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Hockey Player Paralyzed After This Massive Hit and Now Opponent Could Face Criminal Charges

Mar. 8, 2013 8:10am Liz Klimas

A hockey player for the Swiss Nationalliga B, the nation’s second-tier league, was injured so severely Thursday night after being checked that he is reported to be paralyzed. And now criminal charges could be brought against the player of the illegal move.

According to Tages Anzeiger (translated by Google Translate), Ronny Keller with the EHC Olten was in a playoff match with SC Langenthal when opponent Stefan Schnyder checked him from behind. The check sent Keller sliding head-first into the side wall of the rink.

Swiss Hockey Player Ronny Keller Paralyzed After Being Checked in Match

(Image: YouTube screenshot)

Here’s footage of the dangerous play:

Tages Anzeiger reported Attorney General Felix Bänziger saying that the severity of Keller’s paralysis, which is not yet completely known, and the spirit of the illegal play — whether it was intentional or accidental — will be a factor in the investigation that could lead to prosecution. Bänziger told Tages Anzeiger that the investigation was not initiated by Keller but by the prosecutor’s office.

The Los Angeles Times reported the hospital releasing a statement saying Keller suffered injuries to his fourth thoracic vertebra and would be a permanent paraplegic as a result. Still, the extent of the injury will take a couple weeks to officially determine.

The SC Langenthal issued a statement saying the team ”regrets” the extraordinary and serious consequences of the play, Tages Anzeiger reported. Schnyder, the offending player, expressed similar remorse as well.

(H/T: Deadspin)

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Comments (169)

maxwillson1
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 11:47am
That player is guilty, no reason why he had to push him, he could of stoped like the other guy was doing! That’s why it’s illegal to push someone from behind in hockey!

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- 702TruthSeeker
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 12:32pm
  don’t they have to sign release forms when they play that protect the organization and other players from legal liability? what’s next, football players suing the nfl for injuries they get? any legal action would be ridiculous since it’s the risk you take when you decide to get on the ice. but WE HAVE TO DO SOMETHING!!!! yes, let’s ban contact sports altogether, this is an epidemic destroying countless lives
  
  Report this comment
- KevINtampa
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 12:33pm
  You don’t step on to any hockey rink thinking it’s a safe place.
  
  Terrible play, deserves suspension from the league, but criminal charges are not at all appropriate.
  
  My prayers to the player who took a neck dive into the boards.
  
  Report this comment
- maxwillson1
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 12:53pm
  After watching the video a couple of times, it’s clear the green player didn’t want to take the check.
  
  Report this comment
- fightsocialismnow
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 1:36pm
  Why is the knee-jerk reaction to ban everything, for everything that has ever happened in the last handful of years the only solution? Does anybody really think about what they are saying? What happened here was obviously a very terrible thing, but also extremely rare. Criminal charges are going to be very difficult to ascertain in this situation. It looks like the guy was just trying to play the puck, and it just so happened to guys feet got caught underneath him as he was being pushed. Again, definitely a penalty/suspendable, but as far as his intention goes, one can’t just based one’s reaction of the results of the play. Malicious intent is something that we hold highly in this country (yes I know what happened in another country), as far as prosecuting assault. People were saying that fights are violent and unnecessary. Ironically, fights are where the least serious injuries happen.
  
  Report this comment
- greywolfrs
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 1:46pm
  Hey Max, you obviously have no clue what you are talking about. The first player was “boxing-out,” a standard hockey play. The second was finishing his check, it was a shoulder on shoulder hit, which is LEGAL.
  
  Report this comment
- maxwillson1
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 2:24pm
  Don’t know what I’m talking about? That yellow player had that green player NO MATTER WHAT! The green player should of slamed into the boards and take the check!
  
  Report this comment
- mecanic
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 2:52pm
  @maxwillson1……..by you’re ignorant post, i can tell you are not a hockey player, but probably a candy-a$$. leave the sports to people who participate. it’s a terrible thing, but in hockey especially $h!t like this happens. the players know the risk, unlike you.
  
  Report this comment
- James
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 3:06pm
  It is a rough Game! Hope the injured player has a full recovery!
  
  Report this comment
- tyuchic
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 3:12pm
  at that level of play, anybody, including Schnyder, knew he was going to bounce keller off the wall. it was dirty, but not an unusual tactic, just a tragic result.
  
  Report this comment
- maxwillson1
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 4:11pm
  When I first saw the video I thought the yellow guy was at fault, but when you watch it again, the green guy tryed to knock the yellow guy down first. I’ve been playing hockey since I was 8 and I can tell you the green guy knocked many people down that way and this time he picked somone who was a little larger then he was. This is defiantly going to court either way.
  
