At high speed into the boards: Anaheim Ducks’ Ryan Strome (right) checks Brock Boeser from the Vancouver Canucks. Image: AP
The American Adam Johnson is dead, the Finnish Sanni Hakala is paralyzed: Serious accidents in ice hockey occur again and again. Are these isolated cases or is the sport becoming more dangerous?
The World Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) reacted at the beginning of the week. On the recommendation of its medical commission, the IIHF Council decided to “mandate neck protection at all levels of IIHF competitions,” it said in a statement. In the future, ice hockey players will have to wear cut-resistant neck braces at international competitions such as the World Championships or Olympic Games. In doing so, the IIHF is following various leagues and associations that introduced the requirement weeks ago, shortly after the American Adam Johnson died after a game in England. The 29-year-old’s neck was slashed by his opponent’s ice skate blade.
Since then, there has been a debate about safety in ice hockey. And she is constantly getting new food: As the Swedish newspaper “Aftonbladet” reports, the Norwegian Jonas Nyhus Myhre’s chest was cut open at the weekend; again it was the skid of an opponent. “I had so much adrenaline that I didn’t feel it for the first few minutes. But after about five minutes it started to really hurt and I couldn’t use my chest muscles anymore,” the 19-year-old is quoted as saying. The blade had cut through the equipment and severed his pectoral muscle. He was immediately taken to the hospital and was saved.
