Inside The Penalty Box 02.14.08: Zednik’s Injury Raises Questions About Neck Guards

Posted by Neil Borenstein on 02.14.2008

One of the most horrific on-ice incidents in 19 years, Richard Zednik’s neck slashing during Sunday night’s matchup against the Sabres has raised the question on whether the league should consider neck protection for its players. In this edition of Inside The Penalty Box, Neil Borenstein explains why such a course of action is not particularly ideal for players. Also, Henrik Lundqvist’s six-year contract with the Rangers is discussed!

Photo Credit: Yahoo! SportsFlorida Panthers' forwardd Richard Zednik is in good condition after suffering a severed carotid artery on Sunday.

t this point in the National Hockey League season, attention should be geared to the quickly approaching trade deadline and the continued competition toward playoff seeding league-wide. Instead, the hot topic is that of one of the most horrific on ice-incidents to ever take place on NHL ice. In fact, it could be the worst in almost two decades.

In a Sunday evening matchup against the Buffalo Sabres, the Florida Panthers were a goal down with just over 10 minutes remaining in the third period. The puck was dumped in the offensive zone by a Panther, which was followed in pursuit by a Florida forecheck. Simultaneously, Olli Jokinen nailed Sabres forward Chris MacArthur with a check in the corner boards while Richard Zednik skated around the boards behind the Sabres' net. Jokinen tripped up on MacArthur's skates and flew in the air, skate blades side up. His right skate blade connected with the throat of Zednik, who immediately hit the ice with a one and one-half inch gash opened on his neck. Zednik got to his feet with his hands over the wound and darted right for the benches. He was rushed to an emergency room, leaving a trail of blood on the ice and fans stunned in disbelief.



After a one-hour surgery to repair a carotid artery handing on by a thread, Zednik was listed in stable condition. He has since been upgraded to good condition, and it's possible he could return to play this season, as he's expected to be out six-to-eight weeks. The most important thing, though, is that he recovers fully and doesn't rush getting back to the ice.

The scene on Sunday was immediately reminiscent of what happened to Clint Malarchuk about 19 years ago. As a goaltender for the Sabres, Malarchuk received a skate to the throat after a collision in the crease. The skate slit his jugular and a profuse amount of blood poured to the ice, almost puddle-like. Malarchuk received 300 stitches, but miraculously left the hospital after only one day and returned to the ice for practice just four days later.



The result of Malarchuk's incident was that goaltenders started wearing neck protection. Much like a visor for players, a neck guard is extra protection. It hangs below a goalie's mask between the chin and the top of chest protection. Perhaps the most notable netminder currently utilizing a neck guard is New Jersey Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur.

There has already been some talk about players wearing neck guards to try and prevent a reoccurrence of Zednik's incident. The concept has been faced with much scrutiny, however, as very few players are going to be on board with the idea. And though NHL players have been criticized for trying to be too "macho," I have to agree that a panic move to wearing neck guards is highly unnecessary.

First of all, players from every sport enter their chosen profession with the knowledge that there is a certain amount of risk every time they step on the ice, field or court. Though a drastic way to put it, players understand they are somewhat putting their lives on the line every time they suit up for competition. Taking safety precautions is always ideal. But a player cannot be protected from everything.

"I've gotten skates up there," Panthers defenseman Jassen Cullimore said to the Associated Press. "It's just something that happens. You could wear a whole armor suit out, there but you're still going to have broken bones and stuff like that."

To many players, a neck guard will also be an extreme nuisance. With the amount of head and body movements forwards and defensemen need to make when on the ice, having something around the neck can be an annoyance and even hinder one's play. According to Panthers forward David Booth, they are uncomfortable. Many players don't wear visors for that very reason – they get in the way.

To Jokinen, neck guards don't even protect the neck that well.

"What happened a couple days ago, a neck guard wouldn't make any difference. The neck guard just comes this high, you know?" Jokinen said to the the AP, gesturing about halfway up his neck. "If you watch what happened to Richard, the cut was a lot higher. It's one of those things."

According to the AP story, there is belief that neck guards might even deflect skate blades to the neck, making it even more dangerous to wear one.

All of this doesn't mean players cannot wear neck guards. If they choose to, players have the ability to wear one. It's not against the rules and the league does not disallow it. If it's comfortable and makes a player feel safe, then he should certainly add one to his gear.

