The cut hit his jugular vein, but the guard prevented it from cutting his carotid artery. She persuaded him to wear one.Ī couple of weeks later, Evan was at practice when a teammate’s skate struck his throat. Her 14-year old son, Evan Smolik, was a goalie on a bantam team in a league that did not require neck guards. Luke, in a league that did not require neck guards, even though the organization overseeing public youth hockey does.Ĭourtney Anderson was at home in Edina, Minnesota, when she read of Balkind’s death. He was playing for a private prep school, St. He said they have been selling a lot of neck guards since Johnson’s death, just as they did in 2022 when a Connecticut 16-year-old, Teddy Balkind, suffered a fatal cut to the throat. Price, he said, can be a factor for many parents. USA Hockey, the nation’s national governing body for the sport, recommends neck guards, but does not mandate them, leading to different policies - even within states.ĭan Larochelle, a manager of the pro shop at the South Windsor Arena in Connecticut, said the guards he sells range in price from about $15 for a standard, relatively thin wrap-around guard, to $110 for hockey shirts made of cut-resistant material that come with thicker guards built in. Johnson’s death has renewed a national debate over whether there needs to be uniform standards and mandates for neck guards and other safety equipment when it comes to youth hockey. “At first I said it was a choking device, because it went up to here,” she said, pointing to her chin. “So I got new ones that are made not to be sliced through and they’re bigger. They already had neck guards, which are required for youth hockey in the state, but Sacco said he took another look at them after Johnson’s death in October. (AP) - A day after professional hockey player Adam Johnson suffered a fatal cut to his throat during a game in England, Dan Sacco went out and ordered his 10-year-old twins new neck guards.Ĭolton and Harper Sacco play together as squirts - 9- and 10-year-olds - for the youth hockey program in North Branford, Connecticut.
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