Support is growing in Canada for a ban on body checks in amateur hockey leagues for players younger than 15, according to a new survey.

The public opinion survey released Monday by the Rick Hansen Institute asked more than 2,000 Canadians whether hockey leagues should delay body checking until 15 years of age, and 77 per cent of respondents said yes, with 17 per cent saying no.

Asked whether a national policy to eliminate bodychecking for hockey players age 11 to 12 should be put in place, 88 per cent responded favourably. The findings were similar for children 13 and 14.

The survey sought feedback from representative samples that included parents who have kids playing hockey and fans of the game.

The Canadian-based Rick Hansen Institute, which focuses on researching spinal cord injuries, conducted the survey in partnership with ThinkFirst, a national brain and spinal injury non-profit organization, and the Canadian Pediatric Society.

In addition to the age limit on body checking, the study also found majority support from fans and parents on the idea of having youth only play others of the same age.

Such changes could reduce the number of serious head and spine injuries among hockey youth in Canada without affecting enjoyment of the game, said Bill Barrable, CEO of the Rick Hansen Institute said in a statement announcing the survey’s findings.

“These proposals – backed by growing medical evidence, and some of which are already in place around the world except in Canada – could dramatically reduce sports-related injuries and save Canada’s health care system millions of dollars in emergency, treatment and rehab care,” he said.

In amateur hockey, bodychecking is allowed in some jurisdictions for players as young as 11. An estimated 15 per cent of all injuries to 9- to 16-year-old players in amateur hockey are attributed to concussions.

Youth under the age of 14 are especially vulnerable to brain trauma, said Dr. Charles Tator, co-founder of ThinkFirst, a national brain and spinal injury non-profit organization.

“Medical science has shown strong evidence pointing to lifelong consequences from such injuries that can diminish the quality and length of life in later years,” he said.

Despite the concerns over serious injury stemming from rough ice-play, some hockey players are saying the ban is a bad idea.

Justin Mendes, the Pickering teen whose neck was broken in February after an illegal bodycheck, said a ban wouldn’t “help the situation.”

Instead, he says, youth hockey players should be learning the proper way to body check while they’re just starting out in the game and are ripe for learning.

“When you’re older, people like to act tougher and they don’t care really, what people tell them,” Mendes told CTV News. “They just want to go out there and hit someone.”

Mendes says the hits are part of the game and learning how to give one and take one is how players can play fair and safe.

At a motivational speaking event at Regent Park/Duke of York Public School, NHL legend Willie O’Ree told CTV News children need to learn bodychecking at a young age.

“I learned it when I was 12 or 13, how to bodycheck,” he said.

Despite the overwhelming support for a ban in amateur hockey, only eight per cent of the study’s respondents said they would pull their child from hockey.

With a report from CTV Toronto’s Ashley Rowe