Hockey History - The Bill Masterton Story

[tman245]

idc how small this trophy is after watching this video i wouldn't try to win the cup i would try and win the bill masterton trophy... winning this trophy would mean more to me than the Stanley cup would

[raran44]

Disregard my first comment - I failed to notice the "died as a result of an on ice injury". I thought they meant died ON the ice from an injury. My bad.

[raran44]

Technically, Bill Masterton is the only player ever to die on the ice DURING the game. There is some speculation that he is the second alongside Howie Morenz, but Morenz suffered a heart attack in the hospital while recovering from his broken leg.

[socomowner]

@raran44 He died 2 days after this hit, so he did not die on the ice

[raran44]

@socomowner I stand corrected. I failed to notice the "died as a result of an on ice injury".

My bad.

[arkham335]

Classy thing for Bill's son to say to Harris

[valdes1978]

This will happen again. It's just a matter of time. It's insane that people argue it was not dirty or it was a good body check.

[TheAiDaN2110]

@valdes1978 How? Did you listen they didnt have freakin helmets back then!

[Teal2nnr]

peggg city



[Jmoney6497]

Jkjkjk

[IoryogiJr]

@Jmoney6497 Fuck You ! Its TRUE ! And Im a Stars fan !

[Jmoney6497]

Max Pacioretty shoulda had this happen

[matteodiproductions]

@Jmoney6497 Pacioretty should have died????????

[DKfan87]

@Jmoney6497. Hey, man. Be more respectful. Now, I'm a Bruins fan, but I'm still a hockey fan. Even I saw that hit and was shocked by it. Pacioretty was contacted by Chara and Chara apologized for hitting him like that. Some people need to understand that hockey is a dangerous sport, and shit happens. Like this and the Malarchuk and Zednik incidents, it was above all, an accident.

[baubret]

A very sad event, dark day in NHL history....that also paved the way for safety innovations, and created the most prestigious award (arguably) in hockey. I can't even imagine being the guy the made the hit though, thats something you have to live with.

[baubret]

A very sad event, dark day in NHL history....that also paved the way for safety innovations, and created the most prestigious award (arguably) in hockey.

[TheHockeyroos]

Hockey is my life. Great video. Chiara

[papsou]

zach parise 's father

[MultiOreo2009]

Never again... never again will another NHL player die. At least that's what I think he meant...

[MultiOreo2009]

@MultiOreo2009 On the ice anyway

[PKhockey81]

max pacioretty almost had this :'(

[PianoXfan1]

How come I cant watch a movie... a youtube video... or anything else without some dumbshit bringing up some dumb ass name like martain luther fagget... srsly...

[habsfan93]

unfortunate*

[habsfan93]

I wonder if the person that disliked this is the one that hit him :P

[WillHapgood2]

A real tragedy. I've been playing hockey for 10 years now, and not once have i even considered not wearing a helmet, even in the warm up, his legacy still lives on.

You have to feel for the person that hit him, like they said, it wasn't a dirty hit, but just an inevitability of hockey at the time.

A real tragedy to hit the game, and fully justified he should have a trophy in his honour

R.I.P. Bill Mastermon, lost your life, but saved hundreds more, may you never be forgotten. <3

[Hockeyphile]

@WillHapgood2 You couldn't have said it better.



[xxaimpiratexx]

RIP Bill Masterton.

[bigtimcny]

Paul B------your spelling is awful, get a spell check for unfortunate

[Trisscarr]

Sad. =(

[baubret]

You have to feel for Ron Harris while watching this as although it was a clean hit, he has to live with the fact that it tragically caused the death of another person (forget the lack of helmet)

[SteelerMan5]

to all those about the helmets even though this should have done something to alert people still a huge amount of people refused to wear helmets. As a very wise person once said "for all the years of helmetless hockey, it is a miracle that this has only happened once". excluding the guy who died when multiple people hit his head with their sticks.

[jcgamer107]

4:13 that's right, it was tragic but it probably saved a number of lives in the future by alerting players to the importance of head gear while playing.

[GarthBeatty]

No matter how hurt you are, you must still be able to come back or even, fight back from an injury you suffered in order to live, if you want to live, or even go back to playing sport.

[gp75motorsports]

You mean "unfortunate".