  Report this comment
- jono0101
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 5:31pm
  not sure why the player in green pulled up so short, but then he put a shoulder into the other player trying to get position, and when he got run into and pushed, he went into the boards at a really unfortunate angle, criminal charges are rediculous in this instance, there was no malicious intent in that play
  
  Report this comment
- Recceman90
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 7:28pm
  Ummmmm, this ain’t Soccer! And that was barely a hit, more like a love tap. Typical European wimps trying to play a man’s sport. Yes the hit was from behind….well more like the side, the injured player knew he was there and should have anticipated the hit….at least that is what Canadian born players are taught in PeeWee!
  
  Report this comment
- integrican
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:21pm
  @Recceman The injured player not only knew he was there he slowed and tried to put a hit on the man following him and was simply overpowered and out leveraged.
  
  Ex hockey player here, LEGAL HIT! …and it would have been an unnoticed play except for the unfortunate head first impact. In this case a half-second or a foot either way would have changed the outcome. In that case we all may have never met. Hello to you all…..Keep your stick on the ice!
  
  Report this comment
- FlamingFartSyndrome
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:23pm
  Hockey is a dangerous sport, just like football is a dangerous sport, MMA fighting, etc… people are going to get hurt and eventually people are going to die, thats just part of the game itself.
  
  Report this comment
- mountaindale
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 10:46pm
  Of course he’s guilty. He fouled the guy. To the penalty box for him.
  Suspension? Maybe.
  Expulsion? No.
  Prosecution? Hell, no !!
  
  Report this comment
- HUSSAR
  Posted on March 9, 2013 at 4:36am
  Nonsense.
  
  Report this comment
- JMorcan
  Posted on March 10, 2013 at 5:00pm
  “what’s next, football players suing the nfl for injuries they get?”
  
  You haven’t been paying attention.
  
  Report this comment
Rowgue
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 11:35am
The guy that is paralyzed is the one that initiated the contact. He was trying to shield the other player off of the puck. The other guy was going for the puck. The guy that got injured is the one that was interferring with him.

All they have to do to get rid of ALL of those types of hits are to call the interference penalty correctly. If you hit another guy or get in his way when he doesn’t have the puck it’s supposed to be a penalty. If they called it like the rule is written it would elimnate 100% of these situations.

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- COFemale
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 11:49am
  Umm NO. Watch the video again. The were equally going after the puck and when the one injured tried to block him (which was legal) the one blocked purposely pushed him head first into the wall from behind.
  
  Report this comment
- jblaze
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 3:28pm
  COFemale
  
  You are wrong!! The player that went into the boards turned back to hit the other guy with his shoulder! Big mistake on his part that close to the boards and with a guy twice his size coming at him. The check was clean. It is a real shame it turned out the way it did. You cannot charge the other player and believe it will stick. They have the video.
  
  Report this comment
- Rowgue
  Posted on March 9, 2013 at 1:32am
  Wrong. What you’re calling “blocking” is actually called obstruction-interference and it’s supposed to be a penalty. The fact that they look the other way and don’t make the call most of the time is exactly what creates these situations in the first place. If it was called interference like it’s supposed to be then guys wouldn’t do it and wouldn’t be putting themselves in these dangerous situations.
  
  Report this comment
UpstateConservative
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 11:31am
Why is The Blaze obsessed with making hockey look bad??
Every day it’s a new video….

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- COFemale
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 11:52am
  Sorry Hockey makes themselves look bad with incidents like this. Hockey lives on violence, they don’t need the Blaze to make them look bad. Until Hockey cleans up their industry and slap penalties of fragrant violations, this will continue. The guy could have died you dufus.
  
  Report this comment
- rvsample
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 11:55am
  because hockey is bad
  
  Report this comment
- mbean
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 12:15pm
  because ICE Hockey is boring they have to add the fights to keep fans interested, the puck and the goal are irrelevant. Scoring is almost non existant. Want to watch a fight watch UFC they don’t bother with the skates.
  
  Report this comment
- Eastinfection
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 12:28pm
  MBEAM…
  
  Not sure what you’re watching because it sure isn’t hockey.
  
  NHL averages one fight per every two games.
  http://www.hockeyfights.com/stats/
  
  ….and averages nearly six goals per game.
  http://www.quanthockey.com/TS/TS_GoalsPerGame.php
  
  meanwhile the NFL averages less than five touchdowns per game.
  
  would it help you out if hockey made every goal worth 6 points?
  
  Report this comment
- GoodStuff
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 1:30pm
  @mbean
  
  “because ICE Hockey is boring they have to add the fights to keep fans interested”
  
  Wrong. Hockey is exciting without the fights. It’s the constant fighting that has made the sport dumb and boring.
  
