An 11-year-old boy has died in Quebec Province after he was struck in the neck by a puck.
The boy, whose name was not released, was struck Tuesday during practice, police in Saint-Eustache, a community northwest of Montreal, said, according to CTV. He was taken to a Montreal hospital for treatment but died there on Friday.
The child was wearing all required protective equipment when the freak accident took place, Saint-Eustache officials said. Hockey Quebec said neck guards are standard protective gear.
Although police are investigating the incident, so far they are indicating they do not believe foul play was involved.
“The police service has notified the Coroner’s Office and will assist with the investigation, which is still underway. The purpose of the investigation is to shed light on the causes and circumstances of the death,” a police news release said.
Isabelle Charest, Quebec’s Minister for Sport, called the boy’s death a “sadness without words.”
“My condolences and thoughts go out to his family, friends and teammates,” she wrote.
Dr. Luc De Garie, a sports medicine doctor at the Quebec Sports Institute said such injuries are rare, but hard to avert.
“The kids play in a restricted area where there’s some flying objects going around. So, unfortunately, accidents can happen. Fatal accidents are very rare. There are dangers associated to it, and being protected the best you can will decrease the chances of unfortunate injuries,” he said
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De Garie said if a puck hits “a little bit in, you know, the bad place at the bad moment, it could be fatal in terms of the injury. But it’s very rare.”
Trent McCleary, whose larynx was fractured after being hit by a puck while playing for the Montreal Canadiens in 2000, agreed, according to CBC.
Although he was not wearing neck protection when he was hurt, he said it “wouldn’t have mattered.”
“I don’t believe that there’s any neck protection that can protect from the impact,” he said.
Enrico Ciccone, a Quebec legislator and former NHL player, said protection can only do so much.
“It’s the highest technology what the kids are wearing today, you know, and there’s a law that you have to wear some neck guards and protection face masks on the ice, it’s a law here in Quebec,” he said, according to CTV.
“I don’t know where further we can go before waiting for some professional recommendation,” he said, adding, “Of course, we have to get the material in the market to make sure there’s always space for improvement, that’s for sure. But, of course, we’ll have to wait for those specialists’ recommendations about that.”
The boy’s death was the second fatal hockey injury this fall involving a neck injury, according to the BBC.
Former NHL player Adam Johnson died in October after a rival player’s skate blade sliced open his neck. An arrest on suspicion of manslaughter was later made.
Johnson’s death was the impetus for the English Ice Hockey Association to order that all players wear neck guards beginning next year.
