CTE, Chronic traumatic encephalopathy in CFL, NFL & NHL vets

[WestCoastJoe]

I've put this article in the CFL forum, since Carl Hairston is with the Lions, and the issues being dealt with in the NFL also concern the CFL.

http://www.theprovince.com/sports/footb ... z2Bp9zjHbK

Lions assistant coach joins ex-players suing NFL

By Ed Willes, The ProvinceNovember 9, 2012

Lions defensive line coach Carl Hairston says he has been lucky compared to many former NFL players he knows.

Carl Hairston understands he’s one of the lucky ones because, after 14 years in the NFL, his head is clear and he can stand on the B.C. Lions’ practice field without much pain.

As for others of his generation, well, the sports world is familiar with the stories of Mike Webster, Andre Waters, Dave Duerson and too many others. Those men were Hairston’s contemporaries. Some were his friends.

This is why his name is attached to a lawsuit against the NFL and why more than 3,500 former players are suing the league in an action that could shake the world’s richest professional sports league to its foundation.

“I’ve been lucky,” says Hairston, the Lions’ defensive line coach. “I only had two surgeries. I know guys who’ve had 12 or 13. It’s hard to see what guys are going through. It really bothers me. I can’t do anything about it but make people aware.”

He continues:

“I knew Mike [Webster, the former Pittsburgh Steelers centre who suffered from acute depression, became homeless and died at 50]. I think about those guys a lot, wondering what they’d be doing if they were still in football, if they were still alive.”

And so he’s decided to fight for those who can no longer fight for themselves.

Hairston, a Pro Bowl defensive end with the Eagles and Browns through the 1970s and ’80s, is the lead name in one of the 170 or so suits filed by former NFL players, now being heard in Judge Anita Brody’s courtroom in Philadelphia.

Loosely stated, the former players are alleging the NFL knew the risks associated with long-term head traumas and “fraudulently concealed” players from the effects of concussions.

Helmet manufactuer Riddell is a co-defendant in the suit.

That, at least, is the abridged version of the complaint. For the more detailed version, you’re invited to visit the NFL Concussion Litigation website, where a complete list of the suits and the accompanying court documents can be found.

“This is something that should be done, something I feel strongly about,” said Gene Locks, one of the lawyers acting for the former players and a former Ivy League quarterback at Princeton.

Locks was asked what he hopes will result from the lawsuit.

“That the [NFL] will stand up to be counted; that they’ll examine everyone and provide people with the medical and psychological help they need.”

The dollar value of that goal is uncertain, but if each player sued for $500,000 and won, the total settlement would be $17.5 billion, give or take a billion. As such, the case could take a decade to decide.

The list of plaintiffs is remarkable, a kids’ football card collection come to life. On Hairston’s lawsuit, you can find names like Billy Joe Dupree, the former Cowboys tight end; Jacob Green, one of the all-time great Seahawks; Jim Jeffcoat, another former Cowboy; and all-namer Fair Hooker, a receiver with the Browns. There are about 170 of those suits, all with their own names evoking memories of gridiron gods and larger-than-life figures.

But Hairston will tell you they weren’t gods he played with and against. They were men, mortal men who played a dangerous game and now are seeing the bill come due for their careers.

One of those men is Lions’ personnel director Roy Shivers, who played with the Cardinals in the late ’60s and early ’70s.

He’s asked how his body has held up.

“My knees hurt every morning,” he says. “Everything hurts. When the weather changes my body changes.”

Shivers is due for his second knee replacement over the Christmas holidays. And he also knows he’s lucky compared to some of his former colleagues.

Hairston, a disciple of former Eagles coach Dick Vermeil, coached in the NFL for two decades after his playing career ended and came north this season after Randy Melvin, who held the position last year, returned to the NFL. One of the players who’s shone under his tutelage is defensive end Keron Williams, who led the CFL with 12 sacks this year.

Williams is 28. This is his seventh season in the CFL. He’s asked if he ever thinks about what awaits him in retirement.

