Chiefs' Knight suffers 'scary' injury

Chiefs

Discussion

November 12, 2009

BY MIKE MASTOVICH The Tribune-Democrat Thu Nov 12, 2009, 12:12 AM EST

JOHNSTOWN — The Johnstown Chiefs earned an important win on Wednesday night at Cambria County War Memorial Arena.

But after the 6-4 victory over visiting Reading, most thoughts of the players, coaches and fans were on veteran defenseman and captain Mike Knight.

Late in the third period, Knight went head-first into the boards behind the Chiefs net near Section 9.

The collision was violent and left many observers stating that it was one of the most frightening injuries they had seen.

Knight lay face-down on the ice for at least 10 minutes as team physicians and trainers tended to him. He was gently placed on a wooden backboard stretcher and his neck and limbs were stabilized before he was lifted into an ambulance at the Zamboni entrance.

“What happened to Knighter was definitely one of the scariest things I’ve seen,” said second-year Chiefs forward Matt Robinson. “Hopefully he’s OK. We can only pray for him.”

Knight and Reading’s Olivier Labelle were skating hard and jousting with each other as the Chiefs clung to a 4-3 lead. Knight appeared to lose his footing, and his momentum took him helmet-first into the boards. Labelle received a major checking from behind penalty and a game misconduct at 15:49.

The Royals eventually tied the game with a short-handed goal before the Chiefs cashed in twice on the major power play via goals by Connor Shields and Troy Schwab to win.

“It was pretty ugly,” Flanagan said of Knight’s hitting the boards. “He went head first. It wasn’t a malicious hit. They were just going into the board kind of together. The Reading guy was behind Mike. It looked like Mike went to throw a little weight into him and he might have caught his foot. The momentum with him and the other player took him right into the boards. It was not a good thing to watch.”

The Chiefs players gathered near the bench. The arena became quiet.

“It was pretty scary,” Flanagan said. “Some of the guys didn’t know who it was. They were looking at the bench to see who it was. They were hoping for the best, and we still are. We don’t know what the issues are but (assistant coach Jason) Spence and I are going to the hospital to get some news. We had our doctors out there. He was in good hands.”

There was one positive sign.

“He was conscious,” Flanagan said. “When they put him in the ambulance his eyes were open and he was communicating. That was fine. Other than that we have no word.”

Text Only | Photo Reprints

Chiefs

Slapshot Cup expands to 18 teams in second year
The Slapshot Cup Hockey Tournament has expanded for its second year in Johnstown.

September 28, 2011
Former players rally to help ‘Ziggy'
Randy Rowe felt it was so important to wear the specially designed Ziggy’s Fundraiser sweater that he juggled his schedule and planned a 91⁄2-hour drive from Belleville, Ontario, to Richland Township.

June 3, 2010 1 Photo
Johnstown sufferes an epic loss
The final seconds ticked down in the Johnstown Chiefs’ ECHL existence on Saturday night, and even though the hometown team trailed by four goals, a standing-room-only crowd began chanting, “Let’s go Chiefs.”
That chant would be nothing out of the ordinary on most nights. But this game was the last game.
Twenty-two ECHL seasons and thousands of memories came to a conclusion when the Chiefs dropped a 5-3 contest to Elmira at Cambria County War Memorial Arena.

April 4, 2010 6 Photos
Mike Mastovich: ‘A sad night for Johnstown’
Scott Allen stood on the New York Islanders bench during Saturday’s game against the Ottawa Senators.
Long Island and the NHL is about as far from Johnstown and the ECHL as one gets on a sunny afternoon.

April 4, 2010 2 Photos
Joe Gorden: City teams usually on thin ice
A sellout crowd turned out on Saturday to say goodbye to the ECHL’s
Johnstown Chiefs in their last game at Cambria County War Memorial Arena. The irony was obvious.

April 4, 2010 1 Photo
Nailers to play 11 games in Johnstown next year
The thought of loyal Johnstown Chiefs fans rooting for the Wheeling Nailers might have been difficult to grasp a few months ago.
But next season, Johnstown’s hockey fans have no other choice.

April 3, 2010
Mike Mastovich: 10 Defining moments in Chiefs history
So, this is it.
Twenty-two ECHL seasons and 1,518 regular-season games.
It ends tonight at a sold-out Cambria County War Memorial Arena.

April 3, 2010 3 Photos
Chiefs drop final road game
The Johnstown Chiefs dropped the final road game in team history on Friday night, falling behind early and failing to catch up to the Cincinnati Cyclones in a 5-1 loss in front of more than 10,000 fans at U.S. Bank Arena.

April 2, 2010
Arena confirms: Wheeling Nailers to play some games in Johnstown next year
April 2, 2010
From goalies to grinders to scorers, the Chiefs have seen it all
Nineteen seasons of covering the Johnstown Chiefs have been filled with numerous ups and downs, unexpected twists and more than enough bizarre antics.

April 2, 2010 1 Photo
More Chiefs Headlines

Chiefs

Search Results

Discussion

Chiefs' Knight suffers 'scary' injury

Do you support Gov. Tom Corbett’s proposed state budget for fiscal year 2012-13?

Contact Us