In Memoriam

A personal tribute to Dr. Tom Pashby from CSC president Emile Therien

Dr. Tom Pashby, the Toronto-based ophthalmologist who championed head and face protection in sports, passed away August 24, 2005. Dr. Pashby’s groundbreaking research in the early 1970s led to the development of CSA standards for face and head protection in hockey and other sports. Over the years Dr. Pashby often communicated with me on issues and concerns of mutual interest.

Many young hockey players across Canada and in all hockey playing countries owe their health, their eyesight and, in some cases, even their lives to Dr. Pashby’s safety initiatives. If minor league hockey players were suffering the same number of serious eye injuries today as they were 35 years ago, there would be a hue and cry from the public. Liability and insurance issues aside, most parents would not want to expose their children to the perils of hockey. Without minor hockey, there would be no junior hockey, no college hockey, no recreational hockey, and no professional hockey.

In my opinion, Dr. Tom Pashby saved the game of hockey.

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