Hockey is a dangerous sport. It’s easy to forget that players literally have small blades strapped to their feet, or that hitting one’s head on the ice hard enough can cause serious injury. But the world was reminded of just how dangerous a sport hockey can be on Oct. 28, when Adam Johnson of the U.K.’s Nottingham Panthers died after his neck was cut by an opponent’s skate blade during a game in England.
Many seem to agree that Johnson’s death was a tragic incident. Most people — from fans and media to experts, current and former hockey players (including some of Johnson’s teammates in Nottingham) — have called it a freak accident. Hockey is an incredibly fast sport. Players skate at speeds up to 25 miles per hour during a game, and sometimes when a player is falling, an errant skate or a stick comes up in the air and players have little to no control, resulting in injury.
How can deaths like Johnson’s be prevented?
The tragedy has been complicated by the announcement this week that South Yorkshire Police had made an arrest in connection with the death; the unnamed individual was released on bail Wednesday and no charges have been announced. This has provided fodder for a small group of fans and former players who questioned whether it was, in fact, an accident. (There’s also a thinly veiled layer of racism to the situation: Matt Petgrave, whose skate cut Johnson, is Black — although, again, the police have not identified who was taken into custody, which is standard in the U.K.) According to U.K.-based criminologist Victoria Silverwood, the arrest is simply part of the process of any investigation into an unexpected death and does not indicate that authorities are pursuing criminal charges.
Johnson’s death has reignited conversation about safety in the sport, namely, how can such deaths be prevented? The NHL has seen its share of serious injuries before, including ones similar to Johnson’s, only one of them fatal. Minnesota North Stars…
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