An end for Ivanans(?), and the dangers of concussions from fighting.

Raitis Ivanans of the Calgary Flames

Tying into some of my earlier thoughts on the mental and emotional effect on hockey players that concussions cause and exacerbate, I would like to delve a little further into that subject with a particular case that is very current but seems to have drawn little to no attention. The case regards of one of my favorite NHL enforcers, Calgary Flames forward, Raitis Ivanans.

Fighting in hockey. I have seen the pros and cons of it for many years, but I have always considered myself "Pro-Fighting" when it comes to fisticuffs being allowed in the game. I agree with the moniker; "Let the players police the game and themselves". Fighting holds would-be cheap-shot artists accountable for their actions. If you are going to deliver an elbow to the head, or decide to be an idiot and go for a knee-to-knee hit on an opposing player, then you SHOULD have to receive your comeuppance and pay a price for your actions. Hockey can quite often be a game of karma; what goes around comes around. And oftentimes, it does not always seem that time in the penalty-box or a temporary suspension without pay can make up for an underhanded act performed on a player that could forever be a detriment to both their career and their livelihood.

Raitis Ivanans, while with the Los Angeles Kings,
delivering a punch to Aaron Johnson of Calgary

There is the much argued and much maligned fighting instigator-rule. Ennacted in 1992, the rule used to dissuade fighting gives the player who starts the fight an additional 2-minute penalty for instigating, thus potentially putting his team shorthanded.  If the instigator-rule were to be abolished it would ensure that a player, likely a team's enforcer, could exact retribution on the opposing player who committed an offense without the fear of putting his team at a disadvantage for his actions. The guilty party would receive what is coming to him and would likely refrain from committing any further offenses. This would mean that players like Matt Cooke, Patrick Kaleta, Jarkko Ruutu, Sean Avery and Steve Downie, all of whom are widely considered "dirty" players would be held accountable for their actions. Knowing that they would have to tangle with the likes of imposing giants such as George Parros, John Scott, Jody Shelley, Brian McGrattan and Raitis Ivanans would act as a major deterrent for these "dirty" players when having to pay the price for their actions. And in theory, the game would be much "cleaner" and there would be far less instances of long-term and/or career-threatening injuries taking place due to one player intending to do harm to another. Less hits from behind, less overzealous stickwork, less instances intended bodily harm. The players police themselves and keep anyone from getting badly hurt by a cheapshot. Fighting serves a necessary purpose.

I have long agreed with that philosophy, and I know that the players in the game who are inclined to drop the gloves realize the risk involved. They are grown men, they are "big boys", and they know that there is always a chance of serious injury. But when that serious injury actually takes place, and that player not only misses playing time but is also out of work on a long-term basis and has ongoing major health-issues after the initial injury, the question that has to be asked is "was it really worth it?". Was it worth it to go toe-to-toe in order to avenge a violation of the sacred "code of conduct" in a hockey game? So a agitator slashed one of our finesse players - is the act of retribution worth the same price as a concussion that may prevent a player from ever playing the game again? When I look at Raitis Ivanans of the Calgary Flames, I do not know if I can truly justify fighting anymore, at least not to myself.

Strong arms of Raitis Ivanans

Raitis Ivanans is a giant and one of the fiercest and most intimidating enforcers there is. The most recent statistics that I saw on him listed him at 6'4" and weighing 240lbs. He has trimmed down a bit if that is the case, for I remember early in his career he weighed in at 265lbs., and was the heaviest player in the NHL; even heavier than the largest player in the League, Zdeno Chara. Ivanans has arms the size of Redwood tree trunks that look as if he could crush someone's skull with a single squeeze. The sight of him alone would be a major deterrent for most to stay away from doing harm to any one of his teammates. Ivanans is also one of the very few players to ever make it the NHL from the small country of Latvia.

