NHL union will form a committee to help players better understand traumatic brain injuries

BOSTON – The NHLPA will form an advisory committee to help hockey players better understand chronic traumatic encephalopathy and the damage concussions can do to the brain.

NHLPA President Marty Walsh said Friday evening that the CTE committee was unanimously approved at a union board meeting this summer. The former mayor of Boston made the announcement after receiving an award at the annual gala for the Concussion Legacy Foundation, which supports patients and families struggling with the symptoms of traumatic brain injury.

“The long-term health of NHL players is of the utmost importance to our membership,” the union said in a statement. “To that end, the NHLPA is in the process of forming a players committee that will focus on learning more about chronic diseases. traumatic encephalopathy). The committee will be guided by leading medical experts in the field to help players better understand CTE.”

CTE, a degenerative brain disease, has been identified in athletes and military combat veterans who suffered concussions or repeated blows to the head. It can only be diagnosed posthumously through an examination of the brain.