The way Mary-Kay Messier sees it, for too long the only criteria for whether a helmet deserved to be worn by NHL players was “how it made them look in the mirror.”
“And I think that’s still the case with a lot of players at the (NHL) level,” said Messier, the sister of Hall of Famer Mark Messier. “But we’re trying to educate and change all that.”
Enter “The Messier Project” — a family venture in which the evangelism is to better protect the head from brain injury. The Messiers have a product to sell in accomplishing that — the M11 helmet, which came on the market last year and has already converted more than 450 youth and college teams across North America, including Harvard and St. Lawrence. Talks between the Messiers and the University of Denver have taken place, to the point the family is optimistic of a partnership next season.
So far, only a handful of NHL players are using the M11, one of them being the Avalanche’s David Koci. That, Messier said, probably has to do with NHL players’ hesitance to wear anything that might single them out in a macho sport as needing “special” protection.
“We know that, but we feel that needs to change and we feel it will change with better education, and starting at the youth level is the way to do that,” she said.
Koci, the Avs’ heavyweight enforcer, is not concerned about others’ perceptions in wearing the helmet.
“Today’s equipment is very good and protects you very well, but I just feel more comfortable wearing that helmet,” Koci said.
The Avalanche has three players out with concussions: Peter Mueller, Kyle Quincey and Kyle Cumiskey. Captain Adam Foote returned from a concussion last week.
In the NHL and in sports overall, brain injuries have become a greater concern as athletes get bigger and faster but their arenas of play stay the same.
It was when her brother saw the incidence of concussion accelerating at the youth level, Messier said, that the “Messier Project” took hold and a business partnership to produce a safer helmet was launched.
In a recent issue of the journal “Neurosurgical Focus,” 21 concussions were diagnosed in 17 players during 52 physician-observed games in Canadian junior hockey in the 2009-10 season — 69 percent from purposeful “head shot” collisions. The NHL recently adopted a new rule — Rule 48 — which provides for tougher supplemental discipline for hits to the head coming from lateral and other blind-side areas.
The M11 helmet stands out from the others on the market, Messier said, because of a lining that better absorbs the motion energy generated from a hit to the head, and because of a patented, four-way cinch to the lining that gives a 360-degree protection — not just the front-and-back cinch of many of today’s helmets. While empirical data is still thin on the effectiveness of the helmet — which also has a more elongated back — Messier said the feedback from team clients has been “fantastic.”
“The landscape has changed,” she said. “Mark says things are so much different in today’s game than when he played. Players owe it to themselves to be protected as best they can.”
Adrian Dater: 303-954-1360 or adater@denverpost.com
San Jose at Colorado
Spotlight on Joe Thornton: The Sharks star recently served a two-game suspension for a hit to the head of St. Louis forward David Perron. The irony: Thornton has long been accused by critics of not being physical enough.
Avalanche: Peter Budaj will start in goal. . . . Regular starting goalie Craig Anderson completed a full practice Tuesday and may only be a few days from returning to the lineup. He suffered a right knee injury three weeks ago in Vancouver. . . . Defenseman Kyle Quincey (concussion) practiced and is questionable to return tonight.
Sharks: Defenseman Douglas Murray (lower-body injury) is questionable. . . . The Sharks are 4-0-1 in their last five games and coming off a 6-3 win over Western Conference-leading Los Angeles at home.
Adrian Dater, The Denver Post
