This week a new gold medal champion will be crowned at the 2012 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships held in Edmonton and Calgary.
And while the tournament has grown to become a must-see signature event during the holiday season, featuring pre-tournament exhibition games in Olds and other communities across the province, the enthusiasm is muted somewhat by the growing concern at the professional level by the alarming number of concussion incidents that is robbing fans of the best players in the world.
It is not a new problem. The career of former NHL superstar Eric Lindros, as well as his younger bother Brett, was cut short due to post-concussion syndrome. When the older Lindros chose to retire in 2007 at the age of 34 there was some sadness in the professional hockey community that his full potential had not been fully realized but the examination of the concussion issue was given only lip service at best. In more recent times, however, fans have heard many stories about brain trauma suffered by past players, including retired Buffalo Sabres star Richard Martin and the late New York Rangers enforcer Derek Boogaard, a New York Rangers enforcer who suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a degenerative brain ailment related to Alzheimer's disease.
But it was not until Sidney Crosby, the NHL's premier superstar, suffered his first major concussion a year ago the NHL was finally forced to take stock. Gone from the game for more than 10 months Crosby did return but eight games later he was out again. This time the hits to his head area were not as serious as the ones that initially put him out.
But experts in the field of brain trauma are all saying post-concussion syndrome is progressive, that once injured the player's condition never improves to full recovery and that subsequent injuries will occur with less and less trauma to the head.
With the business of hockey now being dominated by accountants and profit margins the NHL is loathe to remove fighting from the game. Brendan Shanahan, the NHL's chief discipline, is waging war against head shots but since Crosby's first concussion the number of head and brain injuries has skyrocketed, at least in the minds of many who urgently want to see dramatic changes in the game.
There are now about 30 NHL players out of action recovering from concussions, including Crosby, Nashville Predator defenceman Shea Weber, Chris Pronger of the Philadelphia Flyers, Simon Gagne of the Los Angles Kings and the Toronto Maple Leafs' John-Michael Liles.
More alarming still are the reports that many players continue to go back on the ice after enduring shots that have concussed them.
While Shanahan's tough suspensions against players delivering the head blows has increased awareness on the issue the NHL has a long way to go before professional hockey can deem itself cured. There is talk about more rule changes, looking at softer shoulder and elbow pads, regulating the speed of the game, probing the feasibility of whether even tougher suspensions are warranted, even implementing a full zero-tolerance policy.
What is somewhat ironic is that the popularity of the game has never been higher, either in Canada, Europe or even in the U.S. where the NHL is benefiting from increased television exposure and smart marketing like the Winter Classic game. This presents a unique opportunity to get a handle on the issue and send out a message to the growing number of young players that the NHL is evolving into a safer and cleaner game for the new generation of up and coming stars.
In the meantime, the only other option that could work is for today's greatest hockey superstar ñ Sidney Crosby ñ to announce he is retiring, a tragic scenario that is certainly possible.
Perhaps then NHL executives at the very top will stop considering profit margins and finally recognize the problem for what it really is and take honest action.
