Adam Johnson’s family pay tribute to the hockey player who died after his neck was sliced by Matt Petgrave during Penguins game

• The aunt of former NHL player Adam Johnson has paid tribute to her nephew who she said ‘had a piece of her heart’ 
• Johnson, 29, died over the weekend after his throat was cut by an opponent’s skate blade, in what has been described as a a freak accident 
• Sheffield Steelers player Matt Petgrave collided with Johnson in front of 8,000 fans at the match in England, slicing his throat in the process

The family of former NHL player Adam Johnson has paid tribute to him as a ‘generous young man’ after he had his throat slashed in a horrific ‘freak accident’. 

Kari Johnson has said her nephew, 29, had ‘a piece’ of her heart after his death at the weekend when his throat was cut with a boot blade. 

Sheffield Steelers player Matt Petgrave, 31, collided with Johnson in front of 8,000 horrified fans in Sheffield, England on Saturday.

The 29-year-old, who played for the Nottingham Panthers, briefly stood up, bleeding profusely on to the ice, before collapsing again during the game.

Speaking to the Star Tribune, Johnson’s aunt Kari Johnson said Johnson and his brother Ryan are like her own sons.

Kari Johnson is seen here with her nephew Adam Johnson who died at the weekend following the freak accident

Sheffield Steelers player Petgrave fatally cut Johnson’s throat with his blade in what’s been described as a ‘freak accident’ when they collided 

‘They were my boys and each one of them had a piece of my heart.

‘He wanted to be the best at whatever it was he was doing. He just wanted to be good, but he didn’t want all the fanfare that goes with it.

‘He wanted to treat his friends all the time. If one of them didn’t have a job or something, Adam would buy steaks for everybody so they could grill them.’

Kari also told the outlet that before he had left for England he had visited his grandmother but was late, as he was out buying an engagement ring.

‘He hadn’t [proposed] yet because he wanted to do something big and special. ‘

The incident on Saturday happened in the 35th minute of the Elite Ice Hockey League match at Sheffield’s Utilita Arena. The game was later abandoned.

Footage shows Petgrave crash into one of Johnson’s teammates which causes him  to lose balance before his leg lifted up and made contact with Johnson’s neck. 

Johnson then manages to get to his feet, with blood pouring on to the ice. He was then helped by a referee and a teammate as he headed off the rink, but collapsed. 

Johnson received immediate medical attention, with CPR performed on the ice, and was taken to hospital but could not be saved. 

After the incident, players formed a shield to hide what was happening from public view. 

Adam Johnson in action for the Pittsburgh Penguins in the NHL in Columbus, Ohio, in 2017 

Matt Petgrave (file image) crashed into one of Johnson’s teammates in a collision which saw him lose balance before his leg lifted up and made contact with Johnson’s neck

Supporters have rallied around ‘distraught’ Matt Petgrave who accidentally killed Johnson with his boot blade. 

His girlfriend Ryan Wolfe has paid tribute on Instagram, posting a picture of him and saying: ‘My sweet, sweet angel. I’ll miss you forever and love you always.’

Former Canadian hockey star Sean Avery has also since suggested that the kick from Petgrave that killed Johnson was intentional. 

In a talk with Fox jost Jesse Watters, Avery said: ‘I’ve watched it, it’s terrible, it’s tough to watch.

‘Did this kid make a move that was very unorthodox? Do I think he was trying to make contact of some sort? Absolutely.’

‘Do I think he woke up and said I’m going to murder somebody today? No.’

He went on to speak about how the sport should reconsider the titanium thin blades that are currently on the bottom of players’ skates.

‘I saw the hit…I saw the leg move. It shouldn’t have been where it was. It’s terrible. I can’t even watch the video back,’ he said.

The freak accident is still being investigated by South Yorkshire Police.

Nottingham Panthers player Adam Johnson and his girlfriend Ryan Wolfe at a family wedding in June 2022 

Sean Avery has suggested the kick from Petgrave that killed Johnson was intentional – but he refused to call it a homicide when pressed by Fox host Jesse Watters

Petgrave has played in eight different leagues during his career, and has been described by Fox presenters and people online as a ‘dirty player.’

He is currently the Elite Ice Hockey League’s most penalized player in the 2022-23 league, according to EuroHockey.

Petgrave has accrued a total of 129 PIM, penalty infraction minutes.

And between 2013 to 2017, he was listed as having 328 career penalty minutes, according to VredsHockey.

In January 2022 Teddy Balkind, who was in 10th grade at St Luke’s, a private school in Connecticut, died after having his throat cut by another player’s blade.

The same thing also happened to Clint Malarchuk in 1989, in an NHL game between his Buffalo Bares team and the St Louis Blues.

Malarchuk survived but needed 300 stitches to close a six-inch wound. He lost 1.5 liters of blood.

Source: Read Full Article