Brett MacLean proud to retire a Jet after near death experience
Photo credit: NHLPA
Brett MacLean is another one of those tragic stories with a happy ending.
You would be remise not to remember former Winnipeg Jets forward Brad MacLean who arguably had one of the shortest tenures in Jets 2.0 history. His time in Winnipeg wasn't cut short due to performance issues or anything like that. In fact, it was a near death experience that ripped him away from the game of hockey all-together.
The young forward played just 5 total games during the 2011 Jets inaugural season. Before his short stint with the Jets, he was a promising talent in the AHL representing the Portland Pirates, notching 48 points (25 goals, 23 assists) in 63 regular season games. Just as his NHL career career was about to take off, the unthinkable happened.
Those were the last professional games MacLean would ever play as he had a near-death experience shortly after. On July 2, 2012, he suffered a cardiac emergency while playing a hockey with friends in Owen Sound. «I remember going to the arena and going on the ice and that's it,» MacLean said in October, 2012. «I guess 40 minutes in I made a pass and just collapsed.»
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Two of his friends jumped into action and performed CPR until a firefighter arrived and used the arena's defibrillator to save his life. He had a cardiac defibrillator implanted during surgery and was forced to retire as a result.
Despite a tragic ending to his pro career, MacLean has made the most of his experience. Just two months after the incident, MacLean became spokesperson and public speaker for the Heart and Stroke Foundation.
He now runs a reputable hockey school and works as a development coach at Noble Sports Performance, and has been named the assistant director of hockey at Upper Canada College in Toronto.
source: The hockey writers
3 Winnipeg Jets Whose Careers Were Injury-Shortened
3 Winnipeg Jets Whose Careers Were Injury-Shortened
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