Skate Cut Kills Ex-NHL Player

Adam Johnson, who played briefly in the NHL, was killed Saturday when the blade of a skate cut his neck during a game in England. The 29-year-old American was playing for the Nottingham Panthers in a Challenge Cup game against the Steelers, the BBC reports. The Panthers issued a statement calling Johnson "not only an outstanding ice hockey player, but also a great team-mate and an incredible person with his whole life ahead of him," adding, "The club will dearly miss him and will never ever forget him." The UK's Elite Ice Hockey League postponed games scheduled for Sunday.

Players encircled Johnson on the ice after he fell, and protective screens were brought out. The Panthers tweeted that the 8,000 fans in Utilita Arena were asked to leave because of "a major medical emergency." Johnson, who was from Minnesota, played for Minnesota-Duluth in college, per the AP. He was a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins for 13 games over two seasons, and the team expressed condolences to Johnson's family and friends, saying everyone in the organization is heartbroken. (More hockey stories.)