Dr. David Mulder first joined the ranks of hockey team physicians when many goalies tended their nets without masks and the National Hockey League’s goal was to get players back on the ice as soon as possible after an injury.
Mulder is retiring as the Montreal Canadiens’ head doctor 60 years later.
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Mulder has witnessed many changes over the course of eight Stanley Cup championships and decades of treating difficult patients and cases, often from his vantage point behind the players’ bench at the rink.
“Helmets are much better,” he told journalists at a gala honoring him. “The padding is more protective, and the league is aware of the severity of concussions.” We’ve made strides in this regard.”
And Mulder, guided by advice from the late legendary Montreal Canadiens captain Jean Beliveau as a rookie, played a key role in some of the changes that have made the league safer.
“The lesson Jean Beliveau taught me was to always do what is best for the health of a player,” he told reporters. “Do not succumb to pressure from management, payers, fans, or playoff situations.” That was probably the best advice I could have received as a rookie.”
Mulder grew up in Eston, Saskatchewan, where he played hockey. He went on to medical school and worked as a thoracic surgeon in Montreal.
However, a love of hockey led him to a position on the medical staff of the Montreal Junior Canadiens, the farm team at the time. Six years later, he was promoted to the big leagues as an assistant physician before being named the Habs’ head doctor in 1999.
He has treated countless NHL stars over the years, but he has also faced off against a few.
Mulder claims he made an enemy for life during the 1986 Stanley Cup finals. Chris Nilan, an enforcer, sprained his ankle and his leg swelled up like a balloon. Mulder benched him, but despite his serious injury, Nilan was desperate to play.
“He was about to punch me out because I refused to let him play.” “He’s forgiven me now,” Mulder says. “But no question, there is a lot of pressure to return to play.” With Nilan on the bench, the Canadiens went on to win the Stanley Cup.
Mulder claims that doctors across the NHL are now following a simple rule, especially in cases of concussions. When in doubt, avoid them.
Mulder’s most medically difficult game day occurred on January 29, 2000, during a game against the Philadelphia Flyers. Trent McCleary of the Montreal Canadiens dropped to the ice to block a shot, but the puck smashed into his throat, crushing his larynx and resulting in a collapsed lung.
Trent couldn’t breathe and collapsed on the bench. Mulder and other members of the medical staff worked tirelessly to get him to Montreal General. Mc Cleary arrived in the operating room about seventeen minutes after the injury, which saved his life.
“At that time doctors were sitting in the middle of the crowd, and (then-president of the Montreal Canadiens) Pierre Boivin said that the doctors must be sitting behind the players’ bench” according to Mulder. This places the doctor metres away from the emergency clinic, a rule that has now been implemented across the NHL to improve response times.
Mulder helped Canadiens players recover from concussions, knee injuries, and cancer diagnoses while also working as a surgeon at the McGill University Health Centre and tirelessly advocating for the restructuring of Quebec’s trauma system over several years.
But he is also committed to prevention and believes that the NHL still has a long way to go in terms of improving player health.
“Do you understand the purpose of a fight?” He inquires. “It is to produce a concussion, a brain injury.”
So, even though Mulder has hung up his stethoscope as team physician, he still has advice for the sport he adores.
“I would like to see fighting removed from the NHL, but that is not a popular viewpoint among the fans.”
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