Bodychecking should be removed from all youth hockey, say the researchers behind a new report that found that teenagers who started bodychecking earlier were at “significantly higher risk” for concussion in subsequent seasons.
The findings stand in opposition to advocates, coaches often among them, who have long said that earlier bodychecking experience could protect players by giving them improved technique down the road when they reach upper leagues. But Calgary researchers have found that players with more previous bodychecking experience in fact ended up with higher rates of injury over the course of three studied seasons.
Paul Eliason, a post-doctoral associate at the University of Calgary and co-author of the study published Monday by the Canadian Medical Association Journal, said the research proves that bodychecking experience in youth leagues does not protect players later on and instead puts them at risk. “And there are no unintended injury consequences. So ultimately, by removing bodychecking, we’re preventing injuries and we’re promoting a safer game.”
Researchers collected injury-surveillance data on 941 hockey players ages 15 to 17 on 186 teams in Alberta over three playing seasons from 2015 to 2018 to “determine the association between cumulative years of experience of bodychecking in games where it was allowed and rates of injury and concussion among players,” said a statement from the CMAJ.
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