Clint Malarchuck
Brett Jones Had his jugular cut with an opponent’s skate back in 1989, before goalies were required to wear neck guards to prevent such injuries. The incident occurred on National television, and Clint grabbed his own throat and skated off the ice so his mother would not see him die. Clint skated toward the locker-room leaving a trail of blood, spectators puking & seizing, towards the team trainer, a Vietnam-Veteran who took over holding his throat and plugged his arteries. Clint lost thirty-five percent of the blood in his body that day, seconds from death, pieced together by three-hundred stitches. Nine years later, Clint shot himself in the head with a twenty-two rifle after drowning in trauma, alcoholism, depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder. Despite the injury Clint again did not die, and was released from the hospital six days later. Now he coaches other goalies for a pro team, goes home to a house with no guns or booze kisses his wife on the cheek, rubs the scars on his neck and chin, and gazes awake in bed wondering why. |
About the author:
Brett Jones studied Creative Writing at Fredonia State and currently lives in Rochester, New York. Recent work can be found in Blast Furnace, The Boiler Journal, Dark Matter, Gambling The Aisle, RPD Society, and forthcoming in Tribe Magazine. |