The NHL is working in conjunction with the NHL Player's Association to see cocaine, a drug the league fears has become increasingly popular among players in recent years, added to the list of banned substances for which the league monitors, according to a report from Rick Westhead of TSN.
While NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly refused to refer to the increased use of the drug as a "crisis," he did make clear that the league is concerned with the development.
"The number of [cocaine] positives are more than they were in previous years and they're going up," Daly said, per Westhead. "I wouldn't say it's a crisis in any sense. What I'd say is drugs like cocaine are cyclical and you've hit a cycle where it's an 'in' drug again.
"I'd be shocked if we're talking about a couple dozen guys. I don't want to be naïve here ... but if we're talking more than 20 guys I'd be shocked. Because we don't test in a comprehensive way, I can't say."
As Westhead notes, under the currently construction of the CBA, players are subject to two random tests a season. Teams are subject to full-team testing once during training camp and once during the regular season.
Individual players can, at any time, be selected for random testing.
The results of these tests have, per Daly, shown an increase in use of what he deems, "party drugs," or drugs commonly associated with a party lifestyle.
"One major point of emphasis is party drugs like coke, ecstasy, molly, those types of drugs," Daly said, per Westhead. "When bad things happen, we try to address the bad things."
Just this offseason, former Los Angeles King and current New York Ranger Jarret Stoll was arrested at a Las Vegas casino pool on possession of ecstasy. Former King Mike Richard as arrested at the border between the Canada and U.S., reportedly carrying an illegal painkiller prescription.
Per Westhead, last season, the Toronto Maple Leafs became so concerned that Leafs players were "using cocaine or were associating with those who were," a "senior" Maple Leaf executive met with Toronto Police Service officers to address the possible issue.
Rich Clune, a longtime AHLer who spent parts of 2012-13 and 2013-14 with the Nashville Predators, was asked by the league to speak with first-year players about drug abuse. In a heartfelt piece penned for The Players Tribune, Clune admits that as a former drug user, he was and is not alone.
Issues like drug use and abuse, especially so-called "party drugs," in the NHL is especially concerning when star players like Patrick Kane are faced with sexual assault charges as a result of a one-night stand that came after a night of partying. While Kane has never been associated with drug use, it's not a far distance to travel from alcohol and partying to drug use.
Interestingly, per TSN's report, NHL security staff feel that established veteran players are more likely to use recreational drugs like cocaine and ecstasy.
