Did Brain Disease Cause an NHL Player's Demise?

Did Brain Disease Cause an NHL Player's Demise?

By now the entire hockey world is aware of the passing of Derek Boogaard over the weekend. For those of you who haven't heard, the 28 year old was found dead in his Minneapolis apartment. With no signs of trauma, the cause of death is unknown pending an autopsy. This has raised a number of questions including the possibility of his death being related to his employment as a fighter in the NHL. Boogaard played 5 NHL seasons with the Minnesotta Wild and a partial season with the New York Rangers. He was sidelined most of this past season due to a concussion suffered during a fight. This evidence along with the fact that Boogaards family donated his brain to Boston University for the purposes of scientific study into the effects of brain damage and disease caused by repeated blows to the head, leaves us little to speculate on interns of cause of death.

This tragedy brings into another long argued question. Is fighting, and hitting for that matter, a necessary in the game of hockey? There is a reason that there is not checking allowed in minor hockey for children under the age of 12. But, does the obvious need to be stated? These are grown adult men who make a concise decision to enter into the game of hockey. Nobody is forcing them to play. In the rule of law, professional athletes in games such as this enter into a type of contract in which they agree to the physical part of the game. If this wasn't the case then every check could be considered an assault. It is for this very reason that you do not and will not likely see criminal charges laid against a professional athlete for conduct perceived to be part of the game. There is implied consent given by each player to enter into this type of sport. This is the main point of my argument and one that I wish everyone who questions hitting and fighting in professional hockey should read.