But to enforce a league-wide mandatory policy, much like they did with helmets where Craig MacTavish was the last player allowed to skate without headgear, is probably not going to be widely accepted or even realistic. First, the league should make visors mandatory before they were worry about neck guards as face and eye injuries are more prevalent. And I don't think most players are going to be comfortable with an obtrusive piece of equipment by their necks.

Zednik's injury was extremely serious and it was definitely a sign that the league has some investigating to do into these kinds of incidents on the ice. Thankfully Zednik is going to be okay and has a very high shot at returning to the ice, potentially at some point this season. But incidents such as what happened Sunday are not very common and a drastic move to enforce an equipment policy that will likely be widely unaccepted and perhaps ineffective is not the way to attack this issue. The option of wearing neck guards, much like visors are now, should remain in the hands of each individual player.

Done Deal In The Big AppleKing Henrik Remaining In New York For Six More Years

Photo Credit: Yahoo! Sports/Getty ImagesHenrik Lundqvist has signed onto to remain with the Rangers for at least another six seasons.

Something I've been waiting quite a while to take place finally came to fruition on Wednesday afternoon. The New York Rangers managed to agree to a long-term extension with the best netminder to hit the Big Apple since Mike Richter, Henrik Lundqvist. At a price tag of $41.25 million, or $6.875 million annually, the Rangers ensured Lundqvist will remain in New York for at least the next six seasons.

The Rangers and Lundqvist were working toward an agreement since the turn of the calendar year in January. The Rangers inked Lundqvist to a one-year deal over the summer with the intention of negotiating a more long-term contract in January. The reasoning behind that was because a new long-term and high-money deal over the summer would have counted against this year's salary cap, which had very little room. With some contracts anticipated to be off the books next year, a new deal starting next season is much easier to configure into the team's payroll.

This contract does two things for the Rangers. It gives them stability in net and also avoids a messy offseason that could have seen Lundqvist hit the restricted free agent market on July 1. A goaltender of his caliber likely would have fetched a high offer sheet, especially considering that tool has been utilized quite frequently over the past few seasons. And knowing the market for elite goalies like Lundqvist, an offer of $7 million or more per season would not have surprised me.

Lundqvist is also the backbone to the Rangers. There are really two key players to the Rangers' success. One of them is Sean Avery, who also is working off a one-year deal and is probably next in line for Glen Sather to negotiate a more long-term contract to stay in New York. The other is Lundqvist, who has provided quality goaltending not seen since the days of Richter. Granted, Lundqvist has his ups and downs, and could afford to be more consistent. But he is also likely to have his third straight year of 30-win hockey in only his third year in the NHL. Plus, when he's on, he can almost single-handedly win a game for the Rangers.

This season, he holds a 24-21-5 record with a 2.37 goals against average and .906 save percentage in 50 games played. Lundqvist also ranks second in the league in shutouts with seven, only one behind Columbus' Pascal LeClaire.

As a result of this deal, the Rangers now have the ability to use Alvaro Montoya as a trade chip going into the trade deadline, if necessary. Perhaps a reason the Rangers have held onto Montoya to date is because there was uncertainty in Lundqvist's future. If a deal could not be worked out with him, there was always Montoya, who has been groomed in the AHL for the past three years. With Lundqvist on the roster for the next six seasons, and Stephen Valiquette currently playing incredibly well in the backup role, there's no need to hang onto Montoya anymore. He's too good to keep in the minors forever. And the longer the Rangers hold out on trading him, the more his value will decrease. Perhaps opening up trade talks with the Colorado Avalanche on a trade previously rumored that would send Petr Prucha, Marek Malik and Montoya to the Avs for John-Michael Liles and Marek Svatos is still a possibility. If not, the Rangers really should find some way to unload Montoya by the trade deadline, or during the summer at the latest. Because of his potential, the Rangers could definitely get something good in the return, and that return might not be as good the longer they wait to deal him.

With a new contract out of the way, Lundqvist can now focus completely on the remainder of the season and helping the Rangers return to the playoffs for the third straight season. They sit in ninth place in the Eastern Conference standings with 63 points – tied with the Boston Bruins in points but with one fewer win and two less games remaining on the schedule. In the divisional race, the Rangers are fourth, but are also only six point behind the Atlantic-leading Philadelphia Flyers.

---

Send all comments, questions, suggestions and telephone numbers from the ladies to [e-mail].

Until next week, you have just been Inside The Penalty Box!

~ Neil Borenstein