On the evening of October 28, local time, an ice hockey game held at the "Utilita Arena" in Sheffield, England - Sheffield Steelers (Sheffield Steelers) vs. Nottingham Panthers (Nottingham Panthers) ended in tragedy.
After hearing the news of the death of visiting star Adam Johnson, players from both sides walked into the centre of the pitch to observe a minute of silence in memory of the deceased.
Twenty-nine-year-old Adam Johnson, from Minnesota, USA, is a powerful ice hockey star who currently plays for the Nottingham Panthers.
It's just a "bizarre accident" that happened in the game that cost him his young life. His mother, Rika, took to social media to express her heartbreak after learning the news, "Half of my heart is gone forever today. ”
Britain's "elite ice hockey league" also confirmed the news of Adam Johnson's death, saying it was "deeply disturbing" and postponed all games scheduled for the 29th.
So how did Johnson's life come to an abrupt end?
As can be seen from the live video that appeared on social media, the players of both sides were "grabbing the ball" at that time. Johnson was in the assist position, and the Sheffield Steelers players were not aiming for him, but maybe they didn't brake, maybe they wanted to take it by surprise, and the "Man in Red" collided with another Panthers player in the process of lunging forward, and the skate blade on his foot slashed Johnson's neck.
Johnson collapsed, but he struggled to his feet and slid to the sideline with the help of the referee. You can see a large pool of blood in the stadium, and according to the picture later, it can be known that Johnson's jersey was soaked with blood in an instant, which is quite scary.
It is reported that 8,000 spectators at the scene witnessed the tragedy at the time, some of them children.
"It's really horrible, some people are crying, some people are fainting," one viewer said in an interview. Another father said that his child's face turned pale after seeing the incident and did not recover until he returned home.
And on the morning of the 29th, many fans spontaneously came to the outside of the arena to express their condolences to Johnson, and apparently some people could not hide their sadness and excitement, hugging each other and crying.
Despite being rushed to the hospital, Johnson was not saved and was pronounced dead four minutes after arriving at the hospital, the report said. Apparently the sharp skates took a toll on him.
On the other hand, although judging from the video at the scene, it should have been an accident, the police have not ruled out other possibilities, and the investigation of the incident is still ongoing.
And the "man in red" who caused Johnson's blood to splash on the ice rink has also become a person who cannot be ignored.
It is reported that the Steelers' North Wing co-lead scorer is named Matt Petgrave, 31 years old, from Canada. Despite the fact that it was his skates that caused Johnson's life, many on social media expressed sympathy for Petgrave, "It was a complete accident, Petgrave needed support more than most." Think about him, he must be feeling very bad right now. ”
The fatal injury may not have been intentional on Petgrave's part, but he certainly wasn't a good-natured man, having been banned for two games last season for allegedly stabbing other players with a bat and verbally abusing the referee.