'He didn't seem to fall real hard': Terriers coach on Braden Pettinger accident
Pettinger was paralyzed in a hockey accident on Nov. 12
When Braden Pettinger was carried out of the arena on a stretcher on Nov. 12, his teammates did not know the magnitude of his injury, says Blake Spiller, head coach of the Portage La Prairie Terriers.
"In most instances … the participant is okay. So for us, I think the immediate was hoping and prayer that everything was okay. We didn't find out until later the severity of it," Spiller told CBC.
Pettinger was fighting for the puck in the final three minutes of his first game with the Terriers when he fell head-first into the boards.
"He didn't seem to [fall] … real hard, other than it was head-first," Spiller said.
"With that, it wouldn't have mattered how hard. It's the point of contact."
Pettinger fractured his C5 vertebra in his neck in several places, his family said in a statement. The following day, he underwent extensive surgery to mend the injuries.
Still, he is considered paralyzed from the neck down.
"We were once again hoping and praying that when he came out of the surgery there was going to be a miracle," Spiller said.
Prayer has been a theme in the team's reaction to the accident, and its members spent time with a chaplain following the incident.
Aside from that, the Manitoba Junior Hockey League set up a Go Fund Me page for Pettinger, which has since raised more than $70,000 to cover the costs of his care.
"That just goes to show the compassion of the people in the hockey world and also others," Spiller said.
"I saw a bunch of names from various people in our community that are just fans or a few businesses that aren't really involved in hockey but you know, have compassion for a young man who had such a devastating accident."