Economic burden of time lost due to injury in NHL hockey players

OBJECTIVE: To determine the economic burden of salary costs lost due to injury in the National Hockey League (NHL). METHODS: All NHL players who engaged in at least one regular season game during the 2009-2010 to 2011-2012 seasons comprised the study population. We performed a retrospective cross-sectional analysis of publically available media sources to collect injury and salary data. Outcome measurements were games missed during regular season play due to hockey-related injury and lost salary. RESULTS: A total of 50.9% of all NHL players missed at least one game within a season of play, and injuries represented a total salary cost of approximately US$218 million per year. Concussions alone amounted to a salary loss of US$42.8 million a year. Head/neck injuries and leg/foot injuries were the most expensive in terms of overall cost, while head/neck and shoulder injuries had the highest mean cost. CONCLUSIONS: NHL players commonly miss time due to injury, which creates a substantial burden in lost salary costs.