwendyk. He also added that he thought stiffer
suspensions could be used more frequently in extreme cases.
Unfortunately, any rule change proposed at the summit needs approval by the
competition committee, which includes players, and the league's board of
governors. Hopefully, the recommendations that are made don't fall on deaf
ears.
It would be regrettable if another career was put in jeopardy before action was
taken.
<< Garciaparra calls it a career
Fort Myers, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Red Sox have called a morning
news conference at which time infielder Nomar Garciaparra is expected to
announce his retirement.
According to Boston sports talk station WEEI, Garciaparra
<< Bryant's heroics lift Lakers past Raptors
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kobe Bryant played hero again, sinking the
winning jumper from the right baseline with 1.9 seconds left, and the Los
Angeles Lakers snapped a three-game skid with a 109-107 victory over the
Toronto
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Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mathieu Garon was strong with 36 saves to lead
the Columbus Blue Jackets to a 5-2 win over the Anaheim Ducks at Honda Center.
Fedor Tyutin, Jakub Voracek and Antoine Vermette all recorded a goal and two
assi
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Portland, OR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brandon Roy scored 19 points and pulled down
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at the Rose Garden.
Nicolas Batum and Andre Miller each tallied 14 points for the
<< Kelly, Senators handle Oilers
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lead the Ottawa Senators to a 4-1 win over the Edmonton Oilers at Rexall
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Robert Morris battles Quinnipiac for NEC crown >>
Hamden, CT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The top-seeded Quinnipiac Bobcats and the
second-seeded Robert Morris Colonials are set to collide in the championship
game of the 2010 Northeast Conference Tournament, and the winner will receive
an automatic bid
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New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Big East Tournament continues today, as
the ninth-seeded South Florida Bulldogs tussle with the 22nd-ranked and
eighth-seeded Georgetown Hoyas in second-round action at Madison Square
Garden. The winner of th
Montana and Weber State duke it out for Big Sky title >>
Ogden, UT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A trip to the NCAA Tournament is on the line
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the championship game of the 35th annual Big Sky Conference Tournament at the
Dee Events Cente
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Denver Nuggets will start up a four-game road trip tonight against a Minnesota
Timberwolves team hoping to end a string of six straight losses when it takes
the Target Ce
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March Madness odds and printable March Madness brackets
With the field of 64/65 set, MySportsbook.com has the Florida Gators as the 4-1 favorite to successfully defend their National Championship. Men’s Division-1 College Basketball has not seen a team repeat as National Champions since Duke won back to back championships in ’91 & ‘92. After losing three out of four late in the season, the Gators are full of momentum as they won their last four games by an average of 18 points. Not surprisingly, right behind the Gators are the other three top seeds: Kansas 5-1, UNC 6-1, and Ohio State 7-1. Many consider Kansas to be the hottest team in the country, having won 11 straight. With Kansas, it is hard to ignore all of the early exits from the “dance” in recent years. With an impressive ACC Tournament, UNC ensured themselves the other top seed. UNC has about as much talent as any other team in the tournament but with a team that’s best players are primarily freshman and sophomores, could youth be a concern. Behind freshman sensation, Greg Oden, OSU will look to do what their football team failed to do just a few months earlier. OSU seems to have peeked at the right time, as they currently have a 17 game winning streak. Since the tournament field was expanded in 1985, there has never been an instance where all four #1 seeds advanced to the Final Four. It is obvious that each of the top seeds have the talent to make it through to Atlanta. But as everyone knows, when makes the NCAA Tournament so special are all of the spoilers and “Cinderella” stories that knock off the favorites on a daily basis.
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MySportsbook.com’s odds to win the Championship and Regions:
| EAST |
National Championship |
Region |
| Arkansas |
300-1 |
50-1 |
| Belmont |
|
1000-1 |
| Boston College |
100-1 |
40-1 |
| Eastern KY |
|
1000-1 |
| George Washington |
|
75-1 |
| Georgetown |
10-1 |
3-2 |
| Marquette |
100-1 |
40-1 |
| Michigan State |
100-1 |
25-1 |
| New Mexico St. |
500-1 |
200-1 |
| UNC |
6-1 |
6-5 |
| Oral Roberts |
|
500-1 |
| Texas |
15-1 |
5-1 |
| Texas Tech |
200-1 |
5-1 |
| USC |
75-1 |
20-1 |
| Vanderbilt |
100-1 |
30-1 |
| Washington State |
40-1 |
15-1 |
|
|
|
| WEST |
|
|
| Duke |
50-1 |
10-1 |
| Florida A&M |
|
1000-1 |
| Gonzaga |
200-1 |
40-1 |
| Holy Cross |
|
300-1 |
| Illinois |
300-1 |
60-1 |
| Indiana |
75-1 |
40-1 |
| Kansas |
5-1 |
13-10 |
| Kentucky |
100-1 |
40-1 |
| Niagara |
|
1000-1 |
| Pittsburgh |
40-1 |
8-1 |
| Southern Ill. |
50-1 |
12-1 |
| UCLA |
10-1 |
3-2 |
| VCU |
500-1 |
100-1 |
| Villanova |
100-1 |
40-1 |
| VA Tech |
50-1 |
15-1 |
| Weber St |
|
1000-1 |
| Wright St |
1000-1 |
300-1 |
|
|
|
| MIDWEST |
|
|
| Arizona |
50-1 |
30-1 |
| Butler |
40-1 |
30-1 |
| Davidson |
|
300-1 |
| Florida |
4-1 |
4-5 |
| Georgia Tech |
75-1 |
25-1 |
| Jackson State |
|
1000-1 |
| Maryland |
30-1 |
6-1 |
| Miami-OH |
|
300-1 |
| Notre Dame |
100-1 |
20-1 |
| ODU |
500-1 |
100-1 |
| Oregon |
40-1 |
6-1 |
| Purdue |
300-1 |
60-1 |
| Texas A&M CC |
|
1000-1 |
| UNLV |
100-1 |
30-1 |
| Winthrop |
500-1 |
100-1 |
| Wisconsin |
15-1 |
7-2 |
|
|
|
| SOUTH |
|
|
| Albany |
|
200-1 |
| BYU |
200-1 |
40-1 |
| Central CT St. |
|
1000-1 |
| Creighton |
100-1 |
35-1 |
| Long Beach St. |
500-1 |
200-1 |
| Louisville |
40-1 |
10-1 |
| Memphis |
30-1 |
4-1 |
| Nevada |
75-1 |
35-1 |
| North Texas |
|
500-1 |
| Ohio State |
7-1 |
6-5 |
| Penn |
|
500-1 |
| Stanford |
200-1 |
50-1 |
| Tennessee |
100-1 |
20-1 |
| Texas A&M |
12-1 |
11-5 |
| Virginia |
75-1 |
18-1 |
| Xavier |
100-1 |
40-1 |
Field 100-1
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