Hockey Player Suing NHL for On-Ice Injuries

Tuesday, January 2, 2018 | 0

Eric Nystrom is suing the National Hockey League for medical coverage he says he needs as a result of a series of on-ice injuries suffered during his nine-year professional career, according to a report by the Tennessean.

Eric Nystrom
(Twitter photo)

Nystrom told the newspaper he was just pursuing his rights under the state’s workers’ compensation law. He says in the complaint that he suffered three distinct injuries while playing for the Nashville Predators — two in 2013 and another in 2014 — resulting in a permanent partial disability.

His attorney, Gregg Ramos, told the paper that the Predators’ insurance company did not agree to provide lifetime medical benefits during mediation earlier this year. He said the point of the lawsuit is to “preserve the right to lifetime medical benefits.”

Though medical benefits may be the primary goal, Ramos said Nystrom is also seeking a financial payout because he had to retire in 2016 “in large part because these injuries slowed him down.”

The Tennessean reports that the 34-year-old Nystrom signed a four-year, $10 million contract with the Predators in 2013. He played 185 games for the team before it paid $2 million to buy out the remaining year of his contract in 2016.