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Princeton University Athletics
Parros '03 Named NHL Senior VP of Player Safety
September 11, 2017 | Men's Ice Hockey
Former Princeton hockey player and Stanley Cup champion George Parros '03 has been named the new senior vice president of player safety the National Hockey League announced last week.
Parros has been involved in the NHL organization since his retirement in 2014 and has served on the Department of Player Safety since 2016.
Parros has been an voice within the NHL since his playing days. He was named the NHL Player Association Negotiating Committee in 2012 and was one of the more active players in negotiations.
Known for his physical style of play, Parros believes that is why he is the perfect choice for this position. "What uniquely positions me for the job is that I played the game as physically as anybody and I never once was fined or suspended," Parros said Thursday at the NHL office. "I know where that line is. I know how to protect my guys or intimidate but not injure or hurt."
Drafted by the Los Angeles Kings in 1999, Parros signed with the organization immediately following his graduation from Princeton. He became the seventh Princetonian to play in the NHL when he was named to the Kings' opening night roster for the 2005-06 season. After a brief stint with the Colorado Avalance, Parros spent six years with the Anaehim Ducks, winning the Stanley Cup with the organization in 2007. He signed with the Florida Panthers for the 2012-13 season and finished his career with the Montreal Canadiens in 2013-14. Parros completes his career playing in 474 NHL games, scoring 18 goals and 18 assists while picking up 1092 penalty minutes.
"George possesses one of the brightest and most innovative young minds in our game," NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said in a statement. "He has immersed himself in all aspects of Player Safety during the last 12 months and his selection to run this department not only will maintain the stability and consistency in decision-making that have been essential to the Department's success but also will enable it to continue evolving in step with our game."
The Department of Player Safety was created in 2011 and led by Brendan Shanahan before Stephan Quintal took over.
"Our mission statement is to keep physicality in the game," Parros said. "I'm not trying to get anybody to stop body-checking. Or even if you want to be a pest out there or send a message, there's ways you can do that. But we don't like guys being put in vulnerable positions and hurting each other. So when we see that, that's what this department is all about, is trying to curb that. I've always thought that they could have been a bit harsher on certain plays that I felt where clearly someone intended to do something that was away from the play, had nothing to do with the game and no benefit other than to disable or hurt a person. Just trying to go a little bit harder on those, because I felt it's been soft in some instances. If they seem to be intentful or directed at the fingers and hands with greater force, we're going to be looking to do something — fines, suspensions, whatever it might be. We're going to try to change player behavior."
