Editing Ice hockey (section)

== Injury ==
Ice hockey is a full-contact sport and carries a high risk of injury. Players are moving at speeds around approximately {{convert|20|–|30|mph|-1|abbr=on}} and much of the game revolves around the physical contact between the players. Skate blades, hockey sticks, shoulder contact, hip contact, and hockey pucks can all potentially cause injuries. [[Lace bite]], an irritation felt on the front of the foot or ankle, is a common ice hockey injury.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Levitsky |first1=Matthew M. |last2=Vosseller |first2=James Turner |last3=Popkin |first3=Charles A. |date=March 9, 2020 |title=Lace bite: A review of tibialis anterior tendinopathy in ice hockey players |journal=Translational Sports Medicine |volume=3 |issue=4 |pages=296–299 |doi=10.1002/tsm2.152 |s2cid=216389138 |issn=2573-8488 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

[[File:Injury, Montreal Canadiens 3, Ottawa Senators 4, Centre Bell, Montreal, Quebec (29439896364).jpg|thumb|An injured skater being attended to after hitting the endboards. Because ice hockey is a full-contact sport, and involves players moving at high speeds, injuries can occur during play.]]

Compared to athletes who play other sports, ice hockey players are at higher risk of [[overuse injuries]] and injuries caused by [[early sports specialization]] by teenagers.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Feeley|first1=Brian T.|last2=Agel|first2=Julie|last3=LaPrade|first3=Robert F.|date=January 2016|title=When Is It Too Early for Single Sport Specialization?|journal=The American Journal of Sports Medicine|volume=44|issue=1|pages=234–241|doi=10.1177/0363546515576899|issn=1552-3365|pmid=25825379|s2cid=15742871 }}</ref>

According to the Hughston Health Alert, prior to the widespread use of helmets and face cages, "Lacerations to the head, scalp, and face are the most frequent types of injury [in hockey]."<ref name="hughston.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.hughston.com/a-hockey.aspx|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160822231059/http://www.hughston.com/a-hockey.aspx|archive-date=August 22, 2016|title=Ice Hockey Injuries|publisher=Hughston Clinic}}</ref>

One of the leading causes of head injury is body checking from behind. Due to the danger of delivering a check from behind, many leagues – including the NHL – have made this a major and game misconduct penalty. Another type of check that accounts for many of the player-to-player contact concussions is a check to the head resulting in a misconduct penalty (called "head contact"). In recent years, the NHL has implemented new rules which penalize and suspend players for illegal checks to the heads, as well as checks to unsuspecting players. Studies show that ice hockey causes 44.3% of all sports-related traumatic brain injuries among Canadian children.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Cusimano|first1=Michael D.|last2=Cho|first2=Newton|last3=Amin|first3=Khizer|last4=Shirazi|first4=Mariam|last5=McFaull|first5=Steven R.|last6=Do|first6=Minh T.|last7=Wong|first7=Matthew C.|last8=Russell|first8=Kelly|date=March 28, 2013|editor-last=Mendelson|editor-first=John E.|title=Mechanisms of Team-Sport-Related Brain Injuries in Children 5 to 19 Years Old: Opportunities for Prevention|journal=PLOS ONE|volume=8|issue=3|pages=e58868|doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0058868|issn=1932-6203|pmc=3610710|pmid=23555602|bibcode=2013PLoSO...858868C|doi-access=free }}</ref>

Some teams in the [[Switzerland|Swiss]] [[National League (ice hockey)|National League]] are testing out systems that combine helmet-integrated sensors and analysis software to reveal a player's ongoing brain injury risk during a game. These sensors provide players and coaches with real-time data on head impact strength, frequency, and severity.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Nagalwade |first=Vidya |date=2023-04-01 |title=Smart helmets to protect against head trauma |url=https://www.techexplorist.com/smart-helmets-protect-against-head-trauma/58321/ |access-date=2023-09-04 |website=Tech Explorist }}</ref> Furthermore, if the app determines that a particular impact has the potential to cause brain injury, it will alert the coach who can in turn seek medical attention for the individual.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-03-31 |title=Smart hockey helmet assesses players' knocks to the noggin |url=https://newatlas.com/health-wellbeing/bearmind-impact-sensing-hockey-helmet/ |access-date=2023-09-04 |website=New Atlas }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Carron |first=Cécilia |date=2023-03-31 |title=Smart helmets to prevent head trauma |url=https://actu.epfl.ch/news/smart-helmets-to-prevent-head-trauma/ }}</ref>