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The NHL has taken small steps towards making the league a safer place, but they still have a ways to go in terms of protecting players from themselves.

Concussion protocols were added to the league a few years back in an effort to reduce the amount of concussions, and ensure that if a player was concussed he wouldn't see the ice again for the rest of the game.

While it has helped in some cases, the system is still flawed, and it needs to get better.

In Columbus' first round series against Pittsburgh, James Wisniewski was hit by Tanner Glass, and Wisniewski clearly hit his face/head off the boards as he was going down.

He was slow getting up, and clearly dazed, but somehow he found his way back on the ice in that game.

How?

Quote via Aaron Portzline: My head didn’t feel great in Game 6. (Wisniewski went head-first into the corner after a collision with Pittsburgh’s Tanner Glass in the first period, but returned to the game in the second.) I said my back hurt so I didn’t have to do the 20-minute (concussion) protocol and go through that whole concussion process. I didn’t feel like going in and talking to the doctors for 20 minutes. A lot of guys were playing through things. Guys with fractured feet (rookie Ryan Murray), separated shoulders (R.J. Umberger) … (Nick) Foligno came back in 2 ½ weeks from a (knee) sprain, which is usually four to six weeks. That’s playoff hockey. It’s survival of the fittest.

So because Wisniewski didn't feel like going to the quiet room and talking to the doctors, he lied about a head injury, and was able to get back in the game. At times you have to take a player's word, but how can the doctors allow a guy who could barely stand up 15 minutes ago back in a physical, fast-paced playoff hockey game?

Both sides are in the wrong here, and something needs to be done to avoid these kinds of situations.

You can respect Wisniewski's drive to get back in the game and help his teammates, but when dealing with a head injury - something that when serious, can affect your every day life forever - you need to be smart about these things, especially when dealing with a player like Wisniewski, who has a history of concussions.

Wisniewski may be the only one recently to admit to this sort of thing, but we've seen it time and time again in these playoffs.

Andre Benoit was levelled in Colorado's 1st round series against Minnesota. He was obviously dazed, could barely stand up straight, and needed help skating off from two teammates. Sure enough he found his way back on the ice that game.

Darcy Kuemper took a knee to the head from Matt Duchene. He stayed in the game despite struggling to stay on his feet after the hit, before he was pulled later on. He hasn't played since.

Hide any other injury you want, but when it comes to head injuries, the NHL and all 30 teams need to ensure this doesn't continue to happen.

Winning games is nice, but if it comes at the expense of playing already concussed players and risking serious damage, it's simply not worth it.

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