“There’s always going to be a price to pay for what we put into this game,” he says. “We can’t really dwell on how our bodies are going to react down the road. That will make you depressed. I’ve heard all the stories. It’s coming for me, but I’m not thinking about that.”

And who knows? Like his coach, he might be one of the lucky ones.

[WestCoastJoe]

Yup. This is no small deal. The NFL and helmet manufacturer Riddell are being sued in regard to concussions suffered by players.

It seems there is still some doubt about how to deal with the head hit issue in the CFL. IMO the penalties should be tougher, the rules should be adjusted, and the rules should be enforced more fully.

Players are being taught long before they are pros to hit with their helmets. Just the way Brandon Isaac leads with his helmet and contacts the other player's head (Buck Pierce, Marco Iannuzzi).

Sometimes it is only lawsuits that bring about change.

It seems this suit in the NFL has the potential to almost bankrupt the league.

IMO the NHL (along with the NFL and the CFL) should also be very concerned, and should be more proactive before its livehihood is jeopardized.

Hairston, a Pro Bowl defensive end with the Eagles and Browns through the 1970s and ’80s, is the lead name in one of the 170 or so suits filed by former NFL players, now being heard in Judge Anita Brody’s courtroom in Philadelphia.

Loosely stated, the former players are alleging the NFL knew the risks associated with long-term head traumas and “fraudulently concealed” players from the effects of concussions.

Helmet manufactuer Riddell is a co-defendant in the suit.

[WestCoastJoe]

http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/23/sport/nfl ... ?hpt=hp_t3

Former football star Junior Seau's family sues NFL, Riddell helmets

By Michael Martinez, CNN

updated 4:09 PM EST, Wed January 23, 2013

Los Angeles (CNN) -- Former linebacker Junior Seau's family sued the National Football League on Wednesday, claiming his suicide last May was the result of a brain disease caused by violent hits he endured playing the game, the lawsuit said.

Last year, Seau, 43, committed suicide in his bedroom in Oceanside, California, with a gunshot wound to the chest, prompting speculation about whether repeated hits to his helmet over his 20-year pro career could have been a contributing factor.

Earlier this month, Seau was determined to have chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a neurodegenerative brain disease that can follow multiple hits to the head, the National Institutes of Health said.

The lawsuit, filed in San Diego County Superior Court, accuses the NFL and helmet manufacturer Riddell Inc. of wrongful death, but doesn't specify a figure for compensatory and punitive damages. The suit also alleges fraud, negligence and concealment.

The NFL could not be immediately reached for comment.

Riddell Inc. has not yet seen the lawsuit and said it wasn't appropriate to comment on pending litigation, the firm said in a statement.

"We are confident in the integrity of our products and our ability to successfully defend our products against challenges," the company said.

The lawsuit was filed by Seau's children -- sons Tyler, Jake and Hunter and daughter Sydney, all of California -- and Gina Seau, who is the parent of Jake and Hunter, both of whom are minors. Junior Seau's estate also is a plaintiff.

"We were saddened to learn that Junior, a loving father and teammate, suffered from CTE," the family said in a statement.

"We know this lawsuit will not bring back Junior. But it will send a message that the NFL needs to care for its former players, acknowledge its decades of deception on the issue of head injuries and player safety, and make the game safer for future generations," the family said.

More than 1,500 former NFL players are suing the NFL, alleging the league hid the dangers of concussions from them.

Seau was one of a string of high-profile NFL players -- along with Dave Duerson, Shane Dronett and Shane Easterling -- who took their own lives and were later diagnosed with CTE.

Not everyone who is exposed to repeated head trauma would develop the disease, experts say.

CTE can result in Alzheimer's-like symptoms such as dementia, memory loss, aggression and depression, but it can be diagnosed only after death.

Seau's family donated his brain to the NIH for research, and this month it released a statement saying "abnormalities were found that are consistent with a form of (CTE)."

According to the NIH's pathology report, five researchers -- two NIH neuropathologists and three independent experts -- examined slides of Seau's brain and all confirmed that there were signs consistent with CTE. None of the researchers was aware of the identity of the brain when initially looking at it.

In a recent study, researchers found CTE in 34 of 35 deceased NFL players whose brains were donated by family members.

