A day after the editor-in-chief of a major Canadian medical publication said fighting should be banned at every level of hockey, one local concussion expert says there's more work to be done before an all-out ban should be called.
"Do you want to be rich, famous, demented and dead at 40?" Dr. Rajendra Kale, Editor-in-Chief of the Canadian Medical Association Journal said in Ottawa Monday. "That's the question they need to answer for themselves."
Dr. Kale said he's seen all the research, and he's seen enough – he believes fighting at every level of hockey should be banned.
"For the sake of future players, for the sake of their brains, I hope the NHL listens," Kale said.
In Edmonton, U of A researcher Dr. Martin Mrazik is responding to Dr. Kale's statement, and said there are still many unanswered questions in this long-standing debate.
"We need to do a lot more research to really justify significant changes to the rules," Dr. Mrazik said.
He said the number of players who have had tragic consequences, and the numbers that have not have yet to be explained.
"The amount of times a person gets hit in the head doesn't necessarily correlate to really adverse outcomes," Dr. Mrazik said.
He told CTV News fighting in the NHL counts for only 4 per cent of concussions.
Dr. Kale said he believes that number is too high for entertainment and tradition.
No major hockey leagues in North America have issued a ban on fighting.
With files from Sean Amato
