NHL Hockey Player Injuries

In any major international hockey league, there are always lots of injuries which can have an impact on both players and teams. But when the player has an injury it can either be short or it can take a while for a full recovery. Much like the National Football League, concussions have been a major problem in the NHL as well. Big stars like Sidney Crosby brought lots of attention with his issues and concussions.

Why Hockey is Injury-Prone

What makes hockey players so injury-prone is that they are playing on sheets of ice at a fast pace with sticks and a hard frozen puck that can really hurt even with all that gear protecting them. They also have razor-sharp skates on which can be dangerous as well. The regular season is long as well, so players can have an injury and still get back for the regular season games or be back in time for the playoffs. The goal is to stay healthy right into the playoffs.

You can almost tell if a man is a hockey player by the stereotypical image of missing front teeth. Seems the teeth are always the first to go on a hockey player and that gets back to playing with a hard rubber puck and sticks since they were kids.

Most Common Injuries

Body checks are big in professional hockey and that causes lots of upper body injuries. The most common shoulder injuries in hockey are a shoulder separation and a broken collarbone. These injuries occur from direct contact of the shoulder with another player, the boards, or the ice.

Another major injury is the Knee Ligament Injuries or MCL and that is because players have contact with other players with their knees. The groin is an injury that occurs all the time as well. Groin strains in hockey players can include a wide array of different muscles that can be affected. High Ankle Sprains are another injury that players sustain frequently in hockey. An injury to this ligament is usually caused when the skate gets stuck in the ice or against the boards and the foot twists outwards.

Recovery and Career Impact

The good news is that once a player is in the NHL he has the best medical treatment, doctors, therapists and access MRI scans to try and get them back onto the ice. These players make millions of dollars and having them off the ice can have an impact on the team moving forward in the pursuit of the much coveted points.

Lots of the time players get re-injured and that can sometimes be the beginning of the end of their career. This is why hockey players careers usually end in their 30’s if they’re lucky to go that long.

Hockey is a fun sport to play and watch and keeping the players healthy and in the game is all part of the process. Keep coming back to Team NHL and find out all the latest injuries and who is also coming back from injuries or even find out how long they have before they will hit the ice once again to bring us all some great NHL Hockey.