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FRASER: THE OFFICIALS' ROLE WHEN A PLAYER IS INJURED

Kerry Fraser, TSN.ca, Dec 13 2011

Hey Kerry:
During the Ottawa/Vancouver game on Saturday, Cody Hodgson took a hit along the boards and went down. Play continued for a while; when Cody tried to get up it was obvious that he was in trouble and the play was (thankfully) whistled down. Just wondering what the rule is, if there is one, about stopping play when there is an obvious injury. Can any one of the four officials blow the play dead if he is concerned? Does it matter who has puck control at the time? Is it a discretionary thing?

Thanks,
David (in Vancouver)

David:

Player safety is the primary concern of every game official. With the rule book as a guide, the officials must exercise their best judgment as to the perceived seriousness of the injury to determine when to blow the whistle and stop play. When an injury is deemed serious in nature and a quick medical response is required the official will stop play immediately, regardless of who has possession of the puck.

Rule 8 – injured players reads "when a player is injured so that he cannot continue play or go to his bench, the play shall not be stopped until the injured player's team has secured possession of the puck. If the player's team is in possession of the puck at the time of injury, play shall be stopped immediately unless his team is in a scoring position. In the case where it is obvious that a player has sustained a serious injury, the Referee and/or Linesman may stop the play immediately."

In the practical application of this rule we often see a player struck with the puck while blocking a shot or with a stick on the follow through of a shot. Most often these types of injuries are not something that would require the official to halt play immediately. They are usually "stingers" that can be walked or skated off. We have even seen players get up when the whistle doesn't blow and attempt to defend as they hobble through the injury. Even if the injured player stays down on the ice play will normally be allowed to continue when the non-offending team has possession of the puck and always when they are in a scoring position.

The exception to allowing a play to continue is when a player is struck in a vulnerable location such as the stick Chris Pronger accidentally received to the eye area on the follow-through of a Mikhail Grabovski shot or when Steven Stamkos had his nose rearranged in the same fashion during the Stanley Cup Playoffs last year. Stamkos quickly returned to the game wearing a visor while Pronger's injury required bed rest. In both cases however, due to the location they were struck play needed to be stopped immediately.

Player reaction will also be an indicator for the official if the injury sustained is deemed serious in nature. The worst injury that I observed occurred in the 1996 Stanley Cup Playoffs when Pat Peake, a talented first round draft pick for the Washington Capitals raced toward the end boards to nullify an icing and was upended from behind at the goal line.

Peake flew into the boards feet first, shattering his right heel. I was the first responder on the scene and killed play as soon as Pat landed feet first and writhed in pain. It was an ugly result and I thought if this kid isn't seriously hurt he sure as heck should be. Even though Peake attempted to resume his career it ultimately ended on that race for an icing. He has had 15 surgeries on his heel and now coaches his son's AAA hockey team in Detroit.

Who can ever forget the gruesome, life-threatening injury that Clint Malarchuk sustained when his throat was sliced by a skate blade while tending goal for the Buffalo Sabres. It was only the quick response from Sabres medical staff that saved his life.

Seconds can be precious when injuries such as these have been sustained. The referee's whistle is the first response to obtaining medical treatment.

Erring on the side of caution is especially true given the dangerous and high hits that we have seen within the game in recent years; both open ice and into the boards. In cases where potential head and/or vertebrae injuries result, swift medical response is vital. Max Pacioretty fracturing his neck vertebrae after contacting the stanchion at the players' bench is just one example.

At the amateur level and especially in youth hockey games I believe the referee should stop the play so that the player who appears injured can be properly attended to.

Even though embellishment is approaching epidemic proportions some nights, if it came down to a coin toss, I would ere on blowing the whistle more quickly than not in attempting to determine the ultimate seriousness of a player injury.

David, I hope that I have established that player safety and their well being is of primary concern for the on-ice officials. It is a responsibility each of us takes seriously and will usually give the benefit of the doubt to the player that remains down on the ice through an apparent injury.

There is always an exception to the rule and that is unless a player embarrassed me and the game by feigning injury for the purpose of gaining a stoppage in play. If that were to happen, rest assured I would look more closely for evidence of injury in the future just short of the bone poking through his skin. I would inform any player guilty of this attempt that medals are awarded for courage and not cowardice.