http://espn.go.com/nhl/news/2002/0319/1354060.html You would think that an NHL player could hit a slapshot that stays in the rink...
talk about a severe case of death... she died... "It is believed to be the first death of a fan hit by a puck at an NHL game. "
damn that sux. you're just there to watch a hockey game and now the whole family has to deal with this tragedy. i wonder how bad the guy that hit the shot feels.
I feel bad for her, her family, and the guy that did it. I wonder if he is going to quit or something. I don't think I could ever continue playing a sport, if I had previously killed someone playing it.
"Teams warn spectators over the public-address system about pucks flying into the crowd. They also place warnings on scoreboards and on the back of each ticket." What good is a warning going to do you? What are you going to do, duck?
You know how in like indoor soccer how they have like netting up so the ball can't come into the stands? I think they have it in lacross too. They should put that stuff up so pucks can't fly in the stands at NHL games.
It's all about CYA. All those warnings pretty much guarantee that the girl's family won't be able to win a lawsuit against the NHL or the arena, although they might work an out of court settlement, if a lawsuit does arise from this...
Except that it doesn't actually protect the NHL at all. The court won't give those warnings much attention. You cannot shed responsibility by putting up a sign.
I'll have to disagree on this one. It's an issue of implied consent. That girl and her family knew that there was a chance, however small, of getting hit by a flying puck, and the arena PA announcer and the warnings in the arena and on the ticket were reinforcing that point. The NHL or the arena would win a case if that girl's family sued either one of them.
Remember the woman who sued McDonald's after being burned by coffee with the warning "Warning: Coffee is Hot!" on the cup. Similar case here in that the girl and her family were warned of the dangers (back of ticket stub and PA announcer) and assumed full responsibility by purchasing a ticket and willingly entering the arena. If I remember correctly the back of the ticket states that by using the ticket, you understand that the arena, ticketmaster, and the league (whatever sport) are not responsible for injury caused by flying bats, balls, pucks, etc... I don't think the NHL (team) or the arena are at fault. It was a tragic accident, but that doesn't mean the NHL (team) and the arena should not do anything for the girl and her family. I'm pretty sure some financial arrangement will be made. If the family decides to take it the court, I hope they fight for changes so something like this never happens again.
If the family decides to take it the court, I hope they fight for changes so something like this never happens again. What exactly could you change, outside of enclosing the rink? In baseball, people can be hit by foul balls (or even Home Runs) as well. Unless we create a screen all the way around the stadium, this will always be the case.
Well, in hockey, they could increase the height of the plexiglass surrounding the rink or add a screen over the plexiglass to make it difficult for pucks to leave the rink.
That's reserved for people like Jayson Williams, not for some hockey player who already feels like ****. Had he been goofing off on the ice and sending pucks into the stands, it would be a different story. Of course, I'm not the DA.
I don't believe that's true. Like, if you put a sign up that says "Beware of dog," that doesn't exempt you of liability if someone trespasses on your property and is savaged by the dog.
Well, in hockey, they could increase the height of the plexiglass surrounding the rink or add a screen over the plexiglass to make it difficult for pucks to leave the rink. True, but is that really reasonable? And do the fans want their view partially blocked? There are lots of safety things you could do prevent 1-in-a-million accidents, but I don't think they should be required. Let's say each team has 81 home games and averages 10,000 fans per. That's 810,000 fans per year for each of 25(?) teams, or about 16,000,000 fans per year. It has never happened, so lets say 20 years, that's 320,000,000 fans and one death. Is it reasonable to expect and protect against this type of injury? I don't think the NHL can really be held liable here. Now, they might settle to avoid a lawsuit if it came down to that, but unlike the McDonald's case, this was not reasonably foreseeable.
Wow, what a tragedy. To be clear on how rare this is, league history goes back a lot further than 20 years. The league was founded in 1917. http://www.nhl.com/hockeyu/history/timeline/1910/112617nhl.html Here's an article that has some info I haven't seen elsewhere. http://www.canoe.ca/Slam020319/nhl_cbj1-ap.html
The beware of dog sign is a non issue in a case like that. If someone trespasses on your private property, you (or your dog) can do anything you want to with them