A brain with CTE is riddled with dense clumps of a protein called tau. Under a microscope, tau appears as brown tangles similar to dementia. However, the Boston study showed this progressive, tau protein array in football players much too young for a dementia diagnosis, which typically occurs in people in their 70s or 80s.

This issue has legs. In the NFL. In the CFL. In the NHL.

Head shots. What is allowed by the rules. What is allowed by non calls.

Some will say, as in the comments with the article, that these guys chose this profession (Lots of broadcasting, not much reception). True. But IMO this kind of lawsuit, and related ones, will eventually change the rules of football to a less violent game. Especially in regard to head shots. For better or worse? I recognize that some people don't want to take hitting out of the game.

Not looking for argument or debate. We all have our opinions. No one changes opinions based on website discussion.

[KnowItAll]

this is stupid. its like soldiers trying to sue the army and govt because they got seriously hurt in a war zone. Its not tiddly winks out there. Players know that there is high risk of both short term and long term injury, sometimes serious, yet they still choose to play. Often it is the players who hide injuries and or ignore medical advice that choose to go onto the field when they have no business doing so. Football leagues are forever trying their best to find better ways, rules and equiptment, to protect the players as much as possible. Fact remains, if you choose to risk life and limb to make millions in a short time, then you the player, in the end, are the most responsible. No one holds a gun to their head and makes them play It will never be purrfect. Football cannnot be played in a bubble, unless you want to completely wrap the players in bubble rap.

[sj-roc]

http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/23/sport/nfl ... ?hpt=hp_t3

CTE can result in Alzheimer's-like symptoms such as dementia, memory loss, aggression and depression, but it can be diagnosed only after death.

Medical science is getting closer to breaking this posthumous barrier of diagnosis.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline ... l-players/

ESPN reporters Mark Fainaru-Wada and Steve Fainaru are writing a book about football and brain injuries, to be published in 2013 by Crown Books, a division of Random House. FRONTLINE, in partnership with ESPN’s Outside the Lines, is producing a documentary based on the reporters’ research. This article is a product of these partnerships.

New Study Finds Brain Damage in Living Ex-NFL Players

January 22, 2013, 2:09 pm ET by Steve Fainaru and Mark Fainaru-Wada

Brain scans performed on five former NFL players revealed images of the protein that causes football-related brain damage — the first time researchers have identified signs of the crippling disease in living players.

Researchers who conducted the pilot study at UCLA described the findings as a significant step toward being able to diagnose the disease known as Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, or CTE, in living patients.

“I’ve been saying that identifying CTE in a living person is the Holy Grail for this disease and for us to be able make advances in treatment,” said Dr. Julian Bailes, co-director of NorthShore Neurological Institute in Evanston, Ill., and one of the study’s co-authors. “It’s not definitive and there’s a lot we still need to discover to help these people, but it’s very compelling. It’s a new discovery.”

Dozens of former players — including 34 who played in the NFL — have been diagnosed with CTE, a neurodegenerative disease linked to dementia, memory loss and depression. The disease, which researchers say is triggered by repeated head trauma, can be confirmed only by examining the brain after death. CTE was discovered earlier this month in the brain of former Chargers linebacker Junior Seau, who committed suicide last May by shooting himself in the chest.

The UCLA researchers used a patented brain-imaging tool to examine Fred McNeill, a 59-year-old former Vikings linebacker; Wayne Clark, a 64-year-old former back-up quarterback; and three other unidentified players: a 73-year-old former guard; a 50-year-old former defensive lineman; and a 45-year-old former center. Each had sustained at least one concussion; the center sustained 10.

CTE is caused by a buildup of tau, an abnormal protein that strangles brain cells. The scan lit up for tau in all five former players, according to the study. The protein was concentrated in areas that control memory, emotions and other functions — a pattern consistent with the distribution of tau in CTE brains that have been studied following autopsy, according to the researchers.

“The findings are preliminary — we only had five players — but if they hold up in future studies, this may be an opportunity to identify CTE before players have symptoms so we can develop preventative treatment,” said Dr. Gary W. Small, the study’s lead author and a professor of psychiatry and biobehavioral sciences at UCLA.

