Homelessness Hits Pro Hockey

Workplace injuries are one of the three key factors contributing to 75 percent of homelessness, no matter what the job.

Hockey players who suffer brain injuries severe enough to go through the NHL’s concussion protocol experience a higher rate of professional and financial instability, a new study claims.

A study published this past March in The Journal of Neurotrauma examined over 2,000 NHL players from the 2008-2009 season through 2016-2017.

The study concluded that 64 percent, or 198 of the 309 players who had been through the league’s concussion protocol between 2008 and 2017 were no longer playing in the NHL three seasons later, following their injury. That number grew to 85 percent after five seasons.

The study found that NHLers played an average of 2.1 full seasons after going through concussion protocol for the first time.

The study also revealed that concussed players experienced a mean loss of $390,000 per year in their next contract after their injury.