Hockey players are known for being really tough guys. They fight through injuries regularly, they’re associated with a toothless smile, they’re generally more willing to drop the gloves and bare-knuckle box than the average citizen… the list goes on.
Even so, sometimes the hockey world can bear witness to a truly terrifying event.
One of the most memorable moments of terror came when Richard Zednik took a skate to the neck, slicing his carotid artery. Immediately, Zednik made his way to the team bench where he was met by trainers with a towel and rushed out of the building. Meanwhile, blood remained stained on the ice.
The blood was leaving Zednik’s body so rapidly that you could literally see the marking mimicking the Slovak forward’s skate strides.
The video is extremely graphic, but if you want to see it it’s available here.
Zednik has spoken about the incident in the past, but recently he joined the Slovak podcast Boris & Brambor where he recounted what was going through his mind. It should be noted that this translation is courtesy of u/Amphibious_Fire.
“I saw Olli’s skate go up to my eyes so I instinctively put my head up and I felt his skate stabbing my neck. I knew it was bad, as it was skating to the bench I was thinking if I’d ever see my daughter again”
That is truly terrifying to think about. It’s not the first time Zednik has spoken about the injury. 12 days after it happened, he spoke to the media for the first time and was grateful for the support he’d been shown, and for those that helped him to survive the incident.
Zednik is not the only player to have suffered a severed artery during an NHL game. Buffalo Sabres goaltender Clint Malarchuk was also caught by an errant blade, and in nearly no time there was a puddle of blood in his crease. He survived the accident.
(H/T Boris & Brambor, u/Amphibious_Fire)