The findings were published Tuesday in the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry.

The study could open up new areas for CTE research — and provide additional fuel for the controversy surrounding it. The ability to diagnose CTE in living patients would raise thorny questions about the need for mandatory testing and whether players at all levels can be forced to find out if they are vulnerable to a devastating disease.

The study was funded by a $100,000 grant from the Brain Injury Research Institute, a non-profit organization founded by Bailes, Dr. Bennet Omalu, a pathologist who in 2005 identified the first case of CTE in a former NFL player, and Bob Fitzsimmons, a Wheeling, W.Va., attorney who represented late Steelers center Mike Webster, the first NFL player to be diagnosed with CTE.

Omalu, now chief medical examiner for San Joaquin (Calif.) County, is a co-author on the study.

The NFL once attacked Bailes’ and Omalu’s research and denied the link between football and CTE. The league later reversed its position and acknowledged a scientific connection between football and long-term brain damage.

Dr. Richard Ellenbogen, a Seattle neurosurgeon who serves as co-chair of the NFL’s Head, Neck and Spine Committee, described the study as “promising work,” adding the researchers were “honest about the limitations as well as being excited about the findings.”

“This is the Holy Grail if it works. This is what we’ve been waiting for, but it looks like it’s probably preliminary to say they’ve got it,” said Dr. Robert Cantu, a senior adviser to the NFL’s Head, Neck & Spine Committee and co-director of Boston University’s Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy. “But if they do have it, this is exactly what we need.”

McNeill, a first-round draft pick in 1974, played 12 seasons in Minnesota and was the subject of a 2011 Outside the Lines story. McNeill had a successful post-football career as a lawyer before being becoming afflicted by early-onset dementia. Now 60, McNeill no longer practices law and is primarily looked after by his family and professional caretakers.

Tia McNeill said Omalu contacted her a year-and-a-half ago to see about her ex-husband, Fred, participating in the UCLA study. She said she was eager to have him included and even worked to recruit other former players.

“When Dr. Omalu first called, because you hear so many stories of people committing suicide and other things, I thought, ‘Wow, if this test that can determine prior to someone’s passing they have it, absolutely, I’m all in,” she said. “And I felt it would be important to tell as many people as I could.”

Bailes, who once worked with the Pittsburgh Steelers, said the ability to make the diagnosis in living patients could provide several treatment options and help prevent the kind of suicides seen in cases like Seau and former Chicago Bears defensive back Dave Duerson. Duerson shot himself in the chest in February 2011, leaving behind a note that directed his brain be donated to research. It was later shown that Duerson suffered from CTE.

Active players who show signs of CTE could use the information to make decisions about when to retire and thus prevent further injury, according to Bailes. He said additional research involving a much larger number of players is needed before that can happen.

Bailes and Small said they have applied for several grants, including one through the National Institutes of Health. In September, the NFL donated $30 million to the NIH for brain injury research.

Another ex-player who took part in the UCLA study was Wayne Clark, a back-up quarterback with San Diego, Cincinnati and Kansas City who started five games during his 5-year career. Clark’s most-active season was 1973, when he started four games for the Chargers while splitting time with Johnny Unitas and Dan Fouts.

Clark, now 65, said in an interview that he was exposed to limited contact and sustained only one major concussion during his career. During a 1972 game at Miami, he was holding on a field-goal attempt that was blocked and was injured while trying to make the tackle.

Film of the play failed to show how the injury occurred, and Clark didn’t remember. “It was a total blackout,” he said.

Clark, who ran a Southern California video services business and officiated high school football games after his playing career ended, said he reacted with “interest, not alarm,” after being told that he had signs of CTE.

“I don’t feel like I’m suffering from any real symptoms at this point, and didn’t have any sense of anything going on except normal age-related issues,” he said. He decided to participate in the hope that “it could help other people and maybe help me.”

* An earlier version of this story identified Dr. Julian Bailes as a Chicago neurosurgeon. He is co-director of the NorthShore Neurological Institute in Evanston, Ill.

