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NFL

Report: NHL not interested in settling concussion lawsuit

By FoxSports
Published | Updated
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TAMPA, FL - JUNE 03: NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman speaks to the media before Game One of the 2015 NHL Stanley Cup Final between the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Chicago Blackhawks at Amalie Arena on June 3, 2015 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

Players from the NFL and NHL have both launched lawsuits against their respective leagues for failing to properly educate and protect players in relation to the long-term effects of concussions, but while the NFL settled their suit out of court, a recent report from Yahoo! Sports suggests the NHL will not do the same.

Yahoo! acquired an internal NHL memo which outlined exactly how the NHL feels about any settlement talks.

"While recent signals suggest plaintiffs are anxious to begin settlement discussions (similar to what transpired in the NFL), we have indicated to them no desire to engage in such discussions, primarily because we feel so strongly in the merits of our case and the leadership role (among all sports leagues) we have taken in the study, prevention, diagnosis and management of concussions."

The rest of the excerpt from the memo is available at Yahoo! Sports.

The memo shows that the NHL claimed plaintiffs in the concussion lawsuit (the NHL players) do not have any evidence to back up their claims about the league's negligence regarding concussions. That attitude by the NHL is similar to a comment made by NHL commisssioner Gary Bettman back in the spring when he stated he does not believe there is a direct link between concussions and chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a brain disease causing memory loss, mood problems and a variety of other issues. CTE has been found in the brains of numerous deceased athletes, many of whom were involved in highly physical roles in the NFL or NHL.

Yahoo!'s report comes less than two weeks after the death of former hockey player Todd Ewen, who died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. Ewen's family reportedly decided to donate his brain to concussion researchers in Canada following his death.

(h/t Yahoo! Sports)

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