Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injuries in Professional Hockey Players

Abstract

Most players are able to return to play in the NHL after an ACL injury. However, career length and performance may be significantly decreased compared with controls. This may represent a more severe initial injury, and more focused return-to-play pathways may identify barriers to return to play.

Eighty-three per cent of elite athletes return to preinjury sport after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction: a systematic review with meta-analysis of return to sport rates, graft rupture rates and performance outcomes

“…French alpine skiers who were younger at the time of injury were more likely to improve their performance after returning to sport 36. Playing position was not a significant determinant of returning to sport in American football,33 women’s basketball32 or women’s college soccer,39 but Sikka et al 37 found that NHL defenders were more likely to return to their previous level of performance than forwards and wings.…”

“…However, college athletes injured during their fourth or fifth years at college were less likely to return to sport,21 39 and NHL players injured after turning 30 years of age were less likely to return to play at least one full season 37. French alpine skiers who were younger at the time of injury were more likely to improve their performance after returning to sport 36.…”

“…Seven of these studies measured overall athletic performance using the following: the number of competition medals won by alpine skiers36 and freestyle skiers and snowboarders,24 International Ski Federation (FIS) rankings and points for alpine skiers,36 the number of All-Star team selections for National Basketball Association (NBA)27 and National Hockey League (NHL)37 players and formulated ratings for players in the NBA18 and the National Football League (NFL) 19 38. Eight studies measured performance with various individual statistics, including games played per season,18 22 23 25 27 32 37 38 touchdown passes made by NFL quarterbacks,38 goals scored by soccer23 and ice hockey players,22 37 home runs scored by baseball players25 and shooting percentages among basketball players 18 27 32.…”

“…Sikka et al 37 found that forwards and wings who underwent ACL reconstruction did not return to their preinjury level of performance and did not perform as well as players in the control group, while defenders improved their plus-minus rating in their second season after returning to sport and performed comparably with players in the control group. Erickson et al 22 reported that performance did not deteriorate after ACL reconstruction, and some performance measures improved compared with those of the control group.…”

Return to Play Following Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction

“…19 National Basketball Association basketball players have shown to have a return to sport of 84.6% and a significant decrease in the number of games played in seasons 1 to 3 years after ACLR, although at 3 years they returned to their preinjury player efficiency rating. 20 The overall return to sport for National Collegiate Athletic Association Southeastern Conference women soccer players was 85%.…”