  UFC? Like I want to watch grown men hugging each other on the ground for three minutes.
  
  Report this comment
- john koenig
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 5:27pm
  Cofemale and all the other hockey-hating morons should have been around in the ’70s when there were no helmets and bench-clearing brawls that lasted ten or fifteen minutes from start to clean up. And there were lots of them. Not only that, but in the pre-Gretzky era, EVERYBODY fought, not just enforcers as you see today. The game has far fewer fights and far more protection now than ever before. Every player knows the risk of stepping on the ice.
  
  Report this comment
Suel
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 11:28am
I got an idea ” GET RID OF THE BOARDS” Stupid game for very board people. You would think by now they would come up with a different lining to the Rink. Half to all most all injuries like this could be avoided just by changing the material of the sides of the Rink. Foam, Latex, Straw, something that has a give to it.

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- COFemale
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 11:38am
  It does appear to be some foam like material on the side, but I could be mistaken. Also having those things may not have prevented this tragic outcome. When the vertebrates are compressed like his was and the problem occurs around the third and fourth vertebrate, those are the areas that cause paralysis. I learned that on the doctors when they had a paraplegic and were discussing his injuries, which included the third and fourth vertebrate.
  
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- maxwillson1
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 12:00pm
  It’s a very BAD IDEAD to go for the puck straight on like that, your suppose to swoop in to pick it up and the other player should of backed up a bit because that has disaster written all over it! There are rules to checking and this is the reason why. It’s illegal to push someone from behind.
  
  Report this comment
- Eastinfection
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 12:48pm
  SUEL… get rid of the boards? i applaud creative solutions but that one isn’t good. How about just enforcing the rules and acknowledging that sometimes players break them, and sometimes freak accidents will occur?
  You can’t dress the whole world in bubble-wrap.
  As they would say in Quebec- “***** happens”
  
  Report this comment
- Eastinfection
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 12:59pm
  Blaze censors the French word for “poop”?.. lol
  
  Report this comment
- GoodStuff
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 1:33pm
  @suel
  
  “Stupid game for very board people.”
  
  Try english, then maybe we’ll take you seriously.
  
  Report this comment
- Gretzky17
  Posted on March 9, 2013 at 1:52pm
  Ok, ridiculous as hits up against the boards are far less violent than open ice hits. Why, physics you get hit you have energy you hit boards energy is dispersed. Straw, WTH, are you serious
  
  Report this comment
termyt
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 11:07am
I know next to nothing about hockey. I will give benefit of the doubt to those that say this hit was illegal. That’s fine, penalize the team and/or the player.

But let’s be careful about imposing criminal liability. Even if the offending player intended bodily harm and it can be proven, I would tread carefully. Contact sports are dangerous. Normal activities in Football, Hockey, Basketball, even Baseball – checking, blocking, tackling, guarding the plate – these are all violent crimes off of the sports field.

Prosecuting even the most egregious of incidents sets a dangerous precedent and compromises the ability of the players to play the game. I’m not saying let them get away with murder, but let’s be very careful about what constitute a crime on the ice or the field.

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- The_Jerk
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 11:29am
  That really was not a bad, hard, hit. Illegal perhaps, but bad, no. There are much more violent hits than that in almost every game.
  
  Report this comment
- 226crimsontrace
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 11:29am
  I hope he gets the book thrown at him, and rots in jail. It’s time all these million dollar “stars” start living the real life like the rest of us. Athletes and cops always get away with bullying
  
  Report this comment
- COFemale
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 11:32am
  I think this clear intentional and it was ILLEGAL move to begin with, so yes it is a criminal act. All you men seem to minimize this kind of stuff and that is why others get hurt sometimes permanently. If you think nothing of it, because it has become the norm to start fights or hit others during hockey matches. Many fans say they watch hockey just for the fights, just as some go to Nascar just for the wrecks. Then when they get hurt in the stands, they cry foul. You can’t have it both ways.
  
  Frankly, I hate hockey. It is nothing but over grown children trying to prove whose male anatomy is bigger. Frankly, pencil comes to mind.
  
  Report this comment
- Rowgue
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 11:43am
  I disagree. Things that are illegal even in the context of a contact sport are illegal for a very good reason, people can be seriously injured, paralyzed, or killed. I have no problem with them prosecuting severe situations with criminal charges.
  
  I don’t think this incident rises to the level of being a criminal act. They’re only discussing that because of the result, but the injured player actually initiated the contact in this case. To even be considered for criminal prosecution it has to be something so completely reckless there is no possible way to justify it even the slightest bit.
  
  Report this comment
- The_Jerk
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 11:45am
  It’s the leagues fault. Bar a few players for life, and this stuff will stop.
  
