January 2025


Dr. John Rizos has served the NHL Players’ Association as its chief Physician’s Consultant for many years. His role is to protect players who are recovering from injuries by making sure they are cleared to play by a party who is not directly associated with their team. Pressures are often on getting the players back on the ice as soon as possible. As we know, it is the second hit, following coming back from a concussion too soon that can cause more longer lasting problems. Dr. Rizos will share his journey as he learned what our profession has to offer using several cases to exemplify what worked and didn’t work. Part of his strong message is to do a compassionate case-history, spend time to get to know the person in front of you, and find the straw that has broken the camel’s back and customize your care to what each player needs, knowing when to throw to the wind standard protocols.