[mitchoner]

this story is just heartbreaking. you really gotta feel for those two guys who made the hit on masterton. its clear they weren't trying to cause him harm, they were just playing the game. crazy do think they weren't wearing helmets... almost as crazy as the goalies not wearing cages, but at that time i guess it was a testament to your strength and manlihood. RIP masterton, you will not be forgotten. and i pray that rob harris will be able to get past this, but i kind of doubt it.

[SmashBrosFan19]

It's RON HARRIS you dumb asshole!!

[mitchoner]

@SmashBrosFan19 , you sound like a highly educated individual yourself. I'm so sorry for the one letter mistype of a man who's name has barely been mentioned in centuries. Do you really spend your time looking up minor typos throughtout youtube video comment posts? and then use these small errors to pick apart people with intelligent name-calling like "dumb asshole". everyones hard as nails when they're hiding behind a screen name. get fucked buddy.

[SmashBrosFan19]

No. Just the retards like you. You seem really offended. Are you used to being perfect at everything? See I can do it too, pretend that I know you. Now fuck off. Next time don't be retarded.

[mitchoner]

@SmashBrosFan19 i'm not used to being perfect. but i'm also not used to online strangers demanding perfection from me i suppose. you don't see anything wrong with your reaction to me mistakenly typing Rod instead of Ron?

[SmashBrosFan19]

Again. Fail^ You tubed ROB. Wow. Are you fucking high? You can't even remember what you're typing. Plus you're still online 8 hours later. Loser...

[kevinmaihouse]

all i got to say is R>I>P u are a great romodel

[CarmineDude]

since then... the people in the NHL had to wear helmets

[MrBarelylethal]

no not for 11 more years until 1979 and even then players who came into the league before that could chose to wear one or not, craig mactavish was the last player to go without one, and he was as late as 1997!

[silentscreams389]

ohh,, so that's why they use helmets now...

i didn't know they weren't wearing helmets in a hockey game b4

[rjflesher]

@silentscreams389 Helmets were optional until 1979.

[tim7boy]

well bad.

[kyang8589]

great post. What a beautiful story!

[derlou]

"A unforchanate hit"...Dude!! I´m German and I know better english than you do...

[Mortskcab]

In Minnesota we always rememeber about what happened On Jan. 13, 1968. The NHL has got to provent that from happening again! Getting rid of pricks like Todd Bertuzzi is the first step! (remember what he did to Moore!)We named an elementary school after him here in Minnesota.... Rest In Peace Bill!!!!!!!

[Tharrild]

How terrible, I cannot imagine the torture that Harris and the other player who made the hit went through and still are.

The trophy is a beautiful tribute to an awesome player. I'm glad to see all hockey players now where helmets. It's a shame someone had to die before the rules were changed though.

[darthlewis1]

they started wearing helmets mainly because of that inident

[grybold]

They said he was not wearing a helmet. That's what happens when you don't wear a helmet.

[superkid5647isweird]

that's true but he always wore a helmet in college, minor league, and everywhere else he always wore a helmet. he didn't where one because of peer pressure

[k9wrestling]

they didnt wear one in the nhl in those days. it was because of his death that the rules were changed

[rjflesher]

@k9wrestling It wasn't until 1979-80 that all new players HAD to wear helmets.

[syd18rose]

You have got to be kidding me - that's what you get? So in other words, he deserved it? That was the time, you didn't wear a helmet in the NHL during that time. I am trying to constrain myself right now from going off on you for such an ignorant statement. Bill was one of my fathers best friends and in no way did he or his family deserve what happened to him.

[alex22296]

Oh yeah right you expect us to believe that Bill was you're fathers best friend

[gmls710]

does know where i can watch the hit.

[darthlewis1]

ur sick u ass hole

[gmls710]

just a question ASSHOLE

[ReJ40]

I don't think there was footage of it.

[iTriedVoodooOnce]

I don't believe that there is a recording in existence, either. The pictures of him lying on the ice in this video are the only visual recordings of the incident that I know of.

[ThisIsBilbo]

there actually was footage of the play-grainy and about 10 seconds-but it was pulled from youtube a while ago

[gmls710]

really then the guy that told me is wrong or a liar oh well

[domin8erTWO]

his daughter is hot.

[ethicomm]

That footage of Masterton is pretty amazing, never seen it before. As a kid I always was freaked out about him dying and how it could happen in the NHL. Must have been pretty smart guy to work for Honeywell.