  Report this comment
- MCON29
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 11:52am
  @ Cofemale
  
  Are you suggesting we ban all sports because a couple people get injured? Seems like you have an issue with condemning everyone for the acts of a select few. All you Men? You are either a scorned woman or a guy who couldnt make the basketball team and instead was shoved in the dumbster. Quit being such a whiney wimp!!
  
  Report this comment
- Eastinfection
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 12:31pm
  What’s up COFEMALE? Seems like you hate everything lately. Are you ok?
  
  Report this comment
- fightsocialismnow
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 1:43pm
  To those on this site that claim they know nothing about hockey. I will cite specific examples of what constitutes assault on the ice. If you were to Google or go to youtube, you would see 2 men who are guilty of such. Todd Bertuzzi and Marty McSorley. Both hit players on the head with their stick. Now that I could see as assault because there is a deadly weapon involved. Both players, never really recovered from that stipulation. And are still in a lot of ways paying for their infractions. I am only using their incidence as a reference point, not necessarily to argue that what happened to the player above wasnt terrible thing. My heart in my prayers go out to the family of the player that was paralyzed.
  
  Report this comment
- Victory Not Vengeance
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 4:06pm
  There is precedent for legal action, though, even in the NHL. Just ask Todd Bertuzzi or Marty McSorley.
  
  A hard check is one thing. Paralyzing someone for life–and I’ve got NHL season tickets, FTR–is quite another. Look, I’m a hockey fan, and I don’t think a hard hit like this is reason to pansify the game I love, as simultaneously beautiful and rough-and-tumble as it is.
  
  That said, “it happened on the field” is no excuse to let someone face no legal sanction for violently ending someone’s career, and changing his life for the worse, forever.
  
  THAT said, players understand the risks; further, freak plays like this are definitely not the norm for the sport. This hit is news BECAUSE it’s such a freak occurrence.
  
  Hockey is played at many levels, in many countries. They now have pro ice hockey in Australia and Japan: the game is truly starting to go global. And yet, we still don’t see many players going straight from the rink to the ICU. Stuff like that is far, far from the norm.
  
  And it is BECAUSE it is so far from the norm, that plays like the one shown here DO merit prosecution. “It’s just sports” is NOT a Get Out of Jail Free card.
  
  Report this comment
- Xyskalla
  Posted on March 10, 2013 at 11:26pm
  I don’t think the result was intentional. The player in yellow probably expected to push the player in green past the puck and into the boards, but still on his feet. Unfortunately, just before they made contact, the player in green started to turn to slam the yellow player with his left shoulder, and being hit at the same time that he was turning threw him off balance, and his momentum carried him head-first into the boards.
  
  Report this comment
Warphead
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 11:02am
I grew up being taught that sports was honorable and something that taught young people values such the joy of success, the ability to accept defeat and working together as a team. It was called sportsmanship. I do not see it anymore. Sports has become barbaric, win at all costs and screw the other guy. Not in every instance is this true but so many now that I completely avoid sports. From little league baseball games in which parents get out of control, to soccer & football games that result in riots. Hockey games where it is now expected that there will be all out brawls. It is uncivilized. It is the symptom of an ever increasing mentally ill society. There are many who will defend the games. They will claim that this was just a freak accident. Well, I have to ask. When one player does to another what was done during this game just what in hell did you think would happen? Any moron can tell you that the player would be hurt. As to the severity is all up to chance which spans all the possibilities from getting bruised up or all the way to being killed. It evidently is common practice, though “officially” deemed illegal, as it has been named as checking. If we were a civilized society this act would result in the perpetrator being publicly ridiculed, criminal charges levied and a lifetime banning of participation in any sport regardless of the injuries sustained by the other player. But it draws crowds & money so it is “overlooked” and punishment minor.

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- Havok
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 11:12am
  LETS BAN HOCKEY!!!
  Come on man. Seriously?
  I bet you want to ban guns too!
  BEAT IT
  
  Report this comment
- The_Jerk
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 11:12am
  Sports has become the jungle. No class, no values, no longer a teacher of life’s lessons. Cassius Marcellus Clay, better known as Muhammad Ali, ushered in the new era.
  
  Report this comment
theromba
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 10:54am
Penalty, YES. Criminal Charges, NO. The hit was not as horrible as everyone here seems to be making it out. The guy that got hit was using borderline interference. I feel incredibly bad the guy got hurt, but its hockey, you never slow up 6 feet away from the boards and invite a check, that is the most dangerous situation in hockey.

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- Jobeycool
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 11:21am
  Absolutely no need to drive people into the boards from behind an any scenario ever.This garbage ruins the credibilty of ice hockey and the NHL.One thing to to get nice hit that slows players down and gets them off their game.Whole different thing to smash them with absurd hits that make no sense.
  
