The Plan: courtesty tsn.ca In addition, Bettman suggested a five-step plan he intends to implement in an effort to curb concussions. The first step involves former NHL All-Star and current NHL vice-president of hockey and business development Brendan Shanahan working with the NHL Players' Association on equipment reforms. The second step would be to revise the current concussion protocol. If a player is suspected of being concussed during a game, that player must then be removed from the bench and taken to a quiet area where the player can be assessed by a medical doctor, who is not the team's athletic therapist. The player will then be given a SCAT test before he is cleared to return to play. Third, in dealing with players who are deemed repeat offenders on illegal hits to the head, penalties will be assessed to not only the player, but also to the team and/or head coach. Fourth, safety engineers will do a full evaluation of the playing area in each of the league's 30 rinks. Individual arenas will have to conform to higher safety standards (for example plexiglass versus seamless glass in some rinks). The fifth and final step will be the assembling of a blue ribbon panel to continue to look at the issue of concussions going forward. That panel would consist of Shanahan, along with recently-retired defenceman Rob Blake, as well as Tampa Bay Lightning general manager Steve Yzerman and Dallas Stars GM Joe Nieuwendyk.