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Looks like head shots are turning political… or is this sour grapes?

Murdoch wants heads to roll over hits to head

By Bill Walker, Owen Sound Sun Times, May 31, 2011

Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound MPP Bill Murdoch has called for Dave Branch's head.

Murdoch stood up in the provincial legislature in Toronto on Tuesday and called for Branch, who is the president of the Canadian Hockey League and commissioner of Ontario Hockey League, to resign for failing to adequately protect the players at the 2011 MasterCard Memorial Cup.

"If there is any honour left in the officials of the 2011 Memorial Cup and the OHL commissioner Dave Branch, they should resign for failing to protect one of Canada's most precious assets — our talented young hockey players," Murdoch said on Tuesday according to the official Hansard report.

Murdoch was expressing the outrage many Owen Sound Attack fans felt after sniper Joey Hishon and captain Garrett Wilson were both lost to head injuries during the Memorial Cup.

"Canada is known around the world for producing the best players the sport has to offer, but the future of our young stars is in jeopardy," Murdoch said.

"Junior hockey officials, namely OHL commissioner Dave Branch and the Memorial Cup's discipline chair Brian O'Neill, are failing to protect Ontario's most talented players."

Hishon was hit late in the third period of the Attack's 5-0 tournament opening win over the Western Hockey League champion Kootenay Ice.

The 19-year-old Stratford native was cutting across the middle of the ice when Ice captain Brayden McNabb caught the Attack centre with a vicious elbow to the head.

McNabb was given a major for elbowing and ejected from that game. He was subsequently given a one-game suspension.

Wilson was knocked out of action less than five minutes into Owen Sound's 3-1 loss to the St. Michael's Majors in Owen Sound's third game at the tournament.

He was standing facing the boards when the Majors' Chris DeSousa hit the Elmvale native from behind, driving his head and shoulders into the boards.

Wilson played two more shifts before linemate Andrew Fritsch alerted Attack trainer Andy Brown that the team captain was repeating the same question over and over on the bench. He was removed from that game and did not return.

DeSousa was not penalized on the play and the Attack's appeal for supplementary discipline was rejected.

Both Hishon and Wilson suffered from concussion-like symptoms. Hishon did not play another tournament game and Wilson sat out Owen Sound's 7-3 loss to Kootenay in the tiebreaker which eliminated the Attack from the Memorial Cup.

"There is no doubt that physical play is a key feature of the game," said Murdoch. "There is no excuse, we're allowing dirty players to get away with vicious, illegal hits to the head."

He added: "The future of Canada's game and its young stars is in danger from poor officiating and out-of-touch OHL management that fails to consider the future of the game and safety of its players."

Murdoch said the Attack succeeded despite the officiating.

"Despite incompetent and corrupt officiating, the Attack not only clinched its first OHL championship but captured some of the game's highest honours," said Murdoch.