[notahomer]

Its weird too because as far as the impact or lack of effectiveness of the helmets....Seau was a defensive player. Therefore, he was a player who was much of a 'hitter' versus 'hittee'.

[WestCoastJoe]

Its weird too because as far as the impact or lack of effectiveness of the helmets....Seau was a defensive player. Therefore, he was a player who was much of a 'hitter' versus 'hittee'.

In regard to helmets, nota, it seems to me (no evidence for this opinion), that the old style leather helmets would result in fewer concussions. It seems to me the modern helmets dish out far more damage (to hitter and hittee) than they prevent. And it also seems to me that the modern helmets encourage tacklers to stick their heads in there. And I also think that the more equipment players wear, the safer they feel.

Just impressions and opinions ...

[notahomer]

Its weird too because as far as the impact or lack of effectiveness of the helmets....Seau was a defensive player. Therefore, he was a player who was much of a 'hitter' versus 'hittee'.

In regard to helmets, nota, it seems to me (no evidence for this opinion), that the old style leather helmets would result in fewer concussions. It seems to me the modern helmets dish out far more damage (to hitter and hittee) than they prevent. And it also seems to me that the modern helmets encourage tacklers to stick their heads in there. And I also think that the more equipment players wear, the safer they feel.

Just impressions and opinions ...

They maybe just your impressions and opinions, WCJ, but I don't doubt if there is some scientific evidence to back up your impressions/opinions too.

IIRC, football equipment was developed to reduce the injuries/fatalities involved but even if the equipment does its job, we as humans just end up taking more risks due to our perspective. Don Cherry and current NHL players attribute some of their concussions due to the football player type shoulder pads that many players wear. Even if the pads are helping protect the person wearing them, they may be contributing to injuring other players.....

Another example is the red light when driving. Apparently one engineer (social engeineer?) came up with the great idea of having a one second pause between it being red in one direction and turning green in the other. This one second delay was to reduce accidents, increase safety etc.... However,how long was it before late red turners were taking more/more chances simply because they knew of that one second delay?

I'm not Juniour Seau but I do genuinely wonder how he feels about all of this. No question he, like others wants the research to happen. And if improvments need to be made, great. But, you wonder if he'd actually want the NFL and/or the helmet manufacturuer to be held financially/legally accountable considering he was an active participant.

Regardless, I hope the safety of the players is improved upon whether it be via improved equipment and adaptations in the culture/technique of hits......

[WestCoastJoe]

Its weird too because as far as the impact or lack of effectiveness of the helmets....Seau was a defensive player. Therefore, he was a player who was much of a 'hitter' versus 'hittee'.

In regard to helmets, nota, it seems to me (no evidence for this opinion), that the old style leather helmets would result in fewer concussions. It seems to me the modern helmets dish out far more damage (to hitter and hittee) than they prevent. And it also seems to me that the modern helmets encourage tacklers to stick their heads in there. And I also think that the more equipment players wear, the safer they feel.

Just impressions and opinions ...

They maybe just your impressions and opinions, WCJ, but I don't doubt if there is some scientific evidence to back up your impressions/opinions too.

IIRC, football equipment was developed to reduce the injuries/fatalities involved but even if the equipment does its job, we as humans just end up taking more risks due to our perspective. Don Cherry and current NHL players attribute some of their concussions due to the football player type shoulder pads that many players wear. Even if the pads are helping protect the person wearing them, they may be contributing to injuring other players.....

Another example is the red light when driving. Apparently one engineer (social engeineer?) came up with the great idea of having a one second pause between it being red in one direction and turning green in the other. This one second delay was to reduce accidents, increase safety etc.... However,how long was it before late red turners were taking more/more chances simply because they knew of that one second delay?

I'm not Juniour Seau but I do genuinely wonder how he feels about all of this. No question he, like others wants the research to happen. And if improvments need to be made, great. But, you wonder if he'd actually want the NFL and/or the helmet manufacturuer to be held financially/legally accountable considering he was an active participant.

Regardless, I hope the safety of the players is improved upon whether it be via improved equipment and adaptations in the culture/technique of hits......