[boycew02]

1938-1968

R.I.P.

[domin8erTWO]

i'm surprised it took almost 30 years after the hit heard round the world until all NHL players wore helmets...i mean, isn't one guy dying from a head injury motivation enough?

[crazysox]

You're a cheater. You copied that directly from wikipedia : P

[pepsichewy]

lollololol

[pepsichewy]

i was laughing at crazysox's comment :( not the video...the video is EXTREMELY moving...i'm serious...crazysox's comment is funny NOT the video

[PaulBProductions]

Bones What do You Mean Shame shame as in Serves Your right or

Shame As in Its a Shame ?:)

[Bonez309]

would have lived if they wore helmets back then..shame

rip

[NewbernFireDept]

How exactly did he die?

[MNHockeyRulz]

He was on the north stars! I live in Minnesota and i never heard of him.

Bill Rest in peace!

[mirandasask]

REST IN PEACE

Bill Masterton

[Barrierofdeath]

i dont like hockey but i still feel sorry for a man who died of a violent punish to the neck

[stlbluesfreak10]

What a great piece, well done, and may Masterton's legacy live on forever

[Hellaqwik]

@stlbluesfreak10 Love the game, respect the man.

[baek7]

R.I.P

may he rest in peace

[sniperstar]

If only Masterton had lived in our time we will always remember you .

R.I.P

[spa1113]

clint malarchuck is lucky to be alive. He also suffered from alchol and obcessive compulsive disorder. rip masterson

[VampireMonkey44]

That is very tragic...and it goes to show how brutal some sports can be. Things like this happen all the time, and most of the time we can't do a thing about it. R.I.P.

[speedster007]

rip

[eQuabLeX]

RIP

[WaMBaMkThNX]

RIP

[PaulBProductions]

Helmets - Life Saver!

[simmondsbwoy]

Howie Morenz died in hospital from a multiple fracture broken leg, it ended his career, then he died 2 months later, so it leaves Bill Masterton the only Hockey related cause for a death in hockey ..... thank god for helmets ! :D

[ZachNoltemeyer]

wrong there have been deaths in italy and other places on-ice

[fatality228]

he means the NHL and there was one guy who came close. i belive his name was Clint Malarchuck. RIP Bill

[ZachNoltemeyer]

Yes I found this video because Clint Malarchuk's video

[fatality228]

same here

[sniperstar]

Me too

[metsfan2231]

JP Parise is Zach's dad

[boygenius88]

Thought so. Thanks

[pizzarules69]

And it's funny because their style of play is almost the opposite. JP once got kicked out of a game for winding up to swing a ref with his stick...luckily he didn't follow through but the ref sure flinched.

[boygenius88]

Man I can't believe a hockey player like him died like that. That's so tragic =*(. After seeing what happened to Zednik on Sunday, it gives me the creeps to even think about such incidents.

two things I wanna ask:

1. I saw a Parise in that video. Is he related to Zach Parise of the Devils?

2. They said in the video it was the first death in the NHL resulting from an injury in a game, but what about Howie Morenz? He died in the 30s after breaking a leg.

[ebeiles74]

video says "direct result"....Morenz died due to complications with the broken leg.

[boygenius88]

yeah he died like 1 to 2 months later, but it still sounds a little fishy to say that Masterton was the only player to die from a direct result of an injury during a game. It seems like we're forgetting Morenz's injury, which happened about 30 years earlier than Masterton.

But yes agreed with simmondsbwoy: thank god for helmets. I still think Morenz should be on that list though. Also, I remember in 02, Britney Cecil died from getting hit in the head with a puck during a CBJ/CAL game. So sad =(

[gmls710]

to answer your questions no Zach Parise and j.p are not related and no Howie Morenz did not die after breaking a leg. i cannot say why becuase that would take 2 comments and i do not fell like puting in a 2nd comment. check wiki for detalis

[boygenius88]

wait someone said JP is Zach's dad

[happybassist]

at least he passed doing what he loved

[DJB201]

im sure a lot of people will;scary...hope zednik will be alright

[reatard753]

i agree, and Malarchuk, he was even worse off than Zedneck......

[travis031684]

wow weird, me too

[countrygentleman10]

Sad stuff. Hockey is so violent. I got looking into this after what happened to Zednik tonight.