NHL Legend Tells a ‘Concussion Story’ About Domestic Violence

[Sensitive content: This article mentions domestic violence. If you or someone you know is a victim of domestic abuse, please call the National Domestic Violence hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE.]

During his 19 seasons in the National Hockey League, Trevor Linden racked up a long list of injuries, including cracked ribs and torn cartilage that famously didn’t stop him from taking to the ice during the 1994 Stanley Cup finals.

It’s no surprise, then, to hear him talk about being clobbered on the side of the head, with the onset of confusion, pain, mood swings and debilitating headaches that followed the blow.

“But this isn’t my story,” the NHL All-Star says in a dramatic new public service announcement for YWCA Metro Vancouver.

It’s a woman’s experience with an intimate partner attack, chronicled as part of an awareness-building campaign from Rethink that coincides with the current high-profile NHL Playoffs.

“Concussion Story,” which intentionally redirects the video, points out that traumatic head injuries are often discussed in hockey circles and among other athletes, both professional and amateur. But there’s a lesser-known fact and a broader problem, per YWCA research: For every NHL concussion, more than 7,000 women in Canada are estimated to suffer the same injury at the hands of an intimate partner.

Concussions are the leading cause of brain injury in Canada, while at the same time, intimate partner violence remains a taboo topic, often going unreported and untreated, per the nonprofit group. Its data shows that 290,000 women, girls and gender-diverse victims experience intimate partner violence each year in Canada, causing 92% of their traumatic brain injuries. 

The campaign aims to “bring attention to a need for increased research, better pathways for treatment and more support” for the women, girls and gender-diverse victims, according to Amy Juschka, director of communications and advocacy at YWCA Metro Vancouver.

It made sense to use hockey, an obsession in Canada, as an attention-grabbing hook, per the organization and its creative team.

“In sports, concussions happen on prime time live TV with millions of people watching,” Morgan Tierney, partner and executive creative director at Rethink, said in a statement. “We wanted to draw parallels to those publicized injuries as a reminder of what’s happening every day behind closed doors.” 

Linden, the beloved former Vancouver Canucks player and president of hockey operations, completed the picture as the video’s star, creatives said.

“To make the misdirect land, we had to ensure that the story rang true when read from either perspective,” Tierney said.

Linden called the domestic violence statistics “extremely eye-opening,” with the campaign’s goal of sparking “real, lasting and meaningful change.”

Stepped-up awareness of concussions in sports has meant significant changes such as more protective equipment and updated rules of the game. “NHL players have access to some of the best medical resources,” Linden said in a statement, “but thousands of women may not have that same access.”

“Concussion Story” will air in English and French on TV and social, with donated screen time from the CBC and Sportsnet.