  Report this comment
- COFemale
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 11:46am
  What! The guy is paralyzed for life you idiot.
  
  If it isn’t as bad as you claim, then lets dress you up and slam you head into the side and see how you fair. He hit so hard it compressed this fourth vertebrate, which is the area where paralysis occurs. This area does not heal. This is a lifetime injury. So don’t you dare tell us or him this is not as bad as it seems. You men are dullards.
  
  Report this comment
- MCON29
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 12:00pm
  @Cofemale
  I hardly doubt that when he hit him he was thinking “I hope he smashes his head into the wall and compresses his 4th vertabrae so that he will be paralized forever” Its hockey, you run the risk of injury evertime you step on the ice. My wife is a figure skater and she turned her left foot completely around practising a jump that she should not have been doing. Should her coach be criminally prosecuting for initiating something that caused her bodily harm? There you go again with “You men”. You have serious issues.
  
  Report this comment
- andrew36
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 12:47pm
  Mcon did the coach force your wifes ankle into the ice, if not what the hell has that got to do with anything. Prietty sure the guy that hit the board didnt dive headlong into the board by himself.
  
  Report this comment
- Carrie3570
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 12:57pm
  I have seen harder hits in hockey games. It was a freak accident. No criminal charges should be applied. Injuries happen in hockey, as well as other sports. These guys know the risks. Banning the game or bringing criminal charges isn’t the right thing to do.
  
  Report this comment
- theromba
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 1:24pm
  I play hockey twice a week, people are always trying to knock me down. The player that got hit slowed down and was trying to lay a hit on the player following him, had he not done that, he would not have been caught so off-balance. After rewatching the video several times, the injured player played the puck in about the worst possible way.
  
  When I said the hit was not as bad as people are making it out, I meant that the hitter was not trying to injure the other player. The injured player hit the boards that hard because he was skating hard, until he tried to stop right in front of the other player to impede him. It is FAR better to be slammed into the boards on your feet than to slow up next to the boards and collide with them off your feet.
  
  I never said the injury was not bad, just that people are overreacting to the hit. Tragedies do not always have to have someone at fault.
  
  Report this comment
- MCON29
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 4:23pm
  @andrew36
  
  She required her to attempt a jump that she has never done before out of her skates (which is a bad idea). But she took that risk by choosing to skate. If you dont understand what im saying its because you choose to be ingnorant. The guy who got hit clearly stopped and attempted to check the guy behind him and it backfired on him. No assault was committed. He is responsible for his actions. So was my wife.
  
  Report this comment
Jobeycool
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 10:35am
This kind of nonsense has got to stop and all ice hockey leagues have got to have a zero tolerance rule for this garbage.The NHL is cracking down and I’m hoping this spreads news to the NHL.The players who hit like this often suck at the game anyways and are only there to hurt other players.

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rangerskippy
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:52am
Looked like regular old hockey to me. No one was hit with a stick from behind, and it looked like they both hit each other.

Appeared to be more of a fluke accident, where after being hit, he smacked into the wall at a bad angle.

Stuff happens. If you play football, hockey, race motorcycles….. there is an inherent danger that goes along with it.

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- kennycannon
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 10:06am
  I played hockey my whole life. It’s horrible that the kid got hurt the way he did but there was nothing wrong with the play. I didn’t even see a penalty in it. Green went into yellow. Yellow stood his ground and pushed back and green went head first into the boards.
  
  Rule number 1 of hockey – when you get hit, KEEP YOUR HEAD UP. If it goes parallel to the ice your neck is done. The worst that can happen with a head up hit is a concussion.
  
  It’s a sad thing but nothing more than a freak accident.
  
  Report this comment
- darkknight91
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 10:19am
  It’s called boarding and it’s illegal at all levels. The hitter knew exactly what he was doing. He should have waited another second until they were closer to the boards to throw his check. It could also be argued that he was behind him. All around it’s a dirty and cowardly hit. I like oldtime hockey, but, this isn’t it. They actually had respect for each other back then. This new breed is all armed up like Halo soldiers and lack any respect.
  
  Report this comment
- bpodlesnik
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 10:25am
  Are you guys serious? That is boarding to the highest degree, which can be very dangerous, which is why it is a penalty if you do it.
  
  Report this comment
- desertspeaks
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 10:26am
  agreed, it was a regular hockey game, no bad intentions or anything remotely like an illegal hit..
  you plays the game you takes your chances!
  
  Report this comment
- bpodlesnik
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 10:29am
  @Dark,
  
  I completely agree. It’s one thing to have a big hit up against to the boards, but this wasn’t that. That was a deliberate cheap shot.
  