After going undrafted, Ivanans was signed by the Montreal Canadiens where he played but 4-games, perhaps largely due to an injury during the 2005-06 season. In Raitis' very first NHL game, he fought fellow giant Zdeno Chara while Chara was still playing for the Ottawa Senators, and sustained a broken orbital bone after Chara threw a late punch once Ivanans was down. That summer, Ivanans would sign on with the Los Angeles Kings where he has played the bulk of his career. In all, Raitis Ivanans played four full seasons with the Kings, appearing in over 270-games while recording well over 500-penalty-minutes. Ivanans garnered (though it would not be that difficult for him to do so, due to size alone) a reputation as one of the most feared enforcers in the NHL.

Ivanans fighting Steve MacIntyre.
This is the fight that gave him
a severe concussion.

In the summer of 2010, Ivanans would leave Los Angeles for the Western Conference rival Calgary Flames, after signing a new 2-year contract. To this day, Ivanans has only played one single game as a Flame. I remember watching that very game and have not forgotten it. My wife and I were on honeymoon in Montreal in early October 2010, right at the start of hockey season. After a day of sightseeing, we returned to the hotel and I put a hockey game on the television. The game happened to be another "Battle of Alberta", as provincial rivals the Edmonton Oilers and Ivanans' Calgary Flames were playing each other. In the third-period, Ivanans squared-off with the Oilers' giant, Steve MacIntyre, who is listed even somewhat larger than Ivanans, at 6'5" and 250lbs. I was actually quite excited to see these two heavyweights drop the gloves. That was until the fight got underway. MacIntyre certainly got the better of the fight by landing about seven straight shots to the left-side Ivanans' face, while Raitis got only a few shots in. Seven hard shots to the face may have done a fair amount of damage in and of themselves, but it was the eighth punch that was the most damaging and most horrific to see. When MacIntyre caught him with that eighth and final haymaker, Ivanans slumped to the ice immediately. The first thought through my mind was, "Oh no, this is bad. He is in trouble". I think that everyone watching the game realized it as well, and the announcers duly noted it too, as medical training personnel hurried to assist Ivanans on the ice. Ivanans was practically knocked cold and badly concussed.

That was the last game that Ivanans has played in the NHL, as he has been out for over a year making efforts to recover from a debilitating concussion which was a direct result of the fight with MacIntyre. At 32-years of age, Ivanans isn't getting any younger, and he hasn't played for more than half of his 2-year contract with the Flames which is scheduled to run out at the end of this season. I can only imagine the large amount of frustration and stress that a longterm injury such as this must be putting on Ivanans. Recovering from a concussion is a lengthy process that has no definitive end of recovery time. There are good days and bad days of the symptoms involved (i.e. sensitivity to light, depression, irritability, headaches, etc.), not to mention the sense of not being able to work and competing with your teammates. It is my fear that Ivanans could never fully return from this injury in being the same player that he once was, and even a worse fear should he fall into the same struggles that afflicted fellow tough-guys Derek Boogaard, Wade Belak and Rick Rypien.

Raitis Ivanans

However, there is some very bright news which came about just recently on 10/20, as it was announced that Calgary had assigned Ivanans to their AHL affiliate, the Abbotsford Heat. Even better was the fact that Ivanans was able to play in his first hockey in over a year and already has a couple of games under his belt with the Heat, after a long, long recovery from his concussion. Regardless of this excellent news, who is to say that Ivanans' playing career and life will ever truly be the same, and whether or not he will ever make it back into the NHL. One concussion, especially a serious one, usually makes a player more prone to additional concussions down the road. And not being a skilled player makes Ivanans' role with a hockey club extremely limited. It is inspiring to see that Ivanans is moving forward and returning to the game, but has the concussion gotten the better of him and has it already made a lasting imprint and done its damage? For Raitis Ivanans sake, it is my sincere hope that with all of the recent attention to concussions and the emotional and mental strain that they can cause, that he will have all of the assistance and support he needs in returning to hockey permanently.