Hockey player suffers cardiac episode, collapses on bench during game
St. Louis Blues defenseman Jay Bouwmeester was "conscious and alert" while being taken to the hospital on Tuesday night after a frightening incident in which he collapsed during a game from a cardiac episode.
Bouwmeester, 36, was carried off on a stretcher in the Blues' game against the host Anaheim Ducks and transported to a local hospital, where he remained overnight for further tests, team officials said.
Blues general manager Doug Armstrong released a statement saying that Bouwmeester was "alert and moving all of his extremities as he was transported to UC Irvine Medical Center." On Tuesday night, he was "conscious and alert" as he underwent further testing, the statement said.
Bouwmeester collapsed with 7:50 left in the first period while getting a drink of water after skating a 1-minute, 20-second shift, video showed. His teammates quickly called for trainers and medical personnel to help.
The remainder of the game was postponed. After Bouwmeester was taken away, distraught players from both teams consoled each other on the ice.
The Blues were supposed to fly to Las Vegas ahead of their game on Thursday but remained in southern California following the incident.
St. Louis Blues play-by-play announcer Chris Kerber said in a radio interview with the St. Louis ESPN station that a defibrillator was used on Bouwmeester.
Update from @chriskerber now on @101espn.
- His dad is with him at the hospital
- They did have to use the paddles on him
- He was responsive before they took him off to the hospital#stlblues— Alex Ferrario (@Ferrario101ESPN) February 12, 2020
The Ducks' television station examined Bouwmeester's last shift before he collapsed but didn't find any contact with any other players or signs of distress.
Bouwmeester's father also happened to be at the game in Anaheim as part of the team's annual Dads Trip and joined his son at the hospital, according to Kerber.
He was the first NHL player to collapse on the bench during a game since an irregular heartbeat caused Rich Peverley of the Dallas Stars to drop to the ground in 2014, according to ESPN. Peverley was quickly revived by emergency officials.
Bouwmeester has played the fourth-most games of any defenseman in NHL history with 1,241 during his 17 seasons, which included playing 737 consecutive regular-season games before suffering a series of injuries starting in 2014. He also helped the Blues win their first Stanley Cup title last season.
