The family of a National Hockey League player who died of an accidental overdose of pain medication and alcohol has filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the NHL, blaming it for brain damage he suffered as an enforcer and for his addiction to prescription painkillers.

Derek Boogaard, who was found dead on May 13, 2011, at age 28, received a posthumous diagnosis of chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a degenerative brain ailment that can be caused by repeated blows to the head, according to the 55-page lawsuit filed in Cook (Ill.) County Circuit Court late Friday.

One of the attorneys who filed the lawsuit, William Gibbs, said Monday the NHL profited from Boogaard’s physical abilities a team doctors dispensed “pain pills like candy” after he suffered repeated injuries.

“The NHL drafted Derek Boogaard because it wanted his massive body to fight in order to enhance ratings, earnings and exposure,” Gibbs said. “Then, once he became addicted to these narcotics, the NHL promised his family that it would take care of him. It failed.”

Boogaard’s mother echoed that sentiment. “He was there protecting his teammates at all costs, but who was there to protect him?” Joanne Boogaard said in a statement release by her attorneys. . . .

— Keith McMillan

Published by the Washington Post: articles.washingtonpost.com/2013-05-14/sports/39237973_1_derek-boogaard-brandon-jenkins-2013-season