  Report this comment
- Mil-Dot
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 10:41am
  Flat out boarding. A cowardly cheap shot by a cretinous rotter. The guy is a goon. He is only sorry that he has to face consequences for it. Hockey has gotten out of control. It is just a fricking game people. If you want to kill or maim people, join the infantry. What is more sickening is that his buddies probably back-slapped him in the locker room.
  
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- Havok
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 11:14am
  It was a legal hit.
  I dont think they teach the “Heads Up” program anymore. Who knows if they do in that country.
  I got hit so hard from behind once in Juniors, I peed in my pants.
  No call either.
  
  Report this comment
- AxelPhantom
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 11:19am
  Kenny,
  
  I too played hockey my whole life and then worked as a coach and a trainer for decades. I spent a good deal of my time as a youth coach teaching the kids judgment. It sounds as if you skipped that lesson.
  
  You are not on the ice to win a short term game at the permanent expense of others. You play by the rules and expect others on the ice to do the same, it is called trust. You break that trust by playing by your own dirty rules and you destroy the game brick by brick, a game you supposedly love.
  
  The same applies to our country when we break the rules for our own short term gain, we destroy what we claim to revere.
  
  IT WAS BOARDING!!!!
  
  Report this comment
- AxelPhantom
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 11:48am
  USA Hockey Rule 604 Board-Checking:
  (a) A minor or a major penalty, at the discretion of the Referee
  based upon the degree of violence of the impact with the
  boards, shall be imposed on any player who body-checks,
  cross-checks, elbows, charges or trips an opponent in such a
  manner that causes the opponent to be thrown violently into
  the boards.
  
  (Note) Any unnecessary contact with a player playing the
  puck on an obvious “icing” or “off-side” play that results in
  that player being knocked into the boards is “boarding” and
  must be penalized as such. In other instances where there is
  no contact with the boards it should be treated as
  “charging.”
  
  “Rolling” an opponent (if he is the puck carrier) along the
  boards where he is endeavoring to go through too small an
  opening is not boarding. However, if the opponent is not the
  puck carrier, then such action should be penalized as
  boarding, charging, interference or if the arms or sticks are
  employed it should be called holding or hooking.
  
  (b) When a player injures an opponent as the result of
  “boarding,” the Referee shall have no alternative but to
  impose a major plus a game misconduct penalty on the
  offending player.
  
  Report this comment
- Eastinfection
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 12:54pm
  Kenny and Havoc are liars. They never played hockey if they think this hit isn’t boarding.
  
  Report this comment
BlasberryStrat
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:37am
What is Canada going to do when the border is open and the likes of Feinstein deem Hockey too dangerous? Well, at least they already have their gun ban….

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midnightvelvet
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:29am
Blaze: Using “massive” in this way drastically decreases the credibility of your site, like..uh….”massively”… ya know.

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- woodyee
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 10:12am
  They’re hitting us with many over-used words – I think the worse is…I can’t say it…I’ll spell it – e-p-i-c…
  
  It’s terrible! Oh, my freaking ears!!!
  
  Report this comment
- midnightvelvet
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 2:36pm
  It’s not that it’s overused….it’s like something a thirteen year old would tweet her BFF. “OMG….I’ve got a massive zit and right before my date tonight! I could just die!” It’s poor, poor writing. Funny response though from you. Loved it. I didn’t want to make too big a deal out of it, considering the serious topic of the article.
  
  Report this comment
CascoBay
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:23am
Unfortunately, this is “part of the game”. Hockey players know the risk when they step on the ice. To bring criminal charges against the checker is totally ridiculous. Who deemed it an “illegal” move? Looks like a clean body check to me.

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- topperj
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:28am
  It’s past time to ban all activities of any kind. We just can’t allow people to do anything. It’s just too dangerous. Everyone stay in bed all day. No wait, that’s no good. We’ll all develop bed sores and pneumonia. Oh crap, we’re doomed!
  
  Report this comment
- Eastinfection
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:30am
  you obviously don’t watch hockey. i don’t think there should be criminal charges but hits like this are not “clean” and are against the rules in all levels of hockey.
  
  Report this comment
- AxelPhantom
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:41am
  Let me explain something to all of you that say this is a “clean hit” or “part of the game”.
  
  The contact made just before the check: The Green player’s shoulder was making contact with the yellow player’s shoulder, not a check from behind. It was not charging as there was the required glide prior to contact.
  
  This is boarding, plain and simple. The checking player was expected to wait another second or two before making the hit. It is something that is taught over and over at the youth level as part of a player’s game discipline. It is neither a clean hit, nor “part of the game”.
  