Reading your last post, nota, I am not sure from some of your words ("how he feels") that you heard that Junior Seau committed suicide in May of last year. This action is by his family.

[notahomer]

Reading your last post, nota, I am not sure from some of your words ("how he feels") that you heard that Junior Seau committed suicide in May of last year. This action is by his family.

Sorry for being confusing. Yes, I was/am aware. Suicide/mental health issues are important part of my personal/professional life (so when suicide/mental health is part of the story I follow it even more closely). I realize the legal action is being taken by his family. That is why I am curious as to how he feels even though obviously I can never know. I truly do admire the NFL vets that are taking this stand and wanting to see changes in the culture/equipment.

Due to my personal/work related opinions on suicide, I DO NOT look down upon Seau WHATSOEVER, for the choice he made last May. I don't look down upon his family for wanting this looked into. Unfortunately the language of money is the one that some people/organizations understand.

[WestCoastJoe]

Reading your last post, nota, I am not sure from some of your words ("how he feels") that you heard that Junior Seau committed suicide in May of last year. This action is by his family.

Sorry for being confusing. Yes, I was/am aware. Suicide/mental health issues are important part of my personal/professional life (so when suicide/mental health is part of the story I follow it even more closely). I realize the legal action is being taken by his family. That is why I am curious as to how he feels even though obviously I can never know. I truly do admire the NFL vets that are taking this stand and wanting to see changes in the culture/equipment.

Due to my personal/work related opinions on suicide, I DO NOT look down upon Seau WHATSOEVER, for the choice he made last May. I don't look down upon his family for wanting this looked into. Unfortunately the language of money is the one that some people/organizations understand.

I understand and sympathize with a person who commits suicide, even though I am not saying I agree with the choice of action. I did some volunteer work in that area at one time. Ending the pain is a big part of the motivation. I don't begrudge his family. Who knows? If they win, they might give it to a foundation looking for solutions. Don't know their intentions. Not my call ...

I recently read about twins in Belgium, two guys, born deaf, now going blind. In their 40s perhaps. They do not want to live if they cannot see each other. With difficulty they found a clinic that will help them end their lives. They have supportive family. I don't know how their family feels about their decision.

We judge enough. I'm not judging in these cases.

[notahomer]

...We judge enough. I'm not judging in these cases.

Me too, I agree we judge enough and I don't feel I am in these cases.... That is why I have genuine curiosity in being able to speak/share with Seau. Obviously, I can't but I would like to have those discussions with him directly (if he felt comfortable sharing). I love football and loved watching Seau play.

I'm going to follow the science and story behind these issues. I suffer from a seizure disorder so I'm well experienced in the concussion angle unfortunately too. So, I feel guilty at times because what I enjoy as entertainment (football) could possibly be having such a direct personal/medical cost on some of the players.

[WestCoastJoe]

http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/nhl/sto ... gaard.html

This thread relates to CFL, NFL and the NHL in particular. Could move it to all sports, but I guess it is OK here. (And not sure how to move the entire thread to All Sports)

One of the toughest jobs in sports has to be the old hockey enforcer. Just crank it up, go out and pound each other's noggins. UFC on ice, it seems to me.

These lawsuits are not going away quietly. More to come ... I understand it is the players' choice to participate. Same with UFC. Same with race car sports. Same with downhill skiiing. And yet team sports such as NHL hockey, NFL football, and even the CFL will continue to get hit with these lawsuits ... IMO.

NHL hockey is now kind of bizarre IMO with all the violence tolerated, and with the strange, quirky referee calls and non-calls.

NFL football, and the CFL also, will face more and more legal pressure in regard to helmet on helmet hits, and even on helmet on chest hits.

Couple of ideas:

* Bring back the old leather helmets. I am serious. I would vote for them today, if it came to that.

* If helmet hits were more clearly defined, and if it was decided that they had no place in the game (not all or even most would agree with this), then the rules could be more closely enforced, and the teaching of techniques could be modified.

Players are so huge these days. So fast. Superhero strong. Collisions are humongous. Both in hockey and football.

