NHL players who fight often die 10 years earlier than others

Those who were known hitters in the NHL and are already dead died significantly earlier than comparable hockey players without frequent fights. This is the conclusion of a study by researchers at Columbia University in New York.

The study analyzed data from more than 6,000 players who played in the NHL between 1967 and 2022. Of these, 331 players were identified as enforcers, ie as players sent onto the ice primarily to disrupt opponents and fewer to score goals themselves. Enforcers were divided into two categories: those who took part in more than 50 fights during their career and those who spent an average of three minutes or more per game in the penalty area.

The comparison groups consisted of players lined up in the same position that were similar in size and weight to the Enforcers, but didn’t fight as often. The researchers found that there was no difference in the all-cause mortality rate compared to the control group. “However, being an enforcer was associated with approximately a decade earlier death and more frequent deaths from suicide and drug overdose,” the scientists concluded. Previous felons who died lived to be 47.5 years old. Deaths of the comparison group were 57.7 years old.

Derek Boogaard could stop being a prototype of the deceased Enforcer. The Canadian, who spent most of his NHL career with the Minnesota Wild, was just 28 years old. He died in 2011 from a cocktail of painkillers and alcohol. Boogaard had fought many times and suffered numerous concussions.

Professor Dave Ellemberg told Canadian newspaper The Globe and Mail that he hoped this study would be the straw that broke the camel’s back. He works as a sports medicine and concussion specialist at the University of Montreal and hopes the new study will help say goodbye to fistfights in ice hockey. “I hope so. But we’ve had data for a long time that clearly supports the abolition of fighting,” he added.

Thanks to the large sample size, conclusions can be drawn that were previously only possible through autopsy, the professor emphasized. You see there are athletes who have the characteristics of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). This is a deadly brain disorder associated with repeated headbutts and concussions. This form of dementia has been known for a long time, especially in boxing or American football.

The researchers were also surprised by another finding of their study. The players in the comparison groups who died also died early. They were on average only ten years older: 57.7 years. He was shocked when he saw this, Ellemberg said. Why these players died relatively young needs further investigation.

While brawls were once the order of the day in the NHL, their numbers have declined significantly in recent years. The website “hockeyfights.com” recorded 334 fistfights in the current season. That’s about a fight in every fourth game. Philadelphia Flyers striker Nicolas Deslauriers was in the fights most often, 14 times. This is how he came to 136 penalty minutes in 80 missions. That ranks 2nd in that stat behind Pat Maroon (Tampa Bay), who was involved in 12 fights.

The Swiss NHL players mostly limited themselves to their playing class. Los Angeles Kings’ Kevin Fiala took 52 penalty minutes in the regular season, but that’s just 0.75 minutes per game in 69 appearances. Nico Hischier was extremely disciplined: the New Jersey Devils captain only had five two-minute penalties in 81 games.