  Report this comment
- busterpuddles
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 10:00am
  Naahh. I don’t think it’s TOTALLY ridiculous… Hockey players know where they are when they’re on the ice. They both were too close to the wall for the victim to hit the ice and slide a little before hitting the wall and those walls are not cushioned. The slight lift in the shove put him in the precarious position landing the full force of his body on his neck. It’s true, they know what they are getting into when they sign up, but there are rules in this game for a reason.
  
  Report this comment
woodyee
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:12am
WHY is it NOW being called an illegal play?!?

Maybe in EUROPE it’s an illegal play, but a hit like that is just standard fair for us – which is why it’s now acceptable for referees to circle two jurks and let them duke it out…

…that is, of course, until a player suffers a severe injury as a result of the fight, in which case lawyers will instantly acquire skating expertise in their rush to be the first to the injured player…

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- redfish52
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:18am
  Hockey…a sport for Canadians and idiots….
  
  Report this comment
- Eastinfection
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:19am
  WOODYEE…
  
  “Boarding” is illegal in the NHL, too. Has been for a long time.
  
  Report this comment
battles
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:12am
Give a cop a chance to arrest you today and he will arrest. Give a prosecutor a chance to prosecute you today and he will prosecute. It is all about getting the notches on the gun, don’t you know. It is all about the self today. The more notches, the better the chance for promotion or election to public office. It is at least about proving to their bosses that they are doing a great job. And if you are innocently arrested and/or prosecuted, then as the police like to say: It is just the unfortunate collateral damage that happens while we are out there FIGHTING AGAINST CRIME!

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AxelPhantom
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:05am
There but for the grace of God….I remember a highschool football player who was paralyzed (quad)when we lived in Florida. Remember the pairs skater (Russia I think) who was hit in the head with the blade of her partner during a spin?

Sports, unlike games, always carry the risk that something seriously bad can happen. Kind of like life.

I hope this young man recovers and intentional or not, the checker should think seriously about his actions and the results and his part in it. The legal system may force him to.

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- muffythetuffy
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:19am
  WAS IT INTENTIONAL?
  
  A man who’s whole life was hockey, ice, and love of the game has been destroyed by another man who’s life has the the same love of the game. It had to be an accident or was it?
  
  Report this comment
- Eastinfection
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:34am
  MUFFY… i’m sure the paralysis wasn’t intentional but he did intend to “board” him…. albeit with a split-second reaction.
  
  Report this comment
- AxelPhantom
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:53am
  Muffy,
  
  He should have known better. Did he make a concious decision to throw the player head first into the boards? I am not a mind reader.
  
  He definately showed a lack of game discipline. Believe you me, IF he is human, he will be thinking about this for the rest of his life.
  
  Just so you know, I have been in hockey since I was in kindergarten on and off (girls weren’t always allowed to play). Coached it for over a decade and had a son who plays at elite levels. Watched him be checked like this into the boards like this by a player twice his weight and he went down (first time he ever stopped a game in 15 years).
  
  I was watching the telecast game from 1500 miles a way and they diverted the cameras. It was the longest 35 minutes of my life as he did not return to the ice for the rest of the game and I did not get a phone call. The kid who hit him was thrown out of the game and then recieved a game suspension. In our case this kid had a personal vendetta that he chose to bring onto the ice. He was a goon at age 12 and a big goon at 19. I know of whence I speak.
  
  Report this comment
huey6367
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:05am
Looks like a clean body check. The guy just went head first into the boards. It sucks but that is a hazard of the game. Kinda like driving a car – you may have an accident and you may get injured.

But what is with all the hockey stories on the Blaze as of late?

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- AxelPhantom
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:09am
  Its called boarding and it is illegal.
  
  Report this comment
- huey6367
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 3:42pm
  They were more than 3 feet from the boards. Not boarding.
  
  Report this comment
GroundZero is Nuclear Demolition x3
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 8:59am
Spoke to an assistant DA after seeing the “knock out” punch, he started saying they would have to enforce speed limits on NASCAR race tracks. Nothing more than avoiding responsibility and selective enforcement.

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- Caniac Steve
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:06am
  even here in the USA hits from behind while in a game are not considered “criminal acts” ..but after looking a the replays of some of them..one has to wonder huh ? we are sending good vibes 7 prayes to the injured player
  
  Report this comment
- greywolfrs
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 3:03pm
  Just change your name to Pinhead, because that is what you are.
  
  Report this comment
wilbstal
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 8:58am
playing scrabble would be safer, but most kids cant spell because of Obamas C scope Communist scghool plan

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SpankDaMonkey
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 8:55am
.
Look’s like a good clean hit to me…..It’s just a part of the game……

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- Sandy
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:07am
  Actually it was a check from behind so it was not clean. I just started playing this sport and it is a great sport to play. I wish they would take the checking out……it’s not needed!!
  
