Lindros backs concussion protocol bill in Ontario

Former NHL star Eric Lindros and MPP Lisa MacLeod discuss Rowan's Law, a proposed bill to improve concussion protocols in Ontario youth sports, in Toronto on Wednesday, April 6,

Former NHL star Eric Lindros has come out publicly in support of Rowan's Law, a proposed bill to improve concussion protocols in Ontario youth sports.

Lindros joined MPP Lisa MacLeod in Toronto on Wednesday, to promote the bill named for a 17-year-old who died after suffering a string of concussions while playing high school rugby. A coroner's inquest into Rowan Stringer's death produced 49 recommendations that helped develop the bill.

Rowan's Law would establish an advisory committee of concussion experts to advise the provincial government on how best to deal with concussions among Ontario youth.

On Wednesday, Lindros touted the bill as a way to promote awareness and better treatment of concussions among young people in Ontario.

"Is there a better way to go about this? Can we look at this and make certain games a little bit safer?" Lindros said at a news conference.

Lindros was one of the most-celebrated first-overall picks in NHL history when he was drafted, but his once-promising career was hampered by a series of severe concussions that forced him to miss significant playing time, including a full season in 2000-2001. Lindros played eight seasons for the Philadelphia Flyers, and also suited up for the New York Rangers, Toronto Maple Leafs and Dallas Stars, before retiring at the age of 34.

When Lindros retired in 2007, he donated $5 million to a hospital in London, Ont., to establish a specialized centre for concussion research.

Lindros' brother, Brett, was also forced to retire due to concussions. He was a former first-round pick of the New York Islanders, but concussions forced him out of hockey after only two years in the NHL.

"I know what it's like to go through these situations," Eric Lindros said on Wednesday.

Whether an athlete is playing ringette at 14 years old, or suiting up for the Stanley Cup playoffs, it's difficult to acknowledge an injury that might mean missing a game, Lindros said. However, he stressed that it's important for athletes to feel comfortable coming forward with concussions, and to know that it's in their best interest.

Lindros said coaches and parents also need to know when to say: "We know you want to play, but let's just pull back a little bit."

Speaking alongside Lindros, Nepean-Carleton MPP Lisa MacLeod called Rowan's Law a "huge initiative" that is already raising awareness about concussions. "We need to change some mindsets about what a brain injury is," she said.

She also took aim at the NHL, saying that the league needs to "take responsibility for the health and well-being of the players."

However, Lindros chose to keep the focus on Rowan's Law, when asked about recently revealed NHL documents on the dangers of concussions.

"We're not here to talk about the past," he said. "Sure, we'd like to hear a fuller acknowledgement from different parties, but what we're trying to do here is make the future better."

According to internal emails between NHL executives, the league's leadership was resentful and dismissive of medical opinions on the dangers of concussions. The emails were recently unsealed in U.S. court.

In a December 2011 email, Mike Murphy, the league's senior vice-president of hockey operations, suggested the league is "over-doctored" with "too many so called experts weighing in who have never been on the field of play." Murphy also opined in the email that "we have enhanced our problem by listening to all these experts."

In another email sent the day before Murphy's, Colin Campbell, the NHL's VP of hockey operations, wrote that he was "sick and tired of all these other Think Tanks WITH reputable people just blaming it on the NHL."