In December of 1999 a fifteen year old Chicago boy was paralyzed by a check into the boards while playing hockey. Now parents are trying to decide if hockey is safe enough. In Pekin we have a Hockey Club. We think Pekin hockey is safe. 
     Jim-Yes, I think hockey is safe because you wear hockey pads and my cousin played hockey and nothing major ever happen to him. Also I think the sides should be higher so the puck doesn’t go over the side.

Heather- Pekin Hockey Games are safe, but something else they shouldn’t allow is checking. That is how the Chicago boy got paralyzed. So I think hockey has its good and bad. No sport is 100% safe.       J.J.- I don’t think hockey is safe because the goaly is the only player that wears a facemask. I don’t have much to say about it because I don’t know much about it, but I just don’t think it is very safe.        The PYHA (Peoria Youth Hockey Association) also talked about Hockey Safety. According to Peoria Journal Star Scott Yezek a member of the rules committee of PYHA said “ Its one isolated incident. With the full-face mask and because of the amount of equipment very few kids are hurt” But he also said “ It does happen.”Hockey gets a bad rap because of the contact but we are really trying to keep it safe," said Mark Kettner, board director for the PYHA. A good thing that PYHA did was they put small stop sign patches on the players uniforms  as part of the teachings of safety.  Also the PYHA adopted a “zero tolerance rule” prohibiting physical and verbal abuse.