In hockey, the relationship between players and physicians is an intimate and special one. Almost all who play the game wind up in a doctor's care at some point in their career.
Montreal Canadiens greats including Chris Nilan, Guy Lafleur and Scotty Bowman will talk about this relationship Oct. 2 at Taverne Moderne next to the Bell Centre at Hockey 911, a fundraising event in support of the Montreal General Hospital Foundation.
NHL Hall-of-Famer Bob Gainey, like almost all who've played the game, relied on trainers' and trauma doctors' skill to mend the breaks and bruises that come with the sport.
"When there is an injury in a hockey game, it usually is a trauma injury, it's a blow or it's a crash against the boards, collision between two bodies," he said. "Somewhere, subconsciously, they know that they have great care available immediately if needed."
Director of the adult trauma program at the MUHC (McGill University Health Centre) Dr. Tarek Razek will take part and exchange war stories with the former Habs greats.
The game is in honour of the late Dr. Douglas Kinnear, a longtime physician with the Habs, who worked with the team in the '50s, '60s, and '70s. Kinnear, Razek said, symbolized the relationship between the hospital and the team.
"There's been a remarkable legacy between our hospital and the trauma program and les Canadiens de Montreal, and Doug Kinnear was one of the early docs that was involved with supporting the team for many, many years," said Razek. "We're going to honour him as an emblem of this relationship that we've had between the organizations, and his character and personality."
