At what age is it safe for hockey players to start bodychecking?

Nova Scotia has voted to eliminate bodychecking for peewee hockey players, who are typically between 11- and 12-years old. The changes will take effect in the 2013-14 season, which begins in September.

According to Hockey Nova Scotia, the decision came after research in Alberta showed that there was a three-fold increase in the risk of injuries to peewee players in leagues that allowed bodychecking versus those in Quebec, where bodychecking is not allowed until bantam, where players are 13- to 14-years old.

Hockey Alberta has also recently banned bodychecking in peewee hockey leagues.

But critics argue that if players are not allowed to hit early in youth hockey, it actually increases their risk of injury when they advance into leagues that permit it, because they will not know how to correctly deliver or absorb a bodycheck. Others say that without body contact, it's simply not Canadian hockey.

"There are a lot of hockey purists out there that believe hockey should always have the checking component," said Hockey Nova Scotia president Randy Pulsifer. "Let's move hockey to the 21st century. This is the direction we had to take."

What do you think? At what age is it safe for hockey players to bodycheck?