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Mental Health in The NHL

  • Writer: Sam Deichsel
    Sam Deichsel
  • Oct 21, 2024
  • 4 min read

Updated: Apr 25

This report will focus on how the NHL and NHLPA support their players', staff's, and fans' mental health through the available support programs. In doing so, it will touch on programs offered such as the Buffalo Sabres’ “The Sabres Foundation”, teams' involvement with “Hockey Talks” and the NHLPA’s “First Line” program.


NHL Team's Foundations

Several NHL teams have local foundations to support the local youth, mental health and more. The Sabres Foundation supports organizations in Western New York. Exploring initiatives such as helping children, the sick, physically and mentally challenged athletes and supporting youth hockey initiatives. (Buffalo Sabres Foundation, n.d.). The Buffalo Sabres Foundation supports Western New Yorkers’ lives and how they can support those in need. They have donations, charities, and events such as their 50/50 raffle. Another one is the Blackhawks Foundation. The Chicago Blackhawks Foundation works to create a more secure world for children and families across Chicago. By providing access to resources that make a positive impact, the organization helps Chicago’s youth and local families in need and growing the game of hockey (Blackhawks Foundation, n.d.). Similar to the Buffalo Sabres’ foundation, the Blackhawks Foundation supports the people in Chicago and how they can support those in need. The Blackhawks have a specific foundation called ”Support West” and “One West Side,” which supports people from the Westside of Chicago. In addition, a tweet posted on X shows how another foundation, the Blue Jackets Foundation, is helping support a foundation with its 50/50 raffle. The donations to the 50/50 raffle go directly to the John & Matthew Gaudreau Foundation (Columbus Blue Jackets, 2024, Oct 3).


Hockey Talks

Hockey Talks is an initiative where NHL teams raise awareness about mental health and offer the opportunity for fans to get involved through social media. Teams dedicate a home game to supporting mental health. Fans are encouraged to use the #HockeyTalks on social media to support mental health. The initiative was started by the Vancouver Canucks in 2013 in memory of Rick Rypien, a former Canuck who fought depression (Hockey Talks Mental Health Awareness, n.d.). Likewise, a video posted on X shows how the Calgary Flames players and staff talk about mental health, the importance of speaking out about your struggles and supporting those who are struggling. Calgary Flames player Mikael Backlund states, “It’s essential that we take care of each other and make sure everyone is in a good place...” (Calgary Flames, 2024, Jan 23). Similarly, Krenn (2024) discusses how the Tampa Bay Lightning have backed the #HockeyTalks initiative, where players like Tyler Motte have emphasized mental health struggles and support. Motte, after struggling with depression for several years, noted that “it's a day-to-day process. You keep working at it and things do get easier. You become more equipped to handle tough times and the bad days. Hopefully, you can help others that are feeling the same way.” Motte states that reaching out was the best decision he made, and he urges others to do the same.


NHLPA's First Line Program

The NHLPA created “First Line” in collaboration with Opening Minds and Mental Health Commission of Canada in January 2024. First Line helps players no longer feel isolated or intimidated to talk to others about their struggles. This is done by creating a safe environment for players to speak out, whether it is in a dressing or workout room, or team bus. “No player should feel intimidated when another player comes up and speaks to them about what they might be going through,” according to former hockey player Jay Harrison (Burnside, 2024). Furthermore, during a dark time, such as COVID-19, multiple members of the hockey community struggled with their mental health. One player says, “I don’t think fans realize what an emotional toll the bubble took on some guys – the isolation, grind, being away from families and loved ones during a stressful time.” Some players believe that fans don’t understand the struggles of being a professional athlete. The NHLPA executive, Mathieu Schneider, agrees (Kaplan, 2021). That mindset of fans contributes to the reason professional athletes are afraid to speak out about their struggles. In addition, several NHL players have shown their support for the First Line program by participating in the training, such as Blake Wheeler, Mikael Backlund and Chris Kreider. Backlund states, “My First Line experience was good, I thought we had a good meeting, I talked to my teammates afterwards and they were all positive about the meeting, felt like we learned a lot” (NHLPA, 2024, Jan 10).


In summary, mental health in the NHL is being supported by initiatives such as foundations by teams, teams’ using “Hockey Talks” and the First Line program by the NHLPA. In doing so, these initiatives make players, staff, and fans feel seen and heard about their struggles.

References

Blackhawks Foundation. (n.d.). Chicago Blackhawks. Retrieved from https://www.nhl.com/blackhawks/community/foundation/

Buffalo Sabres Foundation. (n.d.). Buffalo Sabres. Retrieved from

Burnside. S. (2024). First Line: Players Looking Out for Each Other Off the Ice. NHLPA.

Calgary Flames. (2024, January 23). Mental Health Matters [Tweet]. X.

Columbus Blue Jackets. (2024, October 3). It’s our last home preseason game... [Tweet] X. https://x.com/bluejacketsnhl/status/1841828014037897608?s=46&t=pZsCA2EnETAkM-

gCmvPyQA (not sure why the link does not work)

Hockey Talks Mental Health Awareness. (n.d.). Foundry. Retrieved from

Kaplan. E. (2021). The NHL’s Struggles with Mental Health This Season: How Players are

Krenn. C. (2024). Lightning Players on the Importance of Mental Health. Tampa Bay Lightning. Retrieved from https://www.nhl.com/lightning/news/tampa-bay-lightning-players-on-the-importance-of-mental-health

NHLPA. (2024, January 10). First Line: Mikael Backlund & Blake Wheeler [Video File].


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