Hockey is a Game of Brothers

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Before I commence this article, I’d like to state why I am writing this in the first place. I’m sure that fans of the hockey and even fans of Sports as a whole have already heard or seen this; Rich Peverley having a cardiac arrest on the bench in the middle of a hockey game. If you haven’t seen the video already, here it is:

Everything was happening as it usually would’ve happened; two teams facing off against each other on the ice, with the players on the bench and the fans behind them cheering them on. However, March 10th, 2014 was going to be completely different. Midway through the 1st period, the Dallas Stars were on the rush against the Columbus Blue Jackets, losing 1-0. There were sounds of screams for help coming from Stars Head Coach Lindy Ruff and the refs soon noticed, and play was stopped at 13:37 in the 1st period. What had happened was a Dallas Stars Forward, Rich Peverley, had collapsed on the bench and no one knew what actually happened to him. Ruff was screaming for an assistance of a Doctor and a lady from the stands was called upon, initially assisting him, until team doctors got to him. Peverley did in fact die, but it was only for a short while until a defibrillator brought him back to life, causing a sigh of relief from the Dallas Stars organization. The fact that the doctors only had to use the defibrillator once to bring him back was reassuring.

The only reason their even was a defibrillator at the arena was because of a similar incident that happened on November 21st, 2014. A Detroit defenceman, Jiří Fischer, collapsed on the bench because of cardiac arrest. He was revived by a defibrillator but almost did die because of the fact that it took them that long to get a defibrillator. Ever since then, the NHL has made it mandatory for a defibrillator to be kept at an NHL arena at all times.

Rich Peverley got a cardiac arrest because of an irregular heartbeat that was discovered in the offseason. He was experiencing symptoms of his atrial fibrillation days before the game against of Blue Jackets, saying he felt tired and sluggish. As we know, he did indeed suffer a cardiac event but was brought back to life. Peverley is scheduled to have the heart procedure that he planned to have in the offseason because his season is over.

Onto the title of this article; why is hockey a game of brothers? It’s quite simple actually, this incident explains it perfectly; when Peverley collapsed on the bench, his teammates rushed to his support, worried about what had happened to their brother. The faces that his teammates had were of disbelief and sorrow; they experienced a loss of innocence. The brother they go to battle with day in and day out is in a critical situation between life and death and there’s nothing they can do except ponder about the thousands of things whirling through their heads. Hockey is the toughest out of the five major sports (Basketball, Baseball, Football, Soccer and the aforementioned Hockey) and it’s in part to its physicality and the endurance you need to be able to play it and you can’t forget that you have to do all of it with skates on ice. Playing a demanding sport like Hockey bonds a team more than other Sports so one has to take all this into factor before talking about how the Dallas Stars players took it in.

The Dallas Stars game against the Columbus Blue Jackets on March 10th, 2014 was postponed to a date that is yet to be determined because players on both teams were in no condition to play; they were too emotionally distraught and shocked.

To make this whole situation any worse, Dallas had to play the best team in the NHL, the St Louis Blues, in a game that is vital for the Stars’ playoff hopes. Like any other Cinderella story, the Stars came back and won 3-2 with a game winning goal in Overtime by Captain Jamie Benn. He was looked up to for leadership and a response in this gloomy situation and respond he did as he buried the game winner. As of now, the Dallas Stars are 8th place in the Western Conference, pushing themselves to a 1-0-1 record since the incident. They have the tiebreaker over the Phoenix Coyotes as they both have 75 point and 5 points over the next closest which are the Vancouver Canucks. The Stars are on pace to make the playoffs for the first time since the 2007-08 season where they lost to the eventual champion, the Detroit Red Wings, 4-2 in the Conference Finals.

If there was ever a reason to cheer for the Dallas Stars, you got one. I am sure that in the hearts of the players, the 2013-14 NHL season is dedicated to Rich Peverley. For such a tragic event, there was one good thing brought out of this; Rich Peverley having cardiac arrest made the Dallas Stars stronger as a team and united as one. If I were any team facing the Stars in the next month and beyond, I’d be afraid because a group of people all fighting for one purpose are not to be taken jokingly.

I wish Rich Peverley a speedy recovery and his family, friends and teammates an easier time going through this situation as it can really shake up a person; I speak from personal experience.