My head canon involves some lore, but I believe the SHL and the other sim communities exist in the 17776/20020 universe (see the Jon Bois-penned story, I highly recommend it), but that story tells of humanity inventing nanobots with the ability to cloud around people to prevent injury from falls, warfare, or other nebulous stupidity. It’s a tough thing for the nanos to wrap their heads around, but hockey is generally safer, as they can cushion hard hits to prevent injury, can keep skates out of faces and away from vulnerable skin, and they can even get into players’ bodies to prevent aging injuries like ACL tears and other awful things. While it doesn’t mean players can stay away from contact, it also means they are free to explore careers away from the game. Given that in the story, human beings become immortal, it lends itself well to the crazy reality that we create with our nutty players and bad ideas.