Kukla's Korner Hockey

Afternoon Line
by Alanah McGinley on 10/14/11 at 03:58 PM ET
Comments (7)
“I really don’t care about that awareness crap,” [Brooks] Laich said. “To be honest, I’m sick of hearing all this talk about concussions and about the quiet room.
“This is what we love to do. Guys love to play, they love to compete, they want to be on the ice. How do you take that away from someone? We accept that there’s going to be dangers when we play this game. We know that every time we get dressed.
“I don’t know, sometimes it just feels like we’re being babysat a little too much. We’re grown men and we should have a say in what we want to do.”
—Washington’s Brooks Laich, via Chuck Gormley, CSNWashington
*h/t to TSN for pointer
Filed in: NHL Teams, Washington Capitals, NHL Talk, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: brooks+laich,
concussions
Comments

If they stopped Sid after the Caps game, they maybe could have prevented the Tampa Hit the really put him out.
Funny how many guys who have serious head injuries that force retiement say “there was a number of times I shouldn’t have been on the ice, now I *#$%@&”
Posted by Roboshow from Calgary on 10/14/11 at 04:27 PM ET

Laich should ask Keith Primeau or Paul Kariya if they care about “that awareness crap.”
Thank you.
I’d love to hear what Laich thinks about it when he suffers his first concussion, or forgets where his depends are when he’s 50.
Posted by Hank1974 on 10/14/11 at 04:29 PM ET

I’ve always liked Laich (pun unintended)... but his comments miss the point entirely.
People like him are WHY it’s absolutely necessary, because people like him don’t have the sense to on their own.
Posted by Primis on 10/14/11 at 07:44 PM ET

You’re professional athletes who have been taught to hit and hit to hurt since you were tykes. Yes, you’re being babysat and are being retrained in the art of hitting to simply separate an opponent from the puck, and there’s nothing you can do about it. Those numbers on the fronts of helmets aren’t just for the TV crews or referees—they’re there to remind you that you’re hitting a player who has an identity, too.
I almost never begrudge professional athletes’ or entertainers’ rights to earn salaries disproportionate to the rest of the world, and I’ll be rooting for the NHLPA in the next round of CBA negotiations, but on this one point, I’ll say, “You’re being paid several million dollars to be babysat. Deal with it.”
Posted by George Malik from South Lyon, MI on 10/14/11 at 09:09 PM ET

If you want more of a say, get your freaking union together and do something about it.
Posted by Nathan from the scoresheet! on 10/17/11 at 10:33 AM ET
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Laich should ask Keith Primeau or Paul Kariya if they care about “that awareness crap.”
Posted by Mike Chen on 10/14/11 at 04:02 PM ET