Anyway, IMO these type of lawsuits will be more prevalent as time goes on.

Derek Boogaard's family files lawsuit against NHL

Enforcer found dead in May 2011 after accidental overdose

CBC Sports

Posted: May 12, 2013 7:53 PM ET

Rangers forward Boogaard dead at 28Boogaard's brain donated to Boston UniversityBoogaard had brain ailment caused by blows to the head: report

Derek Boogaard's family sues NHL5:44

Joanne Boogaard watched her son Derek duke it out on the ice with other NHL tough guys for six seasons as one of the most feared enforcers in the game, a six-foot-seven brawler who was not there to skate or score, but to defend his teammates when it was called for.

"He was there protecting his teammates at all costs," she said in a statement released by her lawyers on Monday, "but who was there to protect him?"

Joanne Boogard and other family members have filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the NHL, blaming the league for brain damage her son suffered playing the game and for his addiction to prescription painkillers. Derek Boogaard died of an accidental overdose of pain medication and alcohol two years ago; his body was found on May 13, 2011.

The 28-year-old Boogaard was posthumously diagnosed with chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a degenerative brain ailment that can be caused by repeated blows to the head, according to the 55-page lawsuit filed in Cook County (Ill.) Circuit Court late Friday.

One of the attorneys who filed the lawsuit, William Gibbs, said Monday the NHL profited from Boogaard's physical abilities as team doctors dispensed "pain pills like candy" after he suffered repeated injuries.

"The NHL drafted Derek Boogaard because it wanted his massive body to fight in order to enhance ratings, earnings and exposure," Gibbs said. "Then, once he became addicted to these narcotics, the NHL promised his family that it would take care of him. It failed."

NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly told The Associated Press in an email Sunday night that league has not received the lawsuit and generally does not comment on pending litigation.

But the Chicago law firm of Corboy and Demetrio confirmed in a statement released early Monday that it has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the NHL, claiming the league "negligently causing the death of Boogaard by supplying him with excessive amounts of painkillers during his career as an 'Enforcer' and failing in its attempt to curb and cure his resulting addiction."

It is the same Chicago law firm that brought a similar case against the National Football League on behalf of the late Dave Duerson, a Chicago Bears player who killed himself in 2011.

Both Duerson and Boogaard were found to be suffering from chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a brain disease caused, researchers believe, by repeated blows to the head.

Boogaard's body was discovered on May 13, 2011, at his apartment in Minneapolis, Minn. He was adjudged to have died from an accidental overdose of prescription pain killers and alcohol.

Boogaard's family filed a lawsuit against the NHL Players' Association last September, seeking $9.8 million US, but it was dismissed this spring. The family said the union, after expressing interest in helping pursue a case against the league, missed a deadline for filing a grievance. A judge ruled the family waited too long to act and dismissed the case.

'A preventable tragedy'

Gibbs, a lawyer for the Boogaard family, said in the statement that the NHL "needs to adapt and change so that a preventable tragedy like this never happens again, adding that the lawsuit "will unearth the failed policies that have led to the demise of so many NHL fighters and bring to light the need for meaningful change in the NHL so that families, like the Boogaards, can rest easier knowing that their loved ones are safe."

No specific damages have been listed. The jury will be asked to set an amount over the minimum allowed, the Times says. The family would not comment on the suit.

At the time of his death, Boogaard had just completed his first season with the New York Rangers after signing as a free agent. He spent the first several seasons of his career with the Minnesota Wild, who drafted him in 2001.

He only played 22 times with New York, suffering a concussion after a fight in a game in early December. Born in Saskatoon, Boogaard played with Regina, Prince George and Medicine Hat while in the Western Hockey League.

'Family seeks justice'

Boogaard earned a reputation as arguably the most feared fighter in the NHL. He scored three goals and 16 points in 277 career NHL games and, according to the lawsuit, participated in at least 66 on-ice fights.

In the 2008-2009 season, Boogaard was given 1021 pills by NHL team doctors and dentists, the lawsuit alleges. And during a two-week period, Boogaard was given 150 pills of oxycodone, taking up to 10 pills per day.

