A couple of years ago a kid in CT bled out on the rink (in front of his father I believe), when a blade severed an artery in his neck.
It just happened again in the UK pro league - my friend was there with this kids who saw live something I would never let my kids see in a movie. Beyond horrific, just a nightmare for all involved.
Initial coverage was that it was a tragic accident but on review it seems at least arguable that the collider attempted to kick the collidee. And the collider apparently has quite a track record as a dirty player. Police are now investigating.
Any ice hockey players (I am not one) unlucky enough to be following this and have a view?
I saw a blurb somewhere that hockey players are now donning neck protection after an incident that happened in some minor league action. I presume this was the incident.
I’m surprised at how rare major lacerations are in that game, all things considered.
Yeah I have heard about this. A guy on the radio today said that he’s seen the video. He said: “I can’t stress this enough, do not watch that video. It’s one of the worst things I have ever seen.”
Not that I was thinking about looking for it, but I will not be watching that and if I somehow come across it, I will make sure that it doesn’t play accidentally.
but on review it seems at least arguable that the collider attempted to kick the collidee. And the collider apparently has quite a track record as a dirty player. Police are now investigating.
I had not heard this part. The whole this is just tragic.
The same thing happened to an NHL goalie in 1989 - Clint Malarchuk. Luckily they were able to maintain pressure on his artery otherwise he would have bled to death.
Years ago I worked with a colleague who had all of the tendons in his wrist cut by a skate blade during a beer league game.
The same thing happened to an NHL goalie in 1989 - Clint Malarchuk. Luckily they were able to maintain pressure on his artery otherwise he would have bled to death.
I’ve seen it happen in person in a bike accident. It was an internally severed carotid so we really didn’t know what was going on, and there was no chance to put pressure anywhere. She was “convulsing” at the neck, which we were later told by a doctor was likely the blood pulsing out her severed artery.
Never played, but longtime Whalers fan. Been team-less for 25 years, but still watch regularly.
Looked like a kick to me and I have watched a lot of hockey in my day. You basically never see blades come off the ice in any way other than a skating motion or when the keeper splits This is way too high for it to not have had an intentional component to it.
Experts will have the final say, but it’s one of the worst things I’ve seen on ice.
Thanks for the perspective, that seems to be the consensus.
Note to thread and to echo others, I don’t recommend searching for the video. I nearly didn’t start the thread for that reason. It’s too easy to see death on the internet these days, including inadvertently on “regular” sites like twitter. The version I saw, by accident, was 13 seconds long and I think cut quite carefully. It was not the worst thing I’ve ever seen though that says more about what I’ve exposed myself to that how bad the video is.
In the US neck guards are not mandatory, only “recommended”.
My daughter does not like to wear one, but she knows about this incident and said she will make sure it is on!
Fun fact, in a game my son was in, his neck guard fell off in a scrum he was in and then he proceeded to score a goal. Other coach complained and the ref waved off the goal! Never seen anything like that before or since.
Took a bit but found a talk show that showed it. (they show it from a twitter feed, so maybe there it is easier to find, I don’t do twitter) Hard to tell, as he hits another player first, and leg kicks up, the buy who was killed did not have the puck. Other comment’s on several site’s talk about zooming in and stuff, and say it looks like the guys skate gets either caught in a groove or by the other players skate, than pops free which is why it goes up in the air.
The video, up through maybe 5 seconds after the hit doesn’t look bad, other than the ref trying to keep him on the ground. It gets a bit bad when he gets up and starts skating back to the bench. Yeah in person it had to be horrible, especially if you were close to the ice.
But its a pretty grainy video, and other than knowing it was real, most R rated movies have more horrible looking events. The French Chef skit on SNL years ago, was graphic. Again, very different as you know one is real and one is fake.
EDIT-- Looked a bit more carefully, hard to tell where the puck was, I think he dumped it off, but can’t tell. Looks like the buy might have been trying a hip check, but loses it or intentionally kicks his leg up, video is so poor quality, its hard to tell. The commentors that say his skate got stuck, had the original video and where able to slow it down like frame by frame.
The same thing happened to an NHL goalie in 1989 - Clint Malarchuk. Luckily they were able to maintain pressure on his artery otherwise he would have bled to death.
I’ve seen it happen in person in a bike accident. It was an internally severed carotid so we really didn’t know what was going on, and there was no chance to put pressure anywhere. She was “convulsing” at the neck, which we were later told by a doctor was likely the blood pulsing out her severed artery.
Awful, and won’t be looking up any videos.
I am curious I suppose, how did the bike crash play out to cause this?
I’ve seen the video of the impact and then a few seconds after. It’s awful; wish I hadn’t seen it.
I am curious I suppose, how did the bike crash play out to cause this?
Freak accident in a velodrome race - I was in the race. 99% of velodrome crashes people pop back up because there’s nothing hard to crash into, like cars, trees, curbs, you just slide along. In this one she fell downtrack on the steep part of the banking, so the head had a really long way to drop before making contact. If you get airborne the fall can be the rough equivalent to jumping off a one-story building. Speculation is somehow her head twisted on impact in just the right way to sever an artery.
Never played, but longtime Whalers fan. Been team-less for 25 years, but still watch regularly.
Looked like a kick to me and I have watched a lot of hockey in my day. You basically never see blades come off the ice in any way other than a skating motion or when the keeper splits This is way too high for it to not have had an intentional component to it.
Experts will have the final say, but it’s one of the worst things I’ve seen on ice.
ex whalers fan here too. used to play ice hockey up to highschool in CT. neck guard was required up until bantam level
Yep that is true. I have found as kids get older that rule is not enforced as strongly. I guess it depends on the ref.
It is a freak accident and I know that the way “pros” keep their skates sharpened, sharpening between periods (maybe shifts), the chance of this happening in the pros is higher. Most minor hockey league players, especially at lower ages/skill levels are probably going several skates between sharpens so the risk is not as high. Not 0% but probably pretty close.
Will not watch the video as this is too close to home.
I had this happen to me during the summer after graduating high school. Teammates and co-workers at the rink said I was Malarchuked (coach of the Idaho Steelheads at the time).
Men’s league, so no checking, but it ended up being one of those “freak accident” kind of things. I do not blame the other guy, not everyone is a solid skater (different than Johnson’s league), but I had a collision as I angled a guy off the puck and his leg gave way. I returned the the bench shortly afterwards and asked my team mate if I was spitting blood as something tasted off. He nearly passed out and someone else drove me straight to the ER. 30 stitches later I was fine, but I do not recommend starting college with stitches and steri-strips where you cannot turn your neck. Doc said I was lucky to the tune of millimeters and pound or two of pressure.
Neck guards use to be required by USA hockey for quite some time in youth leagues (only recommended now) and I expect the requirement to be coming back next year due to this, yet they are basically a duvet cover thickness that is only 2 inches wide. My cut was upper neck/chin and a neck guard would have done absolutely nothing.
It is “easy” to be dirty in hockey with weapons everywhere, but in my 20 years of officiating, more often than not it ends up being the freak accident
Other comment’s on several site’s talk about zooming in and stuff, and say it looks like the guys skate gets either caught in a groove or by the other players skate, than pops free which is why it goes up in the air.
The video I saw didn’t have the resolution at ice level, but this is the first explanation I’ve heard that sounds reasonable. He certainly was mixed up with someone when the skate flies up.
I’m going to spend my day hoping this is true. The alternative is too grim.