  Report this comment
- AxelPhantom
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:11am
  Actually Spanky,
  
  Its called boarding and it is illegal because of how dangerous it is.
  
  Report this comment
- Eastinfection
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:21am
  Sandy… take the checking out of hockey? are you joking?
  
  that would be like taking the tackling out of football… or the punching out of boxing.
  
  Report this comment
- greywolfrs
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 1:51pm
  Sandy is a moron. That check was not from behind. It was shoulder on shoulder, you have never played the game or you would know that. You would also know that the first player was “boxing-out,” which is exactly what he should have been doing. He ran into a guy who is obviously stronger than he is.
  
  Report this comment
- SquareHead
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 2:58pm
  MC Digger
  
  I see how you could take it that way. In MMA it is an honest fair fight, and that is what it is about, where they act like gentlemen afterwards. Whereas, hockey Is/was about the skating, and technical skills, and scoring goals. Players used to help up opposing team members that took a fall. Now they push people from the back and all sorts of cowardly unsportsmanlike like behavior that have nothing to do with the rules of hockey, and the audience loves it, while people players that are there to play hockey now have to deal with get tripped, slammed in the walls and being attached by these thugs. The same people that watch this would have been attending the Colosseum to watch people trying to fight of Lions.
  
  Report this comment
- McDigger
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 3:59pm
  Squarehead, you watched the video too right? You clicked on the link that had the video KNOWING you were going to see a man get paralyzed, but you’re innocent?
  
  C’mon man. You watched it too. Just like the anti-hunters that watch hunting videos all day.
  
  Sports are dangerous, this guy was not blind to knowing that hockey is dangerous. It sucks, but **** happens…weird **** happens. Very unfortunate, but he could’ve been a golfer instead, and he knew that risk, that is what defined him as a hockey player.
  
  Report this comment
moreteaplease
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 8:49am
T-4 puts the injury below the shoulder line.

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grumpy_old_soldier
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 8:34am
Remind me again why I don’t watch ice hockey!

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- DaveIn84
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 8:59am
  Because you don’t understand it?
  
  Report this comment
- Eastinfection
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:31am
  because you’re grumpy?
  
  Report this comment
- SquareHead
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 10:20am
  In hockey when you lack physique and skill they make up for it with thuggery, and the idiots watching thinks it is cool, they have the same mentality of the audience in the Colosseum in Rome 2000 years ago.
  
  Either play hockey, or join the MMA. But they are too wimpy to face someone face to face on solid ground.
  
  Report this comment
- SquareHead
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 10:22am
  You don’t watch hockey because of the cowardice displayed, especially of those that lack skill.
  
  When you feel like watching real men fight you watch MMA or boxing.
  
  Report this comment
- McDigger
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 2:20pm
  Ahh squarehead…You say watching Hockey is like the same as watching gladiators in Rome? Then you say go watch the MMA instead.
  
  And Grumpy_Dude, you don’t watch hockey because you’ve never watched hockey. I was the same way until I got talked into going to a pro game (not NHL). Second best sporting event I’ve been to (only trumped by 2007 Fiesta Bowl).
  
  Go to a game, then tell me you don’t like it.
  
  Report this comment
hauschild
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 8:29am
Sad that otherwise intelligent people cannot separate reality from an unattainable Utopian quest.

Free will doesn’t mean that only good things will occur in our life.

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lonwarner2
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 8:21am
Better watch out!! The liberals will ban hockey sticks!

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Eastinfection
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 8:17am
“riminal charges” ?

Sounds like a device Barney Franks uses during his spare time.

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- Landon410
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 8:36am
  ohhh….. come on man….. thats nasty
  
  Report this comment
- Eastinfection
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 9:11am
  knew that joke would have a short shelf-life. Blaze fixed it and added the “c”.
  
  Report this comment
BoJacksonFive
Posted on March 8, 2013 at 8:16am
I don’t know ’bout this. He was turning to his left….just as it appears the guy hit him. In fact, it almost appears as if the guy waits until he turns to his side so he can check him at that point.

Unfortunate. But that’s hockey….

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- Eastinfection
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 8:24am
  I agree. You’re still not supposed to check someone from behind but he was “baited” into it… the way basketball players are baited into charging fouls.
  
  Report this comment
- zorro
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 8:27am
  The guy is also moving his hands when he’s on the stretcher. Hopefully he’ll recover.
  
  Report this comment
- Leslie Anne
  Posted on March 8, 2013 at 8:42am
  The guy moving his hands has nothing to do with paraplegia.
  (If he couldn’t move his hands either, it would be quadraplegia.)
  
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