Pre-Ramble:  Darn it Gary, another astonishing current event has drawn me off topic … I promise I’ll get back to the business of innovation and creativity straight away, but who can resist the bloody spectacle of Friday night’s NHL Capitals/Canadiens playoff game? (Not it at right.)

Sure, there is always a lot of action in hockey… lots of fast skating, checking, icing, sticking, sliding, sweating, slamming and stuff. The fans love it!  Friday’s game had an extra bit of excitement though, when Capital’s center Eric Belanger took a high stick to the face off the hand of Canadian defenseman Marc Andre Bergeron in the first period of Montreal’s 2-1 victory in game 5 of the playoff series.

According to AP reports, Belanger needed some “serious dental work at the arena,” in fact, he ended up losing a total of 9 teeth, even pulling one out himself on the sidelines to ready his situation for a return to the ice later in the game. Explains Belanger:

” I knew I was in trouble, but what are you going to do? It’s the playoffs.”

According to the experts at SimplyTeeth.com (grizzly photo alert there):

• The leading cause of oral injuries are sports, violence, falls and motor collisions.  … I think we’re safe to say that Belanger’s incident involves a combination of all of these. 
• A visit to the dentist is necessary following any injury to a tooth.  … Good plan.
• Follow-up treatment will likely involve a root canal procedure, as the nerve and blood vessels within the tooth have been damaged or even severed.  … So, 9 root canals?
• Mouthguards are designed to protect the teeth, gums and jaws; they should always be worn when there is a risk from injury.  … Ok.
• Mouthguards can be purchased over-the-counter at many sports shops and pharmacies, however it is preferable to have a professional mouthguard made by your dentist – it will have a better fit and will be less bulky.  … Yes, when we are dressed in full hockey gear, the last thing we need is a bulky mouthguard.

How tough is a hockey player?  So, I was sufficiently repulsed and impressed by this report and, in the name of research, felt it my bloggeristic duty to check out the spectacle for myself. I’ll spare you the video link, but suffice it to say, the guy had a mouthful of whatever and was swiftly ushered off to the sidelines.

More interesting than the replay of the event (viewed by some 71,000 fans on the YouTube site), were the random sentiments left by spectators of all ilk (semi-cleaned-up sampling): 

“Every single player in the NHL is as tough as nails… bar none!”

“Hockey is for boys, rugby is for man’s.”

“Looks like the hit pretty much took out the tooth mostly. seems like he barely tried pulling that sh*t out.”

“Tough? The tooth was already f***ed…”

“What do you call a hockey player with all his teeth?……. a rookie ”

” [referring to previous comment about how supremely tougher rugby is than hockey] … So? There is also no ice, which is harder than grass, no boards or glass, and the ball isn’t shot as hard as a puck. There is also less physical contact. Do you have trouble thinking logically or something? I don’t have all day to correct every stupid irrelevant point you make.”

“Wud be tough if he had trouble pulling it out, but it was probably already clean off in his mouth. He didn’t hafta yank it at all.”

“Hockey is stupid.”

Say it with flowers.  I guess my only question at this point is, what is the proper etiquette around hitting someone in the face with a hockey stick? Assuming it is an accidental event, which it undoubtedly is in hockey, right? … Do you respond immediately, approaching the motionless body to say “Sorry” ?  …  ”Oops” perhaps?  … Or, would you wait and send a heartfelt note of apology at a later time?  Hand-written on personalized stationery?  Is it ever acceptable to send this kind of correspondence via email?  What about flowers or a token gift?  A tin of saltwater taffy or beef-jerky is probably not appropriate — jaw-breakers, definitely out.  Suggestions?

The Take-Away:  Don’t forget to brush and floss.

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