Noted Neuroscientist Suggests Maple Leafs’ Stolarz Suffered Two Concussions in Game 1

While Stolarz appeared to take an extra moment to compose himself, Nowinski pointed to what he refers to as a “SHAAKE” (Spontaneous Headshake After A Kinematic Event), an involuntary head shake that he noted accurately predicts concussions 72% of the time. Not only did he identify one in the immediate aftermath of Stolarz taking a puck to the mask, but he pointed to another such “SHAAKE” as the netminder got ready to begin play once again.

Perhaps these were deliberate motions that Stolarz was making to shake out the cobwebs and get re-focused, but there are some potentially scary implications if he jumped from one traumatic head incident to another in such a relatively short span of time.

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Did the Maple Leafs Wait Too Long to Pull Stolarz?

Maple Leafs fans may prefer to focus on blaming Bennett for Stolarz’s murky health status, but Nowinski raised the point of whether Craig Berube and the coaching staff acted in the 31-year-old’s best interests.

Stolarz stayed in the game after taking an elbow from Bennett despite showing signs of – at the very least – being shaken up by the impact. As Nowinski points out, he remained in the crease for more than two minutes of game time before appearing to vomit once he skated over to the team bench.

At this point, Stolarz is out of the hospital and doing well and hasn’t even been ruled out of starting Game 2. Still, the fact that he was taken out of Scotiabank Arena on a stretcher does not paint a picture of a head injury that was handled properly. While you might expect NHL teams to err on the side of caution given what we now know about concussions and head trauma, the Maple Leafs don’t appear to have done so in allowing him to return to the crease after the Bennett elbow. Rushing him back between the pipes this series to maximize their chances of beating Florida would also represent a de-prioritization of Stolarz’s health and well-being.

A quick scan of social media in the aftermath of last night’s game unsurprisingly reveals a wide range of viewpoints about what was a newsworthy Game 1. When it comes to Stolarz and the head injury that knocked him out of the game, however, Nowinski’s opinion carries considerable weight. His expressed concern over the status of Stolarz offers some worrying insight amidst what is otherwise a wave of misinformation, speculation and uncertainty. And even Nowinski, a foremost expert on the subject, ultimately had little else to say beyond “sending prayers.”