Last week a study was released showing that not only were the number of concussions up in junior hockey in Canada, but it was seven times higher than previously reported. The study followed two junior teams during the 2009-10 season and recorded 17 players that suffered 21 concussions during 52 games. This serves as a very real warning to players, coaches and even parents that hockey at the grassroots level can be just as dangerous as hockey in the NHL.

Perhaps most startling was that 69 percent of the concussions were attributed to headshots, with four out of every five determined to be purposeful rather than incidental. Almost a quarter of the concussions recorded occurred during an on-ice fight. If these numbers are not indicative of the fact that some players do not know how to deliver – or receive – hits on the ice, there’s no telling what is. Players need to learn how to deliver legal and safe hits and also be prepared for the more dangerous ones.

From what we’ve seen during and after the careers of professionals in other sports such as football, concussions can have serious and devastating long-term effects on the brain. These kids are 16 to 19 years old and some have already suffered multiple concussions. How is it acceptable that junior hockey players can suffer this kind of mental trauma without those in charge making some major changes to the game and fast? Some players’ careers ended before they began due to the unsafe nature of the game.

Junior hockey in Canada and other officials who are part of different hockey bodies have increasingly recognized the dangers in the sport, but we’re still seeing negligible rule changes and equipment upgrades to help increase the safety of the game. In the NHL, a headshot may result in a player being suspended for as few as two games, or half a week. There is hardly a threatening deterrent to risking the health of opponents. The hockey as a whole has taken the first step; they recognize there’s a problem. Now, they need to figure out how to make it safer for children to play the world’s fastest game.