"To deal with the pain, he turned to the team doctors, who dispensed pain pills like candy," Gibbs said in the statement. "Then, once he became addicted to these narcotics, the NHL promised his family that it would take care of him.

"It failed. He died. Today, his family seeks justice for the NHL's egregious failures."

[Sir Purrcival]

I am really divided on this issue. Mostly because I see this as a calculated gamble by the player who knowingly takes the chance of permanent debilitating injury and even premature death to pursue a sport.
To play in the NHL is a goal. A chance to hoist a cup, a chance to make some big money and so on. The motivation to stay in any elite league is high and we have seen across the board how much risk taking especially players on the fringe are willing to take in order to stay at the top levels of their sport. While I feel for Boogaard''s family at the same time, I wonder how much worrying they did when he was active in the league. Or how much they would be voicing their concerns if they hadn't been touched personally by this tragedy.

I guess this where I get hung up on things. Many players have been injured before Derek Boogard. Some have died early, committed suicide or suffered long term damage. We know more about it now but the results of pro sports has long been a legacy of injury, impairment and early death. And still the hopefuls come. Sort of like how I feel about smokers who like to blame tobacco companies for the ravages of smoking. It is over simplistic I know and the victim is not wholly to blame for their fate. Boogard was a tough player in a tough game. He had to be to stay. Maybe his equipment could have been better but I have to believe that generally, equipment used in the NHL by the players is the best that is available. Even so, many players do not wear mouth guards, face shields or other equipment they could to help them improve their safety. If helmets weren't mandatory, you just know that some wouldn't be wearing them. So where does the personal responsibility start and stop with this issue? I don't know but I do hope that this court case is about more than money. I suppose if there is a finding in favour of the family, maybe some changes will be made to equipment or rule enforcement. Many would quickly admit that the sized, speed and power of the game has changed hugely in the last 20 years. When your head hits the board while getting crushed by a 200 plus pound Dman, you have to wonder if any equipment would really be up to the job of protecting a head.

[WestCoastJoe]

I am really divided on this issue. Mostly because I see this as a calculated gamble by the player who knowingly takes the chance of permanent debilitating injury and even premature death to pursue a sport.
To play in the NHL is a goal. A chance to hoist a cup, a chance to make some big money and so on. The motivation to stay in any elite league is high and we have seen across the board how much risk taking especially players on the fringe are willing to take in order to stay at the top levels of their sport. While I feel for Boogaard''s family at the same time, I wonder how much worrying they did when he was active in the league. Or how much they would be voicing their concerns if they hadn't been touched personally by this tragedy.

I guess this where I get hung up on things. Many players have been injured before Derek Boogard. Some have died early, committed suicide or suffered long term damage. We know more about it now but the results of pro sports has long been a legacy of injury, impairment and early death. And still the hopefuls come. Sort of like how I feel about smokers who like to blame tobacco companies for the ravages of smoking. It is over simplistic I know and the victim is not wholly to blame for their fate. Boogard was a tough player in a tough game. He had to be to stay. Maybe his equipment could have been better but I have to believe that generally, equipment used in the NHL by the players is the best that is available. Even so, many players do not wear mouth guards, face shields or other equipment they could to help them improve their safety. If helmets weren't mandatory, you just know that some wouldn't be wearing them. So where does the personal responsibility start and stop with this issue? I don't know but I do hope that this court case is about more than money. I suppose if there is a finding in favour of the family, maybe some changes will be made to equipment or rule enforcement. Many would quickly admit that the sized, speed and power of the game has changed hugely in the last 20 years. When your head hits the board while getting crushed by a 200 plus pound Dman, you have to wonder if any equipment would really be up to the job of protecting a head.

It won't be ethics that stops any violent sport. Lawsuits might. Or they might force change.

If there were death matches, there would be willing combatants. And there would be a paying audience. But our legal system would not tolerate that.

As time goes on it seems less and less violence in sports is tolerated. That suits me as I have no interest in seeing people risk and sustain life threatening injury. I don't mind hard hitting, but truly dislike helmet hits in football and shoulder to head hits in hockey.