The ice hockey player who accidentally slashed the throat of Adam Johnson is to be ‘absolutely distraught’ over the Nottingham Panthers star’s death.
Sheffield Steelers player Matt Petgrave, 31, fatally cut his opponent’s throat in a freak accident when they collided during a match in front of 8,000 horrified fans.
How it happened
Petgrave crashed into one of Johnson’s teammates on Saturday, knocking him off balance and causing his leg to lift up and make contact with Johnson’s neck.
Canadian defender Petgrave has reportedly been receiving ‘vile messages online’ from ‘heartless trolls’ following the shocking incident.
Witnesses
Panthers fans said ‘no one was to blame’ for the ‘horrific accident’, and described watching Petgrave ‘break with shock and trauma’ after seeing what had happened.
Tina Taylor, a Panthers supporter, said: ‘It was a one in a million chance occurrence and will probably never happen again.
‘It was a complete freak accident.’
She told how Petgrave had been ‘receiving vile messages online’ from ‘heartless trolls’, adding: ‘He was absolutely distraught by the death of an opponent but it was a tragic accident and he was not to blame. The awful trolling must stop.’
Julie Whitnum, another Panthers fan, said the accident was a ‘one off, it was awful’, adding: ‘It was not a deliberate or foul play.’
Johnson’s throat was cut by Petgrave’s skate blade when they collided during the match.
The 29-year-old briefly stood up, bleeding profusely on to the ice, before collapsing again.
He received immediate medical attention, with CPR performed on the ice, and was taken to hospital but could not be saved.
Tribute from his wife
Yesterday, Johnson’s fiancée Ryan Wolfe paid tribute to him on Instagram, posting a picture of him and saying: ‘My sweet, sweet angel. I’ll miss you forever and love you always.’
Minnesota-born Johnson and Miss Wolfe had become engaged over the summer and lived together in England, his former college teammate Riley Tufte told The Athletic.
