The NHL’s performance enhancing substance testing policy is about to be put through the wringer once again. This time after a Lakeland, Florida man who claims to be Central Florida’s biggest steroids dealer was arrested and claimed to sell steroids to players from the Washington Capitals. The NHL has already had a couple of run-ins with steroid scandals that seem to have blown over despite criticism of league policy. Now that some of the league’s biggest stars could be suspects in a media conducted witch hunt, it’s a good time to actually examine the league’s performance enhancing drug policy.

Past Policy Violations
To determine if the policy is a joke, we must examine why the policy could be a joke. To date, the drug testing policy has only had one violation which was Sean Hill. However, the policy doesn’t allow for publication of the substance that caused the positive test. There are two drug test failures by active NHLers that weren’t caught by the NHL. Bryan Berard and Jose Theodore were both found in violation of the World Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA) testing policy in the run up to the 2006 Olympics. Theodore tested positive for Finasteride which can be used as a steroid masking agent. Theodore was banned from international competition for two years for the violation. The NHL didn’t punish him because Finasteride is contained in Propecia which is a hair loss prevention treatment that Theodore was using and was given a therapeutic use exemption by the NHL which meant that he could legally use it. Berard’s test was worse for the league because he tested positive for the anabolic steroid 19-norandrosterone. The NHL didn’t punish Berard because this wasn’t found by the league’s drug test.

Maybe calling the NHL’s drug testing policy a joke is a bit strong. After all, the Big Five sports leagues all have drug testing policies that have come under fire at one time or another. Major League Baseball is constantly under fire because almost none of the big names have been caught by it despite admitting to steroid use. NASCAR’s policy is shrouded in secret. The NBA’s policy was written in 1999 and, as far as my research has found, hasn’t been updated since. The NHL’s policy can’t be that bad, can it?

Drug Policy Comparisons

Substances Tested For:
NHL: WADA banned substances list
MLB: Schedule II of the Controlled Substances Act
NFL: List of substances specified in league policy but believed to be the most comprehensive of all major sports leagues
NBA: List of substances specified in league policy
NASCAR: Unknown, but believed to be all including prescription and over-the-counter drug usage higher than recommend dosage

Testing Policy
NHL: Between one and three unannounced (random) tests from start of training camp to end of regular season.
MLB: For steroids, at least once with any number of additional tests. For prohibited substances, testing is only done with cause.
NFL: Ten players per team randomly tested each week from pre-season through to Super Bowl and each player can be tested up to six times during the off-season.
NBA: Random tests no more than four times per year.
NASCAR: Unknown but does include random testing.

Suspension Lengths
NHL: 20 games, 60 games, Lifetime (can apply for reinstatement after 2 years)
MLB: For steroids – 50 games, 100 games, Lifetime; For prohibited substances: 15-30 days or $10K fine, 30-90 days or $50K fine, 1 year or $100K fine, 2 years
NFL: 4 games, 1 year
NBA: 10 games, 25 games, 1 year, Permanent
NASCAR: Indefinite

Well, you can’t say that the NHL testing list isn’t world class. After all, the Olympics use the same list for their drug tests. The only flaw I see in the NHL program is the number of tests. With some players only being tested once per season, that would put the NHL on the low end of all sports leagues. If the NHL is serious about having a respectable drug testing program, they should have a policy that includes at least one off-season test, a test at the beginning of training camp, at least three random tests during the season, and one test for each player in the playoffs with another coming after reaching the third round.

I think the NHL’s drug testing policy isn’t as bad as folks like Dick Pound would have you think. Do I think those three men mentioned above are the only ones using PEDs? Absolutely not. A relatively lax testing policy that could test you after game one of 82 and never again needs some tweaking. The drug list and punishments used are at least as good as what the other leagues use. More random testing would put the NHL on par with the best in the world.