Protecting the teeth of Sudbury's junior hockey team is the job of local denturist Allan Delsaut, DD RDT, who fabricates new mouthguards for the entire team every year.
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SUDBURY, ON: Many parents are still getting their children outfitted for the fall sports. From shin pads to helmets, keeping children safe and injury free is important for everyone. Mouthguards are an essential piece of safety equipment for protecting teeth and oral tissue. They also play a role in reducing concussion type injuries.
There are three different types of mouthguards: stock, boil-and-bite and custom-fitted which are fabricated by a denturist.
Allan Delsaut DD RDT, knows all about custom-fitted mouthguards. In his local Sudbury Denture practise, Delsaut fabricates mouthguards for the Sudbury Wolves, the much loved junior hockey team in Sudbury, ON.
Delsaut started working with the Sudbury Wolves in 1972. Just like other parents, he got involved when his kids started playing hockey and lacrosse. According to Delsaut, mouthguards become really critical at the higher levels of hockey play.
“All hockey players need a new mouthguard very year” stated Delsaut, “everyone’s mouth changes and since most of the players are teenagers their mouths really change, they could also be missing teeth.”
“And mouthguards really get beaten up” laughs Delsaut, "and chewed up and I don’t know what else".
The Wolves arrive to Delsaut’s clinic in packs of 4 or 5 over a period of a few days. Each player gets a new set of impressions and then the mouthguards are fabricated in Delsaut’s Sudbury clinic.
“We use the same materials in our mouthguards that the professional players use” reports Delsaut. It’s a very soft laminated or layered material called ProGuard. And the quality makes a difference as to whether a player is comfortable and can talk and breathe easily breath when playing hard.
“If a mouthguard in any way interferes with a player’s game, they simply won’t wear it which defeats the purpose” stated Delsaut.
According to the American Dental Association: Athletes are 60 times more likely to suffer harm to the teeth if they’re not wearing a mouthguard. They have issued a tip sheet 'The importance of using mouthguards' that explains: choosing and caring for mouthguards.
Delsaut has fabricated mouthguards for hundreds of Sudbury Wolves players – even some great ones like Randy Carlyle. Carlyle, a Sudbury native and Wolves player in 1973-75 is a former Toronto Maple Leaf players and coach, and later a Stanley Cup winner in 2007 with the Annaheim Ducks.
Says Delsaut, “Heck I’ve been around so long many of the players have even retired from the NHL.”
When asked if he was a Wolves Fan, Delsaut didn’t miss a beat – ‘You bet, I don’t miss a game!’
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Allan Delsaut, DD RDT has been creating smiles in GTA Sudbury for nearly 40 years. The son of a dental technician, Allan learned the importance of restoring self-esteem by creating great smiles. In his onsite lab, Delsaut fabricates complete and partial dentures. For patients requiring longer term solutions, Deslaut as well as dental implant supported dentures. He has clinics in Sudbury, Chelmsford, Sturgeon Falls and Elliot Lake.
The Sudbury Wolves is a junior ice hockey team that has played within the Ontario Hockey League since 1972. Adored by the GTA Sudbury fans, it often ranks near the top of the OHL in attendance. In 2006-2007, the Sudbury Wolves won the Bobby Orr Trophy for First Overall in the Eastern Conference.
Over 113 Sudbury Wolves Players have been drafted into the National Hockey League including Randy Carlyle (Toronto 1976); Benoit Pouliot (Minnesota 2005) Jared Staal (Phoenix 2008 ) and Mark Staal (NY 2005).